All That I Remember

ExS� Gaming History

I was bored at work one day, so I decided to reminisce on important events in my life � events that changed my perspective, which caused me joy, which wasted many, many, many hours. I am, of course, talking about my foray into the video-gaming world.

The Early Days

My early days are a bit hazy when it comes to order�but crystal clear when it comes to detail. My gaming life has been split into two different platforms � PC gaming, and console gaming (until recently, but that�s just because I can�t afford a PS2 and a high-end PC�but we�ll get to that later.) I�ll start with my first console � the Sega Master System II.

Console Gaming � The 8-bit Days
Console: Sega Master System II
Favourite Game: Alex Kidd in Miracle World
Honourable Mention: Casino Games

I don�t know how old I was when I first got my Sega � I must have been about six or seven. From the first time I brought the box home (I bought it myself, with my Christmas money – $114, I believe. It was a lot of money for someone that young, I tell you), I was in love with my very first platform game. I used to sit for hours and play Alex Kidd� because it didn�t have a save feature, I once left it on all day so I could continue my game when I got home in the afternoon.

Alex Kidd was about the extent of games that I got for the system � I mentioned Casino Games, simply because it�s the only other game I can remember playing. It felt shady � like the underworld of casinos. I didn�t like it that much , but I enjoyed it more than my first ever RPG / Adventure Game � Alex Kidd in Hi-Tech World. It was the biggest disappointment of a sequel I ever played in my life, and I was too young to really enjoy RPGs. Even now, the story seems like it wasn�t worth the hours of boredom I sat through.

I think I got bored of my SMS after about two or three years � when it broke down (yay for Sega quality management!), I never bothered to get a replacement. There�s not much nostalgia there, so I don�t regret replacing it� I do regret not getting a NES and Final Fantasy, though.

PC Gaming � The Keen Days!
System: Cyrix 286 IBM-Compatible
Favourite Game: Jazz Jackrabbit
Honourable Mention: Commander Keen 4

Ah yes � the days when computers were slow, ran Windows 3.1, and had games that I played for hours. I had so many games on 5�� floppy disks � my local library sold Apogee Shareware games for $1 each � and they had hundreds of the things. Crystal Caves, Halloween Harry, Duke Nukem� some weird submarine game I forget the name of, but I broke my Joystick playing. My fondest memories, however, go to the green rabbit � sure, it was a direct rip off of Sonic (it even had the quasi-3D bonus levels), but Jazz Jackrabbit was FUN. And blasting enemies away instead of just jumping on them was satisfying. I was excited when I saw Jazz on the GBA, but the screenshots look different�the updated sprites take away some of Jazz�s charm. Definitely a blast.

And not forgetting the one, the only, Commander Keen. �Goodbye, Galaxy� was my first platform experience since Alex Kidd, and I was addicted. I actually bought my 286 just so I could play this game at home, instead of over at my friend�s place.

That�s enough nostalgia for one post�most of you guys probably won�t be interested, but hey, I�m bored, so :p

haha. Commander Keen was great.

I miss giant discs of shareware games.

JANE OF THE JUNGLE

My first game ever was a game called Zork for my old Dos 2.0 machine… o_O

This was before graphics in games kiddos… a fully text game… o_O

I played the Atari for years… missle command and Asteroids and Joust… fun fun fun… was just amazing to see little dots on the screen.

Then the NES came along and I had to get that… mario was sooooooo fun… played it forever… and Duck Hunt was just mind blowing… you could point a gun at the tv and actually shoot what was on the screen… wow…

*feels old*

By the way, I also loved Jazz Jackrabbit

was Zork the one with Megaboz or am I confused?

I want to find some of my old demo CDs. 🙁

I think your confused Sarah… although I don’t remember much about Zork.

no u.

"Zork Zero: THE REVENGE OF MEGABOZ"

Originally posted by Sarah
no u.

"Zork Zero: THE REVENGE OF MEGABOZ"

ok, guess i never played that one… the first one didn’t have anything called megaboz in it i don’t believe… it was mostly about you navigating your way through this old house in the woods and figuring out puzzles and stuff.

mine was Mario Bros and Duck Hunt as well.

Haha� I had a feeling that the majority of people here would be NES over SMS. Still, it�s good to see some people took the time out to read my ramble�it encourages me to continue ;). Oh, and I�ve played Zork I, II, III, ZERO�haven�t put a lot of playtime into them, but they�re fun. All abandonware, though � nothing when it first came out.

So, here we have it � the continuation of ExS� gaming history

The In-Between Years

This is when I really started to get into gaming as a scene, rather than just the pass time. I got my first Nintendo System � a Gameboy � and started playing PC CD-ROM games on my Uncle�s computer that would addict me to the series for the rest of my life.

Handheld Gaming � The Black and White Days
Console: Nintendo Game Boy (The old, full-size one � with a clear, see through case)
Favourite Game: Super Mario Land 2
Honourable Mention: Donkey Kong Land 2

The Christmas I brought my shiny Nintendo package home was one of the happiest of my life. I took it out of its wrapping, popped in my cart and started up� Kirby�s Dreamland. OK, it wasn�t the most exciting of starts, and I finished it the next day (no joke� if you�ve never played Kirby�s Dreamland, it�s the SHORTEST platform game in history). Luckily, my friend across the road had owned a Game Boy for a few months, and as such, could lend me a game. Super Mario Land.

This was my first proper platformer, and kept me entertained until my next purchase (not including F1 Race, which my dad bought � and played it more than I ever did), Super Mario Land 2. After playing with the blob of pixels for a while, SML2�s sprites seemed like the best graphics I had ever seen. After that, I had my Game Boy with me on every car trip, and in my bag when I went to school (until I got in trouble for it), and completing the game took me months.

I didn�t get Donkey Kong Land 2 until a bit later, when my GB was starting to get a bit old � the Game Boy Pocket was out, and I felt like I was carrying a brick. Nonetheless, DKL2 was a thoroughly enjoyable adaptation of DK for the handheld.

Console Gaming � The Dreaming Years
Console: None
Favourite Game: Super Mario World
Honourable Mention: Donkey Kong Country

Noticing a trend? I guess this was my platform addiction stage. My next-door neighbour who had the Game Boy was also one of the first lucky people to own a Super Nintendo. I spent many hours playing two player platforming goodness� but I never owned a system of my own. The reason? I bought a new PC, but first I�ll explain what led to that�

PC Gaming � The Relatives
System: Pentium 100
Favourite Game: Civilization II
Honourable Mention: Command & Conquer

The same year, my Uncle in Sydney also got the first �next-gen� computer � and with it, a CD-ROM drive. I can�t remember my early memories of Civ II� just addiction. And addiction. Hell, it�s like your first time on any Civ game� you can�t turn it off. I don�t think I went outside the whole time I was at my Uncle�s place. I was sad when I went home�but that wasn�t going to last�

Stay tuned for my next memories!

Haha� I had a feeling that the majority of people here would be NES over SMS.

Apparently the NES didn’t pick up in Europe, and the master system beat it out there I believe. May be why you started with an SMS but us US folks all laughed at it.

Yes Rezo thats true, the NES never really picked up overhere in Europe.

But anyway I was quite a late starter in the world of gaming, I started with a Sega Mega Drive, and I thought that kicked some serious arse, Toe Jam And Earl was so damn awesome, and could be quite a challenge, and it took quite a while to complete with it’s 50 levels. I so loved that game.

Greetings.

The first gaming console I ever had, was the NES, and the first three games were, Super Mario Bros/Duckhunt on the same cart and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. God, I loved this game.

But the first computer game I ever really played, would’ve had to of been Asteroid on the old table top arcade game consoles. Worth a small fortune if you can get your hands on one.

I too had an NES. Super Mario Bros was great…..there was another one we played, some army type game…that I cant recall the name of. Unfortunately, it burned up when my grandmas house caught fire(it was hers). Then came the SNES (surprisingly, I still have one, its sitting on my card table/desk, while the PS2 is on the floor. :P)

Yeah, we all thought the NES was a bit shit over here… SMS was cool. ;D

And I remember TJ&Earl. But the sequel was better. ;P

OMG! I feel like a kid among all the big gamers here! I only started playing computer games in 1995! And those were bundled games on the old 486 comp. Arrrrgggghhhhh! I feel like a kid all over again!