Older Portable Games Need To Come Back
Downloadable games have been a big part of this console generation. Playstation Network, Xbox Live Arcade, and the Wii Virtual Console have hundreds of games available to download, with many of them being either remade or unaltered console games from generations past.
I was playing Castlevania: The Adventure: Rebirth the other day when I started thinking… when will we start getting more cla$$ic portable games to download?
Think of the possibilities. The recently released Metroid: Other M made a big deal about being a sequel toSuper Metroid , a SNES game available for download on the Wii's virtual console. But I'm sure there are plenty of younger gamers who never played the game where Super Metroid's story began, Metroid II: The Return of Samus for the original Game Boy. Fans of Solid Snake recently enjoyed Metal Gear Solid:Peace Walker for the PSP. How many of those fans missed out onMetal Gear Solid: Ghost Babel, released on the Game Boy in 2000?
I could go on, but you get the point. With the psp2 and 3ds on their way, this would be a perfect time for both Nintendo and Sony to start a new download service for older portable games. Heck, we don't even need to wait for a new portable gaming device. The existing storefront on the big 3 consoles would do just fine. Every Game Boy game getting the "Rebirth" treatment is probably too much to ask for, but I'm sure there are plenty of gamers out there who wouldn't mind playing portable games on their TVs that look just like they once did. Over one million people have downloaded Super Mario Bros. 3 on the virtual console. Even in today's world of 60 inch HDTVs, I'm sure a good portion of those same people would be willing to play super mario land in all its black and white, low rez glory in the comfort of their living rooms. The PS3 already has PSP games on their download service, you just have to transfer them to your PSP in order to play them. Would it really be that hard to get those same games to play directly on the PS3? Sure, it might hurt PSP sales, but giving the PSP a year or two exclusivity window could fix that. I mentioned Super Mario Land in that last paragraph. That game hasn't been for sale outside the used game market for two decades. It's so old I couldn't find a single review of it in any major gaming site to link to for this blog. How many Mario fans reading this have never even heard of that game, I wonder. Making that game available for download in some form would fix that sad state of affairs.
Retro gaming has been big business for years, with no sign of slowing down. No matter how those older portable games are given to us, there are a whole lot of gamers who would gladly scoop them up. Game companies can't leave all that profit on the table forever. Someday, somehow, those portable cla$$ics will make a comeback. I just hope it's not too far in the future. What older portable games would you like a second chance to play?
