Viewing entries tagged
nostalgia
It’s been a while since I posted, but I just finished playing Emily Is Away Too, and I'm feeling emotional and sad. I often fail to connect with games that lean on nostalgia and retrospective themes, but for some reason this series of little games has managed to rise up and punch me in the gut of memories with gusto. It's clear this sequel has had something of an effect on me, but I'm a little unsure as to what that effect might have been.
I've never really considered myself to be a 'retro gamer', as I rarely go looking for older titles to play when there are modern options available. It's not that I have anything against older games, in fact I fondly remember many classics and hold them in high regard. Perhaps playing those games when they came out means that I'm not left pining for something I never experienced, but whatever the reason, I'm just not into playing old games on outdated engines.
There are times that wonder if anticipation ever really pays off in a satisfying way, as it often feels better to anticipate something than actually experience it. I suppose that might sound like a relatively ominous way to open a post about a game, but I can't help thinking about all the anticipation that was built up inside me, and whether or not it hindered my overall enjoyment.
I often post about a game because I feel like I have something to say that actually has a point beyond whether or not I think it's good or not. I find myself enjoying just about every game I play for one reason or another, but not every game gives me something meaty enough to talk about. However, every now and then I find myself wanting to say something about a game that ultimately doesn't need to have much said about it at all.
I always think it's a little weird to think of internet trends in terms of eras and generations. Then again, we've been interacting and socialising online for a long time now, so it's bound to reflect the ups and downs of real life to some extent. While I wasn't young enough for the super early stages of the internet, I was definitely around for the ICQ/Netscape/MySpace era.
I've never been one of those people who believes media classics to be untouchable and something pristine and perfect. Perhaps I'm not that sentimental when it comes to the things I remember enjoying as a kid, or maybe I've seen nostalgia used far too often in marketing empty promises. Actually, I put it down to being a fan of Blade Runner.
For a new console to have a killer game available on release day, it usually takes something special. Recently a whole bunch of people got excited about a new Zelda title gracing the shelves along with the Nintendo Switch. So much so, that the game has outsold the console (at time of writing). When I think back to awesome launch titles I've played, I inevitably draw a blank. Often it's much easier to remember the disaster of a game like Lair (PS3 launch), or some shoe-horned Kinect driven abomination.
Fighting games have been favourites of mine ever since I played Mortal Kombat in the arcades as a kid. Sure I was terrible at them, but I've always enjoyed how different characters are designed and what super cool moves they would let you perform. They each had an element of fantasy as they shot energy beams at each other, or teleported around the stage with impressive flourishes of style.
