Growing up playing video games in the 90s was a very different experience than it is today. The approach society took towards the video game industry at the time was carefree, simple, and fun. The games that were produced played like a simple challenge. Any child could pick up a controller and join in on the fun. Just like any real life game, you had a certain amount of turns and when you lost it was over. The worst consequence was losing time playing, but even then, it wasn’t really time lost because you learned something from the experience. Most games had very specific patterns and to beat them there was no choice but to lose to progress. The idea instilled in the youth was progress not perfection.

Today, it’s not so simple. Any child cannot just pick up a controller and play. We’ve strayed away from the simplicity of video games and with it a certain feeling. The feeling of playing the boss level after the fifteenth time and knowing exactly when to jump. The feeling of getting that extra life and being able to fight on. The feeling of finally beating a game after trying for days, months, even years. I hope more retro titles will be released like the new installment of the Streets of Rage series. It gives me hope that my children will be able to pick up a controller and sit in my lap while we pass the time away.

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