The Decline of the Arcade Sports Game (Part I)
 

For those of us who grew up with sports games, it does not seem so long ago when the difference between a "simulation" and "arcade" sports game was about as marginal as the difference between an A and an A+ in gym class.

Back in those late-1980s and early-1990s, rather than thinking about how "sim" or "unsim" a game was, the only thing the majority of sports gamers really thought about was how "fun" or "not fun" the games were.

Granted, some gamers from that era may have been a bit more obsessed with "statistical realism" than others, but in general, the gameplay is something that NES, Genesis and SNES gamers never really looked at with any judgments of "realism" in mind.

Read More - The Decline of the Arcade Sports Game (Part I)

Sports games today are way to complicated. Options, Options, Options. Menus, mini-menus, quick-menus. What ever happened to pass and shoot on offense, and switch player-steal-block, on defense. My old HS and college buddies can't play with me anymore because games today are just to much to pick up for a quick game if your kinda new to "next-gen" gaming.

EA did the right thing with NHL 09; old "NHL 94" controls for the casual, and the skill stick for hardcore.

BTW a mention of recent arcade sports games and not one blurb about the best recent one The Bigs???

Interesting article but I have never been much of a arcade gamer although NBA jam was pretty cool in the day eh

the gaming community has "grown up"
im 29 now.
i remember when arcades were the rave.
i remember when mk, mk2, sf2, nba jam didnt look as good when ported from the arcade.

now-a-days the game systems are too good and no more use for the arcade unless you want props (silent scope sniper gun, moving f1 cars for daytona usa)

the art of the arcade is lost thus the arcade game is lost.

as an "older gamer" but the 1st generation of gamers since youth, i want more mature/sim games like rainbow six vegas & nfl 2k series for football.
i dont like the gears of war/killzone 2 games. thiose are for the teenage crowd along with halo.

the videogame producers need to realize that if someone like me who is a lifeloing gamer, unlike my father who is now 58 and didnt have videogames till his 30's and thus is a "lost cause) games need to be tailored to MY tastes.

you cant di it like nes/snes days when games could be made for teenagers and get away with it.
the gaming spectrum is so spread out now

Re: The Decline of the Arcade Sports Game (Part I)
 

I wouldn't count him out kid. My pops is way past 58 and has NO problem picking up the sticks.
The thing that really irks the older players is the unreal BS in games. They know their sports but when you see some defender ignite a rocket out his backside to come up with a pick then thats when you lose the older gamers. It's at that point it goes from matching wits with another opponent vs playing a kid's game with a "kid"