(Alex Rabe is the brilliant guy who created the NextGen Gallery plugin that I use for photos in WordPress. I came across this page on his site at random and thought it sounded kind of fun, so here’s my own compilation of video games that have had a big impact on me over the years…)
Mission Asteroid (some Apple IIe-clone, 1985)
I think this was the very first computer game that I ever played, albeit I probably didn’t actually understand it until years later when I actually figured out what I was supposed to be doing! But I remember writing down the correct instructions as I went – GET KEY, OPEN DOOR, etc… – and it really got my imagination working because you really had to fish for solutions because by no means were they just handed out to you.Donald Duck’s Playground (Amiga, 1986)
Probably a little more my speed, at least for my age, this was a great game not only for entertainment purposes, but also learning about money, matching and sorting, and also why it’s important to finish building the curly slide before letting your nephews actually play on it…Super Mario Bros (Nintendo, 1987)
Obviously, my very first console game and the one that got me hooked into a lifetime of Nintendo fandom – I won’t list all of the sequels here because they’d take up too much room, but let’s just say it’s safe to assume that they all pretty much made the list as well, between birthday cake and toys and dressing up as their characters for Halloween…The Legend of Zelda (Nintendo, 1988)
Quite possibly one of my favorite games of all-time, it’s one of the few that I can still play to this day almost entirely by memory…except for the second quest, mind you! The only other one from the series that even comes close to the original was Link to the Past for the SNES, but Link’s very first quest to find the triforce still holds a very special place in my heart.Defender of the Crown (Amiga, 1989)
I really got into this one because my Grandpa enjoyed playing it, so it started with me bringing my LEGOs over to his house and reenacting the catapult and sword-fighting scenes while he played and then eventually evolved into more of me actually playing myself. Always loved sword fighting, hated jousting.Rocket Ranger (Amiga, 1990)
An “adult game” that I picked up from my Dad, this one was cool because The Rocketeer was kind of a big deal at the time, and of course, rocket packs are just cool in general! We never could actually find all of the rocket parts in time to get up to the moon, however after watching the actual game play on YouTube years after the fact, it’s probably better off that we didn’t…The Simpsons Arcade Game (local arcade, 1991)
I honestly didn’t really go to the “arcade” in our small town much, but when I did I have fond memories of playing this game and have forever since sought a version that I can actually play today! The game for the iPhone is pretty close, but I’d still love to pick up one of the actual arcade machines some day once I’ve got a house that boasts its own arcade!Final Fantasy 2 (Super Nintendo, 1992)
Ok, sorry Zelda, but I suppose technically this is my favorite game of all-time – so complex and long, with rich characters and an incredible story – one of my friends and I logged countless hours after our scout meetings and on the weekends trying to figure this game out! Still to this day I get a kick out of going back to replay the battle between good and evil, and always find myself feeling awesome after watching Cecil become a paladin!King’s Quest 7 (PC, 1994)
LOL – the first Christmas gift I got that I couldn’t actually play because our computer didn’t have enough RAM! This was actually my first exposure to the Sierra empire and even though I couldn’t even get past the first level without a cheat guide (much more difficult to come by in 1994, by the way…), I loved the presentation that Roberta Williams & Co put into this – the storyline, the animation, even the soundtrack … it made me feel like I was playing a cartoon, which was a definite first for a video game.Space Quest 6 (PC, 1995)
I’ve since read that creator Scott Murphy actually hates this game because it was kind of crapped out during some of the company’s later struggles, but I thought it was hilarious and could explore for hours just to hear what the cool announcer guy had to say about each one. This was another game that I couldn’t beat without a cheat guide … in retrospect I guess most of Sierra’s games were like that for me, really!Leisure Suit Larry (the whole series) (PC, 1995-1997)
What can I say? Puberty … for a computer geek, these games were really required reading as I depended on Larry Laffer to teach me everything that he knew about sex. Oops. Well, at least they were pretty darned funny, too…Avatar MUD (online, 1996-1998)
My one and only foray into online gaming was spent exploring the text-based MUDs that predated World of Warcraft and Ultima Online. I had a lot of fun, although they did get frustrating near the end because the one that I frequented pretty much required you to participate in a group in order to level, whereas I preferred to play solo. The game did serve to teach me one lesson, however – that I pretty much needed to steer clear of WoW because I got really addicted to this game, keeping the phone line tied up for hours on end, getting up at 5am to participate in special events, etc… Honestly, I’m sure I’d actually love WoW, but it would dominate my life and as a married man trying to build a career, it could only end badly!Grand Theft Auto 3 (Playstation 2, 2003)
A pizza, a bag of chips, a case of Dr. Pepper, and GTA3 … that was my ideal Friday night as a 22 year-old guy still living in his Mom’s basement! This was such a cool game, though – the world just seemed to keep going on forever, there were tons of things to do, and even the radio stations were hilarious … I actually remember pulling over in the rain just to stop and listen to the talk radio station, as voiced by the hilarious Lazlow.Warcraft 3 (PC, 2004)
I honestly didn’t play the third Warcraft game for a couple of years after it came out until one night after work when I was particularly bored and single. I ended up playing for about 10 hours straight, to the point where I was about ready to drive out and buy the sequel except that I wasn’t sure if I could find it at that hour. I really loved this Warcraft experience, though, because it combined the hero and builder roles into a single game, which appealed to me.Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King (Playstation 2, 2010)
Probably my most recent “favorite,” I got into playing this last year and it lasted me a good couple of months of playing a few hours here and there when Sara was working on the weekends. Very reminiscent of the RPGs of yesteryear that I enjoyed – my only complaint was that once you had your four party members, they never actually changed again. I was still kind of disappointed when it was over, though – not of the ending itself, which was decent – like any good game, I was just really invested at that point and didn’t want it to end.
So wow – this post ended up being a lot longer than I had anticipated, but I still think it’s interesting to look back through time at the games that influenced me the most. Also, I think it’s kind of curious to see how my recent games have been few and far between – probably due to a combination lack of time to play in general and lack of exposure to new games. Plus, as you can see I tend to be pretty nostalgic, so it would kind of make sense that these days I’d more look for new games that mimic the things I enjoyed growing up … many of which simply aren’t being made anymore these days.
I wonder what will get added to my list in the next 10 years??? Mini-games on the iPhone like Plants vs. Zombies and Cut the Rope? Something like WiiFit, for actually saving my life by helping me to lose weight?? Maybe just more nostalgic games as I continue to pull out older titles that have long since came and went, but just never made it onto my screen up until now???
Despite the lack of somewhat newer titles, I think I’ve had a pretty decent run so far!