Do you reckon we'll be playing todays games in 10 years?

[MarioMark]

I've been playing a lot of well known retro games this week. Old Sonic's, Super Mario 64 etc, etc; and when I were on them I were thinking they are still very playable and more enjoyable then anything out now. In terms of development they've had so much passion put into them, with fantastic music and loads of replay value. Now thanks to the Virtual Console and all the other console networks, there are more people collectively playing retro games than ever before.

Do you think we'll be playing todays retail releases in 10, 15 years time? I can't see it. I can't see us in 10 years getting dead excited about a downloadable re-release of Call Of Duty 2, with us all saying, "aww yes! COD 2! That game was amazing! The music brings back loads of memories and I loved shooting soldiers!" or "Yesss, they've finally bought Tony Hawk's Project 8 to the Xbox Live Marketplace! That game was the foundation of video gaming and it's a classic now, I've gotta find the soundtrack to that gem!"

Have any views?

[Concrete donkey]

Some games will still have value in ten years time. Gregories Horror show, Shadow of Colosus, Super Paper Mario . . .

You don't see people seeking out medal of honor on the PS1 much, or Fifa 97. Some games are timeless, others arn't.

[On The Edge of Insanity]

Certain stuff ages better, so I'm sure we'll still be playing some of todays games 10 years down the line.

Its normally the games that looked revolutionary for their time and only played ok that suffer when you look back at them once the graphics are no longer so.

[MarioMark]

Some games will still have value in ten years time. Gregories Horror show, Shadow of Colosus, Super Paper Mario . . .

You don't see people seeking out medal of honor on the PS1 much, or Fifa 97. Some games are timeless, others arn't.

Yeah, sorry for the sarcasm in my post, there just seems so be more and more of these forgettable games like Medal of Honor and Tony Hawk's coming out every week, than the classics you mentioned in your first list.

[CMcK]

Games haven't come very far since the start of the 3d card era and with the commercial pressure on publicly traded publishers it's likely we'll keep seeing the same old genres churned out time and again.

Standout titles that created or defined a genre are still playable years later eg Sonic, Tetris, Rez and many 2d shooters.

With the advances in technology emulation of older systems will surely get better and people will have more chances to play classics via services like XBLA, PSN and Gametap.

[Wools]

It's down to what you enjoy playing and re-visinting your favourite story's.

I know I'll be fighting my way for Racoon City in Resident Evil 2, flying around Crystal Coast Highway in Ridge Racer and creeping around the Jungle in Metal Gear Solid 3.

All of them my most played games. Add Green Hill Zone as well.

[angelox]

some games will come across a lot better than others. For instance, KOTOR I is a game I do come back too in the same way I go back to Baulders Gate II, there are so many different ways to play the game that it does offer something new every time I play these games. That being said, I also love going back and playing the olde super mario's simply because of the retro vibe. Other games - such as Tie Fighter I really have fond memories off, but the 2 pologon space stations dont exact age well.

[Paddy]

Well, I think back in the day the gameplay had to be good as creators couldn't always get what they wanted across in a graphical format. However, the reat classics did a great job of getting across their charm graphically as well (thinking back to some of the mainstays of the SNES and Megadrive.)

So anyway, I hope that we'll go back and play some of today's greats in 10 years time. I can confidently say that I will be happy to do that with Shenmue some day again in the future, so basically I think it'll be a select few but we will as there's always quality classics made in every generation of machines.

[nonny]

I just know 10 years from now I'll dig up something like Ico to show my kids and love it all over again.

Some games are timeless classics, much like films... I doubt that is ever going to change.

[wakka]

Yeah, sorry for the sarcasm in my post, there just seems so be more and more of these forgettable games like Medal of Honor and Tony Hawk's coming out every week, than the classics you mentioned in your first list.

Rose tinted specs, I think. There was tons of dross released in the 2D era too, it's just no one remembers it.

[Concrete donkey]

My concern is not the quality of the games but will any modern console still be functioning in ten/ fifteen years time. Unless things change you'll be hard pressed to find a working 360 in fifteen or so years, but I bet there'll still be a fair few N64's and Snes machines doing the rounds. The classics may be rereleased into remakes, VC and Live Marketplace, but like our retro games now, it won't be the same as playing the original.

[Ady]

Certainly, the endless stream of charmless 'brown games' (my pet term for the many, many generic, dark FPS war games that get released every 5 seconds) will not be rememebered, but the titles with more character and solid gameplay mechanics will be remembered.

Also, I think the games that constantly aim for top-end realism are always destined to age poorly because as technology improves and the holy grail of realism becomes more achievable, older games that attempt it will just end up looking worse in retrospect.

[Soi]

Good games will lways be good games. Things like RE4 or Halo 2 will always be fun.

[Leon Retro]

Good games will lways be good games. Things like RE4 or Halo 2 will always be fun.

Go back to most of the 32bit 3D games, and tell me if they're enjoyable. Sadly, the majority of tech-driven 3D titles, are games of their moment, nothing more.

I reckon Halo2 and RE4 will look and play like a nightmare in 5years from now, even more so in 10years. Remember how amazing Resident Evil looked on the PS1 in 1996? Now it looks like fuzzy lego, and couldn't scare a mouse.


The more abstract, gameplay orientated games will survive the passage of time. Good arcade style shooters usually stand-up well, however old. Puzzle games are usually a good bet to retain a strong fun-factor.

Look at the best 2D games: Rainbow Islands, SmashTV, New Zealand Story, Tetris, Final Fight, R-Type, etc.. etc.... Well designed 2D games always stand the test of time.

I think recent examples such as Geometry Wars will always be fun.

[Brats]

Strong stories and good scripts last. The Lucasarts adventure games haven't dated one jot imo.

As others have said, some games are very much of their time and others will be around for ages. Bioware games age very well. If Mass Effect is as good as it looks, it'll still be played in ten years time just like FFVI and Chrono Trigger are today.