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Do you consider "retro" to be a specific time period or anything 20+ years old? (lemmy.dbzer0.com)
submitted 2 weeks ago by to c/retrogaming@lemmy.world
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We have modernism and also post-modernism that are tied to a specific range of dates. I'm wondering if people feel the same way for "retro"

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[–] 3 points 2 weeks ago* (3 children)

Actually, in the car community the terms "antique," "vintage," and "classic" can all describe the same car depending on who you ask, the make and model, and when it was built. Even where the vehicle is residing can change it.

No vehicle class for "retro" exists, though there are "retro styled" vehicles, which is what you appear to describe.

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  • [–] 1 point 2 weeks ago (2 children)

    I don't see how your first paragraph contradicts anything I said, so I'm confused by your use of "actually". You can call old games "classic", although I'm not sure any of them are old enough to be called "antique". Maybe an old Pong home machine or something. Those words all largely mean the same thing.

    I would say "retro style" is redundant. Retro is always referring to the style. Looking back and taking styles from the past is what retro means. Like modern bell-bottom jeans, or cars like the 11th generation Thunderbird which looks more like the original that any previous models.

    The Wikipedia article uses the word to describe it.

    This was the last year [4th generation] for the convertible until the "retro" models of 2002–05.

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_Thunderbird

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  • [–] 1 point 2 weeks ago (1 child)

    My point was saying that the term antique, vintage, or retro could all theoretically describe the same game depending on who you ask, where you are, what game you are talking about, etc. For example, some people may consider Atari 2600 and Colecovision games as antique, where others may call them vintage. An NES game like Duck Hunt may be called classic and vintage, and even antique depending on who you ask. A particularly young person might call it antique, but an older person may not even consider it "that old."

    Your initial post seemed to complain that the use of the term "retro" in the context of the post is somehow "wrong," but there isn't really a "wrong" way to use the term. Perhaps I misunderstood what you were saying.

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  • [–] 1 point 2 weeks ago

    Ah, no, I was definitely saying that, and I still think "retro" is definitely incorrect. It was just confused that your first reply didn't actually contradict me. I don't mind at all that you think I'm wrong, but I'm not convinced. When everyone else but gamers seem to understand the difference between retro and classic/vintage/antique, it's the gamers using it wrong.

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