Comic Strips

Every game wasn't a blatant cash grab. I'd gladly give up updates in exchange for games that are complete upon release and have no pay to win or fomo elements.

No game updates meant they sold a finished goddamn product, and if you found a glitch you could explore it. No online play meant there was no constant data collection for bug finding or license checks (for some games, in which the only way to opt out is not to play), and you weren't locked out of the single player or split screen co-op story if you disconnected the internet. Nowadays they're the fucking game police -- you must only play the exact way the devs intended, and your fun is heavily conditional.

Playing on the TV or a shared computer required social interaction to negotiate time, had other people see / watch you play, played together, etc. Playing games was a social activity. Contrast that with getting isolated into your own screen, all that happens is between you and Activision, Activision holding the leverage.

This brings me back. I grew up with older brothers, watching them play through games that I didn't have the skill to complete. I remember my oldest brother playing Donkey Kong Country and slapping nearly every spot on the ground to find hidden bananas/balloons, and exploring to find the hidden games and levels. I learned a lot by sitting back and watching until it was finally my turn to play.

I, myself, never made it to the Special world on Super Mario World, but my brothers did. I can't be sure if that's the first place I saw the words "gnarly" and "tubular," but only because Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles were equally as popular in our early 90s household and they definitely used that "surfer" language too. I just remember thinking those words sounded weird and funny, and have a strong mental connection between them and this game.

I don't really have a point to this comment, just reminiscing...

I remember home computer and PC games coming in big boxes full of goodies. Especially RPGs often had a poster sized map, a story book, a monster guide and a manual. Also the copy protection often was a physical device like this rotating pirate head thing in Monkey Island, the manual itself or a card that was difficult to copy and could only be read with the included filter glasses.

No microtransactions. Games were games. It's by no means inherent to games back then, and we could absolutely have that again. But, that would require gamers everywhere to suddenly not be whores to mini little dopamine hits like gambling and dark pattern addictions in order to push the industry's overton window back towards responsibility, respect, and integrity.

"Not based on money" As if quarter eaters and movie tie-in games haven't always been a thing. ET being a notable example.

Also have you played Deltarune?

TUNIC

Infocom’s were the best.

You got sunglasses, a microscopic space fleet, a don’t panic pin, postcards, and something to read.

because shareholders were not involved

I remember spending ages reading the original Homeworld manual/ lore book.

You are just wrong with both things in the title. Game mechanics weren't better, that's just objectively false. And replayability is very much dependent on the game, no matter when it's from.
My guess is that it's one of or both of these things that make you say that:
• You only play AAA games, the most surface level boring shit that never does anything interesting.
• You're under the spell of nostalgia, only remembering the very best from back when and not taking your memories into account for comparison.

There are so many great and interesting games being released, more than ever, with mechanics that couldn't even be imagined before. And as said, replayability is completely depending on what game, both old and new. There are tons of new games with infinite replayability, both with and without mods. There are so many games now that have so much, both in depth and wideness, that replaying them can feel like completely different games, that just couldn't exist before.

It's sad that so many of you seem to think this post is true, you're missing out by either not evem trying to find the good newer good stuff or being so deep into your nostalgia holes that nothing will ever be good. I feel sad for everyone who is stuck in both or either holes.