The video game industry celebrates the 20th anniversary this December for the historic console that helped usher in CD based media to console gaming: the PlayStation. The Sony made console easily became a mainstay and brand in the late 90s, even more so with the introduction of the PS2. There is even a special edition PS4 being sold in limited numbers. Some are going for insane amounts of money.
Once again visiting the 32-bit era of gaming when Sony, Sega and Nintendo were the main competitors in the home console market, we see newest and biggest threat to both Sega and Nintendo trying to make a place for themselves. At the time, video mascots were hard to forge, let alone brand with consumers. Though […]
This week is a video from Nintendo Power. It’s about a ten minute long promotion that details Star Fox 64 and the N64 Rumble Pak. It was made back in the 90s when Sony, Sega and Nintendo were going head-to-head-to-head, so you can probably guess Nintendo looks superior over the other represented companies. Who is […]
These buttons are usually found on the top of the controller and typically have a secondary function in games. Though, in first person and third person shooters, they arguably function has the main buttons. Over time, shoulder buttons have been further innovated upon with the creation of pressure triggers seen on the Dreamcast and a second row seen on the PlayStation home consoles.
Mode 7 and true 3D environments
A flat, infinite and ever expanding plane probably gave the perfect illusion gamers needed for a pseudo 3D experience but, it wasn’t until CD based systems really started to take advantage of this. Two dimensions was pretty much the only aspect gamers knew and slowly, but surely that notion has reversed. Though, there are still very notable 2D based games around …
Standard four controller ports
While this isn’t such a big thing now, but having four controller ports built into a system was an ingenious perk. Way before Nintendo implemented this on the N64, two ports were normally found on systems. Microsoft and Sega followed suite on this with their consoles, but Sony never did. Nowadays, USB ports and wireless signals are the standard for controller connections instead of a propriety connection shipped with a console.
Battery back up memory
Passwords were a great feature, but having to write them down all the time was a pain. Though passwords hung around while battery saves on the cart were being implemented, this function would later evolve into memory cards for CD based systems and hard disk drives further along into the future starting with the Xbox.
Dual analog joysticks
Looking back, first person shooters were awkward at first, GoldenEye being one of them! Holding down a shoulder button for precise aiming? Now that’s a thing of the past! Innovating controllers like the Dual Shock really paved the way for quicker and easier camera controls as well as a dedicated stick for looking/aiming.
Digital media is a constantly changing thing and its environment is regularly expanding. From software to apps to games, consumption of such programming can only increase. As time and the advancement of digital systems progress, it is only natural for that environment to adapt.
For a while now Digital Rights Management (DRM) has been a big issue for gamers and finding a fair way to utilize it for gamers has stemmed from it. Many have tried CD keys, “always on” and account based digital distribution services like Steam. All methods of control have ups and downs, though the less intrusive methods seem to be the most popular.
Physical media has been a mainstay since games were on floppy disks and even when there was barely a hint of DRM. So what happens to your games when a digital service is shut down or when the digital media you’re looking for is no longer available? Here are few scenarios I can think of right off the bat.
The thought of losing a product you purchased or multiple because a digital distributor is no longer around is quite frightening and thankfully it has rarely come to that. Fearing that notion is not absurd. During this generation of gaming, consumers have poured a lot of money into buying digital goods.
For example, Sony recently announced the next iteration of the PlayStation. As the details slowly came out about the system, gamers found out none of the games they downloaded for the PS3 would be compatible with the PS4; making the PS3 the only console you could play that game on. This is not just a backwards compatibility problem, it’s a hardware problem.
System failure is a completely different worry in itself but, when and if the servers go offline for your product, that’s it. You’re out of luck. Sony might change their stance on this, eventually allowing you to play your old games with their new hardware or even Gaikai. While streaming services aren’t out of the question, they just haven’t been proven.
For this generation emulation has been wonderful as well as a relief. Being able to download old classics to your Wii or even recent favorites to your PS3 is always a great option but those purchases are still tied to an account and one cannot guarantee that they will always be playable. Besides, nothing beats the feeling of a physical product in your hands, instruction manual and box included.
The future of our data does seem uncertain and partly because the waters haven’t been charted yet. Having a fully backwards compatible future would be ideal and for the time being it doesn’t seem like we are going to get that. So for now create backups, don’t count on ports or remakes and take good care of your hardware!
Nostalgia Gamer 