ahtlas7
Member
This. I will soon be the same wise ole age. For me each gen seems to find a magical expression but the last two has seen less and less magic fairy dust applied.
-
Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.
Old Gamers, What was the last truly magical gaming generation for you?
- Thread starter RoboFu
- Start date
Fredrik
Member
Commodore nerd chiming in. Nothing will top going from Commodore 64 to Amiga 500 for me. The graphics, sound quality, floppies, even the smooth mouse pointer movements and workbench, everything felt like a next level upgrade. Specifically have nice early memories from playing F/A-18 Interceptor, Shadow of the Beast, Rick Dangerous, Defender of the Crown, Turrican, It Came from the Desert, Dungeon Master, Cadaver, Gods, Battle Squadron. I still play some of those games today.
SNES was nice too but the start was horrible since going from joystick to dpad made everything awkward. I always held the joystick with the right hand too, the stick, so it wasn’t just a joystick to dpad transition but a right to left hand transition for movement as well. Took awhile to adjust.
Dreamcast was another nice one, Soul Calibur was nuts at the time. Was lovely to finally have PAL60 as standard as well.
SNES was nice too but the start was horrible since going from joystick to dpad made everything awkward. I always held the joystick with the right hand too, the stick, so it wasn’t just a joystick to dpad transition but a right to left hand transition for movement as well. Took awhile to adjust.
Dreamcast was another nice one, Soul Calibur was nuts at the time. Was lovely to finally have PAL60 as standard as well.
Last edited:
Dr. Suchong
Member
It's "Older" not "Old"
Killjoy-NL
Member
I wonder if people realize they were just younger, so everything felt more amazing.
Having said that, probably PS1 with FF VII.
Having said that, probably PS1 with FF VII.
Last edited:
Majormaxxx
Member
ok - for me - and I will not list one gen so there...
1. 1993 DOS games. When I first saw these on my friend's 386 PC.. Oh man
2. 2011 I got into gaming again - got a 360. Jaw hit the floor.
3. 2012 got a 27 inch monitor and a PS3 for uncharted. That looked insane.
4. 2015-16 got a PS4, still on the 27 inch monitor. So many hundreds of hours. Gran Turismo, AC Origins, Horizon, Witcher 3, Mad Max...
5. 2019-2023 got a 4k HDR TV. One X - Forza Horizon 4. PS4 Pro - Gran Turismo, Series X - so many new and BC games... Finally hooked up the PS5 this year. Gran Turismo 7 is RAD!
1. 1993 DOS games. When I first saw these on my friend's 386 PC.. Oh man
2. 2011 I got into gaming again - got a 360. Jaw hit the floor.
3. 2012 got a 27 inch monitor and a PS3 for uncharted. That looked insane.
4. 2015-16 got a PS4, still on the 27 inch monitor. So many hundreds of hours. Gran Turismo, AC Origins, Horizon, Witcher 3, Mad Max...
5. 2019-2023 got a 4k HDR TV. One X - Forza Horizon 4. PS4 Pro - Gran Turismo, Series X - so many new and BC games... Finally hooked up the PS5 this year. Gran Turismo 7 is RAD!
CeeJay
Member
Definitely N64, Seeing the controller for the first time and trying to figure out what the hell was up with the three prongs and the little mushroom in the middle of it! Then to the games, first Mario 64, the controller and the mushroom joystick figured out instantly making him run around in circles, jumping and sliding on his belly for ages before even getting into any of the levels, it was like that scene in Forest Gump where his leg braces fall away and he gets the realisation he can run. Waverace, that water was mind blowing and still holds up today. Then there was Zelda, walking out onto Hyrule field for the first time OMG, my mind was blown again. The transition from 2D to 3D was truly magical and has never been topped.
Darkmakaimura
Member
PlayStation 2. I remember when I first saw Ico and Devil May Cry and it blew my mind. I would consider PS2 to be the best console in history.
Ivory Samoan
Gold Member
This is me also, every gen has had magic for me - and that's counting everything from about 1983 onwards with our Apple IIe's Carmen Sandiago investigative gameplay, right through to Cyberpunk blowing up my retinas with path tracing gloriousness this gen.
Every gen I can think of pure magic popping at least a few times: I bloody love this hobby of ours!
(43 years old, I think that qualifies me as old gamer status lol).
makaveli60
Member
X360/PS3 definitely
Every developer was one-upping each other technically, lots of new games, and very good on-going stories (like ME 1-3, GoW 1-3). The consoles were more unique, the industry was not about political bullshit this much like now and games were still magical.
Every developer was one-upping each other technically, lots of new games, and very good on-going stories (like ME 1-3, GoW 1-3). The consoles were more unique, the industry was not about political bullshit this much like now and games were still magical.
kyussman
Member
I guess it has to be the PS1....running around in the 3D world of Tomb Raider was a revelation back then....hard to think of an equivalent moment from later gens(perhaps the cities from Assassin's Creed)....Wipeout was also a true next gen moment from back then.....what do we have today to stand up as next gen moments,just shinier graphics......what happened to all the insane world and game design that could now be achieved with instant loading?
Chittagong
Gold Member
Xbox 360 / PS3 / Wii
The consoles came alive, from things that boot up games into interfaces with online player profiles and statuses, downloadable games and updates. The intensely immersive warfare of Call of Duty 2. The incredibly dense and tangible world of Gears of War, captured best in the ad with the track ‘Mad World’. The incredible innovation and family fun of Wii motion controls. The Guitar Hero and Rockstar moments of music. The super sharp HD movies. The muddy world of Motorstorm. Everything was so much more dense, alive, innovative than anything before.
The consoles came alive, from things that boot up games into interfaces with online player profiles and statuses, downloadable games and updates. The intensely immersive warfare of Call of Duty 2. The incredibly dense and tangible world of Gears of War, captured best in the ad with the track ‘Mad World’. The incredible innovation and family fun of Wii motion controls. The Guitar Hero and Rockstar moments of music. The super sharp HD movies. The muddy world of Motorstorm. Everything was so much more dense, alive, innovative than anything before.
Last edited:
Lunarorbit
Member
Ps4. One of my favorite gens besides snes. Really liked the selection of games. Rdr2 was pretty magical
kunonabi
Member
The death of the dreamcast was when things turned mundane for me. There were some PS2 and GC games I loved sure but I really didn't care of any of the big three consoles that remained. I was falling out of games entirely until the Wii but again that was pretty much the only console that I've truly loved since. I enjoyed the Wii U alot but their complete mishandling of their last few titles forcing to me buy a Japanese pissed me off and of course Iwata's passing was a major blow. Im still playing games regularly but almost nothing garners real mega excitement from me at this point.
IlGialloMondadori
Member
64 -> Amiga was a pants shitting moment for sure.Commodore nerd chiming in. Nothing will top going from Commodore 64 to Amiga 500 for me. The graphics, sound quality, floppies, even the smooth mouse pointer movements and workbench, everything felt like a next level upgrade. Specifically have nice early memories from playing F/A-18 Interceptor, Shadow of the Beast, Rick Dangerous, Defender of the Crown, Turrican, It Came from the Desert, Dungeon Master, Cadaver, Gods, Battle Squadron. I still play some of those games today.
SNES was nice too but the start was horrible since going from joystick to dpad made everything awkward. I always held the joystick with the right hand too, the stick, so it wasn’t just a joystick to dpad transition but a right to left hand transition for movement as well. Took awhile to adjust.
Dreamcast was another nice one, Soul Calibur was nuts at the time. Was lovely to finally have PAL60 as standard as well.
Next was probably Voodoo cards. Quake on release -> quake and tomb raider with voodoo card was an amazing jump.
You're right on the Dreamcast. Dreamcast w/ its Sonic Adventure and Soul Calibur was pretty insane. Soul Calibur was crazy as hell, mind blowing graphics in a brilliant game.
Early to mid 360 era was dope as hell. It was just delivering, killing it in all ways. Then, the Kinect happened and PS3 caught up and XBOX shit the bed tremendously and I gave up on it.
Last edited:
DavidGzz
Member
Halo lan parties. All downhill from there. But really, it's our age that makes things magical or not. To my kids, Minecraft, Casle Crashers, Terraria, Roblox, and Fortnite are magical. You'll never get the feeling of how things were in your teens ever again you old bastards.(I'm 42 lol)
Team Andromeda
Member
Every seems magical when you are young far more so when Mum and Dad are the ones buying your consoles for Christmas.
1994 is the best year for me as it's the year of the Saturn, but I'm loving current gaming almost as much .
1994 is the best year for me as it's the year of the Saturn, but I'm loving current gaming almost as much .
Kiya's Guard
Member
The generation you played when you were a kid
Fredrik
Member
Yeah I actually had a voodoo 2 card, wow this brings back memories, this was way before Steam. I remember playing Tomb Raider 2 on it. Sidewinder game pad. I played some Jedi shooter game too. Baldur’s Gate.
I dropped PC gaming completely after that and didn’t jump in again until 2014. Now I play Xbox and Playstation games on PC and is more or less out of consoles instead. Circle of life I guess. Just need a new Commodore computer to arrive to complete the circle!
️ 
Lucifers Beard
Member
I haven't been wowed by a generation since PS1 and maybe the start of the PS2/Xbox gen. Games now are corporate tick box bullshit mostly.
Fredrik
Member
PS1 launch was nice, I remember watching that dinosaur and manta ray demo that was on the launch demo disc like hundred times, the graphics were just insane at the time.
But for me PS1 unveiled framerate differences and slow speed and squished image from PAL/NTSC video formats and in the end there was just lots of annoyance bubbling up. Luckily you could mod it to run imports.
Melon Husk
Member
I want to say 3DS. Current gen consoles and handhelds feel so generic these days.
NikuNashi
Member
From the PS3 / 360 era onwards gaming lost it's magic for me. For the following reasons.
I'm old enough to experience gaming in the 80's and 90's before any of this bullshit, it was a pure experience of dev / artist straight to player, amazing times. I'm sad it's gone and sad some of you younger guys never got to experience this hobby before it got sold out.
- Became too mainstream where everyone wanted to jump into games and ride the gravy train. Lost it's geek / niche factor.
- Too much media / website / social media interference.
- Became more corporate and less about passion.
- Console internet connections destroyed QA process and resulted in games being released broken, incomplete or with day 1 downloads / updates.
- Monetization became common.
- Gaming became a 'community'. Bunch of whiny, self entitled, self righteous cunts.
I'm old enough to experience gaming in the 80's and 90's before any of this bullshit, it was a pure experience of dev / artist straight to player, amazing times. I'm sad it's gone and sad some of you younger guys never got to experience this hobby before it got sold out.
Ammogeddon
Member
N64 era.
nush
Member
Start of than gen for sure. It had the creativity of the previous gen but enough power to display that correctly and dev budgets had not got so wild that everything had to be " Safe". The 360 remains my favorite console beating out everything before it that I though would remain number one.
killatopak
Member
90-10’s was magical for me. Specifically for internet cafe use.
It’s basically a 24/7 lan party. No need to hide your curses and insults under an anonymous username over the internet. You say shit to their face and they have to suck them up until they get better and beat you. If you aren’t a great player then shit we have betting too. We travel around towns and cities looking for the next group of guys to play, bet and be friends with. What an amazing time to play.
Counterstrike, Dota, Red Alert 2, Starcraft, Battle Realms, WC3, C&C Generals, Gunbound, Audition, 02 Jam shit the list is endless.
Get good enough and they actually ban you from their cafe. At least for competitive playing.
It’s basically a 24/7 lan party. No need to hide your curses and insults under an anonymous username over the internet. You say shit to their face and they have to suck them up until they get better and beat you. If you aren’t a great player then shit we have betting too. We travel around towns and cities looking for the next group of guys to play, bet and be friends with. What an amazing time to play.
Counterstrike, Dota, Red Alert 2, Starcraft, Battle Realms, WC3, C&C Generals, Gunbound, Audition, 02 Jam shit the list is endless.
Get good enough and they actually ban you from their cafe. At least for competitive playing.
Last edited:
MonkeyClaw36
Member
2 stages here:
1. 16 bit era. Got my fist own console in this era, the Megadrive. Shit was magical. Bought a second hand huge ass tv for practically nothing at a thrift store, got the Megadrive for my birthday and I vividly recall playing games with friends for hours. Streets of Rage 2 with the MD plugged into a stereo. Man it was something. Also owned a SNES scope set and a Jaguar at some point.
2. Second gen 3D era. The Dreamcast and PS2 times. Man getting arcade perfect games at home was mind blowing. Chu Chu Rocket gave my an aneurism at some point. MSR was truly awesome, JSR, Power Stone, ohhh man...
Im 44 now and will never experience the vibes I had back then. *Grabs a knife and looks at wrists*
1. 16 bit era. Got my fist own console in this era, the Megadrive. Shit was magical. Bought a second hand huge ass tv for practically nothing at a thrift store, got the Megadrive for my birthday and I vividly recall playing games with friends for hours. Streets of Rage 2 with the MD plugged into a stereo. Man it was something. Also owned a SNES scope set and a Jaguar at some point.
2. Second gen 3D era. The Dreamcast and PS2 times. Man getting arcade perfect games at home was mind blowing. Chu Chu Rocket gave my an aneurism at some point. MSR was truly awesome, JSR, Power Stone, ohhh man...
Im 44 now and will never experience the vibes I had back then. *Grabs a knife and looks at wrists*
RoboFu
One of the green rats
No this is objectively not true.
Games and game consoles were very different and not just iterations of the same hardware and gameplay as has been he last 4 generations. It happens in all entertainment. music, movies, and games it doesn't matter. Everything gets homogenized and templated to make as much money as possible with little risk. In the case of video games hardware also got homogenized.
And then there is just the "only so many ways to cook an egg" effect. Over time it only gets harder and harder to come up with something new.
Last edited:
Killjoy-NL
Member
VR begs to differ.
Besides, "truly magical" is subjective and relative. So I can't "objectively" be wrong.
But I'll admit that I can be wrong, depending on perspective.
On that note, maybe I should've said VR.
I know it has been done before back in the day, but now we have proper VR.
Imo it's the next giant leap for gaming, even though it's niche.
Last edited:
crackajack
Member
While I would say we get better games than ever before, the evolution is slow af today. So it's impossible to feel magical with PS4ProPlus aka PS5.
The last major shift was N64 for me too. The pad lacks some more stuff we have today. Many games probably aged very bad; but Mario's face in 64 startup screen. Wave Race with insane physics. Zelda in 3D. Turok and Goldeneye with two very different control schemes. 3D in general transformed many many games and brought new genres from PC over and also brand new ideas. VR could have been maybe with someone else on the helm a similar step into a new world, but the tech seems to go nowhere, at least not to new gaming heavens some journos and some tech disciples promise since first Oculus Rift. I hoped designers would change games for VR, but so far almost no VR game really needs VR and it just is a gimmick, that some people seemingly love, but most don't care for, and many are on the fence but start to believe they won't ever leave that fence.
The last major shift was N64 for me too. The pad lacks some more stuff we have today. Many games probably aged very bad; but Mario's face in 64 startup screen. Wave Race with insane physics. Zelda in 3D. Turok and Goldeneye with two very different control schemes. 3D in general transformed many many games and brought new genres from PC over and also brand new ideas. VR could have been maybe with someone else on the helm a similar step into a new world, but the tech seems to go nowhere, at least not to new gaming heavens some journos and some tech disciples promise since first Oculus Rift. I hoped designers would change games for VR, but so far almost no VR game really needs VR and it just is a gimmick, that some people seemingly love, but most don't care for, and many are on the fence but start to believe they won't ever leave that fence.
Duchess
Member
I remember the mid 90s, when the PlayStation, Saturn, and N64 were all out. That was the moment when the arcade game truly came home.
I actually remember an arcade owner around the time telling me that the PlayStation had killed his business. Why would people keep coming into his place to feed money into the machines, when they can get it at home? he said.
There was stuff in all the gaming magazines, showing the queues of people in Japan waiting to buy the consoles.
Then they turned up in the UK, and it was near impossible to get near them in Virgin, HMV, etc. due to the sheer number of people surrounding the demo units.
I actually remember an arcade owner around the time telling me that the PlayStation had killed his business. Why would people keep coming into his place to feed money into the machines, when they can get it at home? he said.
There was stuff in all the gaming magazines, showing the queues of people in Japan waiting to buy the consoles.
Then they turned up in the UK, and it was near impossible to get near them in Virgin, HMV, etc. due to the sheer number of people surrounding the demo units.
Last edited:
ThatStupidLion
Member
Prob ps3/360/wii
Moriarty1889
Member
Easily the PS3 and Xbox 360 generation. So many incredible games were born that gen like Mass Effect, Borderlands, Bioshock and many others.
phant0m
Member
PSVR was the last platform that made me go holy shit but was kinda short lived.
The 360/PS3 generation was just so good. It really made gaming social and was a gigantic graphical jump from the prior gen. It was also the last gen that you could just put in a disc and play (for the most part). No waiting 20+ minutes to install and download updates.
The 360/PS3 generation was just so good. It really made gaming social and was a gigantic graphical jump from the prior gen. It was also the last gen that you could just put in a disc and play (for the most part). No waiting 20+ minutes to install and download updates.
Evil Calvin
Afraid of Boobs
The Arcade scene in the very early 80's
On console.....likely 1997-2000 You had PS1, Saturn, N64 and Dreamcast. Also some good PC gaming then. Also a great time for Video Game Magazines and PC Gaming Magazines.
On console.....likely 1997-2000 You had PS1, Saturn, N64 and Dreamcast. Also some good PC gaming then. Also a great time for Video Game Magazines and PC Gaming Magazines.
Black_Mamba
Member
Last magical generation for me was the PS2 gen. There were some big paradigm shifts like the open world of GTA 3, the beauty of Ico and Shadow of the Colossus, and cinematic qualities of MGS2. I felt a tiny bit of the magic with VR and Demon's Souls Remake because of the graphics, sound and use of DualShock, but of course, the evolution is much smaller now.
There's nothing like the 90's in terms of innovation and impact of both technology and gameplay though. In 10 years we went from 2D to 3D, saw the creation of Doom, Quake and the first person shooter genre, online games, MMORPGs, analog sticks, etc.
Was so cool to experience this evolution as a kid and teenager. I feel sorry for the kids of today who will never be able to experience 1% of the excitement we had with technology and are doomed to play games like Roblox and Fortnite, because things like graphics doesn't matter for them at all.
There's nothing like the 90's in terms of innovation and impact of both technology and gameplay though. In 10 years we went from 2D to 3D, saw the creation of Doom, Quake and the first person shooter genre, online games, MMORPGs, analog sticks, etc.
Was so cool to experience this evolution as a kid and teenager. I feel sorry for the kids of today who will never be able to experience 1% of the excitement we had with technology and are doomed to play games like Roblox and Fortnite, because things like graphics doesn't matter for them at all.
Last edited:
Hohenheim
Member
Gamecube generation.
What a amazing little machines that was.
And getting my hands on the OG Xbox after playing Halo at a event before release and being mindblown by the "amazing grass quality in the game".
And getting a PS2 and being blown away by the fact that it also played dvd's. Good times.
But the most blown away I ever got was probably 95/96 and the launch of Playstation and N64.
I don't really think about "generations" anymore, since that don't really make sense in todays gaming landscape, but thankfully I still get those great rushes by gaming experiences. (Resident Evil 7 in VR, Bloodborne for the first time, Bioshock etc)
Because of nostalgia and age and life and all that, I know that I won't get those same feelings of those old generations of gaming again, but that's fine. The games themselves are better than ever now.
What a amazing little machines that was.
And getting my hands on the OG Xbox after playing Halo at a event before release and being mindblown by the "amazing grass quality in the game".
And getting a PS2 and being blown away by the fact that it also played dvd's. Good times.
But the most blown away I ever got was probably 95/96 and the launch of Playstation and N64.
I don't really think about "generations" anymore, since that don't really make sense in todays gaming landscape, but thankfully I still get those great rushes by gaming experiences. (Resident Evil 7 in VR, Bloodborne for the first time, Bioshock etc)
Because of nostalgia and age and life and all that, I know that I won't get those same feelings of those old generations of gaming again, but that's fine. The games themselves are better than ever now.
tibia
Neo Member
in my 30s. Ps1/n64 because:
1) the world was mostly offline. Video game covers left a lot to your imagination. You knew the graphics didnt look like that so when youre at the flea market or retail store browsing the 100s of options in the 1990s, every cover with an airplane or whatever got your imagination going
2) age. You cant afford to buy many games so there was excitement in decision making. You cant look up gameplay on Youtube either. Imagine seeing hundreds of games and never knowing how they play or what gameplay looks like. No internet or magazine subscriptions as a kid. Walking away from a Target video game section with nothing after browsing for an hour
3) going online in 2000s. Started starcraft in 2002 as a teen. Chat rooms and chatting during game changed everything. Console gaming was never the same. Chatted with ppl until 4am everyday during summers...some claimed to be girls. You could play the same game/maps for years. What a transition
What an incredible life for so many of us!
1) the world was mostly offline. Video game covers left a lot to your imagination. You knew the graphics didnt look like that so when youre at the flea market or retail store browsing the 100s of options in the 1990s, every cover with an airplane or whatever got your imagination going
2) age. You cant afford to buy many games so there was excitement in decision making. You cant look up gameplay on Youtube either. Imagine seeing hundreds of games and never knowing how they play or what gameplay looks like. No internet or magazine subscriptions as a kid. Walking away from a Target video game section with nothing after browsing for an hour
3) going online in 2000s. Started starcraft in 2002 as a teen. Chat rooms and chatting during game changed everything. Console gaming was never the same. Chatted with ppl until 4am everyday during summers...some claimed to be girls. You could play the same game/maps for years. What a transition
What an incredible life for so many of us!
Svejk
Member
That's a tough one. I could easily say PS1 or DC, but there was 2 games I played on PS4 that just blew me away like Xenogears and MGS1 did back then.. and that was The Witcher 3 and Astrobot Rescue Mission. Both were unexpectedly quite magical to me.
As an era as a whole, PS1... It was like breaching the 4th dimension going 3D and having real HQ music accompanying them. Being my partying days, it was even more amplified. Lol
As an era as a whole, PS1... It was like breaching the 4th dimension going 3D and having real HQ music accompanying them. Being my partying days, it was even more amplified. Lol
Bond007
Member
Magical feelings?
Seeing PSX for the first time at a "rich" friend's house. Going from a Genesis to seeing CDs and Resident Evil 1, Twisted Metal, and Crash Bandicoot blew my mind.
N64 not too long after with Goldeneye.
XBox360 launch was special to me because it was my first console at launch as a young adult. The jump to needing a flat screen/HD visuals was huge. Up until this point I was still using a CRT and the 360 forced the change into the era we are in now. The first year of the 360 was special and essentially a placeholder for me until PS3 came along, but boy was it a great time. (Kameo, PGR3, Condemned, King Kong, TR Legend) - i just had a great time in that window. Very similar to Dreamcast before PS2.
Since then, it hasnt been nearly as memorable with generations/consoles. But definetely have a few on the games front.
A big part is likely being able to get whatever i want whenever i want.
Seeing PSX for the first time at a "rich" friend's house. Going from a Genesis to seeing CDs and Resident Evil 1, Twisted Metal, and Crash Bandicoot blew my mind.
N64 not too long after with Goldeneye.
XBox360 launch was special to me because it was my first console at launch as a young adult. The jump to needing a flat screen/HD visuals was huge. Up until this point I was still using a CRT and the 360 forced the change into the era we are in now. The first year of the 360 was special and essentially a placeholder for me until PS3 came along, but boy was it a great time. (Kameo, PGR3, Condemned, King Kong, TR Legend) - i just had a great time in that window. Very similar to Dreamcast before PS2.
Since then, it hasnt been nearly as memorable with generations/consoles. But definetely have a few on the games front.
A big part is likely being able to get whatever i want whenever i want.