Nostalgia...

Well the thing that brought this one up is that I have recently been playing through the first Mass Effect (thanks for the suggestion Jorge) and I was surprised at how well it holds up. I mean sure it isn't a super old game or anything, being released in 2007 and all, but the industry evolves fast, and I was surprised that I might actually like it more this time. Well that brought up the question of how powerful nostalgia really is. I mean, how many games that you absolutely love are really old? Do you think they would be anywhere near as fun if you played them today? I think of Kingdom Hearts (which is eight on my top ten games list) as an example of something that probably wouldn't hold up as well as I would like it too. I loved that game when I played it around four or five years ago, but would I enjoy it as much today? The combat was very simple but fun, and the magic system was great but would it hold up in the day of high res graphics and incredible physics technology? Or would the fun and nostalgia of the game overshadow all of that? It's a hard question to answer. I will say that I have proof that sometimes old games hold up without the nostalgia factor though, as I played through MGS3: Snake Eater last week (having never played it before) and boy was that game good; it is easily my favorite Metal Gear game (I'm not the biggest fan of number four). So go back and play one of your favorite games, one of those games you remember as being the thing that got you into gaming. Everyone has that game, and for me it was Goldeneye. See if it holds up, and if it doesn't...well then remember the memories instead.

-Smith