How do young(er) people feel about 8 and 16 bit games?

[marurun]

Well, Nintendo seemed to make enough money off of it on the Wii, but after years of availability on WiiU and 3DS, you'll notice it's yet to show up on Switch. I'm starting to wonder if those little Classic Mini systems are going to be the future of Nintendo's back-catalog. I'd love to see stuff on Steam or the Google or Apple app stores, but I don't see Nintendo going that route, regardless of the money to be made.

[Anayo]

Marurun,

I'd prefer if Nintendo stuck with plug-n-play systems for their retro catalog, because they're tangible and it's foreseeable they'll last into the coming decades. They're pulling the plug on the Wii VC soon, which makes me really uncomfortable about ever buying digital games on a Nintendo platform again. For that very reason I haven't bought Sonic Mania yet.

[Exhuminator]

I don't see Nintendo going that route, regardless of the money to be made.

Well, Nintendo has released games on iOS and Android, so who knows what may come in the future.

[chuckster]

I really agree with the point made by a few here already, and it sums up the point of my post better than I did at the time: There's nothing special about 8 and 16 bit games in general, but some of those games are special and will be played and talked about for a long long time. Otherwise, there will always be a small niche that dives deeper but I'm sure there will be a similar following for all games as they become "classic" and "retro".

[marurun]

I don't see Nintendo going that route, regardless of the money to be made.

Well, Nintendo has released games on iOS and Android, so who knows what may come in the future.

This is a good point, but I don't see it changing any time soon. I don't think we'll see classic Nintendo titles showing up in their original form on phones any time soon, in part because phone touch screens are a horrible way to try to control those games. And if Nintendo does ever start migrating any more than mobile-specific games to phones, I expect it will be very slowly and cautiously, in that Nintendo way, and it will also be a sign of the demise of the Switch.

[Exhuminator]

I don't think we'll see classic Nintendo titles showing up in their original form on phones any time soon, in part because phone touch screens are a horrible way to try to control those games.

I understand what you are saying, and I agree with you. However, my original point wasn't that Nintendo might start releasing classic Nintendo games on smartphones. My point was that Nintendo has already shown a willingness to release Nintendo games on platforms Nintendo doesn't specifically own; iOS and Android. In that regard, it's not too much of a stretch to think that someday Nintendo may be willing to release Nintendo games on PC. If that happens, just maybe we might see a PC virtual console. I'm not saying that it will happen. But I am saying that it could happen. And I personally think it should happen.

[Forlorn Drifter]

I'm 22, so I guess I'm young enough to chime in. I definitely like 8 and 16 but games, and I love a lot of the indie stuff aping the style. However, I do think I'm a bit more selective than some of the older folks here. I only pick games I enjoy, or a t least think I will. Looking at say, Hardcore Gaming 101, there's a lot of stuff listed there that if not super obscure, doesn't really catch my interest all that much.

While previously discussed, I think access to these games is a big point that keeps many my age from getting into them. Between the cost of physical and the dubious or (if you pirate) flat out illegality of emulation, there's only so many ways to access them. Info is another big piece- while easier than ever to find info, many people don't seem to know that and don't try.

I also think social aspects play a part. With online gaming as big as it is, and the social media aspects, many focus on the new big titles to be part of the zeitgeist.

Elitism among some people within retro circles also has an effect. I can't say how much, but I know of at least a few people who have stayed away due to that.

[Anayo]

Forlorn Drifter,

Rising costs of retro gaming gear, lack of awareness, and the social convenience of online games are all strong points that I agree with. One thing I'm noticing for myself is that keeping up with old games requires effort. If I just don't try, then I catch myself going back to re-play the same familiar things over and over again. It's like I have to consciously decide, "OK, I'm going to sink the time into learning this other, different game I've never played before." At times it feels like reading a book that doesn't become interesting until after the first chapter or two.

[SpaceBooger]

I think part of it is the number of games available. I know this point had already been brought up multiple times and multiple ways, but I think it's true.
I'm 42 and when I was younger I only got 1 to 3 games a year so I was picky on what games I asked for and got. I tried many games either at a friend's house or by renting them, but I made sure the games I owned were ones I was determined to play and play all the way through since that may be the only new game I get for 12 months. This ended as soon as I found emulation. Once I came across KEGA Fusion and SNES9X I had every 16 bit game available at my fingertips and my dedication faltered. When meet with challenges or loss of interest there was no motivation to trudge through, I just moved on to another game.
I know that is my personal take but I feel that's true for my kids and even my students.

[Anapan]

I do know a lot of younger gamers that are very proud of their gamerscore and trophies, but all the kids I know that are in high school still mostly do not care about their gamer status at all, even many with high scores and trophies think less of their gamer status than their twitter or instagram scores.
I don't do any social media stuffs or things (well, some russian hacker got me some +points or something with an autogenerated account so I won it back and focussed it it to that Wendy's chicken-nugget guy).
You have to understand that the internet is a series of tubes. You can't drive a truck through it it.