ryanscribbles

After three days of E3 and the last day here, I think an interesting trend has been seen, recurring and (personally) welcomed. Retro gaming is coming back with a vengeance. Now I may not mean retro in the traditional sense of the word but it's easy to see that games are drawing inspiration from the Golden Age of Gaming.

Even though with every E3 and every TGS and every other little expo we get a little farther into the future, we've taken a few steps back this year. But in a good way. The example that stands out most in my mind, as of right now, is the new Mortal Kombat. Now's it easy to see that they have definitely taken a page from the SSIV book and decided to go the 3D/2D way. Which makes the game seem more promising and more intriguing than anything they've released in the past two generations of consoles.

Another great example is the Donkey Kong Country returns. As a kid, DK and DIddy spent numerous hours on my television screen, running across pirate ships and jungles on rhinos because the DK Country games are some of the most solid and fun platformers introduced at that time. Then Donkey Kong 64 switched the formula. As did Donkey Konga. And Donkey Kong Barrel Blast. I think video game companies need to heed to the ancient proverb more often: if it ain't broke, don't fix it. I was never excited about the DK games announced at E3 until this year, in which my nerd sense tingled and I actually dusted off my Wii in preparation for the use it will receive.

Now another way I want to highlight "retro" is the fact that they've also announced numerous sequels to games that we haven't seen in a very long time. The oldest, perhaps, being Kid Icarus. Now while we still have to wait for a whole new system to come out before being able to play the new Kid, it still is exciting to know that this character from my very early childhood is finally coming back. Sure, playing Pit in Smash Bros. was cool but this is awesome. I would be okay with a new Game and Watch or new Ice Climbers OR (dare I say) a new Earthbound. Bring the old school back.

My last example will be Twisted Metal X. HOLY SHIT. Did you guys see that trailer at E3? I don't know about you but I'm stoked. I mean, come on! Twisted Metal from the guys who brought us God of War. That's a perfect set up right there.

I think it's important to realize that just because we have the technology to do something different, it doesn't mean we should. A lot of games have shared success because of going back to their retro roots: New Super Marios Bros., Street Fighter IV, and (hopefully) the new Sonic. I know, for me, SNES was a Golden Age for gamers. Bringing back that style of gameplay can only be a good thing.

-Ryanscribbles