How to Go Back to Retro Games

In many of those retro games(be it remake or brand new) released recently, it's the game play which sucks. Not the graphics. At least this is my opinion.

Depends on how you define 'retro'. DosBox and a couple of emulators should get you covered, but you might have to do some serious reading up about how settings work. Consoles like the SNES, MegaDrive and N64 are the easiest to get into I'd say. For older Windows games you can most of the time find instructions how to get them working if you Google it.

-Final Fantasy 1 to 9
-crash bandicoot 3
-all the zelda games
-starfox 64 and assault
-all the mario bros games
-Star Ocean: The Second Story
-abe's odyssey and the sequel
-parappa the rapper
-all the tomb raider games
-the early rayman games
-the early spyro games
-silent hill 1-3
-vagrant story
-the first 3 tony hawk games
-chrono trigger and chrono cross
-resident evil 1-3
-driver
-metal gear solid
-castlevania symphony of the night
-tekken 3
-soul reaver
-ape escape
-the early fire emblem games
-xenogears
-suikoden 1 and 2
-tomba 2
-tenchu 2
-bushido blade
-doom

those are the ones I can think of off the top of my head, a lot of them are PS1 games, and a bit of nintendo sprinkled in

Be old.

I've played the entire range of video games from early 80's through today, and can still play any of them.

The younger you are, the harder it is to play games before your time I guess.

Not to be rude, but I was asking how do I get myself immersed in retro games, not how to actually play them or what ones to play. :x

Last year I played System Shock 2: after 5 min I forgot about its old graphic and enjoyed it like I was in 1999. If the gameplay is good it won't ever feel old.
Start with the genre you like, maybe with not so old titles (like Gamecube/PS2 era, maybe with some emulator if you can't find games/consoles), and try a couple of game that are considered the best of the past. Just remember that some old NES/SNES game can be harder than Dark Souls.

There's a couple things to keep in mind when looking to play "retro games".

First off is the Nostalgia factor. A lot of games that people say they recall being great, aren't necessarily that great.
They'll remember things in a more positive light than reality would permit.

Second is gameplay versus polish/design - now this one is tricky. But we've gone a long way when it comes to game design.
So a game that is really good in terms of story or gameplay can still be unplayable due to an uncooperative UI or other graphical problems. A famous example of a game with lacking UI is Dwarf Fortress - this game has more depth than anything you can imagine, yet the lack of a proper interface makes it very hard to get into for most gamers.

Third point - for most people it helps to stick with it. Don't go switching from modern games to old games and back.
There's a psychological barrier for a lot of gamers that prevents them from enjoying the older games because they're expecting a certain level of quality. By sticking to older games, you can get used to it.
It may even help to use older hardware (particularly an older monitor) - you may notice that handheld devices are "behind" when it comes to graphical prowess, with the 3DS for example being able to run what the N64 ran back in 96/97 (thats almost 20 years ago...)

And finally, and this is something that holds true even for playing modern games.
Be selective. As much as you would want to play through the entirety of Final Fantasy or the complete Ultima series. As much as you think it'd be great to play through the entire Dragon Quest or Command & Conquer franchise. Not every game is worth playing.
So play the ones that appeal to you most and that you'll enjoy the most.

Every time I replay my old games, I'm always amazed at the leap in graphics and mechanics of video games.
Makes me appreciate being born in this generation, having to witness its evolution is amazing. Nostalgia seems to be the main motivator.

I replay the original Metal Gear from time to time.Hope to fully finish it without a walkthrough by the time The Phantom Pain comes out.

If you enjoy collecting achievements in modern games there is a site that allows you to do the same for retro games at Retro Achievements That might help.

I'm born in 88 and I've played tons of old games. You have no excuse except the fact your twat. Play Call of Duty 2 and you'll see how it's 3 times better than Modern Warshit.

If you are not overly used to retro games, expect an "awkward phase", where the controls, general mechanics and obviously graphics feel less than appealing. We are so used to the modern mechanics that moving back to the older style might give you a bad first impression, mainly because things don't work like you expect them to. The less used to the older style of mechanics you are, the longer/more awkward the awkward phase will be. But stick with the games, because once you've managed to "un-learn" the modern mechanics, you might find the old game to be a blast.
I grew up with older games, and even I suffer from the "awkward phase" after having played a lot of modern games. I played through the first Quake 1 expansion just recently, and at first I actually found it strange to play a shooter without regenerating health, but after a short while I got into the game, and I loved it.

There are some games that have aged genuinely badly though, games that are not worth playing, even though they might have been great when they were released. But there are also games that are genuinely amazing, even if you've not played those games before.

Pick some that have aged well.
(Galaga, Metroid, Double Dragon, Volfied, Civilization 1, Monkey Island, Super Mario Bros, Contra, Ultima and/or Wizardry)
Assume that graphics and sound will be lacking compared to today's standards, that way you can only be positively surprised by what people managed with the limited resources back in those days.
Also, see if you can spot which mechanics those games use that are still in use today. You'll be surprised how far back some things go.

I'm born in 92 and my PC is always many years behind current technology (and one generation behind in consoles) so I'm used to play old games, back to the DOS era. Kinda recently I picked up Gothic 1 and despite the dated graphics and clunky combat, I found the game world and story to be very immersive. However for most people, I think nostalgia played a big part. It's normal that you can't get into them. For a lot of old games, the graphics (obviously) and control (especially on PC) usually do not age well. You don't have to play them if you can't enjoy them.

It depends on your favorite genre, but you could try to start with SNES games (using emulator). If you like pixel arts a lot of them still look beautiful even today (the emulator can make it look even better) so that might help. Chrono Trigger is awesome. Earthbound too. God that system is really good.

its funny what games called "retro" in this thread ... now im feeling rly old lol

BEST and most balanced PVP game ever ... or how it begun^^
http://www.ponggame.org/

There is no true way to get inmersed to them. I was born in PSX era but still never got one of those (played them anyways). The thing is to play any retro game you want and get hooked to it.

dont use save states, and if you can, try and not use emulators either.

Try gog.com

It is true that many old games get released on steam but gog.com is cheaper and handles the oldOS emulation much better than steam. They have quite a large catalogue of titles so you can pick whatever interests you or you can ask around the forums there, there's a really helpful community around that store. There's a lot of old games that are still highly enjoyable, for example Theme Hospital or Gabriel Knight, just look around and take your pick. And they have promos and sales very often.

1.Send your your gaming rig to charity.
2.Get a cheap crap used laptop.
3.Have no other option but to play oldies.

4. ...
   5.Profit!

If the game is good you will get inmersed/enjoy it (if you don´t mind graphics/can stomach them depending the game). If not it may not be that good today. Remember, there is a lot of nostalgia in the air.

I think someone already said this. I never use the term retro as for me they are just games lol. Thanks for making me feel like a dinosaur.

Pick a genre that you never played/rarely play and see will you like the old games in this genre...if that doesnt help go try something that you are familiar with .