One of the things that you will often hear if you are passionate about retro media is that the fad will be over soon. Sure, you may love 80s movies now, but most people will get sick of it soon enough, right? We all enjoy playing a bit of SNES, but the march of technology means that gamers will give up their old favorites sooner or later. And 80s/90s music is all just a bit cheesy now, right? Well, if there is one thing that we can see as being an indisputable fact in 2022, it is that retro is not going anywhere. People want their 70s, 80s and even 90s (yes, the 90s are retro now) media more than ever.
There have been so many seismic changes in entertainment technology over the last couple of years, but if anything, it seems like we are all more passionate about our love for retro than we ever were. Let’s have a look at some of the ways, and the reasons why, everyone is still going big on retro, and how the mainstream media has responded.
Movies And TV Shows Still Love It
If there is one major indicator of why “retro” is not going to go out of style anytime soon, it is that Hollywood can’t seem to get enough of it. The first season of Stranger Things seems like a lifetime ago now, but Season 4 was smashing viewership numbers, making memes, and sending Kate Bush to the top of the charts. The massive popularity of Running Up That Hill must be one of the clearest examples of how new media can send interest flooding back to the classics. But it’s not just about Netflix. Not only is Thor: Love and Thunder clearly inspired by 80s classics like Flash Gordon (not to mention music like Guns N’ Roses), but none other than Tom Cruise’s Pete “Maverick” Mitchell holds the title of box office champion for 2022 so far. Yes, Top Gun: Maverick, a sequel to a film from 1986, is absolutely crushing it at the box office, and that has sent a lot of people who had never seen the first movie back to the Tony Scott classic.
Retro Games Are Going Online
These days, it is easier than ever to log on and play games with your friends (or total strangers) online. Whether it’s your kids playing Fortnite, or you and your horror-loving buddies signing in and playing Evil Dead online for some retro gory thrills, online gaming is clearly going to be a massive part of the future for gaming. And that is no bad thing. One of the great things about gaming online is that it has made a lot of retro favorites more readily available for both newcomers and people who grew up on these games. It is even true for online gambling. Anyone who has played online slots will know that you can play a huge number of retro-themed games, even tie-in ones from blockbuster movies from the 80s and 90s. Of course, when you are looking to gamble online, you want to make sure that you are getting the best value for money possible, which is why you should look at PlayLive. Their promotions, including PlayLive free spins, will make sure that you are getting plenty of bang for your buck whether you are a retro fan or want to try something new.
Retro Gaming Can Be Social Too
One of the main things that devotees of online gaming level at die-hard retro gaming fans is that there is a lack of connectivity. That unless you have all your friends come over to your house to pick up a controller, there is no way to play with others. Well, one of the major trends in retro gaming that we have seen over the last few years is retro gaming bars and cafes. Here, anyone can turn up, grab a drink, and grab a controller and play everything from Tekken to Mario Kart. We should expect to see more and more of these places pop up in the months and years ahead.
Retro Games And Retro Games Consoles Are Still Big Business
Even as some of the biggest games being announced and anticipated are entirely new properties offering entirely new worlds, it seems fair to say that some of the most exciting are remasters of our old favorites. It may be a few years ago now that Capcom decided to remaster Resident Evil, but there is no doubting that the huge success of that release kickstarted a major wave of renewed interest in making these classic games feel new again. Looking at some of the titles that are either in production (like Alan Wake) or rumored to be on the way (like Silent Hill), those of us who played these games first time around our rubbing our hands in glee at the prospect of returning to those worlds again. And what is arguably more significant is that this is a great opportunity for the newer generation of gamers who may never have had access to these games but will have spent years reading about them to finally get to play them.
The Retro Generation Has The Disposable Income
Here is perhaps the biggest reason why the passion for retro media is not going anywhere: the people who have the money to spend on movies, games and physical media are the ones who grew up with these titles and these stories. A huge part of Stranger Things’ audience may be teenagers, but it taps directly into a vein of nostalgia for people who grew up watching A Nightmare on Elm Street on VHS. The 80s and 90s nostalgia that we mentioned earlier, which we saw heavily featured in Captain Marvel with its soundtrack and references to the dearly departed Blockbuster Video, is only going to become more prevalent as that generation starts spending more on its entertainment. We should expect more reboots of classic 80s and 90s films, more remasters of classic videogames, and a lot more needle drops of classic pop and rock songs. Retro is never going to go anywhere, especially at a time when we could all use a little cheering up.