Games of my Life

What can I say about this game? A space invaders kind of clone, for me, this was far and away my favorite over the two. As one does not beat Atari games, I cannot ever claim to have beaten it, but I remember well spending many summers and nights enthralled by the ever increasing difficulty of each level, enough so that I still remember a gathering of friends one summer in which I seemingly could not die, at least not for the first several levels. I can vividly recall dodging dozens of enemy ships and shots that day. Such a beautiful memory.

Manufacturer: Atari 2600
Platform: Atari 2600
Release Year: 1983

Of all the other Atari games I have played over the years, this one stands out as the game for competitive play for my friends and I. We often played some others, such as Jedi Arena, but this one often involved tournaments and late hours with pizza and sodas. The game is a brilliant four-player battle royal,and provided a central place in my early gaming years.

Manufacturer: Atari 2600
Platform: Atari 2600
Release Year: 1981

I played many, many sports games over the early years, but enjoyed very few baseball games. This is the sole exception, and as such, I have yet to find its equal for me. While many may want realism and to play as current MLB players, I want to create my own team, and see them progress as players. My brother and I had many summers competing on this game throughout many seasons. Even with it's minor faults, it is a brilliant game and one I still play to this day.

Manufacturer: SNK
Platform: NES
Release Year: 1989

Very few early RPG series captivated me like this game. It doesn't hurt that this game series has lived on and continued to provide many, many years of enjoyment, culminating for me with Dragon Quest VIII. The openness of the world and the discoveries of new items and locations kept me returning over and over, and I truly love this style of battle system, a system that grew as the series has expanded to include multiple characters in your party.

Manufacturer: Nintendo
Platform: NES
Release Year: 1986

I don't really need to talk about how amazing this game is, do I? I have loved this series ever since, and while my favorite of the series was A Link to the Past, this one is a very close second for me. Of course, that is saying that I missed many of the future Zelda games, beginning with N64, with the exception of Gameboy versions. This has largely to do with migrating to PC gaming for such a long time and not owning those systems until much later. They are all on my list of games to play, though. And this game started it all for me. I was not the master of this game as my brother is, with him reaching Ganon without a sword, but that does little to change the place this game holds for me, both then and still to this day.

Manufacturer: Nintendo
Platform: NES
Release Year: 1986

A truly classic series, but one that, for me, faded after Super Metroid on SuperNES. That may have been due to PC gaming or to the change to first person shooters that the series seems to have taken, but whatever the case, this game also became a central part of my early years, in part because of how vast and amazingly fun this side scroll is. The quest for the screw attack was by far one of the most memorable for me. Once you had that, the game became relatively easy, at least for a long while.

Manufacturer: Nintendo
Platform: NES
Release Year: 1987

Very few early games inspired character creation outside of the game itself, but for me, this one did. My next door neighbor and best friend growing up, Dave, and I played this game often, and one of the wrestlers, Starman, gave rise to one of my personas in the imaginary characters we created during our play. Yes, we created vast worlds of characters and evil to fight, probably an early sign I would become an RPGer and more recently a DM for D&D. You would think a title like Zelda or Dragon Warrior would inspire this for me, but one can never tell where inspiration will strike :)

Manufacturer: Nintendo
Platform: NES
Release Year: 1986

I won't say this is a game I return to now, at least not very often, and that isn't taking anything from it as a game. It is a great game, but more than that, this game truly changed the reality of gaming for me. I went from early Atari to a truly different kind of game, and one that could actually be beaten. There is so much to explore, so many hidden secrets, this game became an early obsession. I can still remember very early sessions playing this game at our cabin by the river. In fact, that is the very first memory I have of this game and gaming system. Such fond memories!

Manufacturer: Nintendo
Platform: NES
Release Year: 1985

One of my all-time favorite movies turned video game? How could I not love this game. My friend Scott and I played this all the time after the release of the movie, and I have to admit to many frustrating times when the continue code didn't work for us. Despite that, we never gave up...that is, until we reached nearly the end when the code didn't work a final time. I haven't returned to this game since, but that doesn't mean it's not on my list of games to return to some day. I still have a score to settle.

Manufacturer: Capcom
Platform: NES
Release Year: 1989

Of all the Wizardry games on PC, I never played them until I had played this one on NES. Why, you might ask? I have no idea. To be honest, while not being flashy or immersive in the way a Elder Scrolls game is today, this one captivated me in so many ways, and introduced me to the concepts of D&D long before I learned about tabletop RPGs. The dungeon mapping, the character advancement, the sense of adventure created by going ever deeper into the labyrinth, to me, this game is a true gem amongst NES games...not that there aren't many of those from this time period :)

Manufacturer: Nexoft
Platform: NES
Release Year: 1990

Of all the Game Boy games I played, few occupied as much time for me as this one did, or as much frustration. I never did beat this one, and still long to return to finish the task. I lack the original Game Boy now, so if I return, I fear it will be with a ROM version. I have seen a fun USB NES controller, so perhaps the original feel can still be captured. I just hope it is as fun as I remember it was when I was little.

Manufacturer: Nintendo
Platform: Gameboy
Release Year: 1992

This one is included, not merely because of the game time it garnered, but because it is the only original Game Boy game I conquered. I often lacked time to complete games back then, being pulled around to so many other activities, so finishing a game on the portable was an accomplishment, at least for me at that age. When I finally had more time to portables, these old Game Boy games were long forgotten.

Manufacturer: Nintendo
Platform: Gameboy
Release Year: 1989

Ahh, the first Civilization game. So many fond memories of, "just one more turn" with this one. I remember well the first summer I had this game, and inserting the 5 1/4 floppies into the PC, and just being mesmerized by the game. Going back to it, I found the graphics more than a bit dated, but the game is still just as fun today as it was back then. Of course, I often turn to Civ IV instead today, but once in a while, it is good to relive the old days.

Manufacturer: MicroProse
Platform: PC
Release Year: 1991

I remember first opening this game to find it required 10 3 1/2 disks to install. What?! How insane! But the game, a true masterpiece, and one that is well worth returning to, or discovering if you haven't yet. This game was way ahead of its time, in terms of open world gameplay. There was so much you could do, and every action influenced how various factions viewed you, from the nobles, common people, church, everyone. What an amazing game. I recall fondly my sojourn into the mines to seek out a holy relic, Saint Huberts bow, and being foiled by fire demons and kobolds, or doors with riddle locks. Or searching a site for what seemed forever for a dragon's lair. Did I mention how awesome this game is yet?

Manufacturer: MicroProse
Platform: PC
Release Year: 1992

What a truly novel game for its time, and what a gem from LucasArts. A game that is entirely played on a staff by playing musical notes. I never did beat it on the hardest setting, but the story kept me returning. I can't say it was one my friends and I played together, them mostly not sharing my love of it, but I for one spent many, many evenings on this one, long after I knew the story and how to beat it.

Manufacturer: LucasArts
Platform: PC
Release Year: 1990

This was the first Might and Magic game I ever played, and I was immediately in love with this series. Not all of them kept me playing as this one did, but it is truly a great party game. And it is far more unforgiving than future games in the series. Well do I recall venturing into an area I was not intended to be in, and being slaughtered with no hope of escape. And of course, I can never forget my first encounter with the Clerics of Moo :)

Manufacturer: New World Computer, Inc.
Platform: PC
Release Year: 1991

Classic and hilarious, this game is still my all time favorite adventure game, and I have played quite a few. The story is so wacky and bizarre, I almost felt like I would fit in perfectly into this world. Yes, that is exactly what my ten year old self thought back then. Even today, I find myself wondering...

Manufacturer: LucasFilm Games
Platform: PC
Release Year: 1990

To be a pirate..what's not to love? In fact, I am not really a huge pirate fan myself, apart from a few old movies, but all the same, this game rocked. As frustrating as it could be to attack a town only to find yourself outgunned and outmanned, this game had all the elements of adventure I looked for in a pirate game: buried treasure, governors daughters, and becoming infamous with a huge fleet of ships. One of the last games I played on 5 1/4 disks as well, I might add.

Manufacturer: MicroProse
Platform: PC
Release Year: 1987

I can't say I've played many of these types of games, but this one had me at day one. As frustrating as it could get in some of the ships you flew, it was highly addictive for me, a flight simulator that keep me working to complete mission after mission, often against horrible odds and often with a wingman that was useless at best or a real pain in the arse at worst, lol. Truly a gem for flight simulators during this time period.

Manufacturer: Origin Systems, Inc.
Platform: PC
Release Year: 1990

Perhaps not my all-time favorite first person shooter, but certainly the first one I ever played. I had many long sessions on this game, though one comes to mind most: playing at 2 a.m. and being interrupted by a group of girls in need of supplies for TPing and egging activities :) Of course I helped them out, right have my angry brother at having been woken up left the room, lol. :)

Manufacturer: id/GT Software
Platform: PC
Release Year: 1992

What a great game, and probably the only Final Fantasy game I have beaten, though in all honesty, it is the only one I have played very much of. Because of my migration to PCs after these years, I didn't return to Playstation and the Final Fantasy series until much, much later, and by then, I never really spent much time on them. That isn't a knock on the series, which is a great one. I just have never played them much. This one I still have and while I haven't returned to it in many, many years, I may return once again in the near future.

Manufacturer: Squaresoft
Platform: SuperNES
Release Year: 1992

One of my all-time favorite racing games, my friends and I long enjoyed matches on this game, and while I haven't played further in the series, I have been told the N64 version perfected this series. The mix of drivers and cars in this one made each track a new experience, and kept us returning often to this classic.

Manufacturer: Nintendo
Platform: SuperNES
Release Year: 1991

Once again, I have not played many of the future Zelda titles, due to changing to PC games (excluding those I played on the Gameboy system). With that being said, this is probably my favorite in the series, of those I have played. Absolutely love this game, and spent many, many hours playing this one, exploring to discover all the hidden secrets and unlock all the hearts and such. What a great game, probably one of the best games on the Super NES.

Manufacturer: Nintendo
Platform: SuperNES
Release Year: 1992

As amazing as the original Mario was for my life, this was equally amazing for me. I spent many months with friends exploring this game, unlocking each and every secret world and pathway in it, just so I could say I had done everything. And I had. I wonder if that's why I have never really returned to this game much? Whatever the case, as an intro to a new system, this game definitely has it.

Manufacturer: Nintendo
Platform: SuperNES
Release Year: 1991

I was never very good at these games. In fact, I'm fairly horrendous at the Mario Kart series in general. The only one I was even decent on was this one, but even then, I wasn't very competitive with my friends. But of all the games, this one holds some of the best memories of competition between friends, including some laughs and some cursing as one or another player wiped out another.

Manufacturer: Nintendo
Platform: SuperNES
Release Year: 1992

To me, this was my all time favorite Metroid. I have played a number of them, and have to say, the only one that comes close for me is the original. But as good as the original is, this one takes all those same features and just takes them to the Nth degree. Sheer perfection for the series in my mind, and one that kept me coming back often as a kid. I even returned to it last year and found it has lost none of its charm.

Manufacturer: Nintendo
Platform: SuperNES
Release Year: 1994

I have tried a number of the Ninja Turtle games over the years. Some have been ridiculously hard; others just weird. This one seems to have fallen into a happy place for my friends and I. A perfect mix of challenge and butt kicking, it was also a great cooperative game that kept my friends and I just irritated enough to come back for more. We did eventually beat it, not saying it was an impossible game, but definitely it kept center stage for a good while amongst my friends and I.

Manufacturer: Majesco Sales, Inc.
Platform: SuperNES
Release Year: 1992

Can you memories patterns? If you can, can you navigate using a combination of button smashing and precision flying with a control pad to follow that same pattern? This was the test given in this game, and I don't think many of my friends ever mastered it. In fact, the memory of many, many cussing sessions by some of my friends remain vivid for me. I was the only one to have beaten it amongst my friends, who to this day still cuss it whenever it is brought up.

Manufacturer: Capcom
Platform: SuperNES
Release Year: 1991

One of the most expansive first person RPGs I had played up to this point, I never actually beat this game. It wasn't for a lack of playing it, but for a lack of pursuing the main goals. With so much to do and so many provinces, I found myself always traveling to a new province to pursue new side goals and quests, and often forgetting where to even go for the main quests. This has since been taken to new heights with the maturation of this genre, but this one is still a gem for me.

Manufacturer: Bethseda Softworks
Platform: PC
Release Year: 1996

The first time I played this game was a demo copy I downloaded in the high school computer lab. And kept hidden in the recycling bin to avoid it being deleted and ruining my progress :D Needless to say, it was a captivating game that I did eventually obtain the full copy of. I never did quite beat it, usually getting stuck around the fourth level of hell. I would always die surrounded by demons and be unable to retrieve my body and gear, without which, I had no chance of continuing further. I still have it on my list of places to return, to extract revenge.

Manufacturer: Blizzard
Platform: PC
Release Year: 1996

The first game of this series that I played, my friends and I played so many hours of cooperative play on this, I don't even know where to begin. Up until the company went bankrupt and Ubisoft ruined the series, this was far and away one of my all time favorites. Many seasons were spent in campaigns together, modifying maps and creating our own to play. Truly a masterpiece, and yes, I even loved the controversial fourth installment of this series, a classic far superior to the new Heroes V that Ubisoft created who seemed to only care about graphics, to the detriment of the actual gameplay and AI, or lack thereof. Obviously I am not at all sour about what happened to this series...

Manufacturer: New World Computing, Inc.
Platform: PC
Release Year: 1996

Loved this game, and spend many summer hours pursuing it to near completion. For some reason I cannot recall, I always got stuck in the White Tower with the ghosts. I long to return one day to this grand adventure to finish up the story and quest, and to fulfill a long sore spot in gaming for me. A close friend of mine growing up seemed to have beaten it, but never could I equal that feat. Some day, my friend, some day...

Manufacturer: Westwood Studios
Platform: PC
Release Year: 1993

The second in one of the best "one more turn" series I have ever played. This one took everything from the first game in the series and brought it to completion. For many, many years I returned to this game, playing mods and custom maps with year a new civilization or yet a new victory path to try. I have no gripes of this game, nor anything incomplete from it. I have accomplished everything I ever longed for in this one, which only gave way to play upon the release of Civilization IV.

Manufacturer: Microprose
Platform: PC
Release Year: 1996

Truly this game has often occupied my life. In fact, while I have found I need breaks from it, I still find myself returning to it to campaign against the darkness. Each character class is a new experience, though I have to admit to enjoying the Necromancer just a bit more than the others. Who doesn't enjoy commanding armies of undead and obliterating anything in your path, all while being untouched? My friends and I have tried multiplayer at times, but sadly, we could never make it work very well with the computers we had at the time. Perhaps some day we will try again.

Manufacturer: Blizzard
Platform: PC
Release Year: 2000

Following closely on the footsteps of Heroes II, this one simply replaced the role the other played for so long, filling our nights with many cooperative campaigns, and inspiring the recreation and creation of multiplayer maps. And it was yet a continuation of my love of the wizard castle, as seen from the previous game. Truly a masterpiece of game creation this series.

Manufacturer: New World Computer/3DO
Platform: PC
Release Year: 2000

This game created much controversy amongst the fan base when it was released. Many became "purist" and hated the change in focus for the game, which created a similar but very different style of gameplay. Others embraced the change and truly loved it, finding a refreshing changing in the more active heroes, even if they did at time unbalance the game. For myself and my friends? Well, I can only speak for myself, and I fall somewhat in the middle..well, sort of. My love for the series was undiminished, and I loved this newest edition of the game, but I did not scorn the older games either. I maintained my love of those as equally fun. So I am probably a traitor to both camps. Oh well. I will continue to love all games from this series, up until Heroes V. At that game, I draw the line.

Manufacturer: New World Computer/3DO
Platform: PC
Release Year: 2004

I first discovered this game in the room of my best friend's future husband. And from then on, I was hooked for a very long time. While this series popularity has generally waned since then, this game always kept me engaged trying to beat it via the various kingdoms. I was successful with all but one of the main campaign kingdoms: the horrid Aragonese. Sadly, for some reason I could not beat it with them. Perhaps some day I will return to aright this wrong.

Manufacturer: The Creative Assembly/Activision
Platform: PC
Release Year: 2002

This has got to be one of my all time favorite RPGs before the advent of the present open world phenomenon. I absolutely love this game, from the game play to the story line. This game has and I am sure will again occupy much of my time, as I never have quite finished it. Always life seemed to intrude for too long and I would find myself on another game before realizing I was so close, but had lost where I was or what I was about in the game.

Manufacturer: New World Computer/3DO
Platform: PC
Release Year: 1999

Very similar to the previous game, this took a little warming up to for me, with only one character I get to create, but before long, this one became as dear to me as VII. Perhaps it was having a dragon in my party that finally brought it up to the same status, but regardless, this one is a wonderful game that I also will return to, for much the same reasons as I will return to VII. I have yet to actually beat this darned game :)

Manufacturer: New World Computer/3DO
Platform: PC
Release Year: 2000

I would put this game up there with Might and Magic VII and VIII in my life, as I often return to this game. And much like those, I have never beaten this one either. While this one is a bit more scifi than the other two are, I adore it no less than those. And as I revisit these games for this list, I am reminded how easily I can be distracted from a game, only to find myself needing to restart the said game at a later day. Some day, however, I will finish this one, alongside the other two above.

Manufacturer: SirTech
Platform: PC
Release Year: 2001

Yes, I came to this game and series much, much later than its initial release date. In fact, I had an extreme prejudice against Pokemon and all things Pokemon in high school, in large part because I was so weary of everyone talking about them at the time. Yes, I grew to hate them. Years later, after all that hate had died down to small embers, this game came into my life by chance and snuffed out the embers of hate, and began to kindle a fire of love that has never since been extinguished.

Manufacturer: Nintendo
Platform: Gameboy Advance
Release Year: 2004

I cannot begin to express how much I love this game. For me, this was the fulfillment of the series in every aspect. The story was humorous and captivating, interesting and intriguing. The gameplay was as good as ever in the series, and this is one game that I could play for hours, and spend time traveling to locations merely to admire the location and view. Truly beautiful graphics that has aged very well and I love the animation style of this game in particular. There aren't many games I have played that I will play just to admire the view in, and this is one of those few. I have beaten this one, but still will return some day.

Manufacturer: Squaresoft Enix
Platform: Playstation 2
Release Year: 2005

I don't know if I will return to this game, but at the time I discovered it, it played a central role in my life. I was first given this game for my 28th birthday, but I had never really played it. During the fog that was my life when my father died later that November, this game gave me a place to escape for a short time to another world. I don't know that I have ever been so grateful for a game in my life as during that dark time, and for that reason alone, this game remains high on this list for me.

Manufacturer: Sierra
Platform: Playstation 2
Release Year: 2003

I could easily have included Lego Star Wars I here, but I found that game not quite so polished as the sequel was. And yet, both games inevitably introduced me to a wide range of wonderful Lego games, and thus, have played a large role in shaping my gaming since I first played these. This one was actually the first of the Star Wars Lego games that I played, seeking the first one in the series out after I had played through the first movie in this one. LEGO does seem to understand a good formula, if they don't always execute it perfectly in each game of their I have played.

Manufacturer: Lucas Arts
Platform: Playstation 2
Release Year: 2006

I am not really a big first person shooter player, but this series was great, especially so with this first game in the series. My close friend and I played through this every, unlocking every achievement and beating it on every difficulty, including Superhuman. And I still love it and want to return to it again. Yes, it is that much fun. I think perhaps I love it more so because of the awesome cooperative, split screen option it has, an option rare these days, with most focus being on online play.

Manufacturer: Insomniac
Platform: Playstation 3
Release Year: 2006

I won't say this one is as high up on my list as the first Resistance, but the split screen coop was unique and one that I played often with a close friend, taking on the role of sniper while he played a front line shock troop. That unique aspect proved interesting enough to keep me returning often with my friend, though I do not see myself returning to this game, since he moved to Texas. A fun game with others, but solo, this game is seriously lacking for me.

Manufacturer: Insomniac
Platform: Playstation 3
Release Year: 2008

I hadn't really been into PC gaming for some time when I discovered GOG.com, having returned to the Playstation and having rediscovered the DS and other portable systems. I wasn't really expecting much from this game, but I have to admit, it is a charming game that can best be played in small spurt. But with that being said, it does keep me returning after I had taken a break from it, if for nothing else than to unlock each of the ship types and to complete each of the achievements. And that is no easy task. At times, it almost reminds me of Space Cadets the board game, in that I could almost see my crew as hopeless cadets in a world that had suddenly because bizarre and unwinnable. Yes, that's how quickly one's fate can change in this game. And it's part of the charm.

Manufacturer: Subset Games
Platform: PC
Release year: 2012

While I can hardly recommend this game today, being a money sink for many people and so full of bugs it is ridiculous to consider it a working game (or at least so from my experience), nonetheless, this game is responsible for meeting a close friend of mine, and for that reason alone, it holds a unique place in my life. Many days I spent awaiting server events in this game while visiting with some of the nicest people around the world, none better than my close friend from the Czech Republic.

Manufacturer: GTArcade
Platform: PC
Release Year: 2013

While I did play some Civ III, I found it inherently flawed and at times a bit ridiculous (much like the spearmen defeating a stack of 20 armor units scenario common to the first game in the series). This rendition fixed all my gripes from that game and perfected the new innovations from it. The result is a true gem of a game that I play to this day. I have yet to try Civ V, in large part because of the abrupt change in style that I don't really care for. But this game? This will remain a staple of my gaming for many, many years.

Manufacturer: Firaxis Games
Platform: PC
Release Year: 2005

By the time I discovered this game, my love of anime was well established, and so, what better than to play a game whose style was designed by my favorite studio? The answer is, of course, nothing. I absolutely love this game. It has almost a pokemon feel at times with your familiar and catching them to train, and yet, it is RPG enough to maintain a much more complex and developed feel to the game. I love this game, and even if I, once again, became distracted by other games, I will return to this one, and I believe that will be very soon.

Manufacturer: Level 5/Namco Bandai
Platform: Playstation 3
Release Year: 2013