I don't like having a simple retro/modern split. You need to use at least three major eras.
- Classical - The foundational period of video game genres, concepts, etc. Not necessarily when the first games were made, but the ones that established the framework for all future works. Think about historic "Classical" civilizations like Rome, Han China, Persia, Gupta India, etc. Stretches roughly from the late 70's to 1994 or so. Includes the Atari 2600, NES, Genesis, SNES, Game Boy, etc.
- Early Modern - Major new innovations were still being made, but often within a framework established in the Classical era. These included polygonal graphics, the transition from cartridges to discs, online gaming, etc. Stretches from roughly 1994 to 2007, including the PS1, N64, Dreamcast, PS2, Xbox, GBA, etc.
- Contemporary - Rather than being an era where new advances are made, this is an era where elements such as interface, marketing, and distribution are key. Games are available in both physical and digital formats, simple games can be purchased and played on mobile devices, touch screens and motion controls serve as additional interfaces rather than upgrades, etc. Budgets can be higher than ever before, but AAA behemoths both coexist and compete with cheaply made titles developed and sold at a fraction of the price, only sometimes on the same platform. This has been roughly the past decade.
It's not a perfect system. I'm saying that 1994 is the end of the Classical era because that's when the PlayStation and Saturn were launched and a few key games were released (Super Metroid, Donkey Kong Country, Tekken, etc). But I could have easily placed it a year earlier or later. Likewise, the "Contemporary" period arguably started as early as 2004 (the DS launch, influential shooters like Halo 2 and Half-Life 2, World of Warcraft, etc), but could also be placed as far ahead as 2008 (the iOS App Store launch, the growth of indie games in the mainstream, the popularity of services like Steam, etc).
