Introduction: The retro gaming scene has been one of the staples of the video game industry going back to the late 1990s. However, while the same gaming niche was usually populated by gamers who yearn for bygone times, in recent years, many young video game fans have begun to take an active interest. The same interests cover retro games, old consoles, and other retro gaming gear. Besides being an interesting phenomenon, the same surge in retro gaming interest could impact the modern video game industry and have a huge effect on second-hand gaming markets across the world.
Article: Nostalgia is a powerful emotion and countless generations experienced this longing for some past period at some point in their lives. In the video game industry, a business that began in the 1970s, these cycles of nostalgia appear roughly with each passing decade. Many who grew up in the 1990s now lovingly remember early PC computers from the Pentium series, along with their noisy dial-up modems, beige casings, and blocky speakers in the same color palette. Previously, such a nostalgic feel was visible in the 1980s, when console systems like SNES and GameBoy defined the childhood of individuals who were slowly entering the fifth and sixth decade of their lives. Both developers of video games and hardware solutions listened to those generations and tried from time to time to cater to the same desire for ages long gone. Here, the occurrence of mini-consoles came about, with companies like Nintendo and Sony making small, fully digital versions of their famous products, with preloaded games and contemporary HDMI connectivity options.
So, the game industry has never been blind to the desire of older games to get back to their gaming glory days. Now, however, this trend is seeing something new – many young gamers, mainly from the Gen Z cohort, are getting into the retro gaming scene. Here, they are not only enjoying old titles and playing them on second-hand consoles, but they are also actively engaging with the wider retro gaming community on social media and other places. Here, there is little nostalgia for an age they never experienced, but instead, a complex interaction of factors is making retro gaming into a force that is stronger than it ever was. That force is leaving a growing footprint on the rest of the video game landscape as well.
Trends in Numbers
The retro gaming interest among the younger players has been recently assessed in a UK-based poll. Here, a study showed that nearly 75 percent of over 2,000 Generation Z members play old-school games for relaxation. Furthermore, 66 percent stated that they bought at least one retro-tech item in the last 24 months. Finally, one-quarter of those polled, around 500 participants, said that they own at least one retro gaming console. Roughly the same number said that they never previously owned an old type of console and instead decided to purchase one as a supplement to their contemporary gaming habits. Interestingly, the study also showed that the same group generally appreciated older forms of entertainment, with almost 65 percent of participants saying that they preferred to watch 1990s TV shows instead of modern streaming releases. All of this shows a changing generation that finds and enjoys content very differently than those who are 10 or 15 years older than they are.
Digital Library Problems
One of the main latent benefits of retro gaming, just like any other piece of entertainment like TV and films, is that it comes with a decade-long curation process. If a retro game is recommended to someone, it most likely survived for years in the public mindset because of its quality and longevity. Other older titles and releases, which failed to reach that level of appeal, simply faded from memory. So, these games provide a baseline quality that many young gamers, who are generally reluctant to experiment too much, very much appreciate this curation element. However, the modern problem of game licensing and game digital access is also pushing people to retro gaming. With games disappearing from online marketplaces and publishers cutting access to their titles in player libraries, some want to see their games in physical form. This includes not just old releases, but also many modern games that are tailor-made for retro consoles and their cartridge systems. For Generation Z, like any other games, that is simply the more secure option than the fickle licensing and terms of service agreements with big digital game libraries like Steam.
Access to Old-School Consoles
Younger gamers, just like older generations that are interested in retro games and old consoles, are finding these on the reseller market easier than ever before. Thanks to a global trade that locates, restores, and rejuvenates old gaming gear, being able to buy such things no longer requires scouting out thrift stores and garage sales. Instead, these are now purchased online, using many retro gaming vendors both big and small. Additionally, these are supplemented by companies that are re-launching famous consoles from big companies as reverse-engineered, newly assembled hardware. Analogue is a company like that, but there are others as well, working in home console and handheld fields. These new devices are fully compatible with old cartridges and other memory mediums, while they include the regular benefits of modern consoles as well. It is clear that young gamers find this kind of ease of use appealing and it is likely among the reasons why so many decide to purchase such gaming gear.
Diverse Gaming Landscape
The rise of retro gaming is by no means a problem for the wider gaming industry, nor does it put pressure on development teams who focus on present-period titles. It does, however, put pressure on the problems that are becoming more and more apparent with big digital game retail companies and their unfair library access practices. California is one of the places that forced Steam to define its products by basically renting out licenses to gamers, not actually fully selling independent products. The retro gaming wave is one of the complex reactions to both negative elements of the current gaming industry, but also an example of how bygone days can find a second life with new generations. Through this, the contemporary gaming industry can find ways to grow and evolve, but it needs to be able to address the burning issues first. Otherwise, it is easy to see that in a decade or two, PlayStation CDs and similar games reach record prices on reseller markets, while new games and modern consoles fight to find their audiences.
Author: Ivica Milaric, game designer and assistant professor of game design at the Novi Sada Academy of Arts, Republic of Serbia