Which games have that?

i think maybe a huge difference between what was going on in the 16 bit era compared to whats going on now was the insane graphics improvement. back then, EVERY game seemed like it was bad ass just because of how awesome it looked. the evolution from the nes to the genesis for example made every game on the genesis seem like an amazing piece of software. so even if most the games now are not really considered as some of the best, it was just a different time. i guess thats not the fault of the ps4 or anything, but it still plays into the perception of whats going on (which is what youre talking about). i guess my point is that perception isnt limited only to what youre talking about.

Oh, I absolutely remember being blown away by Super Mario Bros. back in like 1986 or 1987. As my experience with gaming at home was limited to the Intellivision and Commodore 64, SMB was something incredibly awe-inspiring and deep. Then I saw Super Mario World back in 1991 and being impressed by these new 16-bit graphics. The SNES had just come out in America and Walmart had a demo of it up. Having been a huge a huge Nintendo fan at the time, needless to say I was excited. I ended up getting a Genesis that Christmas, though, probably because the Genesis was about $50 cheaper. I wasn't disappointed as Sonic was awesome, but I still would much rather have had an SNES. Then in 1996 I saw Super Mario 64 and was in awe of it as well. Fortunately my best friend had an N64 and we'd play SM64 and Mario Kart 64 all the time back then. When I got my first job in 1998, I got both an N64 and PS1 as soon as I could (I got the PS1 mainly for FFVII, though I bought a few other games as well).

Over time, though, new generations don't quite yield the same level of excitement. Of course, this is because after 30 years, it's a case of "Seen it all before." There hasn't been a truly qualitative change to gaming since the switch to 3D polygon-based graphics in the mid 90s. Most of the types of games we play have antecedents that go back to the fifth generation and even before that. That's not to say that there aren't plenty of great games to be had (and IMO innovation is overrated anyway). In the past year I've played and enjoyed Super Mario 3D World, Mario Kart 8, NSMBU, Pikmin 3, DKC: Tropical Freeze, Wind Waker HD (never played the original), Killzone: Shadow Fall, Infamous, and Battlefield 4. There's still plenty of good games to be had even if they don't quite evoke the same sense of awe the games of our childhood did.

also, my mother gave me money to stand in line and get a wii in 11/06, but i bought nearly all the games for that console. she bought me maybe 3 or 4 in its whole life, and i have like 100 games for my wii. so i got all those games myself. in fact, all seventh gen games i bought by myself. (in fact, i bought a 360 12/07, so that was the first console i bought myself). i still feel like 2014 is extremely lackluster. i commented to somebody else about 2007 because thats the equivalent year from last generation. it had way better games, and more of them. none of them had to be remasters either. things are just different now. maybe we can just agree to disagree.

Well, 2006 would be a more accurate year to compare the PS4 and XBO to as that was the 360's first full calendar year. It had more games by the end of 2006 than most other systems did by the end of their first full year, but a lot of those were downloadable games, cross-gen titles, sports games, generic licensed games, and relatively obscure titles. In terms of volume it was impressive, but in terms of quality there might have been half a dozen games I'd consider worth buying new, if that. COD2 was okay, Perfect Dark Zero was meh, and Burnout Revenge was fun, but I don't remember anything that was really, really awesome until Gears of War. The 360 just didn't impress me all that much in its first year, though 2007 was another story.

Meanwhile, there will have been about that many PS4 games I'd consider worth buying. I have Battlefield 4, Infamous, and Killzone, and I still need to pick up Watch Dogs (I just haven't had the money recently), plus I'll get MGSV: Ground Zeroes when it gets cheaper. I'm also definitely getting Destiny, Drive Club, and Far Cry 4. Alien: Isolation looks promising, and if it turns out it doesn't suck I'll probably get it. 2015 is going to be huge as well, maybe even better than 2007. I guess it ultimately comes down to personal taste. Some people swear up and down that the PS2 is the best system ever, but I found the sixth generation to be dull and lackluster compared to most others, almost like the industry was in a funk after an initially decent switch to 3D in the previous gen, and that it gradually got out of that funk since the start of the seventh generation. I own or have at least played a lot of 360 games, and I already have more Wii U and PS4 games than I do PS2 and GameCube games. I guess there's just no accounting for taste, after all. Most of what's being argued in this thread is based on subjective value judgements. Still, I would like to know why your definition of "shovelware" is so broad. And I thought I was picky.

Ive really thought about why my definition of shovelware is so broad, and i realize that im just being too hard on indie games. i never would have admitted that they are lesser games, but my attitude in this post suggests that they are, so its my mistake really. considering retail releases, i dont see how anybody can defend the first half of 2014. all three companies could have done better. especially sony.

I think a big problem is because so many games got delayed this year. On the plus side, it means that 2015 may be one of the best years in gaming history.

i havent checked, but im willing to bet that on metacritic, there are less games released in the first six months in this year that are above 75 than there are in similar years (2007 because that was the first full calendar year that all three consoles were out.. i dont know why you insist on 2006; that doesnt make any sense. and then 2002 because that was the first full calendar year that all three consoles of the sixth gen were out.) if its around the same amount, then im wrong, but i really dont think it is.

i wouldnt have expected that. i guess indies are making all the difference in this comparison, right? thats one huge difference between the beginning of this gen, and the beginning of last gen, right?

Respecting someone and saying they are whining are not mutually exclusive.  Based on the attitude presented regarding the "lack of games" I call it whining.