There can be no true beauty without decay?

lordofchaos · 11 July 2011, 00:21

Hi folks. This must have happened to a lot of people, you have that moment where you think I know what I’ll take a trip down memory lane and revisit that old time classic and revel in its magnificence only to find that it`s not quite how you remembered it and once the rose tinted glasses have worn off your left feeling somewhat deflated. However there are those most rarest of games that still have that wonderment and beauty about them, the trouble with these state of the art next gen games is that they rely too heavily on the technical advance of the day and as a result they tend to age a lot quicker, sure gears of war 3 looks fantastic now but will it still look good in 5 years, or even 2 years?

I was recently playing Ruff N Tumble and was blown away by how good it still looks and plays! I would be interested in hearing what others have to say about this and what games from yesteryear they still consider to have aged well.

StrategyGamer · 11 July 2011, 04:49

Amiga games that I have found to have aged well:

Battle Squadron
Superfrog
Turrican
Pinball Dreams
Total Chaos

Adropac2 · 11 July 2011, 06:15

Amiga games tend to look pretty anyway. Ruff and Tumble has very nice drawn graphics as do most other Amiga games. These games still fully captivate me in a way a lot of newer ones don't these days

Supremacy, Speedball, Uridium etc still look gorgeous to me and are in no way aged i believe

Graphics of a drawn nature rather than a more constructed one wont ever age- 8bit you could argue that, but on a 14" crt, the Amiga really does look lovely. In 5years time 3d polygons and other tech will be more than is the standard now obviously and we will notice a little of this in a way you can't really with the Amiga- mega resolutions don't actually improve things a whole lot for pixel art and in fact lose a lot of appeal

Though to be honest, were at the stage that 3d hardware is enough that it probably wont look rubbish in 5 years time, merely not as flash.The first gen of 3d consoles for example are mostly triangle for heads and noses so that is very noticable. Not so much with the new machines coming i doubt

Skope · 11 July 2011, 06:33

Some games just has soul and most do not, and it's like that even today. I played 'Machinarium' almost two years ago and was completely blown away by it. Some of the other recent games I really liked was 'Me and My Katamari' and 'Daxter'.

And as for games that rely too heavily on the technical advancements of the day but play like shit I reckon it's always been like that, see 'Shadow of the Beast' for a shining example on Amiga.

lordofchaos · 11 July 2011, 15:34

Shadow of the beast was definitely the defining game for me back in the day, back then most of the visual excellence was to be found at the arcades, I’ll never forget the time I had just come back from holiday after playing in the arcades and thinking how depressing it will be to come back and play my subpar arcade ports...a short time after my brother got an Amiga 500 for his birthday and chose shadow of the beast for his first game, the box alone seemed pretty dam special with that wonderful artwork, booting it up was a spine shivering experience, that evocative score, those gorgeous and vivid visuals...ahhh good times.

desiv · 11 July 2011, 17:40

Yeah, SotB seems to be the game people love to pick-on nowadays as style over substance.. Justifiably? I don't think so.
When I got it back in the day, I read the reviews and they said it was really really hard.
I got it, and it was really really hard. ;-) But not impossible.
(I got Blood Money before SotB, and I still find Blood Money harder to play)

I still play Beast from time to time and enjoy it for what it is...

As for games they really hold up well, the first thing that comes to mind for me is:

Lemmings

I think the animation still works (its still cute) and it's still fun..
I still can't believe there's not an "official" iPhone/Android version of this. Seems a perfect fit for touchscreen.

desiv

Retro-Nerd · 11 July 2011, 18:08

A lot of exclusive/original Amiga games looks and plays still pretty good. Most of the 1:1 ST to Amiga ports didn't aged well due to obviously reasons, besides the mostly crappy 8-bit ports (of course NOT IK+).

Skope · 11 July 2011, 20:13

Quote:

Originally Posted by desiv

Yeah, SotB seems to be the game people love to pick-on nowadays as style over substance..

Can't say I think the gameplay of it is awkward just to follow some trend on EAB, I've always thought it was a bummer. Then again I wasn't 5 when it came out and therefore wasn't impressed out of my pants.

desiv · 11 July 2011, 20:20

Quote:

Originally Posted by Skope

Then again I wasn't 5 when it came out and therefore wasn't impressed out of my pants.

Oh Snap!!

I am so un1337...

desiv :-)

Skope · 11 July 2011, 20:33

Mmmhmmm girlfriend! *bobs head* *snaps fingers*

Mogilny · 11 July 2011, 22:38

Yeah, I never found SotB to be entertaining even back in the late 80s/early 90s when I had my Amiga.

The games I replayed which I still find really playable today are mostly adventure games like Elvira, Cruise for a Corpse, Rise of the Dragon and It Came from the Desert 1 & 2. Those games had a great atmosphere that still today make them playable. Among other games I think Turrican 2 and James Pond 2 could still be pretty entertaining. The birds view racing games is another category I think age pretty well.

Skope · 12 July 2011, 10:15

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mogilny

The birds view racing games is another category I think age pretty well.

+1, even if my fav in that category is a SNES game. Rock'n'Roll Racing, sooo excellent. Micro Machines on Amiga is also pretty damn excellent and would be my #2 in the genre.

GarethPW · 12 July 2011, 11:44

Slam Tilt. 15 years on and it still looks and plays amazing. Spent a couple of hours on it last night. Same could be said for most of the 21CE pinball games, really.

LuMan · 12 July 2011, 14:47

I love to crank up Banshee, just for the background music and steampunk-style graphics. Same goes for The Chaos Engine too.
I'm also partial to Rocket Ranger - it still looks great and tells a great story.

lordofchaos · 12 July 2011, 17:16

Ahhh yes, Banshee! Some super crisp looking pixel art in that one! Must boot that up sometime and give it a play through...Love the game but always found it a tad to hard.

Paul_s · 12 July 2011, 23:58

I would say those games which had lots of love and attention to detail poured over them have stood the test of time.

Such titles like Cannon Fodder, Turrican II, Yo Joe, Pinball Dreams, Arabian Nights, Soccer Kid etc etc

I think most of today's games look plain, boring and lacking imagination. When the Amiga stopped being produced so did I with gaming and stuck there ever since

LuMan · 14 July 2011, 15:29

Quote:

Originally Posted by lordofchaos

Ahhh yes, Banshee! Some super crisp looking pixel art in that one! Must boot that up sometime and give it a play through...Love the game but always found it a tad to hard.

Hey, lordofchaos, I've got an excellent trainer/cheat for Banshee. Worked brilliant for me:

1. Grab a crate of beer
2. Buy a box-load of tortilla chips and crisps
3. Remove the door handle
4. Don't come out until you've finished the game

Of course, you may want to install a bucket in the room with you, just in case

lordofchaos · 14 July 2011, 18:41

@LuMan,

Great strategy sounds like a plan with no draw backs, although I may have to swap out the tortilla chips with some monster munch

11 July 2011, 00:21	#1
lordofchaos TinkerTailorContentMaker Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Bedfordshire Age: 45 Posts: 1,205	There can be no true beauty without decay? Hi folks. This must have happened to a lot of people, you have that moment where you think I know what I’ll take a trip down memory lane and revisit that old time classic and revel in its magnificence only to find that it`s not quite how you remembered it and once the rose tinted glasses have worn off your left feeling somewhat deflated. However there are those most rarest of games that still have that wonderment and beauty about them, the trouble with these state of the art next gen games is that they rely too heavily on the technical advance of the day and as a result they tend to age a lot quicker, sure gears of war 3 looks fantastic now but will it still look good in 5 years, or even 2 years? I was recently playing Ruff N Tumble and was blown away by how good it still looks and plays! I would be interested in hearing what others have to say about this and what games from yesteryear they still consider to have aged well.

11 July 2011, 06:15	#3
Adropac2 Zone Friend Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Kent Age: 51 Posts: 1,059	Amiga games tend to look pretty anyway. Ruff and Tumble has very nice drawn graphics as do most other Amiga games. These games still fully captivate me in a way a lot of newer ones don't these days Supremacy, Speedball, Uridium etc still look gorgeous to me and are in no way aged i believe Graphics of a drawn nature rather than a more constructed one wont ever age- 8bit you could argue that, but on a 14" crt, the Amiga really does look lovely. In 5years time 3d polygons and other tech will be more than is the standard now obviously and we will notice a little of this in a way you can't really with the Amiga- mega resolutions don't actually improve things a whole lot for pixel art and in fact lose a lot of appeal Though to be honest, were at the stage that 3d hardware is enough that it probably wont look rubbish in 5 years time, merely not as flash.The first gen of 3d consoles for example are mostly triangle for heads and noses so that is very noticable. Not so much with the new machines coming i doubt Last edited by Adropac2; 11 July 2011 at 07:29.

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11 July 2011, 04:49	#2
StrategyGamer Total Chaos AGA is fun! Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: USA Posts: 873	Amiga games that I have found to have aged well: Battle Squadron Superfrog Turrican Pinball Dreams Total Chaos

11 July 2011, 06:33	#4
Skope Protracker Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: 8364 Posts: 381	Some games just has soul and most do not, and it's like that even today. I played 'Machinarium' almost two years ago and was completely blown away by it. Some of the other recent games I really liked was 'Me and My Katamari' and 'Daxter'. And as for games that rely too heavily on the technical advancements of the day but play like shit I reckon it's always been like that, see 'Shadow of the Beast' for a shining example on Amiga.

11 July 2011, 15:34	#5
lordofchaos TinkerTailorContentMaker Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Bedfordshire Age: 45 Posts: 1,205	Shadow of the beast was definitely the defining game for me back in the day, back then most of the visual excellence was to be found at the arcades, I’ll never forget the time I had just come back from holiday after playing in the arcades and thinking how depressing it will be to come back and play my subpar arcade ports...a short time after my brother got an Amiga 500 for his birthday and chose shadow of the beast for his first game, the box alone seemed pretty dam special with that wonderful artwork, booting it up was a spine shivering experience, that evocative score, those gorgeous and vivid visuals...ahhh good times.

11 July 2011, 17:40	#6
desiv Registered User Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Salem, OR Posts: 1,770	Yeah, SotB seems to be the game people love to pick-on nowadays as style over substance.. Justifiably? I don't think so. When I got it back in the day, I read the reviews and they said it was really really hard. I got it, and it was really really hard. ;-) But not impossible. (I got Blood Money before SotB, and I still find Blood Money harder to play) I still play Beast from time to time and enjoy it for what it is... As for games they really hold up well, the first thing that comes to mind for me is: Lemmings I think the animation still works (its still cute) and it's still fun.. I still can't believe there's not an "official" iPhone/Android version of this. Seems a perfect fit for touchscreen. desiv

11 July 2011, 18:08	#7
Retro-Nerd Missile Command Champion Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Germany Age: 52 Posts: 12,441	A lot of exclusive/original Amiga games looks and plays still pretty good. Most of the 1:1 ST to Amiga ports didn't aged well due to obviously reasons, besides the mostly crappy 8-bit ports (of course NOT IK+).

11 July 2011, 20:33	#10
Skope Protracker Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: 8364 Posts: 381	Mmmhmmm girlfriend! bobs head snaps fingers

11 July 2011, 22:38	#11
Mogilny Registered User Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Amiga 4-ever! Posts: 121	Yeah, I never found SotB to be entertaining even back in the late 80s/early 90s when I had my Amiga. The games I replayed which I still find really playable today are mostly adventure games like Elvira, Cruise for a Corpse, Rise of the Dragon and It Came from the Desert 1 & 2. Those games had a great atmosphere that still today make them playable. Among other games I think Turrican 2 and James Pond 2 could still be pretty entertaining. The birds view racing games is another category I think age pretty well.

12 July 2011, 11:44	#13
GarethPW Team Mango Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: East Cowes, Isle of Wight Age: 42 Posts: 17	Slam Tilt. 15 years on and it still looks and plays amazing. Spent a couple of hours on it last night. Same could be said for most of the 21CE pinball games, really.

12 July 2011, 14:47	#14
LuMan Amigan - an' lovin' it!! Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Nottingham, UK Age: 55 Posts: 557	I love to crank up Banshee, just for the background music and steampunk-style graphics. Same goes for The Chaos Engine too. I'm also partial to Rocket Ranger - it still looks great and tells a great story.

12 July 2011, 17:16	#15
lordofchaos TinkerTailorContentMaker Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Bedfordshire Age: 45 Posts: 1,205	Ahhh yes, Banshee! Some super crisp looking pixel art in that one! Must boot that up sometime and give it a play through...Love the game but always found it a tad to hard.

12 July 2011, 23:58	#16
Paul_s Registered User Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Amigaville Age: 46 Posts: 3,335	I would say those games which had lots of love and attention to detail poured over them have stood the test of time. Such titles like Cannon Fodder, Turrican II, Yo Joe, Pinball Dreams, Arabian Nights, Soccer Kid etc etc I think most of today's games look plain, boring and lacking imagination. When the Amiga stopped being produced so did I with gaming and stuck there ever since

14 July 2011, 18:41	#18
lordofchaos TinkerTailorContentMaker Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Bedfordshire Age: 45 Posts: 1,205	@LuMan, Great strategy sounds like a plan with no draw backs, although I may have to swap out the tortilla chips with some monster munch

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