I have a feeling their comment was tongue in cheek. I absolutely agree too, for while I do think there is some merit in artificial difficulty and creativity within set restrictions, I also enjoy games much more when I emulate them and have save states.

I think a great example that bridges the gap between more modern-style hardware and daily living, and old difficult repeatable gameplay is the era of the Gameboy Color. So many of the games for these style of consoles were meant to be played in bursts (arcades, anyone?) due to the on-the-go nature, and since that fit so in line with the already existing mechanisms gaming had -- artificial difficulties by design -- there is a very streamlined progression from 1980's games and early 2000's games.

So, what changed? Well let me tell you, it wasn't the Blackberry.

Honestly, the iPhone. As mobile game consoles like the Nintendo DS got better, games got more fully fledged like the home console games were. Developers were recreating game experiences like Spyro, putting in huge games in tiny mobile consoles (Toon Link, anyone?). Yes, the Nintendo DS still had its shovelware but the iPhone was the new bridge that gapped the old arcade style pay-to-play. Games with artificial difficulty now had micro-transactions allowing you to bypass the designed limitations. As mobile consoles got better games, mobile gaming got far, far worse, leading us to """"random"""" RNG -gacha and lootboxes and all the great gambling starters.

That's only further developed for offshoots of software. Just look at all the junk between the: FOSS stores, Apple Store, Play Store, Samsung Store, Meta-Quest Store, going even further some devices have their own separate store entirely. And now these stores ship updates, so you don't even have to finish your game before selling it!

Ironically, Nintendo paved the way for a really great opportunity, then capitalists saw the opportunity to exploit the free market and now there is literal garbage everywhere.

I somewhat disagree about being "unable to go back", but I will say it's sheerly the style of game itself.

Take a game like A Link to the Past. Now look at a game like Retro City Rampage. Despite some 30+ years difference, they are visually nearly identical. Or any of the 2D Sonic games, them being 30 years apart is effectively meaningless.

But yeah, trying to play old Tomb Raider? If you're expecting even PS3 graphics, boy are you in for a surprise.

However I think there is also an annoying amount of push for "better graphics or bust". That was the main debate for the console wars, the Wii sucked because its graphics weren't good and it's a baby console, Gears of War and Lost Planet for the XBox are the pinnacle of gaming!1! What! No the God of Wa- sorry I got caught in a flashback.

But there are plenty of games you can emulate that can be upscaled and remove the archaic visuals, then it's just the game design and control scheme. Red Dead Revolver looks and plays great, there's no reason for anyone to stop playing outside of it just being a little less "AAA". Similarly, pretty much any of the PS2 exploration games - Jak and Daxter, Spyro, Sly, Ty, Crash - hold up wonderfully today. They're a bit slower, but they are the foundation that modern games of that genre use.

I don't think them being slower, clunkier, less "AAA" makes them bad games. I think it makes them older games, and that is not inherently bad. In fact, I would argue that it's gamers being bad at them, and that games today in many ways are easier to keep people engaged. The D&D arcade game is great, difficult, and would be absolutely dunked on by gamers today for all of its awkward gameplay.

This reminds me of an article I read about "Blade Runner, and old movies in general, are harder to watch because contemporary audiences have gotten used to movies that are faster, which makes them better." The whole article was effectively trying to state that because new movies have shaped audiences, old movies are becoming unwatchable. In some respects, I'm sure there's merit to that. In many other respects, I completely disagree. Just because something is in a different language does not remove its value. I see that as a reflection of the viewer, not a reflection of the art.

With that in mind, old video games are a different language. We have to play them with the mindset that things will not be familiar. That does not make them bad, it makes them something to learn, and it's going to force you to learn things that are uncomfortable because it's unfamiliar to what you would rather be doing. Old movies are a different language.

Just because you may not understand it does not mean it is worse. Likewise, just because you are familiar with modern games doesn't make them better either. And finally, better is subjective for the most part anyway. (None of this is directed at you btw, lol not at all trying to say that you don't understand things!)

Twist twist: you only charge .20 cents for a subscription cause there's a shit ton of blind people and you'd still be a millionaire in 3 months.

Twist twist twist: once you're set for life all future profits go to non-profits and charities, funding millions of dollars for restoring vision.

Twist twist twist twist: in order to continue the overall positive of charity, you start working on ways to cause blindness again so their subscription goes to other charities

I tend to get wet hands pretty easily and the index+knuckles is still a stellar VR headset.

I've used it for nearly 4 years now and I've never felt the need to get those silicone slips - which seems to completely resolve the issue.

21st is a mix of B-Sides from American Idiot and Cigarettes and Valentine's, put together to make it's own album, I don't see it as disjointed but I can understand why. For me it comes across as an aged Warning.

Uno-Tre was their way of screwing over their record label because they were contracted to do 3 more albums. So considering they pulled out 38 songs in that timeline. I'd say listening through 21st and the songs through Uno-Tre, it's pretty clear to hear the difference in production of the songs complexity. 21st has tons of diverse, almost orchestral elements supporting the background of the songs. Uno-Tre are generally a bit more simple in their compositions (as are Rev Radio and FOAMF)

Which is it, for kids that don't like milk or for kids that like milk and want it with their 7-Up?

Hey, I had a teacher named Mr. Moran and he was a lovely guy!

It's awful that it got changed like that, was there no setting at all to change it back?

Exactly. I was in class when we saw the crash on TV, we're allowed to joke about it.

Hope you like the smell of skunk or living in a gas mask, I have a vicious racoon that can steal :3

Got any recommendations on a decently price-sensitive record player? We were gifted a cheap Crosby but I don't really want to risk our nicer records on it.

I agree. I almost never fast travel in games, when I do it's at the very end game usually if I'm just trying to 100% it.

I never felt the need to travel in Cyberpunk 2077. Nor for Yakuza or Dragons Dogma.

I beat most of Skyrim without fast travel too, though that one began getting tedious at the end. I never even attempted with RDR2, it felt pointless.