As I digest many of the rumors, speculations and general excitement that comes along with the news that the Playstation 4 and the Xbox 720 may not be very far off into the future I realized something. I realized that as a 30 something that never grew out of the "video game phase," that myself and my generation really did grow up alongside the video game.
When the Atari 2600 finally gained popularity in the United States in the late 1970's, many young people my age were cutting their teeth on the roots of what has become an entire culture. While many of the games in the early Atari catalog weren't exactly masterpieces, it was a strong start to something great. The simple graphics and sounds made these early titles a springboard for a young person's imagination.
At that time I was still very young, my video game experience was getting my ass kicked at games like Combat by my teenage uncle. I also remember getting bored quickly at doing the same thing over and over again, or just not understanding what the hell was going on. (Thank you E.T.) It also didn't help at all that the controls weren't exactly the most responsive either.
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| There I am in the blue tank, still figuring out the controls. |
Much like growing up in the early 1980's the video game industry hit a very awkward period as well. Just as a youngster I needed to learn from my mistakes and try new things, the video game industry found themselves in a strange learning phase. Atari attempted to replicate their own success by releasing the Atari 5200 and 7800. Other systems such as the Colecovision and Intellicast both attempted to become players as well in an increasingly oversaturated market. While each new system boasted improvements to the graphics and sound they each found themselves with problems. Almost all of the systems had clunky, gimmicky controllers that made the games difficult to play. And although the games looked and sounded better than ever, they still lacked depth and replay value.
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In 1982 Colecovision took a commanding lead in video game graphics.
However it was as big as your coffee table, and you had to play it with that weird telephone thingy. |
As I got older it appeared that video games would simply be an interesting footnote of my early childhood.. However one company attempted to slap that thought out of my young mind. The Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) was released with a furious go for broke advertising campaign. This time around things were different. The gaming experience was something to behold for the time. The graphics were improved, the sounds were much better, the overall experience was vastly improved. However the single most important feature of the NES was its controller.
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| This was so much easier on the thumbs than anything before it. |
In my opinion the NES controller's directional pad was the single most important innovation in home console video gaming. Instead of going with a traditional joystick, the "D-pad" made for crisper and more responsive control of the games. Just as I had grown bigger the NES control fit wonderfully into my growing hands. I don't think we would be talking about the future of video games in this country without the d-pad. Even to this day each major gaming system has made use of some form of the d-pad on their controllers.
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| Rob the Robot was the star of the early Nintendo advertisements, they went on to make 2 games for Rob. |
Over the next few years the NES grew into the premiere home console video game system. It is rare to find a person over the age of 25 that hasn't had some previous experience with one. While the old Atari system was great inspiration, the Nintendo was revolutionary. Aside from the obvious improvements the games were also much better. While the NES did support the old arcade style games, developers were also given the option to create large scale epic adventure type games that necessitated numerous sittings to complete. Once again as I got older and my attention span grew and the games I was playing grew with me.
Since the release of the NES the video game industry grew. The NES marked the era of the modern video game. Over the next several years the market shifted from the focus on arcade games, on to the home consoles. And finally video game makers created the type of fan base and buzz that led to excitement for the releases of new game systems.
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| Well they can't all be zingers I guess. |
Over the course of my life I have now seen this repeat itself over and over again every few years like clockwork. The Super Nintendo was the first system that I can remember having a strong anticipation for. Following that was the Nintendo 64, and the excitement of the news that the Sony Playstation was attempting the do CD Rom games that would blow the new Nintendo's games away. Next came the Playstation 2 and Xbox systems with boasted a DVD rom and some of the finest games that the world had ever seen. And most recently the excitement for the Playstation 3 and Xbox 360 units heading into the realm of high definition graphics. And the curiosity that accompanied the Nintendo Wii using cutting edge motion controllers to attempt to redefine the industry yet again.
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| And we thank you Wii for that innovation. |
And I grew up with all of it, and loved every minute of it. But as I sit and think about what is coming in the near future it caused me to sit and reflect on the past. Made me realize that me and hoards of other 30 somethings out there really are a part of Generation Gamer. I will be the first to admit I have logged many hours on newer titles such as Call of Duty, Grand Theft Auto, and Elder Scrolls games and grew up with staple series like Final Fantasy, Madden and Super Mario Brothers. As great as video games have become I realize that they just were not possible without those classic games that I played as a child. With that realization The Retro Gamer Geek was born.
So if you are a fellow member of Generation Gamer feel free to visit this blog for a various array of topics. Past, Present and Future are all fair game here. Stay tuned for more blog posts.
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