What is the definition of 'retro' to you?

[GVSE]

Probably there is a standard or "universal" definition for the meaning of retro... which i don't know!! xD
but i'd consider everything before the digital era. Yeah, we had satellaview in the past, or even PSN selling digital games for the PSP, but i see them as rudimentary technologies. The HDMI/Full HD image also marks a paradigm shift for me.

 

[Yankee]

Yeah you gotta think:
Right now the PS3 is 18 years old. We don't really consider it retro.
The SNES was 18 in 2008. It was considered retro.

Really, I don't think that 'retro' when it comes to gaming can be applied through a definition of age. It has more baggage than that. It also implies things like 4:3 displays ( but not always ), analog signals ( again, not always true ), games that came feature complete in package ( but there are Revisions ) without online connectivity ( but that existed way before XBox Live! ) so-

 

[DunkeyKong]

Threads merged.

Ah I see

 

[Ikagura]

It will be quite the debate here but how long before something becomes retro for good? Personally I already see the early 7th gen as retro since the games are almost 20 years old, that they are several gens apart and how I play them for nostalgia as well. I cannot really play early Wii games while telling myself that I'm playing modern games, ditto with 2005-2008 Xbox 360 games.

But I'd be curious to know your opinion and if you think that retro means "Before 2000" or even "Before 3D became commonplace".

 

[Clippy]

Call me pedantic or contrarian but to me retro games the those made today that are made to look and feel like old games (usually with QoL updates and less BS). All those 8 and 16 bit inspired games made in recent years are retro imo.

Old games are simply that - old

Doesn't stop me from enjoying them as much as I did when I was growing up with them and my slightly condescending opinion that calling old games 'retro' is a bit pretentious shouldn't stop you from enjoying them either no matter how you define them.

P.S. as per Merriam-Webster: Retro - relating to, reviving, or being the styles and especially the fashions of the past : fashionably nostalgic or old-fashioned.
That's where my pedantism comes from hehe.

 

[Ikagura]

I made a similar topic but I'd be interested to answer that when something reaches the 20 years old mark it becomes vintage to the point people are replicating the style.

All those 8 and 16 bit inspired games made in recent years are retro imo.

Interesting point of view but I'd still say that these indie games inspired by an older epoch still have quality of life and gameplay tweaking we couldn't see in that era.

Shovel Knight is obviously a Capcom inspired platformer (Megaman and Ducktales) but still have you being able to upgrade your character, having many side items and the gameplay is less stiff than what you found on the NES (especially knockback). They are retro styled while still feeling modern.

Not to be an elitist/gatekeeping person but for me a 100% retro styled indie game should also bring the jankiness of the era for the "full experience".

 

[Darklink]

For me I'd say the Gamecube/PS2/Xbox generation is either the last retro era, or the first modern era.

A lot of modern game design philosophies were made during that generation. It's when FPS and third person shooters started to really hit their stride in the console space. As well as narrative focused games outside of JRPGs making a bigger impact. This era of game also can translate very well to modern consoles due to remasters. Metroid Prime Remastered feels pretty in-place with other modern titles.

 

[Ikagura]

The 6th gen was shortly called the "128-bits era" until the PS2 when people noticed that bits no longer mattered.

It's true that the 360 added game design elements still used today but I also hardly feel that I'm playing a "modern" game when I emulate the 360 or the Wii.

 

[Poltergeist]

I apply my "20-year rule" to any kind of media to determine if it's retro or not. If a piece of media is at least 20 years old, I consider it retro.

 

[BlackMage0]

I was born in the late 90's and grew up with my GBA and the sixth generation consoles so I would consider anything up to the Wii not including the PS3/360 as retro since that's still pretty modern in my eyes. Despite being about 20 years ago now, they are pretty modern from the architecture of the consoles down to the graphics and mechanics but that's just me.

 

[Ikagura]

This could be subjective but I think video game, like other art form, could get a "classic era" or any other naming to differentiate each epoch.

 

[fake-kun]

PS3 and Xbox 360 are retro.

That's all I will say on the subject.

 

[thecatillaccat]

Does it make you feel old when you see it talked about in some fashion? Bingo bango, now it is retro.

 

[moonbits]

If it ain't available anymore in retail stores it's retro babyyyyy
I actually don't know, or give much thought to it but 2 generations sound about right. That would mean the 360 is retro and yeah, it is. (almost 15 years).

 

[Gorse]

(almost 15 years).

I hate to tell you, but 15 years ago was 2009 – the 360 is turning 20 next year.

 

[moonbits]

I hate to tell you, but 15 years ago was 2009 – the 360 is turning 20 next year.

*Becomes visibly pale*

 

[starseeker300]

I personally agree with the sentiment that the 6th console generation (gamecube, ps2, og xbox, and dreamcast) is the last retro generation, but not because of any arbitrary cutoff date. But Rather because after that generation there were several shifts in the gaming landscape:

1.) gaming started to become more mainstream and receive more mainstream media coverage beyond just "hurr durr video games caused the violence, the kid totally didn't have anger issues before"
2.) technological advancement of game systems slowed down significantly, look at the jump from the snes to the ps1 and then to the og xbox, and then compare that from the 360 and ps3 to xbone and ps4 and then to series x and ps5. the difference in graphics, game speed, hardware power, etc. is a lot less in the latter group when compared to the former group
3.) triple a games became a thing which created a shift in development philosophies for most companies

yes these shifts did start during the 6th generation but the didn't become fully realized until the 7th, at least in home consoles, handhelds didn't really follow that trend until the current generation (the 9th) with the Nintendo Switch and Steam Deck. I would even go as far to say that one could see the same kind of 6th to 7th generation shift repeated in handhelds during the main console lifetimes of 3ds and psvita


tldr: retro is 6th generation and back for consoles and 7th or 8th generation and back for handhelds because of shifting gaming landscape and not because of an arbitrary cutoff year

 

[Leon]

Anything ps2 generation or older i consider technically retro.

Anything before the 3d era (aka the 16 bit era or before) i consider vintage gaming.

For what it's worth, i consider anything before 2010, no matter the console, to be "classical" era.

For what it's worth i also classify them by ages, 16 bit or older i consider the "greatest" age (not necessarily in quality, but in innovation).
i consider ps1 to the end of the ps2 era the "golden age", the ps3 and 360 era the "silver age" and the beginning of the digital era (aka ps4 era) the "age of collapse" where gaming lost it's way in many ways, not all games are bad, but quality took a nosedive around this era.

 

[moonbits]

Anything ps2 generation or older i consider technically retro.

Anything before the 3d era (aka the 16 bit era or before) i consider vintage gaming.

For what it's worth, i consider anything before 2010, no matter the console, to be "classical" era.

For what it's worth i also classify them by ages, 16 bit or older i consider the "greatest" age (not necessarily in quality, but in innovation).
i consider ps1 to the end of the ps2 era the "golden age", the ps3 and 360 era the "silver age" and the beginning of the digital era (aka ps4 era) the "age of collapse" where gaming lost it's way in many ways, not all games are bad, but quality took a nosedive around this era.

The age of calamity, when the Fortnite struck.

 

[yaktaur]

Retro in general I feel is PS2 and earlier. The HDMI is the era break. I mean it's a pretty sketchy line that I don't care too much about really but if I had to put a spot it'd be there

 

[Ikagura]

I'd still argue that handhelds from after the PS2 still kinda felt retro, the PSP and DS still kept elements from the PS1 and GBA respectively.

I'd also say that the DS games relying on 2D when not using low poly 3D and MIDI based OSTs is also what made them feel retro.

And early Wii also felt retro for being a Gamecube with extra steps (until the slight rebrand with the Wii Family model).

 

[starseeker300]

And early Wii also felt retro for being a Gamecube with extra steps (until the slight rebrand with the Wii Family model).

Yeah the Wii is kinda wierd within the scope of this topic, under the hood its a souped up gamecube, but it came out alongside the first hd consoles but instead of following the new standard it went in a complete new direction with both its control scheam and types of games it had, even though it would be the perfect console for fps' ironically (dont believe me just try the metroid prime trilogy) And early Wii also felt retro for being a Gamecube with extra steps (until the slight rebrand with the Wii Family model).

 

[Ikagura]

Yeah the Wii is kinda wierd within the scope of this topic, under the hood its a souped up gamecube, but it came out alongside the first hd consoles but instead of following the new standard it went in a complete new direction with both its control scheam and types of games it had, even though it would be the perfect console for fps' ironically (dont believe me just try the metroid prime trilogy) And early Wii also felt retro for being a Gamecube with extra steps (until the slight rebrand with the Wii Family model).

I'd also argue that Nintendo kept their classic game design ideas for both the hardware and their games (maybe except very late Wii titles).

No vocal chat lobbies, no account-tied achievements, no DLCs to buy and install on the machine, limited online interaction.

The only thing making it apart was Virtual Console.

 

[RageBurner]

I didn't vote on the poll because no option there reflected my opinion exactly, but essentially it's not any one point in time. Retro is a moving goal post, not a discrete category. One might say even the 360 is somewhat retro compared to current gen, given the inexorable passage of time.

 

[zat01chi]

I voted: The PS2 era and before, nothing after.

Remember them manuals?