In the
previous post I wrote about why I'd decided to avoid
retro-gaming in my MA research, so you'd be forgiven for wondering why I'm clamouring to discuss the subject again.
The main reason is because there's a gaping hole in my current experimental research when it comes to nostalgia triggers from the 1990s and 2000s. My
shopping catalogue investigation highlighted a modern void, where toys & games started to dwindle in favour of games consoles, leaving few potential
non-game-related cues which would have an emotional resonance.
However, I think I've found an angle on how to include period video games
without the associated legal problems. And, importantly, to do this without treading on the toes of
other research in this area. Before I explain my thoughts, I'd like to describe the journey that let to my conclusion.
Bigger than the PS4
Last weekend I took a party of students to
Play Expo in Manchester, which featured:
With all these exclusive
AAA-titles on show, what was top-of-the-bill?
Retro-gaming. It took up most of the venue's floor space, was promoted as the primary feature, and revealed a passion for nostalgia that simply cannot be ignored.
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Rainbow Islands (Taito, 1987) at Play Expo
(In my opinion one of the best-crafted video games of the last 30 years: perfect pace & flow, cleverly unveiling greater challenges & rewards as the player's skill increases. Like Mario Kart, it's a game where a beginner and an expert can play the same level and each have different, fulfilling experiences. And it's pretty cute, too.)
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I'd noticed a retro section at
Insomnia but this took things to another level. Arcade cabinets, row-upon-row of old consoles & PCs, and even pinball tables. There was kit there that I hadn't seen for 30 years. These guys are
serious about their retro.
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| Old hardware & home PC bundles. |
The legacy of the UK video gaming industry's roots was also evident, with displays focusing on Acorn's education products (including some nifty
1980s graphic design) and even an appearance by
Jeff Minter's
Llamasoft.
However, despite the quantity of very old kit, it was clear that this event represented 40-year-old dads down to 20-something youngsters, with a fair proportion of 1990s and early 2000s gaming available.
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| "Woah! Imagine the size of the cartridges?" |
The appearance of
Retro Gamer magazine in the mid-2000s showed the early roots of the retro-gaming movement but I believe that it is only in the last few years that the market has started to move from niche to mainstream, aided mainly by
digital distribution and
micro-transactions -- allowing users to quickly & conveniently enjoy blasts of nostalgia.
Application to my research
Wandering around the event I realised that, while the old games themselves are objects of desire, the actual
equipment & ephemera are also powerful nostalgia triggers. From old
Kempston joysticks to obscure home computers (like the
SAM Coupé sitting in a corner), there's joy to be found in rediscovery of old friends.
I've finally realised that I can include these old games in my work: not by using the games themselves, with the associated copyright headaches, but by instead focusing on the physical appearance & characteristics of these devices. It's also much easier to
genericise these to create look-a-like products (e.g. "Game Kid" handheld console) with associated period style graphics & sound.
