Patient Gamers

Ya'all too young. LOL.

The game that holds a special place in my heart was Destiny of an Emperor. It was a little-known RPG that came out in the late 80's. It's not entirely obvious from the name, but it was my first introduction to the Romance of Three Kingdoms. I was a little spoiled brat of a kid. Over the years, I racked up about 50 NES games (sure, most were flea market finds, but that didn't make me feel less badass nerdy)... But the one I kept going back to again and again was Destiny. It's what immersed me in story-first RPGs when (oddly) Final Fantasy and Dragon Warrior 1-3 didn't scratch that itch.

If you're willing to try an NES RPG, and you haven't, definitely check out Destiny of an Emperor.

It's hard to really pinpoint just one game...but I would argue Skyrim is my nearest and dearest. 10k hours of playtime since release, haven't played for nearly 2 years but I still keep tabs on mods in the event I go back (I will).

I was maybe 12 when I first played Skyrim, roughly a year after it was released and I was enthralled by it. By that age the most "expansive" game I'd played was maybe Minecraft (Beta 1.7.3). I think it might've been my first open world game?

Either way, the music, the questing, the exploration and detail in the worlds always held my ADHD brain's attention well. I saw the flaws, sure. However I thoroughly enjoyed that janky buggy game more than any other thing out there for a long long while.

Right behind Skyrim would have to be Dishonored. It's actually one of the only two games I've gotten a physical PC copy for. But the lore, story, and vibes of the game were genuinely so cool to me. I replayed that and the games sequels several times now.

Minecraft holds a close place in my heart too, I generally come back to it once a year for a nice, lightly modded hardcore playthrough. It especially helps me with creativity, since I get to build something without it feeling like work.

But yeah, Skyrim will always hold a place in my heart, and to a level it even influenced parts of my younger personality.

Wing Commander: Privateer. I dunno, there's something special about a sandbox-trading-combat game where the story must be stumbled upon.

I'm old and have enjoyed many, many games over the years. However, the one that hit me hardest in the feels was The Witcher 3. The ending where Geralt realizes that he has to let Ciri make her own decisions, scary as they are... wow, it was so well done. It's one of the best examples of how a game can become art on the same level as cinema and literature.

Edit: I want to add another. The first game that made me feel actual dread was the original Quake, especially when played in a dark room. The soundscape was incredibly immersive. I remember literally moving my own head to try to peer around corners.

Some Sega Genesis games when i was a kid, Streets of Rage, Sailormoon, and Sonic the Hedgehog 2 which i have never finished IDK maybe its the game that's a bit too hard or maybe I'm just too dumb.

Fast Forward to 2009, i played a game called The Mana World. It's my first and only experience with online game. I made some good friends on and from the game, i think the overall community is very nice and helpful. I got hooked leveling up and reached to level 93 in few months. Unfortunately i have to cut the game because i need to focus on my study. Still its my greatest memories with gaming!

Persona 4 Golden!!!

Tank 1990.

I think it's a bootleg version of a Japanese game and came on a 200 games-in-one NES cartridge. I have good memories with my father before our relationship went to shit.

Close Combat: A Bridge to Far. It's a real time strategy game with a larger regional map where you control simple supply lines and troop movement between battlefields. My two brothers and I would sit and watch each other play for hours because we just had the one computer back in the late 90's/early 2000's. We made a stupid rule that you had to be present to get your turn so we would often wait nearby for several hours for our chance at glory/survival.

The Night of the Rabbit by Daedalic was the only video game that made me cry. I never felt like that because of a game ever since.

The Spyro Trilogy. All 3 games are brilliant and technological standouts for the era and has held up very well over the years.

But if we are going weird. Harry Potter 1 + 2 for GBC or PlayStation. They aren't good games, they are watered down clones of Pokemon and 3d Zelda respectively. But the theming and genera is such a perfect fit that I love them to this day. Plus the Jeremy Soule soundtrack is fantastic.

Sonic the Hedgehog and Alex Kidd in Miracle World

Super Metroid

Fallout 1 and 2

FF7

Time Crisis

Soul Blade

Quake

Tomb Raider

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elite_(video_game)

Cybernator on SNES - I never even beat the second boss but the game always looked so cool. I should see if I can beat the second boss now...

Zork

The original Starcraft.

First game I ever bought with my own money. It's a bargain bin edition I still own to this day, with a bug that prevents one level to be loaded and crashes the game.

Had to discover the cheat codes in a time where the internet was still dial up and not affordable for the average commoner.

Managed to finish the game nonetheless. Made such a great impression in me that cimented my passion for space science fiction.

Still not going to buy Starfield any time soon.

Games that I want my kids to play as soon as they are old enough:

Secret of Mana Ocarina of Time Diablo 2 Minecraft

Ocarina Time and Kingdom Hearts 2 were really big games that affected me

Mech Warrior on PC. The first one. Recruit wingmen, salvage mechs, negotiate with those cheap kurita bastards, regain your family's honor.

16 colors of line-rendered mecha in glorious 386 powered 3d.