Gamer nostalgia hits players

New technology is great, but video games just aren’t ‘the same anymore’

CHARLOTTETOWN - Bridget Driver grew up playing Mario Kart 64, Tony Hawk Pro Skater 3 and Guitar Hero Legends of Rock.

The Charlottetown, P.E.I. woman played these games both at home and friend’s houses on different gaming platforms - Mario Kart 64 on the Nintendo 64 and Guitar Hero Legends Of Rock on PlayStation 3.

“Tony Hawk Pro Skater 3 was played on the original Xbox, which I still have and still works,” says Driver.

She cherishes all these games for different reasons. When she was young, she and her mom played Mario Kart 64 before bed most evenings.

“When I was older, I appreciated Tony Hawk for the sandbox-like approach to character modifications, as well as the soundtrack,” she says.

Guitar Hero Legends of Rock, however, remains Driver’s favourite game, which she says subliminally taught her how to play guitar.

“I would play that game every chance I got," she says. "Thanks to the game’s visuals, I am able to continuously unlock things about my guitar playing and piano playing, all thanks to this game."

What makes these games so beloved, says Driver, “is it was part of a time where co-op gameplay could happen on the couch with a single console. Now to play co-op, it’s quite different.”

Driver is still a gamer today but doesn’t play nearly as much. She does “enjoy playing Skyrim and Fallout 4, along with any racing games when I have the time.”

But it's those video games she loved so much that means the most.

CARTRIDGE KING

Mitch MacDonald is from Cape North but he's known better by his nickname: “Cartridge King.”

Some of the games he misses are Super Mario All-Stars, Street Fighter 2, and Doctor Mario, which he played at home with his brother on the Super Nintendo while growing up.

MacDonald says you can get some of the games today, but they are not the same versions of the game he had as a child.

“These games were beloved to me as a child because it was

something I could do with my siblings. Nowadays, online multiplayer is king, and, well, I miss the old couch co-op,” he says.

In comparison to today, MacDonald says “people don’t leave their houses to play games with their friends because they meet in online lobbies instead of hopping on their bicycles to play with friends at their house or go to arcades (to play) retro games. It's not the same anymore.”

MacDonald is still a gamer today and teaches his kids to play video games and helps them get better.

“I live stream specifically retro games to Facebook as "Cartridge King". I speedrun and enjoy co-op games with a couple of close friends via a program called Parsec and use Discord for voice chat,” he says.

But, he says, he misses the old days.

"It's not the same. I'm not on the couch side by side razzing one another, but it scratches the itch.”

GREW UP PLAYING IN ARCADES

Randy Cormier of O'Leary, P.E.I. grew up playing Megamania on Atari, as well as Mortal Kombat II, Killer Instinct, and Ms. Pacman at the arcade.

Although he had an Atari system growing up, Cormier says it was the arcade he gravitated towards.

Luckily for him, all of his favourite games are emulated to work on modern machines today.

“The camaraderie of playing with friends and family, and the nostalgia factor, bring me back to a simpler time in my childhood," he says.

Cormier is still a gamer today - but his love is still for those games of his youth.

“I collect retro consoles, ranging from the Atari 2600 to Vectrex to Nintendo and Sega

consoles ranging from the 70s to the 90s," he says.

"I also have invested in several modern arcade cabinets to have my own personal arcade in my home.”

A SIMPLER TIME

Brenden Fraser of Charlottetown misses playing games like the original Animal Crossing and Pokémon Yellow.

“I also played a lot of the original Spiderman for PlayStation 1. As a teenager, I started playing Minecraft, but it has changed a lot since then," he says.

"There used to be an element of surprise and adventure that I don't experience with the newer versions.”

Growing up, Fraser mostly played video games at home on his Game Boy Colour, the family desktop PC, or a PlayStation 1 and GameCube that he shared with his older brother.

It's those same games he played as a kid that he favours today - and he's found a way to play them.

“All the games that I used to play can be run through a program on the computer called an emulator and played using a mouse and keyboard. For some games, it requires you to pay for the files to get the game, though,” he says.

Like Cormier, Fraser says that playing these video games brings him back to a simpler time in his life when he didn't stress much. And he is still very much still a gamer, he adds.

“I compete in a real-time strategy game for PC called StarCraft II and have been working on mastering the game since 2015," he says.

"The closest thing I can compare the game to is a way more exciting version of chess. I play in tournaments against the best players in the world.

“I personally rank around top 500 players worldwide, but have beaten several of the top 10 players in a series in those tournaments."