140°

What Defines A Classic?

OnlySP.com writes:
'The current console generation is home to a number of initiatives that see earlier games lumped under the prestigious banner of Classics. The respective online stores of the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 feature subsections for the games on their predecessors, while the HD Remaster efforts (at least on the PS3 in PAL regions) carry the title of Classics HD. Most consumers see it as convenient branding to better distinguish them from more modern products, but when you consider the nature of what has historically been termed ‘Classic’, one might begin to consider this mass cataloguing, irrespective of quality, as sacrilegious. With this feeling at the forefront, the question coalesced: “What defines a Classic?”'

OnlySP explores the question as it applies to video games and whether the classification should be granted as indiscriminately as it has been to date.

Thatguy-3104164d ago

Originality and the experience one has through the first play through.

bubblebeam4164d ago

Agreed. There are so many excellent games that have come out this gen. I can't imagine even half of them will earn the "classic" status (not the Xbox platinum/ classic badge).

I think it is mostly story oriented games. As graphics and gameplay show their age, but story doesn't.

I'm talking about Bioshock, Heavy Rain, The Darkness, Alan Wake etc. Those will definitely be remembered as classics. Although, I'm not sure how long after the games release it can be called a 'classic' lol. I'm a bit confused on that front.

Picnic4164d ago (Edited 4164d ago )

That 'sounds' good and loads of people will agree with you on it. But some arcade games don't tend to have great stories. One of my favourite recollections is playing Outrun 2 on the Xbox. And when you're talking about Sega, they make graphics that don't really age anyway.
Techs specs may improve but it doesn't make old Sega games seem hideous, it just makes some other developers seem hideous, whether they have a great story in them or not.

As for gameplay, that depends on how the original compared to different genres of the time in the first place.

For me it nearly always comes down to who made the game - and if they created it especially for one console, preferably their own, that probably gives them extra points as well.

For my personality a classic is always a bit quirky in some way- but probably not in a self consciously pretentious way unless it is done with a wink.

It is almost certainly to do with the personality/history of the people or studio making the game and, in some cases, the console that they are making it for. I'll give it to Bioshock, for at least the first game, Heavy Rain - OK. Alan Wake- Probably at least the hallmarks of something classic there, from the makers of another classic series Max Payne 1 and 2 (but 3 is not quite the same kind of classic to me). Little Big Planet, yes. Jet Set Radio Future on Xbox. Paper Mario- The Thousand Year Door. Luigi's Mansion was a classic to me - something different. Silent Hill 3. Metroid Prime... I can go on.

What most of them have in common is a belief in exploring quirky situations, chnaging you a bit and putting you through the mill. They're all Alice in Wonderland remade really.

bubblebeam4164d ago

@Picnic

I completely agree with you. I didn't want to write too much in my first post, but I think in general it is games with epic stories.

It isn't exclusive to that though. It could be that the game-play was wacky and imaginative, or just over the top fun. Portal for instance. Quirky, funny and original.

It's too hard to say which games are more deserving of this 'classic' status, as everyone will have different opinions.

I'd suggest Beyond Good and Evil myself. Love that game.

HarryMasonHerpderp4164d ago (Edited 4164d ago )

"what defines a classic?"
The Little Mermaid 2 if you go by the EU store on PSN.
-_-

majiebeast4164d ago (Edited 4164d ago )

90% of the fps coming out this generation will never be classic's in my opinion. For me Dishonored and Bioshock are classics of the fps genre because they dont rely on multiplayer.

I dont know what it is with this generation, but there is not much i would call a classic. Maybe its because i grew up on the Snes/ps1/ps2 or the severe lack of good quality Jrpg's especially from Square enix. Or the over saturation of fps games.

KrisButtar4164d ago

i agree. i started gaming on the nes,i can name a ton of classics from then till now but this gen does seem to be lacking. even though i own a ton of games most of them had their roots from the earlier gens

godofboobees4164d ago (Edited 4164d ago )

The market is flooded with fps' I can count with two fingers that are classics. This generation barely has anything that defines classic and honestly the ps3 has more classics this generation than any other console this gen

Canary4164d ago

The same thing that defines a classic for any artistic medium: the test of time.

That's all that matters. That's why can appreciate art that's thousands of years old. For games? I'd say anything 10 or more years older that people still play and love qualifies as a classic.

Picnic4164d ago (Edited 4164d ago )

The test of time, if it doesn't happen very quickly, has a habit of being of little or no use to the poor dead soul who waited all their life not to be regarded as irrelevant though. Vincent Van Gogh's torture and financial dire staits no doubt keeps on turning every few years in to somebody more comfortable's new yacht.

I hope that everybody who has made all the videogames that have given me so much pleasure can feel how relevant they remain to me and others, no matter what sales they got.

Y_51504164d ago

I can name games like Uncharted and inFamous being classics someday in the future.

tweet754164d ago

if the game stands the test of time well .....is it still as enjoyable to play 20 plus years in the future?

Show all comments (21)
50°

Why MW 2019 is still the best looking Call of Duty to date

MW 2019 is five years old at this point and on previous gen hardware, but it is still the best looking Call of Duty game to date.

Read Full Story >>
videogamer.com
EazyC1d 10h ago

MW was an excellent videogame. They messed up Spec Ops big time, but aside from this it was a huge step in the right direction initially. Most notably, at launch it seemed to come from a very cohesive creative vision that was felt across gameplay, to story to art style/visual direction. It was also very notably written by prominent ex-Naughty Dog guys that quit almost immediately before release.

That COMPLETELY dissolved through post-launch content and the full pivot to a "cross-mode" narrative that completely obliterated the cohesion in overall story direction. Warzone then "became" the new face of Call of Duty and the franchise completely removed itself from anything remotely creatively "good". It is a pure money machine, so I kinda get why they're doing it....but I personally completely lost interest.

I would love to see Infinity Ward move off CoD and get to make their own product with full control. They clearly have some massive talent in their ranks but it's perverted by Activision's corporate interests.

240°

The best PS5 exclusives 2024

With so many PS5 exclusives to choose from, it can be a little overwhelming to pick which one to play. This is especially true for a new PlayStation gamer who has yet to experience the wonder of PlayStation-exclusive storytelling. So, here's KnowTechie's take on the best PS5 exclusives in 2024 and beyond

Read Full Story >>
knowtechie.com
Hereandthere5d ago

PlayStation is killing it with the exclusives this year. Exclusive wise, what has xbox released this year?

VersusDMC5d ago

They won't complain about Microsoft not releasing games here but put all their effort into saying that only first party counts. Games like Rebirth and Grandblue Relink don't count. Games published by Sony like Helldivers 2, Stellar Blade and Rise of the Ronin don't count because Sony don't own the studios.

It's some narrative building so for when Hellblade 2 come out they can say, seemingly without shame, that Microsoft is actually releasing first party games this year. And claim victory.🙃

Chevalier5d ago

Weird 1st party games didn't matter when Xbox had so little, but, now they're important again? Guess Ark 3, Stalker 2 don't count any more?

KyRo5d ago (Edited 5d ago )

ARK 3 doesn't exist and it's just a timed exclusive. It's also a game that a majority of the ARK player base doesn't want as it's a massive deviation from what people like about the original game

Abnor_Mal5d ago (Edited 5d ago )

Honestly to me it doesn’t matter what they say, they are just finally getting a chance to say all the things PS fan(boy)s were saying to them for the past few years. Let them get that, they deserve a “win” for a change.

The new narrative is that suddenly first party games matter again when awhile ago they didn’t, but that was because they were struggling with the same three games with the occasional fourth or fifth. That games should be everywhere on all platforms since that’s whats happening to theirs. The consoles don’t matter just the ability to play anywhere. Whatever Xbox is doing Sony will soon follow.

They’re not moving the goalpost anymore, but rather just moving the whole damn stadium.

jwillj2k45d ago

Only a incel would care about who published what and who owns who.

If it’s not on the other consoles it’s an exclusive.

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 5d ago
Cacabunga5d ago

Killing what? Where are the 1st party games??
Stellar Blade and FF7 is what I’m seeing this year.. so shallow!!!!

andy855d ago

Doesn't really matter as long as they're great games. Baffles me why people put an emphasis on 1st party. They're still games you can't play anywhere else this year

Cacabunga4d ago

Andy

PS brand is my favorite because of their stellar first party software.. currently I see absolutely nothing to go crazy for..

CS74d ago

Nonsense.

PS1 and PS2 was built on great third party exclusives like FF, MGS, GTA & Tekken.

RonnySins5d ago (Edited 5d ago )

Killing it my a$$! The 1st party is still MIA and no... Remakes and remasters don't count.

andy855d ago

I mean they literally do count. Imagine saying FF7 Rebirth doesn't count 😂

Tody_ZA5d ago (Edited 5d ago )

@Andy85 Don't forget the remakes for Demon's Souls and Shadow of the Colossus, two of the best PlayStation games around!

And beyond PlayStation, what about Resident Evil 2 and 4? RonnySins wins the award for dumbest opinion!

raWfodog5d ago

Of course I love the games I’ve played from PS but I don’t believe we need to limit it to ‘exclusive’ to acknowledge that Xbox will be releasing some good games this year also. In that same vein, I believe that Xbox diehards shouldn’t limit their acknowledgment of good PS games to 1st party. There are plenty of good games to go around for everybody.

Tacoboto5d ago

This is a Playstation article about Playstation games and your comment is about Xbox. Can't you just celebrate what PS has without dragging this into console war BS?

ChasterMies5d ago

I don’t think Microsoft is releasing games exclusively on Xbox anymore. They have some timed exclusives that release on Xbox first.

4d ago
4d ago
+ Show (5) more repliesLast reply 4d ago
Abear215d ago (Edited 5d ago )

Returnal, Astro Bot, and Ratchet made having it since day one worth it.

GT7 free updates and Spiderman 2 and others at 60fps have made this last year more than okay.

But yeah, it’s been dry lately. BG3 and third party have made great filler, but we ready for that SOCOM or Killzone announcement and some more 1st party goodness. Crossing fingers for Ghost of Tsushima 2 announcement this summer.

Didn’t know Helldivers was exclusive! Wtf is going on at Xbox that they can’t get these games, series s strikes again.

SonyStyled4d ago (Edited 4d ago )

Sony owns the Helldivers IP. The first was a PS3/Vita/PC game. It was never an Xbox game that they could ‘get’ a decade ago. I’m not sure what the upset is with Xbox here

CS74d ago

Lol, how do you ignore Rebirth one of the best games ever made?

anast4d ago

Looks like they are on par with the previous gens. Solid games all around. Interestingly enough, we can't say they released a bad game yet this gen. Unlike the Quiet Man dustup.

4d ago Replies(2)
4d ago
DefenderOfDoom24d ago

I actually do not mind if Marathon releases on multiple platforms . I just wish that Marathon has a dedicated single player campaign.

DaniMacYo4d ago

Helldivers 2 is exactly what gaming needed. I’m loving it.

Show all comments (35)
200°

Original Final Fantasy 7 - Is it Worth Playing in 2024?

Final Fantasy 7 has come back under the spotlight thanks to the release of Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, but is it worth replaying the original?

ravens5210d ago

Got to Zacks part in 7 Rebirth. Said f it. Finishing my game in 7 og. Just got to part 2 yesterday. I also got Crisis Core... So it'll be a while before I'm back to Rebirth. I just keep thinking about it too smh, want to get back to playing it. Not till I know Zacks story though. I beat 7 og sooooooo long ago, it's crazy going through it again and remembering things.

MrNinosan10d ago (Edited 10d ago )

Got to Zacks part in Rebirth?
You mean you started the game and turned it off?
The game starts with Zack...

ravens5210d ago

... Really 🤓 lol. His second part, I've played for 80hrs lmao. <---- PS5 Run time, probably not all game time. You guys know how it goes.

VIK212110d ago (Edited 10d ago )

Did you not ever play the OG FF7? After you recruit Vincent, later in the game, disc 3, return to that basement and look at the pod, there's a whole Zack story that'll trigger as a memory.... it's well hidden in the game and a lot of things regarding Zack are cleared up. FF7 Crisis Core is basically an extend feature of that hidden flashback... It took me years to discover it back then lol

https://www.youtube.com/wat...

MrNinosan10d ago

@ravens52
80 hours in Rebirth by doing everything, and you should've reached Zacks story about 5 times 🤣

ravens529d ago

Ye I kno that's y I said not all gameplay time. But also I am very anal when it comes to exploring.

ravens529d ago

Not to mention fighting Titan at his full strength. Hours spent trying still haven't succeeded. Found all 3 ruins but I'ma masochist when it comes to games.

+ Show (3) more repliesLast reply 9d ago
Barlos10d ago

Very much so. Graphically it's dated but the story and the gameplay haven't aged a day. It's still one of my all time favourite RPGs and for me is better than Remake in some ways.

Barlos10d ago (Edited 10d ago )

It always takes me back to Christmas 1997, I got it as a gift and I was blown away when I played it. I couldn't believe games could look that good. The combination of pre rendered backgrounds and FMV really made it stand out. It definitely still has a certain charm that modern games can't replicate.

I can't imagine people will still be talking about Remake and Rebirth in 27 years.

Tapani9d ago

Fully agreed. To me the atmosphere, pacing, gameplay and music are all better than in the remake.

Rebel_Scum10d ago

Yes, play this, skip remake, start rebirth for new players.

I_am_Batman10d ago

Skip Remake? That's terrible advice.

leahcim10d ago

Remake is so amazing, pure FFVII Love, play it on PS5 please! aww the graphics the battles, the music... a dream come true.

Rebel_Scum10d ago (Edited 10d ago )

I disagree Batman

Show all comments (42)