Today's gamers.

[ItISLupus]

Gamers today don't know as they're born.

I tell you, when I was a young gamer, we had to solve our problems ourselves without t'Internet.

Ha! You think that's bad, I used t'have 't solve my problems, on my own, while fifteen strapping lads with canes beat me until I were black and blue.


HA! I used t'have 't solve me problems, on me own, underwater without a snorkel, while an entire PLATOON of sharpshooters fired at me with anti-tank rifles. And if I failed... If I failed... I'd have been cast out into the freezing snow without supper!




Aye, but if you tell young gamers that they won't believe you...

Remember the good ol' day's before save slots? When we had passcodes?



When these pages were relevant?

[Tharcion]

LUXURY!

Thank you for getting that. You make me feel less old.

[Lowlif3r]

It's not just the younger generation. I started doing it as well a few years ago and didn't think much of it. This is actually something that can change the world in a very major way in the near future. When we start just looking up how to do.. instead of figuring out possible solutions, nothing really new or smarter is going to come around. In Mother Gaming, the Game is Played for You.

[Covington]

Thank you for getting that. You make me feel less old.

Secret: I was doing that in my head when the thread started and your post tickled me so much I nearly spilled my coffee. I think I am the oldest girl here so you are in good company.

[IGears]

I remember buying a gaming magazine just for one article that was a guide to get through a certain part of a level. I think that was for Turok 2 on the N64

[Tharcion]

Secret: I was doing that in my head when the thread started and your post tickled me so much I nearly spilled my coffee. I think I am the oldest girl here so you are in good company.

I used to say things like that (well, oldest man around anyway) and then there would always turn out to be someone older.

And sorry about the coffee.

[Covington]

I used to say things like that (well, oldest man around anyway) and then there would always turn out to be someone older.

And sorry about the coffee.

Ahh but with all the "Where are the women at?" threads each week I think I am the oldest girl. That or we are all hiding out...

[Myles Prower]

I used to write cheats in the notes sction of manuals, I used to go around to a friends house who had a cheats book and write some down, I loved using the fun joke cheats instead of the "god mode" cheats.

[SteveMND]

Thank you for getting that. You make me feel less old.

Aww, man, that image just made me feel older now. *le sigh*

Still, I was listening to the radio yesterday, and realized I actually knew the answer to a question a quiz show had proposed: it was to determine who the 'odd man out' was in this group, and why?

1) The Economic Repercussions of the Teapot Dome Scandal
2) Man's Crisis of Identity in the Latter Half of the 20th Century
3) The Golden Age of Ballooning
4) How to Recognise Different Types of Trees From Quite a Long Way Away

I have to admit, i was disproportionally proud of myself for knowing the answer immediately, while the contestants went on and on for a while.

[Synra]

You know, a month ago I would have been in complete agreement with this topic. I have certainly thought it myself many times over the years.

But in the last few weeks I have been playing Final Fantasy 3 again. This is a 20 year old game, that I fondly remember as one of my favorite games of all time. But to be fair, in retrospect, when I originally played it all of those years ago, I had a strategy guide for it. This time around, I figured that I am a much better and more experienced gamer these days. I am sure I can just figure out everything without resorting to guides!

Well, I managed to get a good 20+ hours into the game before I stopped and realized that I NEEDED to start looking up info on this game. These older games aren't constructed the way modern games are. One of the big problems I have run into while playing FF3 again, was an extreme lack of information. There are tons of items, spells and other abilities that have special functionality, but the game gives you zero information on them. The best you can do is try them and make a best guess at what exactly they do.

And then there is the simple matter of roadblocks in the content. I seriously reached a point in FF3, where I simply could not progress forward. I had no idea where to go next. The next several dungeons I needed to clear were a little too well hidden.

So, while I do agree with trying to figuring things for yourself, there is a limit. I agree that a lot of today's games do a bit too much hand-holding (defiance's waypoints come to mind). And it's worth understanding that older games were not that well designed, even our old favorites. Those games weren't nearly as high budget as games are today, and they weren't playtested like games are today.