Wii Warm Up: Through rose-tinted glasses

by Chris Greenhough { May 10th 2008 at 10:30AM }

The appeal of the Virtual Console is obvious: nostalgia. The VC is jam-packed with memories from yesteryear, spilling over with wonderful software that defined our childhoods. But it isn't all lollipops and puppy dogs. Nostalgia can also be very misleading, and some of those packets of data you download from Nintendo's service can end up souring childhood memories.

Personally speaking -- and this will probably sound like heresy in some quarters, so brace yourselves -- I was left disappointed by Mega Man 2, a game I adored as an eleven-year-old, but one that now seems slightly dated, with its repeated leaps of faith and enemies that like to spawn directly beneath you. On the other hand, a game such as Super Mario Bros. 3 still feels like a breath of fresh air, almost two decades after it was released.

Thinking about this some more, we have three questions for you. One: which Virtual Console games don't hold the same magic for you as they once did? Two: have any titles aged better than you suspected they would? And three: have you ever held off from downloading a certain game, concerned that it may ruin one of those precious childhood memories?

Tags: commodore, genesis, master-system, mega-drive, mega-man, mega-man-2, megaman, neo-geo, nes, platform, retro, smb, smb-3, snes, super-mario-bros, super-mario-bros-3, tg-16, turbografx-16

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Roto13 @ May 10th 2008 10:39AM

Mega Man II is still awesome. :P

I haven't really been let down by anything I've downloaded, besides Sin and Punishment, and I didn't really have the whole nostalgia thing to blind me there.

Waffala @ May 10th 2008 11:29AM

Never played it as a kid (I had a Genesis) but running it on an emulator on my DS, I love Mega Man II, even if I get my ass handed to me most of the time.

Sisyphus @ May 10th 2008 10:40AM

I think Starfox 64 has aged extremely well. The analog sticks on the classic controller take a little adjustment, but its still an extremely fun game. Bonk's Revenge is much easier and more basic than I remember, but it was still enough fun for me to take it to completion. Air Zonk didn't age very well. Its the only VC purchase I regret.

Lord Bowser @ May 10th 2008 10:44AM

I was disappointed with the Ocarina of Time. It is so brown, I don't remember it looking like that when I was a boy. It was despairing and I had to put the controller down. I just couldn't go through with it any longer. The game is still wonderful, but it just lacks the colour I've gotten used to in modern games.

Joshua @ May 10th 2008 11:46AM

I'd say Twilight Princess is far more "brown" that Ocarina of Time.

That said, I think Wind Waker has the best graphics for a Zelda game.

Kearns @ May 10th 2008 10:53AM

Since I'm still waiting for Blaster Master, I'd have to agree about all of the Mega Man games. Since I'm not 10 anymore I just don't have the time to play a level 100 times over to get it "just right"...

Jeremy @ May 10th 2008 10:54AM

I would have to say that a game that didn't play as well today as it did way back when was the Ninja Gaiden games. Now their are plenty of games that I feel has aged well everything from the Mario series, the Metroid series, many classic RPG's (were are my classic FF games), all the way to bomberman which I still play today many many times. Now a game I loved as a kid but doubt I would have the same emotions today is Double Dragon. I have so many childhood memories of playing this game with my brother and I know it wouldn't be the same today without my bro their by my side.

Now for the N64 titles I can't really say much about since to me they are still in 3D and to me my childhood memories for games are from the 2D era. The N64 age I was in high school and I was just finding something better than games (sex) and I really didn't put that much time into gaming. But now I am married and with kids I have an excuse to play once again.

saylorsgang @ May 10th 2008 12:12PM

Super Thunder Blade, I useed to make a bee line for it everytime I went to an arcade, but boy what a waste of Wii points. I used to love Bases Loaded, but I keep hesitating on buying it.

josh @ May 10th 2008 12:14PM

i have dl no VC because i have already beat them and theres no point in buying a game twice when you know what happens, waiste of money

SoshiKitai @ May 10th 2008 2:35PM

eloquent.... *snicker*

Polecat @ May 10th 2008 12:24PM

I think that Ninja spirit hasn't aged so well as I remember. Don't get me wrong, it's a good game still, butI remember liking the thing a whole lot more back when. It's like I just don't remember dying so VERY cheaply so much as I do now, and that leap into the pit of a million zillion ninjas is like a roadblock to fun.

EnrageD @ May 10th 2008 12:47PM

I just beat Shining Force again since playing it when it came out in the 90's, still by far one of the best RPG's out there today, gameplay and storyline. I'm wondering if Earthbound will have the same effect on me the second time through, considering it wasn't as groundbreaking gameplay-wise than Shining Force and it's sequel.

Jason Zagar @ May 11th 2008 6:00AM

Shining Force 2 ruined SF1 for me. I'd never played 1 but I rented 2 and loved it a lot. I went back and tried 1 but I could not stand it, it was so primitive compared to the sequel.

I was determined to give it a second chance when they remade it for the GBA, but sadly I still can't stand it. It's a shame I didn't play 1 first, I like to hope I might have liked it more then.

Go1denchi1d @ May 10th 2008 3:05PM

I was playing Gunstar Heroes and I still think that game is awesome! In a way, Kirby seem's to have diminished in fun factor. A game I am scared of downloading is Bubble Bobble. I had so many good memories of that game, I don't want to ruin them haha.

SoshiKitai @ May 10th 2008 4:12PM

Download Bubble Bobble. In my opinion, the nostalgia was far from ruined. If you play 2 player with your friends, it feels just as awesome, if not more.

That is of course, my opinion. And you can blame me if it does ruin the nostalgia.

Mr Khan @ May 10th 2008 3:13PM

Sadly, I haven't been in gaming long enough to have that sort of nostalgia

I didn't get into gaming until 1999, when i was 9 going on 10, and my memories of everything are pretty clear

steve @ May 11th 2008 2:13AM

I got into gaming in 79, when dad brought home the Atari 2600 to a then three year old me. I still have that console...and most all of the consoles that came out since. i have a small museum of video gaming in my closet lol.

phenylketonurics @ May 10th 2008 4:19PM

Man, playing those old games makes me think video games are made much more ... "accesible" nowadays. GOD, these games are hard. I don't remember Gradius II being that difficult before...haha^^

Moose @ May 10th 2008 4:26PM

Super Mario World has probably gotten the most play of the VC games I've downloaded, as well as the Legend of Zelda. I'd also say Link to the Past would be one of my favs but I already have it on my GBA so I see no reason to buy in on the Wii.

I was a bit disappointed with Ocarina, although that's not to say it's not a great game. The N64 is the only Nintendo console I never owned so I never got around to playing it. And, naturally, after playing Twilight Princess prior to Ocarina, it was kind of hard to get into the latter.

bearmedal @ May 10th 2008 9:11PM

I get the feeling many people say Ocarina is the best Zelda game is because they are blinded by the nostalgia of it.

As for me, I'd say Super Mario Bros. 2. Loved it as a kid, but when I bought it last fall for the GBA, I remember thinking to myself: "Was this game always this aggravating?" It's probably because I never made it past World 2 as a kid, but on the GBA I was dying every 30 seconds in the later levels.

Joshua @ May 11th 2008 10:35AM

People say it's the best because it WAS the best when it was released (ignoring the fact that ALttP is just as good). Since then, every 3D Zelda has basically had the same game system.

It's just that, at the time, the way they brought Zelda into 3D was really just perfect, so people who played OoT when it was released mostly have very fond memories of it.

Deozaan @ May 10th 2008 10:02PM

Kid Icarus.

For some reason I had really great memories of how awesome that game was, but no memories of what it was really like. So when it came out on VC I snatched up it.

It sucks.

Chris @ May 11th 2008 2:46AM

F-Zero X has aged well. I love the corny guitar and the overall "radness" of it. Haha. Also, why isn't there a death race in GX? :( I hope they bring it back for the Wii incarnation.

I haven't really bought many games I already played. I got Kirby 64 and Sin & Punishment and really like them both. I started OoT, but haven't really had the urge to finish it. :(

JRVillalobos @ May 11th 2008 4:04AM

I still enjoy Punch-out!! (even though it doesn't have Mike Tyson). Never could get past Soda Popinski, still struggling to do so... biggest let down has been any TG-16 game, I never played the console as a kid, but having played some of the Bonk games made me wonder why this system got so much hype back in the day.

Gewurztraminer says: R.O.B. is the last Cylon! @ May 11th 2008 9:38AM

First, I feel old; thanks! (for reference, my first game was Duck Hunt)

1) games that didn't meet expectations: So far I would say Bomberman. While I never had the TG16, I did play my fair share of Bomberman and I thought, hey, a 5 player game, neat! Never gets played.

2) games that aged well: most everything else I've gotten. Mario 1-3 + World, Sonic 1-3, Lttp & OoT, DKC 1-2, and more. Most interestingly, is Metroid. I was never good at Metroid and respected but avoided all of the series. Got VC Metroid on a whim and it's better than I remember.

3) games I avoided: MK64 - I had a lot of fun with this one, despite never owning an N64 in its prime, but I wasn't sure about getting it for VC. And while Brawl easily replaces Melee, MKwii and DD don't necessarily replace the dynamics of MK64. I'll be conflicted on this one for awhile, I'm sure.