I'm not sure about you but I think the rise of indie games going with the PS1 aesthetic and other low gfx easy to run games is that the past, despite its flaws, was much better.

I also think there's a charm with low polygon games and spritework ones, it's your imagination that fills in the gaps.

And lastly, I think of the simpler times when you play modern indie "retro" games, no bullshit, you pay the devs, you get your game, everyone is happy.

What are your thoughts on indie games going for that nostalgia feel? Any examples to cite?

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[–] confusedpuppy@lemmy.dbzer0.com 5 points 5 months ago* (last edited 5 months ago)

I've found myself lately a lot more interested in games that don't focus heavily on graphics but instead allow other parts of the game to speak for itself. This allows for the imagination to fill in the gaps, as you mentioned.

I've been playing a lot or Caves of Qud recently. It's a rogue-like game with tile graphics and colourful text. Somehow this menu simulator game has drawn me into it's harsh and unforgiving world. The tile based graphics actually allows for an amazing amount of creative freedom both from the developer and player point of views. The developer has created this futuristic planet with mutants and cybernetics roaming the planet trying to survive. The player has the freedom to play as they like and create the most unique characters they can imagine. My current character has two hearts, a scorpion tail, a fanged beak, two dagger wielding claws and a habit for stabbing.

I think the rise of constantly better technology has inadvertently encouraged a focus on better graphics over other aspects of video games. While there are some absolutely beautiful games with higher hardware demand, I think as of late, I'm yearning for games that focus more on story or gameplay. Games where you can feel the developer's passion. Games with polish and attention to details in the most unexpected ways. Games that attempt to push boundaries within certain limitations (think hardware or graphic styles for example).

I think what I want is a game that feels like I'm reading a fiction book in a way. What I mean is that when you read a work of fiction, your imagination is filling in all that visual information. A game can provide you more than just text, but if it can balance graphics, gameplay and story, it can really transport and immerse your imagination into that world.