[Golden Legacy]

Ages ago, or so the stories say, there existed this magical force called gaming. It was embraced by people of all ages, big and small. Entire families would entertain themselves for hours in front of the tv screen, basking in the spirit of something accessible - and accepted - by all.

But the day came when a fell wind blew across the land, and the power of gaming declined. People shunned it, the media de-glorified it, and it was thrown aside.

Some say that the force of gaming has disappeared permanently, only alive for the dedicated mages and swordsmen and fighters and the all-around hardcore that still play. But perhaps someday, it will rise up again for all to enjoy - just like the legends of old.



----
(What did you think? Yeah, laugh it off for now :rolleyes: ), but there's a whole point to this. I distinctly remember a time when my family would sit around playing Super Mario World, and my dad, mom, younger sister and I all happily took turns. Obviously, in that decade, gaming has degenerated to a mere pastime for only a small group of people.

My question is, will gaming ever return to the mainstream of entire families? I know, I know, that's supposed to be Nintendo's whole philosophy nowadays, right? But even then, I think it's not what it may seem. Think about it - are these casual gamers likely to spend time with you playing, say, Super Mario Galaxy when it comes out, or are they just going to stick with Wii Sports and Play?

Furthermore, are we really returning to casual acceptance? Notice how in every sitcom or movie that has gaming, it always has 8-bit generic blast and beeps - even for modern-day consoles! Mainstream people still think of gaming as almost an old arcade form, that there's no depth to them, that it's only about these random clicks and button presses.

This post is hard to describe (I meant to post this a while ago, I just kept on adding a little bit more to what I wanted to say at the time), but basically, even though we're seeing Wii and DS with Nintendo, I still don't think it'll ever return to the "good ol' days" - not unless those casual gamers are willing to give up their simplistic games and give a try with some of the truer games, so that they may appreciate video gaming as an art, on the scale of movies and music.


EDIT: Think of it another way. Give me some classic movies - Casablanca? The Godfather? All right. How about some popular music from the golden age of rock - The Beatles? The Rolling Stones? Fair enough. Now think about classic games - Super Mario Bros.? Pac-man? Now, compare them all - do you really see those "classic" movies and music in the same light as these classic, old video games? Do you see them both as entertainment accomplishments, something that is culturally ingrained and a part of society as a whole?

Now, after all that - do you think that the average person would agree with you?

[Eugine]

Classics will always be classics. I honestly think nothing will replace the days when Nintendo ruled with the NES in terms of mainstram acceptance. Everyone loved Mario.

Nintendo shunt a great series imo, there's just hype with anything Mario these days. I doubt the mainstream audience even knows about Galaxy, but if asked who's the most famous gaming character Mario will surely be on top.

Other than that, I believe gaming has changed from 'instant satisfaction' to something else, which I can't put my finger on. Much like how Table Tennis was in the mainstream until they started having world championships I guess...

[Someone Else]

...gaming is mainstream. It's only second to music in terms of the most popular forms of entertainment, IIRC. Though I can't prove it since I don't even remember where I read that.

But if you're looking towards acceptance to people of all ages, when we become adults, it's very likely we'll bring gaming with us. We grew up playing games.

I think the question really is recognizing games as an art form. Playing games isn't art, but creating games is, and rightly so. Making film is considered art, and has been for a long time, but making games isn't widely considered art yet (even though it is). What's the difference between creating film and creating video games? They require the same things; writers, voice talent, the sound... think about it: 300. It's not a game but watching that movie looked and felt like a video game. :D Not all games can be considered art in themselves, just as the same with film, but some games definitely should be. Remember: art is self-expression, and is supposed to stimulate the senses through emotion and ideas.

The thing is, film can and has been applied to many purposes. In addition to being entertainment, film can educate, it can instruct, it can be used for self-expression. Hell, you can blog with it.

So until video games are made to be more than just recreation, it probably won't be accepted like film is, and thus won't be a recognized art form.

Unfortunately, the word "art" has been bastardised somewhat. You could draw a stick figure and call it art with a straight face. And where's originality? Everybody draws with the cutesy anime style to the point that unique expression in that drawing style is void. I hope you guys aren't like that, and I hope I'm not sounding like a snob. Just felt like throwing this in.

This post took a lot of thought, I hope it made sense.

[Aquamarine]

Whoa, this topic is too serious and deep for my mind. I'll give it a go though...

Although I see you point about families once upon a time playing video games together and not doing so anymore GL, you have to remember that there have never been so many gamers in the world. I doubt an adult will pick up and play a game such as Splinter Cell or Warcraft in the near future, but altogether there are many more people who would do that then there were in the '80s.
WD just may be right about one thing; the millions of kids of our age who play games will some day be adults and have children of their own. Why would they suddenly stop playing games? They wouldn't. They will most likely be playing Final Fantasy 38 with their kids and having fun.
So overall I think you're wrong, GL. And I believe there's not much to fear about the future of video games. They'll always be there and the market will probably just keep expanding.

Oh, and the just like the legends of old part is from Wind Waker, isn't it? :D

[Toasty]

I remember when my dad bought us an N64 (my first console). That was back when he'd actually play games like Diddy Kong Racing (which he constantly beat me in) with me, and even bought a Nintendo Power magazine solely for the purpouse if finding the codes that could be entered in game fir stuff like 4WD (no speed loss off road) Ultimate AI, and a few others. My personal favorite being the one that would make all Balloons give level 3 power-ups. About a year after we moved here to Moses Lake, he just stopped playing video games. But I was never able to beat his score on Super Mario 64. I still suck at that game. :D

But who knows. Maybe gaming will become mainstream again. But if any console so far would be able to do it, it'd have to be the Wii. Mostly because of all the easier party/minigames that our parents could actually play. I'm the only one in my household who knows how to play any of our GC games, though my sister does know how to play tetris for the GBA. But the Wii controls are also a lot simpler since it doesn't have as many buttons, which was always the reason why my mom and sister never really played video games.

But personally, I'd like to see gaming become mainstream again.

[Split Infinity]

Back in the golden days, home gaming was a completely new concept, and with developers like Nintendo and Sony rolling out platinum-selling games, you couldn't help but take interest. Now, people have come to accept that gaming is just another industry in our technological world.

Games these days just don't have the same magic that you felt when you started playing Pokemon, or Goldeneye, or Crash Bandicoot, or Final Fantasy, or even GTA. And even those games don't feel the same when you go back and play them. Perhaps one day, somebody will come up with an idea that will reinvigorate the gaming world once again. I hope so.

Which is not to say that today's games aren't still great fun, but...I think older members will get what I'm saying.

[Someone Else]

Back in "the days", gaming was reserved for nerds. Not so anymore, everybody plays games. Seriously, gaming is more mainstream than it was before.

[Split Infinity]

I'm talking about the late 80's to 90's here.

[Golden Legacy]

Spam King, on Aug 31 2007, 09:35 PM, said:

Back in the golden days, home gaming was a completely new concept, and with developers like Nintendo and Sony rolling out platinum-selling games, you couldn't help but take interest. Now, people have come to accept that gaming is just another industry in our technological world.

Games these days just don't have the same magic that you felt when you started playing Pokemon, or Goldeneye, or Crash Bandicoot, or Final Fantasy, or even GTA. And even those games don't feel the same when you go back and play them. Perhaps one day, somebody will come up with an idea that will reinvigorate the gaming world once again. I hope so.

Which is not to say that today's games aren't still great fun, but...I think older members will get what I'm saying.

I definitely do. There's just something about gaming nowadays that just doesn't have that appeal it once did. For me, I often find myself playing a game and getting, not bored, but more like a "meh... now what?" type impulse. As if I'm expecting or waiting for more. It has to take a truly amazing experience (like Super Mario Galaxy did for me recently) to reawaken the sort of "natural" and carefree tendency to just enjoy the gaming experience.

[Laharl]

Wind Dude, on Sep 1 2007, 04:59 AM, said:

Back in "the days", gaming was reserved for nerds. Not so anymore, everybody plays games. Seriously, gaming is more mainstream than it was before.

and it was better off for it >>;

games arent made with same passion anymore, slowly even the most reclusive of developers is desensitizing its work for a wider audience. sacrificing quality for profit, this sickens me. especially when the obscure companies i've stayed loyal to start remaking their own stuff, rushing the development of its titles and deliberatly making games similar/familiar with companies best known/selling title. my example is Nippon Ichi, who made the best strategey RPGs out there and were a very obscure little developer. As they and in particular their big title Disgaea grew in popularity, sequels were confirmed and they were rushed and had major flaws. i have seen this process in action over the 3 years of it saddens me greatly. The industry is now so dominated by sales, there are very few companies i can have faith in anymore.

Also the EA stratagey as Yahtzee puts is the single worst thing in gaming, the more companies that adopt this style of business, the worse the gaming world will become

[Someone Else]

laharl the slayer, on Feb 17 2008, 08:49 PM, said:

and it was better off for it >>;

games arent made with same passion anymore, slowly even the most reclusive of developers is desensitizing its work for a wider audience.

That's why I like PC gaming. Smallest audience, and the least dumbed down games. :o