The Game that made you a Gamer

Back in the mid to early 90’s, my amazing Aunt Lucille and Uncle Mike spoiled me rotten by purchasing the state of the art (and totally superior to Super Nintendo) Sega Genesis. My eyes widen in wonder as I first saw the likes of Sonic & Knuckles flash across the screen collecting rings and smashing bad guys. Even at that young age, I was familiar with the likes of Pong, Pac-man and Tetris but this was the first time a game had depth and story and characters who had a mission or personality. At least that’s how I viewed it. I feel like, for the most part, people understand the difference between games with “soul” instead of arcade-type time killers. Back then was Pac-man or Tetris. Today we have candy crush or temple run or who knows whatever mobile game is currently dominating the app store. (Apparently Roblox and Minecraft are the current kings of the market according to my phone) Before I veer way off course and go on a tangent about mobile games, let me get back to my point about the Sega Genesis and Sonic & Knuckles. This small introduction set the framework for a massive shift in my life for decades and decades to come.

Now do I believe that regardless of that event happening, would I have been pushed down the path of a lifelong gamer? There’s no doubt in my mind. Subtract the Sega Genesis from my youth and I still got my paws on the likes of the Gameboy and my dad introduced me to the earlier days of PC gaming. (Duke Nukem 3D is still one of my core memories of my childhood. ESRB rating be damned!) Also visiting my friends who had the likes of Super Nintendo and the original Playstation are some other crazy memories of mine. (Dino Crisis, Ape Escape and for those of you who previously read about my rich history with Resident Evil) However, playing Sonic & Knuckles for that first time really engrained something within me and I obviously attribute that game towards my undying Sonic the Hedgehog fandom but really the point is this: It opened a world of possibility in entertainment that was previously unreachable by the means of reading a book or watching a movie or TV show. You had control over a character and could choose what direction to head or what decisions to make. For the first time in entertainment history, I could have a different experience each time I decided to play a video game. Sure, video games still typically ended with a “Game Over” screen or congratulating the player for beating the game back then, but I find it hard to believe that two completely different people had the exact same experience while playing the same game. Reading a book again or rewatching a movie doesn’t have a different path or outcome no matter how many times you read or watch. To me, this is still one of the greatest allures of gaming. The freedom of choice.

These days you have games like Skyrim, The Witcher 3 or Baldur’s Gate 3 that seem to have infinite possibilities or outcomes depending on each individual play style or choice. While for some this may be the ultimate way to game and immerse yourself, I sometimes prefer the simplicity of going to the next castle door in Super Mario 64 because I’m tired of losing to the penguin in that freaking slip n’ slide game. (Let’s be real. I didn’t lose to the penguin. I would go too fast and fall off the map. We all did it) Like I said before, that’s the beauty of gaming though. The choice. Something that really impacts me more today than it did before because there are so many options when it comes to video games. Back when I got my hands on the Genesis, I would be shocked if there were more than a few hundred games to pick from worldwide. Now you can choose millions of options between horror, RPG’s, sports games or whatever category your heart desires and what’s even more impressive to me is the fact that we have small independent studios (or even solo developers!) creating their own games to share with the world! We’ve come so far in such a short amount of time and honestly, I think we sometimes have to take a step back to appreciate where we currently are. In general, though, it brings me to my all-around wrap up point of this blog for you, the reader.

Perhaps you feel the same way I do about gaming or had a similar introduction to video games. Perhaps you wasted your time reading this all the way through and have never thought of video games as anything more than a fun way to kill time. Either or neither option is fine! I just want to convey that no matter what your feelings are towards video games, you must have had a turning point that greatly influenced you one way or another. For me, it was Sonic & Knuckles. Maybe for you it was Super Mario. Or Tomb Raider. Or Halo. Whatever your game or feelings, stop and think about how different your life is today because of that fateful chance when you first played that particular game. Talk about a wild ride, huh? (Hopefully not as wild as that Penguin slip n’ slide though)