Here's where I stand ethically: 1. If a game is not conceivably playable or available for purchase by first party devs, then piracy is (ethically not legally) okay. 2. If it was an online game and someone took years to decompile the code that is a labor of love, NOT A PERSONAL ATTACK ON THE COMPANY THAT PRODUCED IT! 3. If it's not profitable for the company at all, nothing changes if the player pirates the game, the devs were making no money anyways 4. If a company is so hurt by this, then just meet the demand... People want to play your game, so let them play it in an accessible way

RIP Infinity

It's impossible to preserve them all, but possible to preserve thousands of them for many many decades or maybe even centuries. It's gonna require an enormous amount of effort from the community. We already have great emulators. We just need to make sure that computers way off in the future will be able to run them. A genius is born every day, so I believe that a huge chunk of gaming history will be in good hands in the era of flying cars. It's too good of a media to just let die.

I used to have consoles dating back to Atari 2600 but they were all lost when I moved and my old landlord changed the locks before I could collect everything. With the price retro games games soaring through the roof and my income being limited rebuying is a pipe dream at this point.

I'm in college right now working to become a library technician, and I ended up using the "write anything related to libraries" assignment they gave me as an excuse to write about video game preservation. This is a topic I'm very passionate about, and I plan to (if I can) make a career out of it! So, you can imagine my hapiness when I found another great video talking about the subject (another great series of videos on the subject can be found on Ross Scott's channel, Accursed Farms). ...though, to give a small critique: spending so long going through the story, gameplay, and development history of various games in your "why?" section without directly relating it to your central point of "why games should be preserved" means you're going to lose the attention of a good portion of your audience a few minutes in. I, as a gamer, see what you're getting at, but if say, my dad, or a government policy-maker saw this video, they'd probably dismiss it because you didn't state your thesis soon enough into it. Which sucks, because you bring up some great examples of games that need better preservation! Edit: I still think this is is good video! Sorry if I came across as too nitpicky. I love your work! Especially your Ace Combat 3 Retrospective! You helped get me into the rest of the series after I started with AC7!

You could say we have so far to go in preserving video games And only heaven knows

music preservation is crazy

This is why i went for video game writing and concept creation for my BA.

I cant believe you put End War footage in the beginning. I loved that game as a kid and nobody every talked about it.

Even if you buy physical media the Disc is pretty much just an Installer. They hardly put a whole game on those things these days. Pirates are the only people who can TRULY Preserve games.

I think emulation is the best way to preserve older games. also technology seems to expand. also there is someone from pink gorilla store im sorry i couldnt remmember her name is also pushing the topic of preserving game media. keep pushing on this topic. i still remmember the old 80's games from the Arcade venues in my city and wish that these titles still be preserved in todays age of gamming. best of luck. game on. 😊🎮🕹🖥📀

Spiderman ps1 needs a re Release on modern Consoles

First game that comes to mind for me is drive club. I got it as a physical ps4 disk because was removed from all online stores and servers were shut down.

Gaming is almost a $300 billion industry. But it has by far the worst preservation? That needs to change immediately. The big players have to be on board. Sony, Nintendo and Microsoft. They have the most control which means it's their responsibility to ensure that all games released on their platforms are available indefinitely. There is an emulation community on PC doing all of the heavy lifting. Fund them to continue doing their amazing work.

Yesterday I bought some Xbox and 360 games but was surprised I could not get Grabbed by The Ghoullies even though it's a Rare game which is a studio Microsoft owns. I hate licenses in games. Edit: You can't buy it by itself but it's included in Rare Replay.

lets make something clear: you dont NEED physical media, what you trully need is DRM Free, that is what can guarantee preservation. physical media can rot and stop working, so long as we can make another copy of the game that isnt a big issue, but we cant with most physical media. im saying that because this discourse arround physical is so strong that some idiot tried to convince me that i need an physical copy of an free(libre) and open source software... i dont own the software because i dont have an licenced disc or other form of physical media containing the data for the software? that was the most stupid thing that i ever read, but that is what happens when we are focusing too much energy at the wrong direction. currently GOG allow you do purchase games without DRM, we need to value that over physical. now, im not saying that you cant like/prefer physical for other reasons, like having an physical object wich is preferable in my opinion.

The conflict during MW19 was mostly between old fans because it was a split between those of us who were tired of how arcady the game's formula had turned and those who were fine with the gameplay of older titles. It was even more visible during Cold War, with one half of the fan base being like "it's good old cod" and others "we went one step foward and 5 steps backwards"

15:55 I feel this, I got AC6 like 2 years ago when it was still much better off to play with a physical copy than to emulate it. I still get a nicer feeling holding that box in my hands than just having it as a file on my computer.

Have you seen the efforts gone into restoring PlayStation Home?

In my eyes if a company no longer sells said game it's fine to pirate it. For me i only aim to have singleplayer games i enjoyed in my preservation library.

keep spreading the good word

Times doesn't stop just because a game comes out

They belong in a museum.

Oh. An online service only game was successfully brought back. Need for speed world. It's called soapbox race world. All the real money stuff was replaced with in game money stuff and new content is being added and it's still updated. However some things can't be done without the source code such as map edits, like finishing the tunnels that would connect the downtown areas. They've done great things with what they can do though.

I look forward to seeing how Nintendo Switch,PS5,and Xbox will be preserved from the community. Hopefully it will start soon…

Bring back Primal Rage!! Revive the series! Release part 2 officially! Remaster the 1st and finally crack the emulation code locked in that game!

I also have nostalgia for game cases! When I was young, if I ever saw a gift under the Christmas tree and the shape of a jewel case I know it was a PlayStation game since I didn't listen to music! Great times

The only games that we can't save are those who require internet 😢, the division I'm talking about you (in the future).

Glad you mentioned project insignia. Its a small community but they are pretty close knit and so far I am having a blast playing old school xbox games online again

One of my favorite games is Killzone 2 and I'm sad some people will never experience that awesome game because it's locked to the PS3. Preservation matters

Loving the NFS World BGM

Man the amount of games that are just gone , is just depressing, the amount of effort into those games, and the fun , now gone , also props for using Enwar gameplay, which you can now only get with a disc, i really like how youpost which song you used

An often overlooked aspect of media preservation is historical context. While more matured mediums like film and literature commonly offer easily accessible context on the creation process of the work, the lives and past works of those involved in production, and cultural/historical aspects of the work (basically things like blurbs about the author of a book or director's commentary for films), video games tend to lack such documentation. Organizations the work to preserve games do much more than collect and store games, they also work to create comprehensive--almost museum-like---depictions of games, explaining the importance of games as history rather than just a product.

mircosoft fixed the cod muitiplayer servers thank god but i agree this is a big problem i saw a stat in a article about this saying most games like over 85% since 2010 are lost forever its just crazy

i wish project aces at least made infinity playable on pc, that way preserving it might be easier, and so far it is the only ace combat game i have never played because of it's console exclusivity

I loved Ace of Combat on my PS2

Great topic

Good video. This is why I'm glad there are remasters and companies such as Strictly Limited Games, Play Asia, Special Reserve Games, Red Alert and Limited Run that are at least helping with the issue. Then there is companies like Evercade that created a console and full ecosystem to get older titles on it and in physical form.

Fantastic video. I started preserving video games in January and plan to pick it up again soon. Its very expensive sometimes. Especially if you want to go the total preservation route like i do and get a complete in box (CIB) version. Thats when it costs a lot. But im thinking of going back to it in the fall.

I want Defiance 2050 to come back. 😢

I will never again in my life be able to relive how Apex Legends played back during the first months of the game. It's almost an entirely different game now.

ThunderousFolf just epically OWNED the Reddit squad.

This video is an absolute banger! Not only do I think that video game archival is an essential effort, but educating people about it is part of that effort. Kinda like people who spend their valuable time editing Wikipedia. Sort of unsung heroes. I still have almost all my physical game copies and consoles. I even have a bunch of old VCR recordings on VHS I'm tempted to digitize to see if there are any old commercials that haven't been archived. You never know what you have in your attic that other people regard as lost media until you check! 11:41 We might just have to agree to disagree on Star Fox Adventures. Like is it objectively a bizarre decision on where to take the series? Yes. But it's still _iconic_ nostalgia that I treasure deeply. 😂 With your love for arcade-style combat flight sims in mind, I could imagine that it didn't do any of the things you like about Star Fox lol. 25:17 Nick Robinson's efforts with Driver: San Francisco and Phantom Dust come to mind

17:54 Actually it's not really up to the makers of the games, it's up to who owns what store front and how much it costs to keep it on there. Nothing is free until we start emulating. It costs money to keep a game up

The thing about perserving something Like Art for the internet. Means, its there as it is, Its Art. To look at as an image on the internet to google and see. Same for books and comics. To look at. Thats the fulfillment of its preservation. Videos, film, and shows. Means to watch on the internet if its there. Lost in time and archived to watch. Its perserved and able for people to see. Video games is SO Different as Entertainment versus Art and videos. Its an Interacting Experience. And it NEEDS to be as ACCURATE as possible of its ORIGINAL Form Just like video and art. Its perfect for Art and Videos to be formatted to its fullest high quality entertainment material. Giving you its FULLEST entertainment of its original state. Same for music to listen to. At its best quality also. Or its original recorded sound. But again, Video game Material however isn't something to watch or see images of. Its something you MUST Interact with. And at its original state Possible to get the whole "Experience" of its entertainment. So YES you must have the Original copys of the original releases of games. No Remasters. Remakes. Yes you can add them technically. Its history. But DON'T DELETE the original. Like pulling a George Lucas trying to delete the Theatrical Cut of the Original Trilogy of Star Wars. By not making a DVD or 4k Release of it. OR NOT putting it in the public domain. When the public domain refused his Special Editions and asked for his Theatrical cut. He said he doesn't want to...he myt have lost it sadly. Or worst edit it for his special edition...horrible... Well... Thanks to fans. Its available online to see the Theatrical cuts. Thank you Preservation and piraters who uploaded the materials to save the original Trilogy of Star Wars. Thanks Internet!

good video man

He has good taste in games

Well all of Star fox is playable on emulators, so we’re off to a great start.

Exactly have faith in the cloud all games will be preserved up there, look up I say. ❤️

17:28 i felt like you were talking to me 😭

Emulation, pirated/gog copies of PC version, and custom multiplayer mods is the best solution of this specific problem

The problem cod has is basically copying and pasting the same game idea theres nothing wrong with exo movement cods i like bo3 and bo4 but i dont like advanced warfare or infinite warfare they should of just went in cycles of modern future and old era cods with the basic movements for the current and older and let the more fast paced movement only for future themed ones id like a new exo movement cod but i want to see regular movement games as well it would be one thing if it was like titanfall and that was all it had from the beginning but cod was in the past from the start so forcing exo movement in all the cods in a row was a horrible idea

Recently found you, nice vids. Will follow your career with great interest. Subbed.

NGL, that cut to Winds of Change caught me off-guard

Through the openspy community project many ps2 games have had their online functionality turned back on. Looking forward to trying out battlefield 2 modern combat when my copy arrives in the mail.

A video for a campaign to take action to stop killing games can be found on Ross Scott's channel, Accursed Farms.

I want to create an Artificial Galactic Death Star Like Mega Structure. That will hold and run millions of years worth of video games. But to play on it you would have to be apart of my Galactic Empire to take over the universe and protect the Death Star from the Nintendo Ninja Empire.

Miss being a kid aswell… 🥺

15:10 holy fuck scott the woz

13:00 SPROCKET IS MADE BY ONE GUY! SAME WITH FLYOUT!

i cant think of any games that i would love to have be revived since most of the games i have nostalgia for can be emulated perfectly or almost perfectly and/or are primarily singleplayer games on PC

For All my Xbox users on Here the OLD COD TITLE ARE PLAYABLE NOW SERVERS HAVE BEEN FIXED MW MW2 MW3 & BO along w the others

I can't believe you dunked that poor basement dweller when you tried to defend his love to Nintendo! 😭

If game companies aren't re-releasing certain games & certain versions of games, then should be okay to emulate them. Modders & emulator developers are doing better jobs than game companies when it comes to retro game preservation. Many retro games aren't being sold in game markets nowadays, most of the original retro game copies are found in second hand markets especially some of the sealed ones that are found there, therefore the game companies aren't profiting from second hand market.

I have ps2 Ace Combats but unfortunately my laptop can't emulated them due to some hardware issues.

funny thing about Infinite Warfare is that it is supposedly one of the best CoD campaigns and is much better looked upon today.

So what games are preserved safe right now and how restricted is it to be able to play them region locked download

Got this recommended a fews days after I dumped some ps2 games to my pc

I would love to have drakengard back from ps2.

Good will always triumph over evil

Everyone is late to the party. Its like someone said we need tot alk about it and then everyone falls in lone. Means somone is leading the pack and the masses will just think its normal. Lol

Not to be rude, but this would have been a better video overall if you hadn't used it as an excuse to talk about Ace Combat.

What you described is what existentially happened to Battlefield 2: Modern Combat in a nutshell. And eventually BC1 and 1943. When the Xbox 360 servers shut down in 2011, that was sort of it. Lights out, that's it. The PS2 servers also went down in 2014 due to Gamespy. The entire history of the game just sort of became unavailable. If you wanted to document it, or try to write down stuff for it for a wiki? Well too bad, so sad. It took till May 2022 by EXTREMELY zealous fans with some help from one of the original developers to actually get the thing to work on PS2/Emulation via essentially duct tape and spaghetti code. Even then its missing core components like stat tracking and what not.

16:10 i just downloaded a few of my games thinking why. Just why

I preserved my games by sealing them epoxy and then sealing them in my bunker

Think this video proves all you need is a video to talk about old games not the actual old games themselves. You nicely explained stuff and I have no need to play them, and to be honest the average gamer really doesn't care. I think it's a small minority that's bothered about game preservation. I have all the consoles I have ever owned plus games as I thought I'd like to revisit them. As it turns out they just gather dust in the loft and never used.

Watching this as I play on an Emulator.

Forza games. Xbox one exclusives in general.

Based folf uwu

Jack sparrow Edition.

They did to bring back the suffering

What about making a ds fighting game online multilayer?

movies are about the same as video games dude. both are digital media, except for movies can be stored in rcv

Disk/cartridge rot:🗿

...👏👍🖖

Emulators crash

ok so I'm seeing that your game content has more views that your furry content what this means stop making furry content and make more game content but out of that I'm glad to see that there is another furry sharing the same love for ace combat to go above and beyond to just play it (for example I bought a ps2 and order some of the ps2 ace combat to just play them) because like you said is better to have physical format

I find game preservation to be bad for innovation.

It's hard because it was conceived already to be forgotten in future. To be only in the minds of who played them and nowhere else. Morally speaking it should be destroyed in the name of copyright. And that's why I consider myself immoral.

How do guys feel when someone uses the “Nothing is meant to live Forever” argument?

It's true books can be simply reprinted however they can be "Re written" for "modern audiences" That can change to original content... This to me is cultural vandalism....

Old games suck. They have bad graphics, primitive gameplay, poor sound designing, and shoddy level design. Just let them go no one care about anything made before ps3 Xbox 360 era if we’re being kind.

Xbox is doing this better than anyone

You don't need to preserve video games. The new generations are not gonna play. Older video games.