The thing I really appreciate about “classic” video games (classic being a relative term of course) is that the game play really holds up… and, half the games made today are trying to have a retro-aesthetic so the graphics sort of hold up too.
The original super mario bros on the NES really is one of my all-time favourite games. it’s so fun, it’s got a pretty consistent “physics” and a consistently manipulatable control scheme… PLUS, the graphics are so simple, they don’t detract from the experience. They enable the imagination!
I do like retro-inspired video games, but a lot of time in modern-retro seems to be focused on the aesthetic and not on the mechanics. Some games get it right, some do not. Even modern-retro RPG’s seem to be missing something of the magic.
How long can I keep playing my old games? I wish I could play them all again for the first time. The truth is, I have this longing to play a game that I know no longer exists. It’s hard to compete against a memory I suppose.
GO GO MACH ROCKET SHEEP! 
2 replies on “classic video games really hold up.”
and it’s SO SAD! A few games come close, but they never quite duplicate the experience, and they certainly don’t surpass it. -sigh-
Nothing compares to Super Mario Brothers. Though I guess you could be right that we are trying to hold candles to a memory that can never be touched.