11-25-2015, 04:55 PM
I think it's perfectly fine to say a game was good back when it was released. Sometimes I like to imagine the mindset of someone playing an old game when it first came out...I like to think of the "historical" value of the game, why (x) shortcut may have been used due to technical limitations, what it must have felt to see or experience 
for the first time, etc...It doesn't hold up in an argument for why the game is good nowadays, but I think it's a fun exercise and helps me appreciate the game more. I probably wouldn't call games like that "masterpieces," no, because they've aged badly. But I think they have different merits if they're historically significant, yes.
A thing that comes to mind is all the "stealth" sections that were in RPG or adventure games in the late 90s/early 00s...they were really added just to show off that their AI could detect the player character when they came into view. An advancement of technology at the time, but an annoying sudden genre shift nowadays.
for the first time, etc...It doesn't hold up in an argument for why the game is good nowadays, but I think it's a fun exercise and helps me appreciate the game more. I probably wouldn't call games like that "masterpieces," no, because they've aged badly. But I think they have different merits if they're historically significant, yes.A thing that comes to mind is all the "stealth" sections that were in RPG or adventure games in the late 90s/early 00s...they were really added just to show off that their AI could detect the player character when they came into view. An advancement of technology at the time, but an annoying sudden genre shift nowadays.