Kent Jarrell's List: AtaNinSega

• "We all grew up with [the original Nintendo] and Genesis and all the old systems," says Justin Cyr, one of the game's 2-D animators. "There's a certain nostalgia to these retro-looking games. Sometimes simpler is better."
• "During the '90s, there was a push for 3-D. What people forget is that 2-D wasn't broken," says Scott Steinberg, founder of GameExec magazine. "Now there's definitely been a movement to bring 8-bit-style games back into prominence."

• "All of these games are still great games even if their graphic content leaves something to be desired."
• "While it's not likely that every old game will be available for download, we're working to make sure that fans get as many of their favorites as possible," Nintendo's Perrin Kaplan says. "Great characters never get old."
• According to the Entertainment Software Association, the average game player is 30 years old (43% of gamers are female) and has been mastering his or her craft for about 10 years.
• Many classic games also have been exposed to new audiences in recent years through cellphones and the Internet.
• Whether via phone, PC or game system, consumers feel a strong nostalgia for the characters and games that built the industry. "Those older games just satisfy a different urge," says Adam Sessler, co-host of X-Play on cable network G4. "They don't require the same devotion of time (as new games)."

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• Emulators continue to exist in a grey area, as they are programs developed by individuals to play illegal ROMs but do so without infringing on the original technology of the gaming console the title was intended for.