HACKER Q&A
📣 ibobev

What is the motivation behind making new games for old computers?


People constantly make new games for old computers and game consoles. Just see this blog http://www.indieretronews.com/ for some examples. Games for ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64, Amiga, NES, and so on. There are even publishers specialized in this. For example:

https://www.protovision.games/

http://www.psytronik.net/

https://doublesidedgames.com/

I'm wondering what is the motivation of the authors of such games? I think that it cannot be financial because most probably the market is pretty small. Is this just a hobby or something else? Why don't they simply make games for modern platforms?

  👤 richardjdare Accepted Answer ✓
I'm currently working on some Amiga projects for my own amusement. For me, a lot of it is a feeling of unfinished business. I grew up with the Amiga and wanted to be a part of that scene but I didn't have the money for books and development tools.

I also prefer old style game development as opposed to using frameworks like Unity or Unreal engine. It's a different feeling when you have complete control of the entire machine and everything you need is in one or two reference manuals. It's a more focussed and immersive experience. You can really get in the zone. Also, It's a lot easier to do acceptable artwork, especially for an 8bit machine, and with modern tools you can do things that couldn't be done back in the day.

Also, I've been involved in indie development for modern platforms and made about as much money as I would have releasing an Amiga game in 2021 :) So now, I figure I will just please myself and work on platforms I enjoy.

👤 dlsa
It's a form of nostalgia mixed with updated capability. You had a device as a kid but couldn't make what you wanted. Now many years later you actually can. So you do.

It's a do-over in some ways.

Also, modern platforms require a lot of overhead and toolkits and it can all get too much. Some of the older platforms are a lot simpler in many ways. (They're still plenty complex in other ways as well - don't underestimate the coding golf challenge angle either)

On top of all that as well is the ability to use brand new tools to build software for old platforms. Graphics/sound/code editors are now vastly improved.

👤 psyc
It’s a craft within a craft. Resource constraints can be empowering. Also, in the heyday of those retro machines, I was a kid wishing I could program them, and now I’m an old guy who can.
👤 theandrewbailey
There's probably a bunch of reasons why, but I think many would say nostalgia, or that they wanted the challenge of creating something in a constrained environment.
👤 rolph
retro computing is becoming a bit wider than a niche, due to the compromises built into "modern" computers.

also modern hardware is more than capable of running emulation applications, allowing people to play an old school game, and not have the problem of centralization, or always online requirements getting in the way of actually playing a game