经典电子游戏重掀热潮

你是不是曾经一度为了创下俄罗斯方块得分新高而点灯熬夜？一提到在80、90年代盛行的 Gameboy 游戏机，是不是勾起了你许多童年的记忆？尽管电子科技在近年来发展飞速，但让我们感到意外的是曾经陪伴我们度过无数童年假期的那些经典游戏再度回归。

There's no doubt that in today's digital world, computer games are extremely sophisticated and capable of creating virtual reality experiences that were unimaginable only a few years ago. So I am interested to see that the simplistic games that I grew up with, are making a revival. But why?

In the 1970s, the original place to play a computer game was at an arcade. Here, you and your mates could try out the new big names in games such as Space Invaders and Pacman. It was the only affordable way to play them and because of the technology involved, the gaming machines were too big to fit in to your house.

But in the 1980s and 90s, gaming arrived in our homes and people like me were addicted. The sound of beeping became a familiar sound emanating from bedrooms across the land! Names such as Tetris, Sonic and Street Fighter became popular language in the playground – and now they are being talked about – and played – again. One of the reasons is the low cost. The BBC spoke to gamer, Gemma Wood, who says that: "Newer consoles and their games are incredibly expensive. I understand that a lot of hard work has gone into the design etc, but how can anyone justify £50 to £60 for a game that you might not even enjoy?" 

Simplicity might be another reason. The graphics on old games may not compare with the detail and definition of modern games but they are fun and easy to use by children and adults alike. And of course, nostalgia plays its part. Some people want to relive their childhood while for others, it is a chance to show their children the computer games they grew up with.

Technology journalist, KG Orphanides, says we should have admiration for this old technology. He says "it's important to recognise how well-designed many of those classic games are... the developers had so little space to work with – your average Sega Mega Drive or SNES cartridge had a maximum capacity of just 4MB – and limited graphics and sound capabilities." This compares to an average capacity of 40G in today's games. 

This craze for using retro hardware and grabbing an old joystick is ceratinly catching on. And to persuade those of us who are not sure about downgrading the gaming experience, manufacturers such as Nintendo, are bringing back some of their older consoles in new style casing. So it seems like it's not 'game over' for old-school technology!