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Wolf Kanno
03-28-2014, 08:38 AM
Every year you are given what you feel is the best console for that gaming generation, so starting with the earliest gaming era you remember which systems would you get (limit one per system cycle).

NeoCracker
03-28-2014, 10:48 AM
No doubt the SNES from it's generation.

PSX from it's gen as well, though the N64 did have a few wonderful gems on it.

Pretty much Sony from then on as far as consoles go. PS2 just had to many golden RPG's, as well as PS3 being the best system for the genre of it's gen. As well as titles like Infamous.

PS4 is winning it this gen thus far, though I refuse to get an XBone, and PS4 has gotten a lot more use then my Wii U. :p

Skyblade
03-28-2014, 01:18 PM
Consoles only, or are handhelds allowed as well? Because, for the current generation, the 3DS demolishes the competition, and the DS and GBA were certainly worthy contenders as well.

Pike
03-28-2014, 01:44 PM
Do PCs count? Because the earliest gaming era I remember was C64 gaming in the early-80s.

Wolf Kanno
03-28-2014, 05:23 PM
Consoles only, or are handhelds allowed as well? Because, for the current generation, the 3DS demolishes the competition, and the DS and GBA were certainly worthy contenders as well.


Yes, though for handhelds, they have their own console cycle so you can do both them and regular consoles if you want.


Do PCs count? Because the earliest gaming era I remember was C64 gaming in the early-80s.

You may count PC but it will count as a console since their "updates" are too different to count as their own cycle. So if you want you can choose PC for like the 16-bit era if you want instead of the SNES or Sega Genesis for example.

Bolivar
03-28-2014, 05:46 PM
GBC, GBA, PSP, Vita

NES, Genesis, PS1-4. Tempted to take PC over one of the first two PS generations but all that Final Fantasy and Metal Gear makes it hard.

Skyblade
03-28-2014, 05:53 PM
Well, that makes this easy.

GameBoy
SEGA Nomad (beating out the GameBoy Color, despite the battery troubles)
GameBoy Advance
Nintendo DS (the PSP is great, but most of its good titles are ported Playstation games)
Nintendo 3DS (poor Vita not getting enough games, it needs more than five good titles, especially when two of them are ports)

I'll do full consoles later.

Edit: Bolivar's handheld list is obviously trolling, there's no way anyone can take the PSP and Vita seriously over the DS and 3DS. Heck, the 3DS got more top quality games last year alone than both others have had combined during their whole lifespan. I like the systems, but they don't have the games.

Fynn
03-28-2014, 06:01 PM
I mostly agree with Skyblade in that handhelds are the best in my eyes. Might be tied with my dear Amiga in the 16bit era, but that's more out of nostalgia than anything. I don't think it actually had any quality games.

Bolivar
03-28-2014, 06:21 PM
Edit: Bolivar's handheld list is obviously trolling, there's no way anyone can take the PSP and Vita seriously over the DS and 3DS. Heck, the 3DS got more top quality games last year alone than both others have had combined during their whole lifespan. I like the systems, but they don't have the games.

That's another thread, one we've probably had a few times but I feel Nintendo software has obviously stagnated in the second half of the company's lifespan. A lot more original and innovative titles came to the PSP and now Vita.

The 3DS had a great 2013 but it's been gathering dust since I got a Vita. It's hard to top a handheld when its manufacturer relentlessly bombards you with more and more free games every month.

black orb
03-28-2014, 10:45 PM
>>> Snes, PSX and PS2. Thats pretty much all I need, I dont give a damn about the other consoles.. :luca:

Skyblade
03-28-2014, 11:14 PM
Edit: Bolivar's handheld list is obviously trolling, there's no way anyone can take the PSP and Vita seriously over the DS and 3DS. Heck, the 3DS got more top quality games last year alone than both others have had combined during their whole lifespan. I like the systems, but they don't have the games.

That's another thread, one we've probably had a few times but I feel Nintendo software has obviously stagnated in the second half of the company's lifespan. A lot more original and innovative titles came to the PSP and now Vita.

The 3DS had a great 2013 but it's been gathering dust since I got a Vita. It's hard to top a handheld when its manufacturer relentlessly bombards you with more and more free games every month.

Um, Nintendo innovates far more than Sony, if you're talking first party titles. If you're talking third party support, the DS still destroys both others.

It doesn't really change the fact that almost all of the good game on the PSP are just PSX ports, or that the two best games on the Vita are PS2 ports. I can name several dozen top-notch titles for the DS. The PSP has maybe three worthwhile original titles. And the Vita is an absolute joke. Yes, it has some games like Tearaway, which are great and make good use of the system and functions. But half the hardware is useless, most of the software is either junk or ports, and it is still has a tiny game library. There's a reason why reviews include lines like "finally, a reason to own a Vita". It has one of the smallest game libraries I've seen. Sure, if you're happy with the PSN titles you could be playing on your PSP or PS3 it's ok. As is paying for PS+ to get some "free" titles that are decidedly mediocre. But as its own console? I'd. take the one that can play more than Persona 4 and FFX.

Bolivar
03-29-2014, 01:54 AM
It doesn't seem like you've played enough games on those systems to have an informed opinion.

Scotty_ffgamer
03-29-2014, 02:04 AM
Home Consoles:
NES
SNES
PS1
PS2
PS3
Not sure yet.... probably PS4.

Handhelds:
TurboExpress
Gameboy Advance
DS (all thanks to The World Ends with You)
Vita

Skyblade
03-29-2014, 02:20 AM
It doesn't seem like you've played enough games on those systems to have an informed opinion.

I've played a lot, I just haven't found many good ones. My PSP has become a portable Final Fantasy machine (which is admittedly pretty nice), and my Vita has four titles that I've actually gone back to and played multiple times. I haven't found anyone who has claimed that the Vita has more than five good games.

Feel free to make a list. I'd gladly compare both quality and quantity with the DS systems.

Bolivar
03-29-2014, 02:49 AM
I haven't found anyone who has claimed that the Vita has more than five good games.

If this is how you honestly feel, then we probably aren't going to get anywhere in this discussion.

Skyblade
03-29-2014, 03:22 AM
I haven't found anyone who has claimed that the Vita has more than five good games.

If this is how you honestly feel, then we probably aren't going to get anywhere in this discussion.

It's not a "feeling", it's a fact. No one I know who owns a Vita, whether it's someone I know in person, or someone I know online, believes that the Vita has a good lineup, or can name a reasonable amount of quality titles for it. If you eliminate titles that aren't exclusive to it, such as most of the PSN library and the PS4 native play, and the ports from previous systems, like the HD collections, the list shrinks even more.

It's not that I'm hating on the Vita. I adore it. I think it is incredibly well crafted system (except for the rear touchscreen, because WHY?! [Tearaway is thus far the only answer to that]), and it has some great games. I would love to see more for it. I would also like to see ports of more PS2 era games to the console, as both Persona 4 Golden and Final Fantasy X/X-2 HD are really good. Tearaway is incredibly fun, and Gravity Rush is quite solid. Dragon's Crown is a fun reminder of Golden Axe style gameplay. But what else is there?

This is a serious question. I don't know that many more PS Vita titles that would be worth owning. Suggest them. Build a list. I welcome it. I would love more games on my Vita.



However, for the purposes of this thread, or deciding which system is better, I will be comparing your list to the 3DS library. Just keep that in mind.

Bolivar
03-29-2014, 04:29 PM
When you do so, will you be able to list games outside of franchises whose best days are long behind them?

Probably not, and that's why the Vita offers a much more comprehensive library on 3 fronts. 1) Its exclusives are actually innovative titles (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gravity_Rush) coming from new IPs (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soul_Sacrifice_(video_game)), to go alongside fresh franchises (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uncharted_golden_abyss). 2) Like any great system, it has wonderful versions (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sonic_%26_All-Stars_Racing_Transformed) of some of the best multiplatform games (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Walking_Dead_(video_game)). 3) It cherry-picked the best (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hotline_Miami) and the brightest (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fez_(video_game)) indie games of the last few years and now those games are releasing day one (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luftrausers) on Vita, some of them exclusively (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OlliOlli). If you haven't noticed, each of these 9 games represents a unique genre.

Its hard to go back to 3DS sequels when the Vita's library is so much more fresh and exciting. I enjoyed Fire Emblem Awakening and Etrian Odyssey IV in spite of them being stuck in the Stone Age of JRPGs. A Link Between Worlds, my favorite game, epitomizes the first sentence of this post, as I yearned for the challenge and originality of Link's Awakening and Ages/Seasons. Mario 3D Land drives it home with great gameplay soured by short and easy levels filled with recycled ideas. Little Big Planet was everything I hoped Mario would be - hearty levels flavored with fun surprises and innovative mechanics, making full of use of the touch screen, track pad, and gyroscope. It also has a great user-generated content community, seamless online multiplayer, and one of the most innovative approaches to local multiplayer I have ever seen on a handheld.

The Vita is one of those rare systems that both drives and rides the cutting-edge of gaming, while the 3DS watches it pass by. You seem only concerned with the library and I can see why. The 3DS falls even further behind compared to what the Vita can do: Remote Play for every PS4 game, the wider range of apps, free to play mobile titles, and the cross-buy program. I've also had a lot of fun with Lone Survivor, Street Fighter x Tekken, Unit 13, ModNation Racers Road Trip through PS+ and I get more free games every month.

I know you prefer the 3DS, but as someone who has spent a ton of time with both, it's not even close.

Bubba
03-29-2014, 05:03 PM
Home Consoles:
NES
SNES
PS1
PS2
PS3

This for me too. The Gamecube and N64 were excellent but Sony have ruled the home console market since the mid-nineties for me. The 360 and the PS3 is probably the closest with the latter just edging it in my opinion.

As far as handhelds go, that is Nintendo's domain. I own a PS Vita and a 3DS. I have all my PS1 classics on my Vita so that gets the most usage. In terms of quality games for the system though the 3DS is streets ahead. I've been extremely disappointed with the games that have been released for Vita. The only original game I thought was excellent has been Gravity Rush. Considering I've had my Vita for two years now it really isn't good enough.

Skyblade
03-29-2014, 05:29 PM
I can't fully answer you on my phone (or even see what games you linked), so that'll have to wait until I get back home.


Its hard to go back to 3DS sequels when the Vita's library is so much more fresh and exciting. I enjoyed Fire Emblem Awakening and Etrian Odyssey IV in spite of them being stuck in the Stone Age of JRPGs. A Link Between Worlds, my favorite game, epitomizes the first sentence of this post, as I yearned for the challenge and originality of Link's Awakening and Ages/Seasons. Mario 3D Land drives it home with great gameplay soured by short and easy levels filled with recycled ideas. Little Big Planet was everything I hoped Mario would be - hearty levels flavored with fun surprises and innovative mechanics, making full of use of the touch screen, track pad, and gyroscope. It also has a great user-generated content community, seamless online multiplayer, and one of the most innovative approaches to local multiplayer I have ever seen on a handheld.

If by "Stone Age of JRPGs" you mean "Golden Age of Gaming", I'll agree with you. Bravely Default falls into that category as well, where designers have cut out the junk that has been weighing down the genre these past years and focused on the core, and making that excel.

And if you honestly think that the Oracle games were more innovative than Link Between Worlds, you're making me wonder just how much is nostalgia goggles, and how much is lack of proper observation, because LBW is probably the most innovative 2D game the series has had.


The Vita is one of those rare systems that both drives and rides the cutting-edge of gaming, while the 3DS watches it pass by. You seem only concerned with the library and I can see why. The 3DS falls even further behind compared to what the Vita can do: Remote Play for every PS4 game, the wider range of apps, free to play mobile titles, and the cross-buy program. I've also had a lot of fun with Lone Survivor, Street Fighter x Tekken, Unit 13, ModNation Racers Road Trip through PS+ and I get more free games every month.

And the PS4 can post things to Facebook, but that's hardly a reason to get the system. I focus on the library because the library is what matters. If I want something that can play console games on handheld, that's awesome (though it's becoming more and more common). If I want a game system, I look to the games.

Also, you pay for PS+, and only get the games while you do. They are not "free".

Bolivar
03-29-2014, 05:42 PM
Gravity Rush, Soul Sacrifice, Uncharted: Golden Abyss, Sonic & All-Stars Racing: Transformed, The Walking Dead, Hotline Miami, Fez, Luftrausers, and Olli Olli. You mentioned Dragon's Crown and Tearaway, and I added four more. That's 15 titles I'm going to assume Bubba has not played.

I don't want to get bogged down in the specifics of each game, but the titles you're mentioning are highly derivative of decades-old franchises and mechanics. I expect you'll only continue that trend when you get back.

And whether these games are free or not, I can't even fit all the ones I actually want to play on a 16GB card, much less the total games I have received in the few months I have subscribed to PS+. It's really hard for the 3DS to overcome that.

Tasura
03-29-2014, 06:32 PM
Home Consoles:
NES
SNES
PS1
PS2
PS3


Yep. Add to that PS4, because I'm more likely to get that than an XBone. And as for Handhelds, Nintendo straight through, even if most of my GBA/DS gaming was done in ROM form.

Skyblade
03-29-2014, 08:59 PM
Platformer. RPG. Action. Adventure. Racer. Shooter. Puzzle.

Pretty much every game every made can be broken down into "derivative of decades old mechanics and franchises". That's why we have genres. How many Indy games out there can be traced back directly to mechanics and themes from preexisting games? Almost all of them. There is nothing wrong with derivation, and there is nothing praiseworthy about innovation for the sake of innovation. Heck, if you hadn't noticed, Bravely Default has been considered (by both players and critics) the best Final Fantasy in a decade because it's more traditional or "derivative".

oc26EKhZNyM

That said, I'll happily check the games on your list when I get home, and see what I think.

Mercen-X
03-30-2014, 04:50 AM
Working off the presumption that this is a hypothetical: I'll base it on the number of games I've played/owned per system.

80's: NES
90's: PlayStation
00's: PlayStation2
2010: PlayStation3

NeoCracker
03-30-2014, 09:09 AM
Any of the games I've played on my Vita I simply don't enjoy as much as my 3DS, and 3DS has more volume for me.

That said, I very much enjoy my VIta, and I'm am happy to have both. :p

Edit: And neither Link Between Worlds or the Oracle games were all that innovative. :p

Jiro
03-30-2014, 09:29 AM
Yeah now that we can reflect a little, it does look like Sony has been dominant for a while. Weird. I got way more games for my 360 but a lot of them were just... okay.

Pike
03-30-2014, 10:46 AM
Okay well I'm gonna buck the trend here by not mentioning a Sony console :shobon:

ColecoVision
NES
SNES
N64
PC (Better during this era than anything else sixth gen)
Xbox 360 (Although I actually I want to pick PC again but rules is rules)
The only "current gen" console I actually own is Nintendo 3DS so it wins by default, although if I could hand it to PC again I would.

Bolivar
03-31-2014, 02:59 AM
Pretty much every game every made can be broken down into "derivative of decades old mechanics and franchises". That's why we have genres. How many Indy games out there can be traced back directly to mechanics and themes from preexisting games? Almost all of them. There is nothing wrong with derivation, and there is nothing praiseworthy about innovation for the sake of innovation. Heck, if you hadn't noticed, Bravely Default has been considered (by both players and critics) the best Final Fantasy in a decade because it's more traditional or "derivative".

...

That said, I'll happily check the games on your list when I get home, and see what I think.

Hey Sky, if you wanna go into more detail that's fine but I think you're making my argument out to be more than I'm actually saying. I'm not making a case for indie vs. the old guard, innovation vs. tradition, or even 3DS vs. Vita, believe it or not. I'm only shedding some light on why I, personally, favor my Vita over my 3DS right now. I totally empathize with why you'd rather have a lineup of killer RPGs - that's actually why I initially bought a 3DS over a Vita myself. In turn, I hope you can relate to why I'd rather listen to what the newer voices in gaming have to say. It's my opinion, so we don't really need to do the whole console wars thing, particularly when I like my 3DS quite a bit as well.

Skyblade
03-31-2014, 03:51 AM
Pretty much every game every made can be broken down into "derivative of decades old mechanics and franchises". That's why we have genres. How many Indy games out there can be traced back directly to mechanics and themes from preexisting games? Almost all of them. There is nothing wrong with derivation, and there is nothing praiseworthy about innovation for the sake of innovation. Heck, if you hadn't noticed, Bravely Default has been considered (by both players and critics) the best Final Fantasy in a decade because it's more traditional or "derivative".

...

That said, I'll happily check the games on your list when I get home, and see what I think.

Hey Sky, if you wanna go into more detail that's fine but I think you're making my argument out to be more than I'm actually saying. I'm not making a case for indie vs. the old guard, innovation vs. tradition, or even 3DS vs. Vita, believe it or not. I'm only shedding some light on why I, personally, favor my Vita over my 3DS right now. I totally empathize with why you'd rather have a lineup of killer RPGs - that's actually why I initially bought a 3DS over a Vita myself. In turn, I hope you can relate to why I'd rather listen to what the newer voices in gaming have to say. It's my opinion, so we don't really need to do the whole console wars thing, particularly when I like my 3DS quite a bit as well.

I do understand that, and I'm checking into the games that you listed now. I haven't posted again because I don't like making snap decisions like that (plus I'm still working several other games while I'm doing so). However, your statement that I was focusing on derivative titles from ancient franchises really irks me, because almost all of gaming is derivative, including a lot of the titles you listed (gravity manipulation has been a mechanic since at least the NES era, for example).

And a lot of the titles I love on the 3DS are quite innovative. I can't really recall seeing something like Awakening's child unit system before. Link Between Worlds massively shifted the series formulae, including things like two dungeons which don't need items at all (ok, so Skull Woods requires the lamp ONCE, it's close enough), far more flexibility in puzzle solving that rewards creative thought (seriously, nearly half the puzzles in that game have multiple solutions), optional dungeons that both test mastery over your item use and train you in their multiple purposes, and well designed rewards for the incredibly long collection quest in the game. Bravely Default has the single most incredible turn-based RPG battle system I've ever seen. The Brave/Default mechanic offers such fantastic depth to the system that it's making me wish I had the feature in FFX HD.

Are the games derivative? Yes. But what isn't? How many truly unique games have you seen?

Don't expect an actual response on those games or my opinion of their quality for probably a month. I don't play games quickly, and you should know that by now.

That said, from a quick overview, you have at least done enough to justify the opinion you hold, which is what I was most interested in. I don't agree with your position, and I highly doubt I will, but I can at least understand it, and I really couldn't before.

My list still stands. :D

Kalevala
04-01-2014, 10:57 PM
Third Generation: Nintendo
Fourth Generation: Super Nintendo/Game Boy
Fifth Generation: PlayStation/Game Boy Color
Sixth Generation: PlayStation 2/Game Boy Advance
Seventh Generation: Xbox 360/Nintendo DS
Eighth Generation: I'm really not sure yet.

This was really easy until I got to the seventh generation. I'm on the fence when it comes to 360 vs. PS3.

Ayen
04-01-2014, 11:06 PM
Color TV Game
Atari 2600
NES
Sega Genesis
PlayStation (hardest one to choose)
PS2
Xbox 360
PS4

Game Boy Color
Game Boy Advance
Nintendo DS
3DS