• Top 10 Problems with Modern Games

  

  Written by Zeromage 99 Comments
  Last Updated:: October 2, 2008

  The Golden age of video games saw its height in the 16 bit era when SNES and The Genesis were in a console war over who had the best games. SNES came out on top which we discuss in numerous articles on Old-Wizard, and stood out as the most creative moment in the video game medium’s brief history. Where has the Golden age gone? Today’s games lack everything great about those old NES and SNES games. In this list, we will go through the reasons why the games of the modern era lack the power of the older generation. We could only hope that modern game makers realize the creative insurgence of the 16 bit era and try to recapture it for the next generation.

  10. No good instruction manuals

  This may seem like a petty reason not to like modern games, but it meant a lot to us retro video gamers who wanted to experience the game beyond the screen. New instruction manuals to modern games offer no story lines like the old games that made us prepared for battle before we even entered the game. We would rip open the shrink wrap before we got home with the game and immerse ourselves in the creative storylines. New games don’t have this in their instruction manuals. Look at the old Mario instruction manuals. You had pictures of all the bad guys and even little descriptions of their powers and where they were from. A world was created for us before we even played the game. We sorely miss this in modern video game instruction manuals.

  9. Lame Fans

  The fans of the modern video game lack the passion of the retro gamer. They get games, play them for a couple weeks, then move on to the next game that’s either faster, or has more of a chance to play Law and Order detective. Its all about what’s most “cutting edge” for these fans of modern games. If you give them better graphics, they will buy it, you say there is more guns to choose from, they will get it and move on from their past game. This shows a lack of quality in modern games that can be left so easily for the next game in a series or a game with more “edge”. This quality won’t be found in the retro gamer who cherished the games he bought and played over and over.

  8. Lack of good story lines

  This one is obvious. We could name off the obvious games like Final Fantasy 3 and even Ninja Gaiden as examples of great story lines compared to the modern day story lines found in video games that involve shooting rival gangs or overtly childish outlooks in fantasy like in Fable. The transcendence and superseding of modern reality is just not there in the modern story line which you’ll see later on in this article. The great story lines of the past video games escaped our everyday concerns, probably out of a desire to escape the boredom that envelopes modern culture.

  7. Characters lack depth

  We don’t get much information on modern video game characters other than them being from the streets or having some raw toughness that you’ll never be able to have since you spend too much time watching it rather than being it. This history of the modern video character is limited to a few sentences and a characterization of who they currently are. There is rarely character progression, so seeing any development in who you’re playing as is non-existent. Didn’t this make certain games great though? Didn’t coming to know your partners in Illusion of Gaia make that game even more interesting? Falling into their story lines made us recognize a deeper part about ourselves not expressed in other popular forms of media. This is hard to find in the modern video game.

  6. Focused on being too realistic (not as much imagination)

  Modern video games are too focused on being realistic. The age of the 3D game has become too concerned with making the video game an expression of the first person point of view. The whole point of a video game though is to get away from reality as it currently exists and enter into other modes of being, like 2nd, and 3rd person points of view when playing the game. Along with this goes the popular topics in video games that mimic our worst instincts of modern pop culture, like our love for unadulterated violence and hedonistic images. These modern impulses aren’t who we are just because they seem to come across as expression in its purest form. Let’s remember that there was a MASSIVE history before late 20th century expressionism.

  Pages: 1 2

99 Comments

1. #1 Dav says:
   November 20th, 2009 at 5:04 am

   I have issues with this, just like most of the lists on this site. You mentioned lack of good story and character depth; this is not true. You even mentioned one game I would cite especially for its story: Fable. I think that game is brilliant, and millions of people would agree. Plenty of modern games have depth of character, at least compared to games like Pac-Man (where’s his motivation?). You did make a few valid points, such as graphic-whoring and difficulty level, but the things you got right are eclipsed by the wrong. I consider myself a retro-gamer (the NES is probably my most often used system), but I also appreciate modern games when they are done well.
2. #2 Lanz16 says:
   November 20th, 2009 at 9:32 am

   This article makes me saddened to the gaming industry.

   I totally agree on the last 5 entry.
   There are many games today has this more modern looks but lacks on simplicity that I really love.
   The one thing that I like on the games today is that has a character and story with depth.

   I like the simple graphics and simple game play, I hate those ultra realistic graphics that I hardly appreciate very much.

   I don’t like those ever repeating sequels on games but on Mega Man series… NEVER!
   I’ve enjoyed Mega Man since I was a kid and even now, it really grows on me.

   Honestly, the game and console prices are indeed very
   unaffordable to many. I rather not to have a $500 console, I would save it for my collage degree instead.

   The late 80’s and 90’s eras are the golden era for gaming industry in my opinion…
3. #3 Mostlyharmless says:
   November 20th, 2009 at 3:39 am

   the last five points I would have to agree with but the other points are just stupid.
   1 The manual common who reads the freaking manual
   2 Bad plot lines? Are you serious. Games nowadays get hammered down if they don’t have an interesting plot line. Back then plot line were about saving princesses or saving the world. In fact they were practically non-existent.
   3 Characters that lack depth and real progression? Retro-games had characters that were pretty much as little depth as it gets. He a plumber that kills goombas. And he is a robot that kills evil robots that’s it. And character progression? Other than getting power ups how do retro-game characters progress.
   4 Bad fans. You don’t know real fan boys then. Try dissing their favorite game like Zelda, or Final Fantasy and they will fight to death to defend them.

   Most of these points are based on nostalgia I’m sorry to say.
4. #4 James McCloud says:
   November 20th, 2009 at 10:49 pm

   to be honest i agree with this article
   i play the orginal super mario bros more than gta4
   but the wii is pretty creative and inovative also
   the sequals reason seems dumb
   how many 2D mario games hae been made
   megaman?
5. #5 Anthony says:
   November 20th, 2009 at 1:59 am

   usually i am open minded when reading biased articles but this one is just so wrong. instruction manuel? who reads the instruction manuel. youve been waiting for a certain game (e.g. halo 3) forever, you finally get, go home and read about the game?you fuckn play it. halo does offer background info as well as enemies and everything in the manuel. there are many other games (ratchet and clank, assassins creed just to name a few).

   Lame story lines? you mean to tell me that mario 1 had a better story line then call of duty, halo, fable? it was a classic game but in terms of depth, todays games are MUCH MUCH more depth.

   Characters lack depth yet they are to realistic? not even gonna comment on how you contradicted yourself. i havent even gotten to the second page and i already know this article is complete bullshit
6. #6 Level 99 says:
   November 20th, 2009 at 7:00 pm

   I have to say I was nodding my head so much when reading this article. I still remember reading the manuals as a ritual before playing a new game, like Super Mario RPG (oh, to read of Bowser and then find out he’s a GOOD guy in this one? Well, not exactly good, but playable and on our side?!).

   Your list reminds me why my favorite video games are things like Katamari Damacy. While it may be easy, it’s an escape from normal reality, has tons of imagination, doesn’t stress graphics, and so on.

   Rock on.
7. #7 Fraught says:
   November 20th, 2009 at 7:56 pm

   Too many sequels? *giggles*

   And characters don’t have depth? Give me 1 example from the depth of your shitty nostalgic mind, and then I’ll give you one example of another character that has more depth.

   FYI, absolutely all of the SNES/NES games’ characters can be summarized in one sentence.
8. #8 Eddy spaggheti westwrn says:
   November 20th, 2009 at 8:20 am

   so heres my counter points in no specific order

   lack of character depth??!! Who the fuck are you kidding!! Look at your top 10 heroes list when those games were introduced only one of those characters had development or background. Solid Snake or Kratos have more substance than every nintendo character ever.

   Modern Games too easy?? Go beat ninja Gaiden Black on hard mode, go beat halo 2 on legendary or guitar hero one expert or never winter nights 2 on d&d hardcore rules.

   too many sequels?? You guys have no idea what your talking about. look at mario, or megaman or zelda or fuckin contra. in fact all of those games sequels are almost the exact same thing as the original i’ll detail it for you.
   1. all 8 nes mega mans are the same and not until x5 do they actually make some big changes.

   2. mario games are the same with minut difference, like special abiliteies or a huge world map, and even mario 64 is just super mario world in 3d
   note. mario rpg, sunshine, and paper mario are all spinoffs, same with the sports games

   3. zelda has remained the same for ever. OoT was Link to the past, a phenomenal game, with updated graphics, all the GBA games are also Link to the past. And Twighlight Princess, another pretty solid game, is just OoT , they even have almost the same worlds

   Lack of story lines. I’ve beaten river city ransom, which is a crown jewel in even modern nintendo story telling, and that story was a joke compared to MGS1,2,3,4(hell even vr missions) or Bioshock, Indigo Prophecy, fallout1,2,3, Soul Reaver, Fable, Oblivion i could go on all day.

   For the most part i agree with the instruction book but thats mainly just EA and Ubisoft instructions. go look at Oblivion or halo.

   To realistic. Fable is no where close to realistic or crackdown or a plethora of games i can think of

   Honestly you guys just seem to be ridiculous outdated fanboys for nintendo, you guys need to realize that just like the rest of the world, video games have evolved and you just can’t let go to games that have there place but just can’t stack up to modern games
9. #9 Luke says:
   November 20th, 2009 at 1:21 pm

   Bullcrap. All of it.

   You can go on and play your 20 year old games. Today nobody wants to play that boring stuff. The world has changed, everyone is sick of these games. You’ve just got to accept that, because you are gonna have a LOT of people disagreeing with you.
10. #10 Eddie says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 6:50 pm

    I agree with most of this article. Playing older games also reminds me of when I was younger and my life didn’t totally suck. I do like in some of the newer games how you can just randomly kill people in so many different ways. That’s the only appeal I have for the newer GTA games. Nothing like going on racial killing rampages and killing grandma with a golf cart.
11. #11 eddy soto says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 10:22 pm

    Sweet article!

    This isn’t an old-school vs modern games debate. It’s about SUBSTANCE and most new games are more style. Plain and simple.
12. #12 rob says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 6:04 pm

    What i think he is tring to say is that companies now focus more more on graphics then storyline and when has xbox 360 released a game that wasing somthing just to shoot at besides in xbla. iam sick of seeing fps games that cost 60 bucks and just have only different weapons and different ways of killing something when is the vdieogame industry going to bring out some real fantasy gamming shure oblivion was nice so was lost odyessy. but they to lacked a good storyline the last game i played with a good story line is final fantasy 7 . and yes i am going to get katimari damancy .!!!! I wanted that game when it was out for the ps2
13. #13 Uhhhhhhhhh,pie says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 8:43 pm

    You are sad, Eddy. Your “comment” covered my entire page. Sad, sad, sad. Also, don’t diss Ninty just because the games aren’t so casual gamer-esque. Really. Who is winning the war of three gaming companies? Nintendo. With their outstanding characters and games that really make you wonder, how did they think of something so awesome, so original, so…awesome? Are you also dissing Zelda. How could you? It was the father (or mother. Which ever way you prefer) of adventure games. To find the essence of heroes with glistining swords, one need only look to Legend of Zelda. Also, which game company made the “Best Video Game of All Time”? That’s right, Nintendo, with Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. I’m not saying that Snake and Kratos aren’t great video game characters (I’m actually dieing to get Metal Gear Solid 3 or 4), its just that Nintendo has better.
14. #14 joshawa gray says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 12:41 am

    you such at life… and you said new games have no good story but then you use GTA4 as an example…that game has one of the best stories and person development… dont get me wrong its not my favorite game but beet the games next time and then talk…
15. #15 gamergame says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 2:39 am

    1 to much grey
16. #16 alice says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 12:27 am

    To Mostlyharmless:

    1) C’mon: A colloquial contraction for “come on”
    common: NOT a colloquial contraction for anything, it means “common” damn it.

    2) Not every fucking game is Super Mario Bros., stop making all your points in regards to it, asshole.
17. #17 LEGONESFISH says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 8:03 am

    Hell yeah! 9 out of 10 modern games suck
18. #18 DoctaCossack says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 5:48 pm

    I LOVE this list. I went to a friends house yestreday and played the newest Prince of Persia, a PLATFORMER where it is IMPOSSIBLE TO DIE. He payed 50 dollars for it and beat it in about 9 hours. I’d much rather buy a challenging NES platformer and spend 15 hours working to beat 5 levels.
19. #19 avi says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 12:04 pm

    it seems nintendo is the only 1st-party company that still cares about gameplay.
20. #20 Delta says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 12:06 pm

    They still care about gameplay because they make really simple-ass games with a gimmicky control scheme and use “innovative” instead of “fun” or “intense” and forget about the fans who kept them alive during the dark days of the N64 and GameCube?
21. #21 avi says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 12:08 pm

    i’m assuming you’re referring to the wii blank series. i wasn’t.
22. #22 Delta says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 12:10 pm

    No, referring to half of Nintendo’s games now. Or that they abandoned their fans who saved their asses during the last two generations.
23. #23 Delta says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 12:13 pm

    Or are you going to deny the sad reality this webcomic reflects?

    http://www.vgcats.com/comics/?strip_id=269
24. #24 avi says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 12:14 pm

    like for instance.
25. #25 avi says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 12:15 pm

    ”like what” was what i meant to say.
26. #26 avi says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 12:17 pm

    oh god i hate wii haters.
27. #27 Delta says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 12:18 pm

    Like what? What games? What titles? What state has a law where it’s illegal to jump from a building, punishable by hanging?
28. #28 avi says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 12:23 pm

    10.who reads the manual.
    9.hahahahaha.
    8.and mario has a great storyline?
    7.ditto.
    6.this isn’t a regular problem but when they are too realistic it is a problem so i can agree here.
    5.not all fun games are simple.
    4.ARE YOU FUCKING SERIOUS?
    3.agreed.
    2.hahahahaha
    1.yeah just talk about gta and act like all modern games are like that.
29. #29 avi says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 12:24 pm

    what games?
30. #30 avi says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 12:51 pm

    btw i said ‘’still” cause the PS1 and PS2 had plenty great games.
31. #31 Delta says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 12:52 pm

    Avi…..

    What are you talking about at this point?
32. #32 avi says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 12:56 pm

    could you be more specific?
33. #33 Delta says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 12:58 pm

    Can’t really Avi since you’ve been so unspecific for almost the entire last 8 posts…..

    Forget your medication, take too much, or sleep deprived?
34. #34 avi says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 1:02 pm

    none.
35. #35 avi says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 1:02 pm

    how have i been unspecific?
36. #36 avi says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 1:05 pm

    p.s. 3 should be 1.
37. #37 Delta says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 1:20 pm

    The fact that most of your comments have been quite vague and seemed completely random.
38. #38 avi says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 1:30 pm

    hahahahahaha.
39. #39 avi says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 6:26 pm

    only real big problem i can think of is number 3.
40. #40 avi says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 9:28 pm

    actuall thinking about it 6 is a bigger problem than i thought.
41. #41 dark_lcp says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 7:47 am

    i mostly agree with this list most developers aren’t as creative as they use to be when it come to a story line. there’s only a few games these days that do have it thoe, but mainly there are a lot of modern gaming fans that do dis the retro game and forget that if it wasn’t for the retro, the games we have today wouldn’t exist.
42. #42 Alberto says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 11:00 pm

    Keep buying FPS and that is what the industry will keep making
43. #43 h-bomb says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 3:37 am

    great points – I agree entirely

    the problem is that culture today is dumb and material , designer driven and unimaginative ( just look at teh west ) and as result the companies and pirating have forced them into appealing to the masses .

    THe other problem maybe that a lot of these designers are from this culture themselves now so they create what they live ( which isnt saying much ) other than relying on more pop culture.

    The characters today lack archtypes that define / transcend other characters because of the points you mentioend and the fact a lot of them look the same i.e. comapre mario world characters to characters in resident evil ( and that was 10 years ago ) and you even struggle to remember key characters really ( esp compared to million other clones now )

    Point being if you were watching this as film would you even care beyond the experince of trying to get more in the game , rather than actually enjoying the game itself ( there is difference )

    Chess , checkers are time proven games without bells and whistles that will always be popular because the mechanics ( gameply ) the actually experince is fun from the get go – not just at the end or even halfway .

    FPS are imo just a gross exploitation of how unimaginative and hollow the average gamer is now .

    Most of these kids prob never read a book ( unless they seen the film first ) and have about as much passion for anything ( including themselves ) as a dead fish.

    I can see renegade socities splitting off and forming their own talent pools toa void getting cvaught up in the mess of human waste.

    ho hum
44. #44 ash says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 3:42 pm

    You sound like my Grandad moaning about the youth of today with their penicillin and female voters
45. #45 Unknown says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 7:06 pm

    The main problem I have with modern games is that they seem to lack charisma and atmosphere. It is becoming too Hollywoodized. I remember playing Quake 2 and Diablo 1 and still remember what great music and atmosphere those games had. I played Quake 4 the other day and if there was music, I sure did not notice it. I also saw a trailer for Diablo 3 and I don’t think I’m even going to bother with it. AND I AGREE WITH YOU 100% ABOUT MODERN GAMES BEING SUCH PUSHOVERS. Naysayers have never beat Contra without the cheat code. I did it back in ‘91. As a kid.