Chris Trottier on Nostr: Well, it finally happened. I watched a YouTube video where some guy states ...
Well, it finally happened. I watched a YouTube video where some guy states emphatically that 6th generation consoles (Dreamcast, PS2, Xbox, Gamecube) were the pinnacle of gaming, and we’ve all been on a downward spiral since.
This is hilarious to me because, right in the midst of the 6th generation, I was hearing about how that era was terrible, and how 2nd, 3rd, and 4th generation consoles were empirically better.
But all right, let’s get into why this guy is convinced the 6th generation is “the best”.
Generational Leaps. The YouTuber maintains there was no generational leap like the one between PS1 to PS2. Don’t make me laugh. I’ve been gaming since the Atari 2600.
You want a generational leap? Try going from that to the C64/NES/SMS. Comparatively, the leap from the C64/NES/SMS to Amiga/SNES/Genesis was smaller. And thereafter, the leap from the Amiga/SNES/Genesis to Win95/N94/PS2 was smaller.
See a pattern? It’s called the law of diminished returns. As technology improves, improvements themselves become less noticeable. That is, until you look back and notice how super futuristic games now seem primitive.
Ownership & Finished Products. The YouTuber said that in the 6th generation, you could buy a physical disc and truly own it.
This is true, and sounds good until you realize that the 6th generation had awful backwards compatibility. You couldn’t play an N64 game on a GameCube. You couldn’t play Saturn games on the Dreamcast. The PS2 at first had backwards compatibility with the PS1 until Sony removed it in later revisions of the PS2 hardware! Ownership of games only went so far as ensuring your old hardware didn’t break down. That didn’t seem like a problem back then, but as time goes on, that issue becomes more and more problematic – especially with disc rot and lasers simply breaking down.
The PC side was even worse when it came to ownership. Okay, you had physical discs, but you also had incredibly annoying and obtuse DRM. At times, the only way to have a good gaming experience was to pirate.
I look at this problem and I go, “Thank God for better backwards compatibility and services like GOG.com.”
Speaking of which, services like GOG.com ensure that I really do own my games, and I can do so without owning discs.
No DLC or Microtransactions. This one makes me laugh because expansion packs already were a thing back then, and that was a type of DLC. And then there was the practice of reselling the same game again and again with minimal improvements. Street Fighter was infamous for this. Micro-transactions are indeed annoying, but I personally play few games that have that problem.
Cheat codes. I never used them, but I also remember them being a bigger deal in the 3rd generation than in the 6th generation.
No handholding. Yeah, I hate handholding but I also remember this actually becoming a problem specifically in the 6th generation when every game seemed to give you a radio buddy who would put you through a tutorial at the beginning of the game. These tutorials were often unskippable. At least with games I play right now, I have the option to skip.
No Empty Open Worlds. This one is also funny to me because it is in the 6th generation that the open world concept really took off. As in, GTA changed everything.
You know what’s funny, though? I often hear gamers complain about the 6th generation for being too linear and not giving players enough of a choice. It looks like you’re in an open world, but you’re really not.
But what I think is more funny about this is that, you know that new linear games are still being made now, right? Why don’t you play them?
Demise of B (or AA) games. The YouTuber insists that modern gaming is all about AAA titles of indie games, and that no B or AA games exist anymore.
Meanwhile, I’m scratching my head. Does this guy not realize there are entire publishers devoted to making B/AA titles? For example, Devolver Digital, Obsidian, Warhorse, Kalypso, etc.
Furthermore, even major publishers are putting out B/AA titles still. Bethesda released Hi-Fi Rush this year. EA didn’t just make Unravel, they gave it a sequel.
In fact, I’d say we’re in a golden age of B/AA games – where games with small teams and small budgets look almost as good as AAA but have more imagination.
I don’t get excited for the next Assassin’s Creed or Call of Duty. But I sure as hell sit up and take notice when the Talos Principle 2 got released this year.
That YouTuber also accuses today’s indie games of being “dull” and “uninteresting”. I’m sorry, excuse me? You’re really telling me that games like Cuphead, Hotline Miami, and Iconoclasts are dull and uninteresting? Do you even have a soul?
I swear to God, each new generation of retro gamers sees the past in deeper and deeper shades of rosiness.
This is hilarious to me because, right in the midst of the 6th generation, I was hearing about how that era was terrible, and how 2nd, 3rd, and 4th generation consoles were empirically better.
But all right, let’s get into why this guy is convinced the 6th generation is “the best”.
Generational Leaps. The YouTuber maintains there was no generational leap like the one between PS1 to PS2. Don’t make me laugh. I’ve been gaming since the Atari 2600.
You want a generational leap? Try going from that to the C64/NES/SMS. Comparatively, the leap from the C64/NES/SMS to Amiga/SNES/Genesis was smaller. And thereafter, the leap from the Amiga/SNES/Genesis to Win95/N94/PS2 was smaller.
See a pattern? It’s called the law of diminished returns. As technology improves, improvements themselves become less noticeable. That is, until you look back and notice how super futuristic games now seem primitive.
Ownership & Finished Products. The YouTuber said that in the 6th generation, you could buy a physical disc and truly own it.
This is true, and sounds good until you realize that the 6th generation had awful backwards compatibility. You couldn’t play an N64 game on a GameCube. You couldn’t play Saturn games on the Dreamcast. The PS2 at first had backwards compatibility with the PS1 until Sony removed it in later revisions of the PS2 hardware! Ownership of games only went so far as ensuring your old hardware didn’t break down. That didn’t seem like a problem back then, but as time goes on, that issue becomes more and more problematic – especially with disc rot and lasers simply breaking down.
The PC side was even worse when it came to ownership. Okay, you had physical discs, but you also had incredibly annoying and obtuse DRM. At times, the only way to have a good gaming experience was to pirate.
I look at this problem and I go, “Thank God for better backwards compatibility and services like GOG.com.”
Speaking of which, services like GOG.com ensure that I really do own my games, and I can do so without owning discs.
No DLC or Microtransactions. This one makes me laugh because expansion packs already were a thing back then, and that was a type of DLC. And then there was the practice of reselling the same game again and again with minimal improvements. Street Fighter was infamous for this. Micro-transactions are indeed annoying, but I personally play few games that have that problem.
Cheat codes. I never used them, but I also remember them being a bigger deal in the 3rd generation than in the 6th generation.
No handholding. Yeah, I hate handholding but I also remember this actually becoming a problem specifically in the 6th generation when every game seemed to give you a radio buddy who would put you through a tutorial at the beginning of the game. These tutorials were often unskippable. At least with games I play right now, I have the option to skip.
No Empty Open Worlds. This one is also funny to me because it is in the 6th generation that the open world concept really took off. As in, GTA changed everything.
You know what’s funny, though? I often hear gamers complain about the 6th generation for being too linear and not giving players enough of a choice. It looks like you’re in an open world, but you’re really not.
But what I think is more funny about this is that, you know that new linear games are still being made now, right? Why don’t you play them?
Demise of B (or AA) games. The YouTuber insists that modern gaming is all about AAA titles of indie games, and that no B or AA games exist anymore.
Meanwhile, I’m scratching my head. Does this guy not realize there are entire publishers devoted to making B/AA titles? For example, Devolver Digital, Obsidian, Warhorse, Kalypso, etc.
Furthermore, even major publishers are putting out B/AA titles still. Bethesda released Hi-Fi Rush this year. EA didn’t just make Unravel, they gave it a sequel.
In fact, I’d say we’re in a golden age of B/AA games – where games with small teams and small budgets look almost as good as AAA but have more imagination.
I don’t get excited for the next Assassin’s Creed or Call of Duty. But I sure as hell sit up and take notice when the Talos Principle 2 got released this year.
That YouTuber also accuses today’s indie games of being “dull” and “uninteresting”. I’m sorry, excuse me? You’re really telling me that games like Cuphead, Hotline Miami, and Iconoclasts are dull and uninteresting? Do you even have a soul?
I swear to God, each new generation of retro gamers sees the past in deeper and deeper shades of rosiness.