5 Short Questions for Game Developers: What are your "retro" games?

If you develop games...

1) What age range do you belong in?
[Age Bracket 1]: 12-16
[Age Bracket 2]: 17-21
[Age Bracket 3]: 22-26
[Age Bracket 4]: 27-31
[Age Bracket 5]: 32-36
[Age Bracket 6]: 37-41
[Age Bracket 7]: 42-46
[Age Bracket 8]: 47-51
[Age Bracket 9]: 52-56
[Age Bracket 10]: 57-61
[Age Bracket 11]: 61+


2) What were the retro games you played as a kid which have burned like a tattoo in your mind?
(ex. "I remember renting Maniac Mansion for the C64 from a game rental store where they just put the floppy disk, manual, and everything in a big baggy and just handed it to you. That game changed everything...")

3) What are your "retro" game influences for game development?
(ex. "Earthbound's theme stuck with me so much, I always wanted to make a modern day, fun-style RPG.")

4) How do you feel about Retro Pixel Art: NES/SNES style?
(ex. )
A (Hate it)
B (Dislike it)
C (Neutral)
D (Like it)
E (Love it)

5) How do you feel about Retro Pixel Art: Older/Atari style?
(ex. )
A (Hate it)
B (Dislike it)
C (Neutral)
D (Like it)
E (Love it)

 

Bracket 5. We had couple of systems growing up - a C64, Sega Master System II, Gameboy, but the games that stuck with me were on PC. Commander Keen, Doom, Quake, Duke Nukem, and the biggest of all memories Total Annihilation. I think the PC memories won out because they were mostly forged at sleepover lan parties, while the console stuff was more single player or 2 player.

Update*
As for 4 & 5.
I don't think I've ever been particularly nostalgic for an art style. I've been through so many systems (additional to the ones I mentioned above) that I just got used to playing with all kinds of art styles. For me it's all about the gameplay, so the answer to Qs 4 & 5 would be 'D' and 'D'. I'm not particularly impressed with 'realistic' art though. I find it tends to date the quickest.

**Thanks to der_r for reminding me to add Lemmings. How did I forget about you!

 

1. 3.. im 26
2. .. some of the games ive enjoyed the most.. off top of my head: rings of power, genesis ... crystalis, nes .. zelda lttp, snes ... zelda, nes (not as much).. secret of mana, snes .. deus ex, pc (when i was like 14? -16?) ... legend of cao cao, pc, translated from jap (when i was like .. 23,24 lol)

rings of power, id play with legos like that.. lol played it when i was like 4 with my dad... lol i learned to read playing those video games..


3. lol .. i played the game legend of caocao recently.. i loved it !! and it made me want to make a game like it, but.. kinda like total war aswell, and kinda like kessen in someways too... currently im working on a easier project.. although big project, to get experience in unity before i make the game i REALLY wanna make.. ... but this last summer i found myself kinda demoralized.. but got reinvigorated by wanting to make a game kinda like zelda, but has like diablo or path of exile elements (loot, gain levels and skills) ...i began on it.. but that would require an interesting storyline.. and i wanna learn unity, so im not gonna take a month writing a good story right now... right now im working on a twin stick shooter / fps game.. base building, and squad commanding..

4. D .. i like it alot!! but its not my absolute favorite art style... id say divine divinity's art style is the best.. or maybe like diablo2 (VERY fond of divine divinity though) (only problem is resolution... lol it looked amazing on a CRT)

5. D .. it has a certain appeal, it looks like a game.. not amazing, but not bad

... im working with 3d instead of 2d.. because it feels easier for me to create 3d models than 2d, and i want to use mechanics that can (mostly) only exist in 3d..
.. but i WISH i could make great looking 2d art..


i think those art styles "feel" like a game... 3d photorealistic doesnt "feel" like a game... ive noticed that.. when something in a photorealistic game isnt 100 percent like reality.. its like, some part of your brain wants to reject it.. and i find myself nitpicking it.. like "wtf this game sucks" .. and like the newer battlefields, are just STRESSFUL .. NOT fun... lol.. i played alot of "battlefield play4free" .. the graphics arent very good.. but the game is waay funner, and i feel the graphics have some part in it... like the photorealistic ones, theres too much stuff for your brain to process, that you cant quickly react as good..( or something) .. and actual camoflauge comes into play, which is kinda cool, but not as fun..

zelda link to the past is timeless graphics.. 1000 years from now itll still look very good...
zelda link between worlds looks like total crap..

 

On cell phone and movie starting in just a couple mins so I may need to do an edit later.

1. What is the purpose of all of the age brackets? I could see like 12 and under, 13 to 20, 21 to 30, 31 and older. But beyond that seems pointless?

2. Night Stalker, Dungeons & Dragons Treasure of Tarmin, Demon Attack and many more on Intellivision. Parsec on TI 99/4a, Temple of Apshai Trilogy, Impossible Mission, I-Ball, Warhawk, B C Quest for Tires, H.E.R.O, Raid on Bungeling Bay, Choplifter and many more on C64. Amiga games too. There are too many really to list.

3.It is not so much any one game rather just the sense of mystery, new experience, the wonder of what this new game world will be like. The variety of games. There used to be tons of different games exploring different game styles and the focus was more like putting the player in a cool experience do things that previously could only be done in your imagination.

Outta time. Try to finish on computer later.

 

1) What age range do you belong in?
[Age Bracket 4]: 27-31


2) First game I played on our PC was Prince of Persia. Also: Lemmings, Pacman, Commander Keen, Jill of the Jungle. I think those had the biggest impact on my irrational love of platformers, lol.

3) What are your "retro" game influences for game development?
I think mostly the Keen games. The foreign worlds captured my imagination and the gameplay still feels nearly perfect today, especially eps. 4-6.

4) How do you feel about Retro Pixel Art: NES/SNES style?
E (Love it)

5) How do you feel about Retro Pixel Art: Older/Atari style?
E (Love it)

 

1. Bracket 4, I am 29

2. Legend of Zelda, Super Mario Bros., Bubble Bobble, Renegade, Double Dragon, TMNT arcade home ports, Snow Bros, Link's Adventure, Kirby's Adventure and Megaman.

3. I don't understand this question. Same as #2 - I was inspired by the artistic, expressive style of these games with their clean graphics and concise gameplay. The rules were explicit and they ran like finely tuned engines. No fuzzy hit detection or bizarre ideas, just solid gameplay.

4. Similar to how I feel about seeing a very attractive female.

5. I just can't vomit enough...

 

1) What age range do you belong in?
[Age Bracket 5]: 32-36

2) What were the retro games you played as a kid which have burned like a tattoo in your mind?

• Turrican II (perfect from start to finish - great art, superb soundtrack, smooth gameplay)
• Dynablaster (Bomberman - setup is always the same but each match plays differently)
• Traders (poured hours upon hours into it)

3) What are your "retro" game influences for game development?
In regards of game #2 and #3 - I like setting up a fixed rule set and let players/randomness take it from there rather than setting up a full world to explore.

4) How do you feel about Retro Pixel Art: NES/SNES style?
E (Love it)

5) How do you feel about Retro Pixel Art: Older/Atari style?
C (Neutral)