My history with video games

I was 5 years old when I first became aware of video games. I didn't know anything about them, I just knew that anyone who had them was almost instantly the coolest person on the block. I remember there was one person in my neighborhood who had one back then. I'd go over there and watch him and his sister run this funny looking guy through a bunch of levels, trying to avoid turtles and funny looking mushrooms with eyes.

This was back in 1986. Unbeknownst to me, the Nintendo Entertainment System was out and those kids who were able to convince their parents to buy one were having the time of their lives with it. The game was of course Super Mario Bros, a game that virtually saved the video game industry after Atari nuked it into near-oblivion.

It became a regular occurrence to head over to this kid's house to watch them play (this might be the point that helped spark my interest in watching people play games), and if I was real lucky, I'd get a chance to play it. But more often than not, I'd just sit and watch and marvel at what I was seeing.

I don't remember if it was that year or the following one, but I eventually received one for my birthday (or Christmas; my memory is REAL foggy on what the occasion was). Back then to help promote console sales, each NES came with a game, typically Super Mario Bros either with or without Duck Hunt, and some game with the Zapper gun (mine did). I remember after it was hooked up, we all sat down and took turns dying at the hands of a Goomba, Koopa, or in my case, the darn Spiny-thing that Lakitu would throw down (world 4 was ALWAYS my downfall). 

Shortly after we got the NES, my mom went and bought The Legend of Zelda, thus starting what became my biggest love affair with gaming. The Zelda series, more than any other series, has withstood the test of time for me. Each console game has been met with excitement over the prospect of what secrets I would be able to discover this time, and very rarely has the game let me down.

The next monumental moment for me was when Super Mario Bros 3 was coming out. I had enjoyed the hell out of the first two games (yes, I know Mario 2 wasn't the true second Mario game, but it was still damn fun) and I had played the first two Zelda games to death, but the news of Mario 3 was the first time a video game became huge news to me. I was aware of how popular games were and knew this was being marketed differently than previous games.

Of course, you have to mention the horrific "The Wizard" movie tie-in, but back when that game came out? I didn't know any better. I sat through and watched the movie and when footage of Mario 3 appeared, I was about as excited as the next person.

I remember my mom taking me to Toys 'R Us shortly after Mario 3 had come out and I remember having it in my hands as we walked out of the store, but the rest is a blur. The game was incredible though, and I played it almost every day for several months. I never did manage to beat it (a common theme for me aside from the first Zelda), but I came close several times. 

When I was a kid, my mom used to take care of a guy named Tom. He was a quadriplegic, but he loved computer games. His daughter owned a Super Nintendo, which was the next thing that caught my eye. I had heard of it and had a friend who owned one with Super Mario World, but I didn't really become fascinated with it until I learned a new Zelda game was out on it.

A Link to the Past is still probably my favorite Zelda game. At the time, it was challenging, but incredibly easy to play. The dungeons were complex, the enemies challenging, and the bosses were simply menacing. The notion of a light world and dark world was incredibly to me, and I took every chance I had to play the game when I'd be there with my mom.

We eventually bought our own SNES, I somehow ended up with a copy of Super Mario World, and spent dozens of hours a week at my friend Kevin's house playing all kinds of SNES games he had. I particularly remember Contra III: The Alien Wars as we spent hours on that game before finally beating it. There was also some Avengers game too, but I have vague memories of that.

Then we had our own Link to the Past copy. It was the last Zelda game my mom could play well (she struggles with the newer, 3D ones), but most of the time I was playing it as I was determined to beat the game. It was a sigh of relief when I finally did, and I ultimately moved on to other games for the SNES after it, but not before discovering some more games that I'd spend time with. Of course, Super Mario Kart can't be forgotten as I spent hours mastering that game.

My favorite thing to do in that game was to play with my sister, let her take first, and just hang back with the rest of the AI karts and take pot shots at them with green and red shells. I spent so much time with that that I actually became fairly good at aiming the green shells, a tactic that came in handy in future versions where the AI was more competent.

Finally, there's Earthbound, the rare RPG that I could get into for long stretches. It had a whacky, yet emotional story, fun characters, interesting weapons, and some unforgiving stretches that really would test your patience. That game took years for me to finally beat, but the sense of accomplishment was tremendous.

I'm obviously skipping a lot of the games I played for the NES and SNES, mostly because if I reminisced about every game, I'd still be talking about the early days of the NES. There were just so many fun games, too many to really sit and get in depth over all of them. TMNT, Kirby, and Bubble Bobble just to name a few. SNES gets even more in depth as I enjoyed Mario World 2, Super Mario RPG, and so many more.

I can't forget the Sega Genesis though. I came across this system thanks to my friend James and many hours were spent on Sonic the Hedgehog, Road Rage, but most importantly, Toejam & Earl, which is another one of those games I still enjoy to this day (the joy of finding it on XBox Live can't be understated at this point).

I later introduced my mom to Toejam & Earl, and many nights were lost to us trying to make it through all the levels. We failed many times, but we also succeeded once or twice, which was fairly rewarding. I'll never forget all the times my mom opened up either the Randomizer present or the Total Bummer! present when I just walked into the same section of the map she was on.

As I got older, my devotion to games started to change. Instead of constantly trying out the latest games, I stuck with the core game series that I had come to love. Primarily, I stuck with the Zelda and Mario Kart series on the Nintendo 64 through my high school days, occasionally dabbling in some Playstation titles like Driver and Driver 2.

When the Gamecube came out, it was once again Zelda games, Mario Sunshine, and Mario Kart: Double Dash. I enjoyed the hell out of the Ratchet and Clank series on the Playstation 2, but also found time to burn rubber in the Burnout series.

I think the next series that really grabbed a hold of me though was the Halo series. It was the reason I bought an Xbox. It was the reason I bought an Xbox 360. It will be the reason I eventually get an Xbox One. Sure, I've messed around with some other games, but my Xbox experience has primarily been to play all the Halo games, plus the occasional retro game that made appearances on the system.

That said, in 2012 I turned my attention to the PC side of games. Minecraft was the biggest game around and was part of the rise of content creation on YouTube (and eventually livestreaming services). I was drawn to it because of how much freedom it gave you to determine what you were going to do. It changed how I looked at gaming overall and was the sole game I played for probably 2 years.

Of course, you can only play a game so much before burning out, and luckily I have a laptop that can handle most games, so I have branched out some. I've played my share of interesting titles over the last year or so, from DayZ (ugh) to Ori and the Blind Forest (GOTY). While my gaming levels have dropped dramatically since Kylie has come around, I still have an interest in them and enjoy watching other people play them when I get the chance.

Where does that leave me going into 2016? Well, I do hope to get a little more time play more games as there are a lot of them I'd like to play. Rocket League, Halo 5, Star Wars: Battlefront, CS:GO, Don't Starve, Super Mario Maker, and a few others. Will I have that time? It depends on a number of factors, but at least once summer is here and I've moved, I might have an evening or two available for gaming (and/or recording/streaming as well).

I don't have the same dedication to games that some people have though. I don't spend 6 hours a day every day playing them. I'm not an expert at any game. But I still enjoy them and have grown up with them.

Before I go, I do want to mention that my Game of the Year is indeed Ori and the Blind Forest (available on Steam and Xbox One). It's the first game since Minecraft (and Halo 4) that completely and absolutely sucked me in. I was determined to finish that game and I did (all recorded too; just have to finish uploading the footage).

The game is beautiful in style and sound and plays exceptionally well. I'd recommend it to anyone who enjoys a good, yet challenging platforming game.

That's all for this post though. I'm hoping to have something up for the New Year talking about this past year and what I want to accomplish next year. I want 2016 to wash away the stench of 2015, which was a pretty turbulent year.

Until then, thanks for reading.