Jump to content
NEurope
Sign in to follow this  
tapedeck

What makes us re-play games?

Recommended Posts

Having had a good gander at Miyamoto's new concept I began to think about the following...

 

What gives games (and consoles) high factors of replayability?

 

Obviously there are gameplay elements/achievements/online modes. Perhaps they are the most important factors. (Remember: Online/Achievements are quite new concepts.)

More so I mean to question the fundamental ideas as to why we return to games. Challenge and nostalgia are the two most powerful factors I believe to be in force...

 

Now I know some of you harbour your old consoles and (thinking back to N64 week), you all loved getting said consoles out and playing these games all over again. The joy from playing an old system definitely evokes strong emotion. I liken it to playing with a favourite toy from your childhood. Yet obviously with a videogame the world is told in front of your eyes. Your imagination can fade with time but with a videogame it is a world which never changes no matter how much you do! Therefore an enemy, a piece of music or even a sprite can rewire your brain to emote strong feelings from the past. Possibly on a conscious level too!

 

So when retuning to games in general are you playing them for nostalgia purposes? Are you hoping to regain the same feelings of reward/delight you first felt when playing them or is the universe they occupy the main reason for return? Perhaps you simply want a challenge with something like Tetris.

I still enjoy playing Mario 64 and Donkey Kong Country on the Virtual Console but when I get the SNES and N64 out (I had to re-buy them!) I actually feel better than if it was on the VC. Perhaps there's no substituting the original setup/controllers. Maybe the SNES/N64 era is the best for me. (My mid/late teen years). So does that mean that the consoles you played as a teenager (during your formative years) are the ones housing the most memories and thus replayable titles?

 

I feel that when your in a consoles current lifecycle you don't think too much about what the end of its lifespan holds for it. I think the Wii will be interesting in hindsight. If it's in the loft in ten years time will we get it out for a good game of Wii Sports at Christmas and tell stories with the family about the times we spent on it? I think Wii will be a very special console to keep. (VC and all...)

As I mentioned with the Virtual Console, the old systems could, perhaps lose some replayability (or even nostalgia) as I feel that if a myriad of titles litter the VC who's to say anyone but those that were there in the first place will play these re-released titles?

Will, say, Mario 64 or OoT just get lost in the depths of other VC software? Rightly, these are huge titles but what about the not-so-recognisable titles (like the wealth of 'gold' from '16-bit' SEGA on the VC.)

 

Playing older titles (or playing titles bought and supplied with the relatively 'new' DLC model) is a fascinating idea. It sometimes seems that the industry is always looking at the next step. But then the industry talks about the classics and the "good old days". Food for thought perhaps...

 

Thoughts as ever. : peace:

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Interesting post, there are only certain games which I replay through and I think I mainly do so because it brings back memories and nostalgia. I think ive completed Ocarina Of Time about 6 times because for me its my favourite game ever and it brings back memories of being 12/13 and just being completely obsorbed my the gaming world and characters within it.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
Challenge and nostalgia are the two most powerful factors I believe to be in force...

 

Two of the very reasons I think DKC 3 is so good. :yay: Imo, theres nothing else like it because not only is the nostalgia factor through the roof between DKC 3 and me, but the game is great to go back and replay because there are different ways you can approach it. You can stick it on and blast through it going for minimal % or you can enter in one of the cheats that ups the difficulty and aim for a perfect 105%. Fantastic. :grin:

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I have to admit I don't replay through many games. The only ones I replay are my Megadrive ones purely because it brings back the feeling of being a 5 year old again. My megadrive is my most priced console. Still have every game I was ever given for it and will never get rid of it. I occasionally buy the odd game for it when I find them as well. Sometimes play through some of my Dreamcast games as well for pure nostalgia. Love that thing. Wonder if it still works now though. Has been sitting in a box for quite awhile and my first one stopped working because it had been left inactive for quite sometime. Will have to hook it up and find out. Perhaps get some Soul Calibur going.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Since I'm not that old I can't speak of "nostalgia" like probably most of you do (Master System, NES, etc).

My first home console ever was the SNES (can't remember exactly how old I was) and the first game was, of course, Super Mario World. One of the greatest platformers (for me THE greatest).

The music, the gameplay, the style...everything is perfect in my eyes. When I speak of "nostalgia", I speak of this :D I remember playing it with my dad in my younger years (and until the Wii was released, my dad has never been playing any video games besides Super Mario World). It brings back memories when I play this game. Makes me turn on the Wii quite often.

 

Sometimes it's just the need to complete a game to 100%, although I can't remember if I ever did that (except Super Mario world :D) >_>

 

Multiplayer makes me (and mates) play older games again, as well. Diablo II: LoD is probably the game I installed, uninstalled and installed again the most. The multiplayer just kicks arse.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

My first consoles were the Snes and Mega Drive, so i'm from the same era. Its probably not going to be mean much to many but I used to love Goof Troop on the snes. The puzzels in that game were quality. Also Steet Fighter II, I still (religiously) play the champion edition on the mega drive now.

Shame it looks like no Street Fighter IV on Wii :(

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I replay modern games if I think I can complete them more efficiently (speed run etc) or want to set myself up better for the post-game.

 

As for older games, yes, I think it's for nostalgia. I've actually stopped being affected by nostalgia in the past 5-10 years, and I tend not to find old games stimulating any more, even if I loved them at the time.

 

That said, I still love Ocarina and Majora. Hopefull though there will be something that makes even them obsolete!

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I don't think any game could make ocarina obsolete, simply epicness, and then theres the master quest.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

When I decide to replay a game. I look at all the bad aspects/sections and all the good aspects/sections and look at which is more. If I have an overall bad feeling of it from my original or last play-through, I probably won't replay it anytime soon. But if overall I had a great time playing it the first or latest time, I'll probably decided to replay it.

 

The other thing that helps is side-quests and other things to do besides the main quest of the game. Perhaps I'll find some I left out when I replay the game.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
Sign in to follow this  

×