The Digital Gaming Age

The classic games are making a big comeback and some old school gamers will be thrilled with this.  These games bring back a lot of childhood memories for some and are filled with a lot of nostalgia.  Big gaming companies are realising that their classic olden games are still worth some money and people are wanting to still play them.  This is why the gaming companies are re-releasing their games, re-modifying the games so as they fit in with modern times and also re-formatting them so as they can be played on the modern consoles and the new smart phones.  

Sony is just one of many companies who are dusting off the dated games and revamping them.  Sony's games 'God of War' and 'Twisted Metal' are being thrown into the blender and will end up creating a whole new game featuring the best aspects of each game.  Both of those games had their own respectful fans and some people would have liked them both.  Blending the two games together is an excellent idea as there is a high chance that many people would look at this new game due to the fact that it involves both 'God of War' and 'Twisted Metal'.    

Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. (TTIS) is another of the big gaming companies to jump on the bringing the old games back bandwagon.  TTIS is re-releasing and reworking some of their games so as they can work on smart phones and tablet computers, instead of traditional gaming consoles and personal computers. The reason for this being that sales of gaming consoles is decreasing while the sales of smart phones is well on the rise.  One game that has been re-released is the popular 'Grand Theft Auto III'.  Strauss Zelnick, the chief executive of TTIS stated that: "people were skeptical there was any library value at all [to these old games]", but after research TTIS found that there is still a large market for these old school games.

Other games that have been remodelled are 'Sonic the Hedgehog', 'Streets of Rage' and 'Virtua Fighter'.  The remodelling of these games gives the games a longer life and will allow them to move into the next generation of gamers.  

The game that I would really like to see remade to be played on a smart phone or tablet is 'Pacman'.  This game is one of the few that has stood the test of time and still remains relatively popular now.  If they could make a 'Temple Run' style format for 'Pacman' it would be awesome.  Either way if  'Pacman' was updated and put on the smart phone markets then its popularity would rise and it could easily become as popular as it once was.  

With more and more people buying smart phones and tablets, using a handheld controller, television, console and game chip/CD may sadly and quickly become a thing of the past.  It is good to see that the gaming companies have realised how big the smartphone and tablet markets have become and that there is a good chance of selling their old games.  They have seen how popular previous games have been and by recycling these games they are able to bring back the joy, that was lost when the games became unpopular, and restore the game to its past glory, which is fantastic news for the old and new gamers.


Article: 

Sherr, I 2012, The iPhone Gives 'Sonic the Hedgehog' a Second Chance, The Wall Street Journal, accessed 20 June 2012, <http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303665904577450613806030938.html>.

Pictures:

Parrish, P 2012, Sony Logo, Incgamers, accessed 20 June 2012, <http://www.incgamers.com/2012/06/you-could-own-sonys-new-york-hq/sony/>.

Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. Responds to Electronic Arts' Fifth Extension of Tender Offer 2012, Console Updates, accessed 20 June 2012, <http://consoleupdates.com/2008/07/22/take-two-will-not-eat-cat-poop-ea-extends-expiration-date-for-t2-buyout/>.

Deathding, 2012, Sonic the Hedgehog, Fanpop, accessed 20 June 2012, <http://www.fanpop.com/spots/sonic-the-hedgehog/images/29905892/title/sonic-1-photo>.

Wikipedia 2012, 'Pac-man', wiki article, accessed 20 June 2012, <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pac-Man>.