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Old school gaming features we'd love to see return

Features
By Nathan Irvine published 22 March 2010

Harvesting the past for ideas that would work today

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Pressure sensitivebuttons


DualShock 2 on PS2 has this. Lightly press X as you drive a car in GTA: San Andreas and you'd crawl through traffic slowly. Slam your fat digit down and you'd be bolt forward at pace. Perfect. We understand that the triggers are supposed to replace the need for this but the simplicityandimmediate effect of 'the harder you push, the faster you go' is a great alternative to the sloppy triggers. Especially on PS3.


Above: A genius idea cruellyleft out of currenthardware

Wired controllers

Before you start getting all uppity about this one, consider this: With wired controllers you never have to recharge them. We've had numerous occasions where we've been halfway through a level only for the low battery to flash up on PS3 or controller dies completely with only a hint of a warning on 360. OK, so wireless pads free you up and mean kids/pets/old people don't trip over the cable but at least wired ones keep you connected for as long as you want. We just want the option - especially on PS3 - we're not asking for devolution here.


Above: A controller with a trip-wire? Or a constant connection to you gaming?

Cartridges


Advantages of disc-based games: Better graphics, crisper sound quality and bags of room to cram even more into your latest game of choice. Advantage of cartridges: Almost zero load times. Whaddya mean we're mad? You weren't there man. You didn't see the things we did on SNES and Megadrive.


Above: Instant access gaming FTW!

So what have we missed? Is there an obvious old-school feature that you'd like to see brought back from the dead? Or are you completely happy with the way that current games are panning out? Let us know in the comments below or onFacebookandTwitter.

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CATEGORIES
PlayStation Platforms
Nathan Irvine
Nathan Irvine
Hi, I’m Nathan. You may remember me from such websites as, erm, this one circa 2011. Been hustling in games for over a decade and write for Official PlayStation, Official Xbox, Gamesmaster and more.
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