I think the golden age could really be the generation of games you grew up with, but the late 80's to late 90's encompasses that period when gaming offered a large variety and many great technological leaps and bounds. It was awesome It seemed arcades were becoming the center of interests again, the home market flourished, and there was a ton of variety in gameplay.
I also collect arcade games and people in the arcade circles tend to think the early 80s was the golden-era, but I disagree because the market nearly died after two years and it took a long time to gain the momentum that was short-lived. Again, to each his own. If you like to read, I highly recommend checking out The Ultimate History of Video Games by Steven L. Kent. Steller book!
I would say the NES era was the golden era for gaming. Most of todays games have their roots in genres that began on the NES. The NES was also the birth of the modern gaming controller which is largely unchanged even today. Anything prior to the NES was really pretty simplistic and still an experiment in controller designs and genres etc.
I'm a Nintendo fan from way back but really am concerned about the future of the Wii U and Nintendo in general. They seem totally clueless in recent years. First they release the 3DS that has 3D that no one cares about with only one analog stick to release a stupid add on second analog stick just a couple of months later. Then they have this disaster that has been the Wii U. I don't want to see Nintendo fail but a company that has made so many horrible decisions is doomed.
I guess I'm kind of answering my own question. I WANT to want a Wii U but at this point it just doesn't make any sense. At least with Sony it seems that they understand and have learned from their mistakes. The Vita appears to be a very solid nicely built device with loads of potential that could see its potential reached by indie devs getting interested in it. Not to mention that the Vita and PS4 will interact in similar ways to the Wii U but the Vita will be a standalone device on it's own unlike the Wii U gamepad.
Edited by abluehaze, 26 April 2013 - 11:04 AM.