Ever since the advent of the VCR, it’s been a tradition for kids to pop in some horror flicks when Halloween night rolls around. But a new generation is here, one that grew up playing console video games, and one that saw the rise of the “survival horror” genre.

As entertainment consumers, most of us love remastered old releases. Whether it’s music or film, giving the classics an update is more often than not a net positive. And the trend of remastering old video game titles has also grown to be a mostly positive thing, as we discussed in a previous post.

As we look forward to a generation of consoles that will not be backwards compatible with older game discs, it’s gotten me thinking about the different ways in which old games have proven to have a variety of extra lives.

            “Gritty Action Movies.” “Suspenseful Morality Sci-Fi Movies from the 1930s.” “Whistleblower Steamy Psychological Animation Based on a Book Set in Biblical Times About Trucks, Trains, & Planes.” Genres can be weird, right?

This article is a debate between which old Mario Kart game is the best. I’ve been playing Mario Kart 8 lately (and love it), and that’s got me thinking about how big a part of gaming the Mario Kart series has been for me. 

In the last 15 years Microsoft’s Xbox has risen to become, along with Sony’s PlayStation, one of the twin pillars of home console gaming. And while stalwart companies like Nintendo have enjoyed success as well, Xbox and PlayStation are Coke and Pepsi.

When it comes to games with stories, I’m a completionist. I’m a story completionist rather than a gaming completionist—once in a long while I’ll aim for 100% completion in a particularly great game, but mostly I’m content to do the main content and a selection of the side quest-y stuff.