I felt the urge the other day to pull out the NES and fire it up. When I play these games, I can’t help but compare them to modern games. What mostly bothers me about modern gaming is the excessive need for save points, no matter what genre the game is. It still amazes me that platform games have become so complex they require one to save the progress.
I enjoy beating a game in one sitting. It’s a very satisfying experience to absorb the progress of the game from beginning to end. When it becomes neccesary to break up a game about jumping from spot to spot because it’s been lengthened to a 10 hour epic, I become suspicious. When I played the two big new platformers of the current (or passing) generation, Jak and Ratchet, I found a lot of the game became sort of a fetch-quest. While not as bad as certain RPG’s, I found that the element of collecting has become a fallback to expanding the life of the game. I would rather have a streamlined action-fest that doesn’t make the task of character improvement a chore.
When looking at Super Mario Bros., the appeal is the simplicity. The goal is readily apparent, and anyone can understand the game. Don’t touch things, just jump on them. The learning curve is great, and the eight levels (or 32) provide enough depth to keep up the challenge. Bonuses are provided via warp tubes for those that want to use them, but the basic Mario character remains the same. Mario will always have the same power-ups available to him. The focus is on challenge and skill, not time spent playing.
What about Super Mario World? That’s got save points. However, it is feasible to beat the game in one sitting. Each accomplishment can change Mario’s world, but again, Mario himself stays the same. No new weapons, no fancy tricks. None of the bonuses are superficial, either. They are worthwile events that prevent new challenges, rather than finding out you’ve just spent an hour destroying boxes in order to remove the main character’s goatee.
I love games that reward me for being skillful, not just by spending a lot of time in front of the T.V. I find it’s way more fun to finally accomplish that difficult jump through practice than by unlocking the jetpack that flies over the whole mess. If I wanted someone to hold my hand, I’d go for a walk with my wife.

-mlbradley
durden26@comcast.net