this post was submitted on 14 Aug 2023
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[–] Cypher 70 points 1 year ago (6 children)

I refuse to use “boomer shooter” it’s a dumb moniker that ignores the single most influential person involved in the genre: John Carmack.

He’s not a boomer, boomers didn’t make the genre, boomers don’t deserve the credit.

[–] Its_Always_420 17 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I don't even think boomers played these when they were popular. At the time they were still way too scared of technology, think flashing 12:00 on the vcr jokes. These games are Gen-x/millennials childhood shooters.

[–] Phegan 3 points 1 year ago

My boomer father pirates doom for me as a child.

[–] [email protected] 14 points 1 year ago

Agreed. Carmack is Gen X.

[–] [email protected] 10 points 1 year ago

... man I never made that connection. I thought it was because there was never an explosion smaller than somebodies head. If it doesn't cause a boom it's a gun that shouldn't be in a boomer shooter.

[–] Edgelord_Of_Tomorrow 3 points 1 year ago (1 children)

It's a joke.

It caught on because boomer is a synonym for old and a synonym for loud / explosive etc.

[–] [email protected] 0 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Try harder, it hasn't caught on.

[–] MossBear 0 points 1 year ago

It's like what someone who wasn't even born when these games were made would think. Just say no to "boomer shooter". Classic FPS is fine. Old School FPS is fine. Anything but "boomer shooter".

[–] woelkchen -1 points 1 year ago (3 children)

the single most influential person involved in the genre: John Carmack.

Why would an engine developer be responsible game design? Are you confusing the Johns and meant John Romero?

And what would the genre be called then? John-like?

boomers didn’t make the genre, boomers don’t deserve the credit.

Neither did Castlevania in Metroidvania. Metroid founded the genre a decade before Symphony of the Night game out, it's just that it was called a side-scrolling action adventure. That's a bit long, though, so a shorthand was needed.

Personally, I would not mind "Retro FPS" but it's just a label and in the end doesn't really matter much.

[–] Cypher 7 points 1 year ago (1 children)

John Romero also isn’t a boomer but the reason I believe Carmack was more influential is because he was the single most important person in overcoming technical challenges that allowed those games to run.

I would personally prefer Doomer shooters given Doom’s influence, especially its cultural influence.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago (2 children)

What about...Doom Clones? Full circle there

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

They'll always be doom clones to me, up to a point.

[–] Cypher 0 points 1 year ago

Eh it’s got to roll off the tongue if it’s going to stick

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago

“Metroidvania” is a bad term too

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Dude, if you think the game engine designer and programmer had nothing to do with the end result then you're out of your mind. Romero did some design, play-tested, and wrote some utility applications for game development. He is not the star of Doom by a long shot. There were others, but Carmack was the music maker, the dreamer of the dreams at that company.

You do know that symphony of the night is not the first Castlevania, right? The first Metroid and first Castlevania games both came out in 1986.

Get some culture Van Winkle, you have been asleep for too long.

[–] woelkchen 0 points 1 year ago

Dude, if you think the game engine designer and programmer had nothing to do with the end result then you’re out of your mind.

You're projecting waaaay to much into what I wrote. Carmack did not design the game but obviously the engine is part of the overall package. Reading my statement into saying that he "had nothing to do with the end result" is insane.

You do know that symphony of the night is not the first Castlevania, right? The first Metroid and first Castlevania games both came out in 1986.

Yes, and for a decade Castlevania games were not "Metroidvanias". That's why the term makes no sense to be part of the genre but I also don't throw a tantrum over unimportant things on the internet. Relax.

Get some culture Van Winkle, you have been asleep for too long.

Why are you so angry? I did not attack you or your mom. It's just about video games. Chill, man.

[–] [email protected] 27 points 1 year ago

Can we ban the use of the term “boomer-shooter” please?

[–] ren 19 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Love how everyone straight up forgets the existence of GenX who were the ones playing these games (me included). Anyways- good games.

[–] PelagiusSeptim 10 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Everyone knows they weren't played by boomers, it's just a catchy name.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Um I am 57. I and a good amount of gamers my age played the shit out of these games.

[–] regular_human 11 points 1 year ago
[–] icesentry 4 points 1 year ago (1 children)

You're not a boomer. You're GenX.

[–] dogslayeggs 6 points 1 year ago

57 puts him at 1965-1966, which is the very far end of GenX and has Boomer crossover.

[–] ren 1 points 1 year ago

that's a big assumption. lol ;)

[–] Potatos_are_not_friends 15 points 1 year ago (5 children)

Boomer shooter is a moniker to try to be cute with language. Because these shooters go "Boom".

Fuck that noise. Call it a Classic Doom-like.

[–] TwilightVulpine 11 points 1 year ago

Nah, Genres being named after the first game that does it is pretty uninspired. It almost makes it sound like players can't articulate what makes the game interesting.

[–] legion 8 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Call it a Classic Doom-like.

That's basically reverting back to calling games "DOOM clones".

[–] [email protected] 0 points 1 year ago

Still better than boomer shooter

[–] woelkchen 0 points 1 year ago

That’s basically reverting back to calling games “DOOM clones”.

Calling something like Amid Evil with its spectacular map architecture a mere Doom clone does it a disservice, though, because Doom closes were basically flat and had 90° walls. Descent and Quake 1 aren't clones of Doom either.

[–] woelkchen 2 points 1 year ago

Fuck that noise. Call it a Classic Doom-like.

Except that other than a few GZDoom-based games, Dusk and such have more in common with Quake than Doom, being fully 3D.

[–] Alteon 2 points 1 year ago

But then the media post won't be totes edgy and get people to click on it....

[–] [email protected] 0 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Maybe it should be called Doomer Shooter instead

[–] Potatos_are_not_friends 1 points 1 year ago

Then you're catering to the peppers

[–] _sideffect 10 points 1 year ago

Too much cod/battlefield crap... People were sick of it and wanted to go back to the good old doom days.

Lots of indie titles did that, then doom 2016 propelled it into the mainstream again which gave the green light for even more games being made.

I love it! My favorite genre

[–] [email protected] 10 points 1 year ago (1 children)

It's silly to even bring generations into this or most topics, just another politically driven divider in order to down one group of people and boost another's ego. In most scenario's this is the case anyway, yeah silly and childish.

[–] thattysonguy 0 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Dude it's just a funny name that rhymes, get over yourself.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago

I really don't get the hate over the term.

It was ok to use "Boomer" as an euphemism to call someone old, but make it about games that often don't take themselves seriously and are a throwback to when gaming started to grow massively, and it sucks?

[–] 2tone 7 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Wow, no mention of Prodeus

[–] _sideffect 2 points 1 year ago

Amazing game

[–] Boiglenoight 6 points 1 year ago

Boom shooter, OG FPS, I don't care what you call it. Just more please.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 year ago (1 children)

@woelkchen it would be nice if people stopped conflating Gen X with boomers because we want nothing to do with them. If it's a joke, it's not funny to me. We dislike boomers as much as every other generation after them. Nobody gives a shit about GenX, I get it, but could you please do us the favor of not conflating us with boomers?

[–] woelkchen 3 points 1 year ago

could you please do us the favor of not conflating us with boomers?

I? I did not write the article. I just found it interesting and crossposted it here and I don't care what others use as a shorthand for fast-paced, pixelated FPS games.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago

Lol, boomer shooter.....wtf

[–] [email protected] -4 points 1 year ago (1 children)

"Admittedly, most boomer shooter fans are likely Gen-Xers and Millennials, but they’re still co-opting the term in a sarcastic but positive way that conveys the old-school nature of this niche genre."

TLDR: Ignorant statement by ignorant generation. Maybe they could do better with JAVA.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago

Java programming language not even based on dem beans WTFolio?