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[malingenie]

Playing Quake to a NiN soundtrack. glorious nights as a young 'un.

First time I ran in circles in SMB64.... and then I saw Waverace and my eyes came.

Laughing out loud in a cutscene in Anachronox

Weeping a bit in a cutscene in FFX (Yuna and Tidus kissing in the pretty lake)

Spoiler

Dying with my brief soulmate

in Journey


Gaming has really given me amazing memories, and I can't wait for more.

 

[Raging Spaniard]

Chrono Trigger, when you know what happens.

Pretty big deal.

One that I do remember flipping out as an adult was when Sephiroth showed up in Kingdom Hearts 1.

Holy shit

 

[Kukuk]

I remember I was totally over the moon when I saw Final Fantasy X-2 announced. I had never been so attached to a game as I was Final Fantasy X, and the thought of getting to explore Spira again, years later, was just too exciting.

When the game finally came out, and I got to play it, I was totally, utterly, and completely

Spoiler

pleased

 

[Patapwn]

I think finally beating flamelurker in Demons souls takes the cake given how butthurt I was at the end.

Also, 3rd colossus from SotC. When he swings his sword down and you mount it, when he's coming back up you can do a super jump and land on his head. Deducing and executing that was awesome on so many different levels

 

[TheLucifer]

The first time I played Test Drive 2 and Duke Nukem 3D (two of the first games I've ever played), Tomb Raider 2 (my first PlayStation game) and Half Life 2 (mostly for the hype that I had). Then I'd say the PES tournaments back in highschool, then when I bought my PS3 with my first "salary" and the summer that I spent playing Gothic.

 

[megashock5]

Old Man Alert:

My dad totally pulled a "Christmas Story" on my brother and me. We'd opened all of our presents, and were basking in the glow of all the new toys when he pulls a "Hey, what's that under the couch?"

We hauled butt over there and pulled out a giant box, tore the wrapping off, and screamed our heads off over a shiny new Atari 2600.

That was a great, great day.

That's awesome, mine is similar.

Christmas 1982. Colecovision had just came out and were impossible to find. We were on a waiting list at a store, but it wasn't looking good. We were actually having our family Christmas one evening a couple of days early since we were traveling that year.

THE DAY we were opening presents, my dad got a call at work from the store and they had one if he could come right now. He went straight over before he came home.

We opened all (we thought) the presents and then my mom suggested we go into the other room to see if there were any Christmas shows on TV. After a minute or so, we noticed a present sitting at the bottom of the TV. We had the paper off in about 2 seconds to see the Colecovision we so badly wanted.

Didn't get any extra games, but it came with Donkey Kong and we played that all night.

So awesome.

 

[kittens]

My new most exciting memory is the day the Halo 4 release date was revealed.

 

[Anustart]

The release of final fantasy 3 on the snes was glorious. Everything about the hadn't was fantastic and coming off of ff2, it blew my fragile 14 year old mind. The graphics were (and still are) fantastic, tons of new additions to gameplay, dat mode 7 airship.

Then later, the n64 and mario 64. I would walk an hour to my local walmart and play the display copy for hours at a time.

 

[Noaloha]

February 2006, Beta version of FFXI included on the front cover of Official Xbox Magazine.

I was *extremely* new to the internet at that point, didn't know anything about MMOs or how to best use the internet to find guides and whatnot. I just jumped in feet first, not knowing what to expect. I've never had such a magical month or so in videogames; everything was new and strange and was steeped in layers of impenetrable system-logic and punitive player difficulty. I was an online community virgin and the sense of bonding between the new players, supported by those few players who knew the game, was (and remains) unmatched.

The period as a whole was genuinely enthralling, but one particular night stood out: It had taken maybe a week to reach subjobless Lv11 or so (hilarious in hindsight, but such was the overall unfamiliarity of the server's population), I pulled an all-nighter and spent a few hours in my first party in Valkurm Dunes, five players who didn't know a thing and one guy who'd created the party and had played the PC version. Questions were asked and answered. Gobbies were zoned. Bats were linked. I learned everything important about enmity management in that play session. It was great. Layers of system-logic were peeling away around us, revealing their intent.

I was from San d'Oria and I'd only strayed as far as La Theine Plateau, Ghelsba, a few deaths in Jugner at that point. After the group split I went exploring the Dunes and ended up in a peculiar coastal settlement and from there I plucked up enough courage to board a boat that had moored up.

No shit, around three hours later, still alive but barely awake, 6am, I walk through the doors of Windurst, my mind buzzing from the mapless journey I'd just made across some alien-looking areas of the game, amazed I was alive, my senses reeling somewhat from the information overload of the new environments and this fucked-up new city I'd just found. That journey, the terrors and wonder (especially trying to find my way through Bubu right through a full night cycle) was far and away the most impactful experience videogames have ever shown me. A real, genuine, seat-of-the-pants, wide-eyed adventure. Largely accentuated by sheer sleep deprivation, but whatever. That shit was *real*.

It's sad to think that, by and large due to the inevitable internet-savviness which eventually surfaced, it's kinda unlikely something like that'll ever happen again.

 

[Sylver]

- The first time I played and watched Dragon Ball Z superbutoden 1 in my best-friend SNES console, it was when Dragonball fan phenomenon explode here. So amazing.
- When Resident Evil 2 was released. That game mades buy PlayStation (I had got Nintendo 64 before) but that game blowed my mind. I remember shoting to Zombies' head and legs in that narrow corridor next to basket playground at the beginning of the game for the first time . My god when I saw the different kind of reaction... walking some steps without head before lie down. Dragging cause they lose their legs when you point and shot them with the shotgun. So awesome XD.
- When I got 2nd position in national ISS64 tournament.
- GoldenEye, Bomberman 64 and Mario Kart 64 multiplayer mode, I think it's the time I got more fun in any game and I spend many of my School breaks (30 mins) with some classmates playing a lot in some gamestore which was next to that school.
- Resident Evil Remake, more than numbers it cracks me out with its visuals.
- Playing some versus PS2 Dragon Ball Z 3 (Budokai 3) rounds, specially with some friends. It's one of those games that you spend many time without hitting any button trying to wait your opponent reaction.
- The moment I finished SH2 and Rule Of Rose games, the two most amazing stories in any game.

 

[plasticpassion]

Finishing Demon's Souls was very memorable. I raged so much in that game.

One Christmas morning I was so excited that I couldn't sleep. My grandmother had given me Mischief Makers for N64 on Christmas Eve, so I got out of bed around 2am and played all morning long until the rest of my family was up. That game was so good.

Buying a PS2 for Metal Gear Solid 2 and watching that opening cinematic on the ship.

Leaving the SNES/Genesis on when I had to go places with my family and rushing home to get back to whatever game I was playing (Super Star Wars/Sonic usually).

Halo 2 multiplayer matches with snipers only.

Since others are showing their MMO memories, this one I will never forget. When my guild was outside Yogg-Saron buffing, someone dropped a Spectral Tiger and I was giddy to try it out. The raid leader says "okay, everyone in" and because I had a modded UI, I couldn't find how to dismount the little guy. I watched the doors slowly close in front of me and embarrassingly had to wipe the raid because I was locked out, all while riding my Spectral Tiger. I heard about this one for a long time from guildies.

 

[TONX]

Making a prototype Wipeout HD level in the LittleBigPlanet beta and having it air on The 1UP Show. Totally surprised and stoked.

 

[opticalmace]

Playing FF7 for the first time, also Mario 64.

Competitive TFC was super awesome exciting as well.

 

[Neo Child]

"But before you leave, I'd like you to step inside one more world for Nintendo Gamecube..."

oh my god YES YES OH MY GOD

'but as the light fades' (or some such bullshit)

HO HO HO

 

[radioheadrule83]

Grrrrugh! Well met! Like the true Hero that you are...
But I am not ready to admit defeat yet. I will draw you into the Dark World!


8 more dungeons / bosses

 

[Zod the Bear]

I blew up a super star destroyer in an unshielded tie fighter. With lasers. It took hours.

 

[bh7812]

I'll post my 4 most exciting gaming memories that came to mind while reading this thread in the order that they happened.

-As some of you may have read in some other posts of mine, we used to have a locally owned mom and pop video store in the town where I live, and I'd gotten to know the owner well. Had first pick during the NES and Super NES days every week of all the new games before they got put on the shelves for everyone to rent. There were a few weeks however I wasn't able to get first pick though, so with a few games..Battletoads, Little Nemo: The Dream Master, and Adventure Island 3 for the NES and Tiny Toon Adventures: Buster Busts Loose for the Super NES specifically, I had to wait like everyone else for a chance to rent the games. My Mom always offered to stop and check on the way home from work for the games i couldn't get first pick on and with the 4 games I listed I remember I had to wait quite a while to rent those. When I finally got to rent the games I couldn't have first pick on Mom usually managed to bring those home from work when they finally came back in and I got out of bed long enough to look down at the top of the TV to see if she'd brought home a game or not. Just the whole renting games thing sticks out as a huge gaming memory for me because of where I rented the games from and the circumstances surrounding that. The whole renting games thing, and the memory I just wrote are two things related to gaming that a lot of much younger gamers/kids don't get. I sure wish they could experience those things because that was just a huge general memory of gaming..While you can rent from Redbox and Gamefly it's definitely not the same experience it used to be.

-My 2nd most exciting memory was at the same video store. I'd never gotten to see the back room or owner's office so one Friday when I was there the owner asked if I wanted to see it. He showed me the back room-a VERY small room-and then his office. In his office was a TV and hooked up to the TV was a Super Famicom from Japan-this was when the Super Fami had JUST come out there and Nintendo was undecided on if the US and Europe were going to get it too. The Super Famicom was definitely on and which game was in it? Super Mario World. While I wasn't able to play the game that day, and couldn't hear any of the music or sound effects due to the volume being low, I DID see the title screen and boy were those colors so vivid on the TV-way more vivid than anything I'd seen on the NES! That next year was a VERY long wait, all I had were pictures of the game to look at. That brief glimpse at the new 16 Bit Nintendo that day showed the dramatic leap between 8 and 16 bit. While the leap from 2 to 3D was great I don't think there has been nor ever will be another tech leap as dramatic as the one from 8 to 16 bit.

-My final memorable gaming memory that I'd like to post here was the very first time I actually got to play and hear Super Mario World. It was at a Wal-Mart that had just opened a few weeks earlier. Walked in the front door..now I'd seen the brand new Super Mario World cartoon on NBC a week earlier so I was familiar with the sound effects from the game..when I walked in the front door I heard Mario's jumping noise very distinctly so of course I ran to the Electronics dept where there was a Super NES hooked up to a TV. This wasn't a fancy display, literally just a Super NES and a controller sitting next to the TV it was hooked up to-a lot like how all of our Super NESes were set up next to our TVs. Anyway, I played that game for the next 2 hours and was completely floored. Graphically and audio wise it was just such a huge frickin leap from the NES and all of the earlier Mario games. That's where I witnessed that dramatic 8 to 16 bit leap personally. It would be 3 months until I got my own Super NES that Christmas and although I still loved my NES and all of my games, I didn't ever look at it the same way again after finally getting to experience the Super NES and Mario World that day. The experience of trying a Super NES or a Nintendo 64 for the first time at the store-after having seen only pictures of them in magazines-that's another gaming memory a lot of younger gamers have a tough time understanding because they had to be there at the time.

Finally, my last most exciting gaming memory I want to share is more recent-the day the Wii launched. That Christmas I was working at Circuit City-a job I loved for a lot of reasons and I wish they'd been able to keep me on for a while. I knew the Wii was coming so when we got our shipments of Wiis in, which was 24 to be exact I asked if they could set one aside for me launch day so I could just get it that day after work. They said no, since it'd make it harder for the customers to get one which I understood. I had a gut feeling the Wii was gonna be big but nothing prepared me for how big. The morning of the launch they'd brought out their entire shipment of 24 Wiis-and there were 80-that's right 80 people lined up outside! Outside the front door and around the building! Many had camped there the night before. I was really bummed out at that point cause I thought sure it'd take a while for me to find one. Later that night I came home..I was alone and on the couch I see a blue Best Buy bag. Curiosity got me so I walked over to it, opened it and there was a Wii box inside it! I took the box out thinking it was a really cruel prank in the form of an empty Wii box. It was no prank-it was the real deal. After finding the Wii box I found Zelda underneath it. Couldn't frickin believe it. My Mom came home and asked if I'd looked in the Best Buy bag..told her I did and she said well it's for you..here's the thing..I hadn't asked for a Wii in any way shape or form from my parents. Turns out early that morning Mom and sister were at Best Buy and decided to get in line for the heck of it-they'd had no intention of gettin in line when they pulled in. Our Best Buy had gotten 78 Wiis for launch day. Guess where in line Mom and sister ended up? 76 out of 78, so they were given a ticket, went in and decided to buy me the Wii! The Wii ended up being my big Christmas gift that year. It was just that great memory-of my Mom doing something totally unexpected like that for me, on the Wiis launch day that make that memory stand out. Mom ended up with a bad cold 2 days later because she'd stood in the line in the cold so I could have a Wii. I see many others here can relate to the whole parents doing something great and unexpected for you thing too

Sorry for the length of this but I wanted to share my few most memorable/exciting gaming memories too!

 

[Natetan]

Getting the FLUTE in Zelda 1. My god getting through those damn rooms teeming with darknuts was near impossible. I came home from sports practice, and my brother wrote me a note 'DON'T TURN OFF THE NES, I GOT THE FLUTE!'.

Also strong memories was renting 'next gen' systems like the Playstation 1 and N64. I think people forget what an outisde player Sony was to gaming back then, and so many companies had tried and failed to enter the market. Every new game like tomb raider and resident evil were these total left field awesome game. renting the systems was expensive but worth it.

Also renting a N64 to play the japanese version of Mario 64 and Pilotwings 64. The amazing experience accompanied by a language barrier just made it all seem amazing.

Also FFVII and Zelda OOT were both quite good experiences.

 

[plasticpassion]

I'll post my 4 most exciting gaming memories that came to mind while reading this thread in the order that they happened.
...
Sorry for the length of this but I wanted to share my few most memorable/exciting gaming memories too!

Your mother is awesome. Great nostalgic stories.

 

[bh7812]

Your mother is awesome. Great nostalgic stories.

Thank you! Yeah, my Mom is awesome She was always doing unexpected things like standing in line when she had no intention of doing it just so I could have a Wii! That's the one and only time getting a bad cold a few days after the fact didn't bother her because I was able to have the Wii. Did unexpected things like that all the time when my brother, sister and I were younger. Still does, just not as often these days since we're grown. The release of Mario 3 was much the same story as the Wii, came home from school to find a bag on the table with the just released Mario 3 in it-a good 2 weeks before it really started showing up everywhere. But thank you again and thanks for taking the time to read my post!

 

[Moaradin]

N64 for Christmas.

 

[sixteen-bit]

PS2 launch was big for me. Library was ass for 6 months, but I just played PS1 games on it in the mean time.

 

[zlatko]

Beating the Chains of Promathia expansion for FFXI after months, maybe even a year+, of trying on and off.

 

[DiscoShark]

About a week ago, first playthrough of Journey. Just the everything.

 

[zlatko]

February 2006, Beta version of FFXI included on the front cover of Official Xbox Magazine.

I was *extremely* new to the internet at that point, didn't know anything about MMOs or how to best use the internet to find guides and whatnot. I just jumped in feet first, not knowing what to expect. I've never had such a magical month or so in videogames; everything was new and strange and was steeped in layers of impenetrable system-logic and punitive player difficulty. I was an online community virgin and the sense of bonding between the new players, supported by those few players who knew the game, was (and remains) unmatched.

The period as a whole was genuinely enthralling, but one particular night stood out: It had taken maybe a week to reach subjobless Lv11 or so (hilarious in hindsight, but such was the overall unfamiliarity of the server's population), I pulled an all-nighter and spent a few hours in my first party in Valkurm Dunes, five players who didn't know a thing and one guy who'd created the party and had played the PC version. Questions were asked and answered. Gobbies were zoned. Bats were linked. I learned everything important about enmity management in that play session. It was great. Layers of system-logic were peeling away around us, revealing their intent.

I was from San d'Oria and I'd only strayed as far as La Theine Plateau, Ghelsba, a few deaths in Jugner at that point. After the group split I went exploring the Dunes and ended up in a peculiar coastal settlement and from there I plucked up enough courage to board a boat that had moored up.

No shit, around three hours later, still alive but barely awake, 6am, I walk through the doors of Windurst, my mind buzzing from the mapless journey I'd just made across some alien-looking areas of the game, amazed I was alive, my senses reeling somewhat from the information overload of the new environments and this fucked-up new city I'd just found. That journey, the terrors and wonder (especially trying to find my way through Bubu right through a full night cycle) was far and away the most impactful experience videogames have ever shown me. A real, genuine, seat-of-the-pants, wide-eyed adventure. Largely accentuated by sheer sleep deprivation, but whatever. That shit was *real*.

It's sad to think that, by and large due to the inevitable internet-savviness which eventually surfaced, it's kinda unlikely something like that'll ever happen again.

I respect the shit out of this post.

All of my exciting and truly best memories stem from this game. The sad truth I've come to accept is nothing else will ever come to topple it either, because it was the perfect game for me for that time of 6 years on and off. Nowadays MMO's have changed, I've changed, and I can only pray as I get older something will real me in like this game did.

The only other game that did this but was before FFXI, was PSO on GameCube with my friends.

 

[capitalCORN]

I remember going to a graphic design academy as a youth. One day, after class had ended, one of the instructor calls me over and boots up a game called 'DooM' on the computer and leaves me to it. I remember running around and thinking it was ok. At one point I saw a green glowing thing at the top of this alcove and I ran towards it to pick it up. At that point a moment of Zen was reached, 'I had ascended from the ground to a higher point'. That moment of clarity on the Y axis really struck me and sticks to me to this day.

Also, the entirety of TIE-Fighter. I broke like three mice playing that game.

 

[Meccanical]

Getting any game for Christmas is my most exciting memory.

I got an N64 for Christman along with Wave Race, Star Fox 64, and Pilot Wings.

It was amazing.

 

[gogojira]

Mother Brain battle in Super Metroid.

Turning into adult Link in OOT.

Fear raid in EverQuest.

Playing Super Mario 64 for the first time in my house.

That'll do for now.

 

[ZZMitch]

Intense Mario Kart 64 races with my step brother.

Rainbow Road, neck and neck at the end... Who's gunna press that A button the hardest!?

 

[Mitsurux]

I have way way to many awesome game related memories, so i'll pick a few.

The day when my friend down the street got a NES, his grandpa bought it for him, we had no clue what it was, but once we played Super Mario Bros, things were NEVER the same.

Getting my Own TV AND Mega Man 3 and Blades of Steel for Christmas.. Great christmas

Having to repeatedly beat Mike Tyson/Punchout to prove to all the Kids on the block that it could be done!!!

Being Hyped as heck for the Super Nintendo releases, then finanlly getting to play it.. and being Amazed at the jump in graphics and sound.


And then a few more recent ones...

Renting a Sega Saturn and using some of the cool audio option to create distored mix CDs that we would Jam in the Car. (Removing Lyrics, Distorting vocals, etc etc.)

Getting a N64 a day early from Toys R Us... got a call from a friend that something happenend and they were releaseing preorders early... drove like a crazy man up to TRU to pick that thing up!!!

Waiting in line for 12 hours to get a Wii (inside a K-mart) with 2 friends and my wife, thankfully my family brought us lunch and my wifes family brought us dinner, DS's were played please walking by didn't know what we were waiting for.... great fun

 

[ScOULaris]

Honestly, I'd have to go with my first exposure to Grand Theft Auto III. My friend and I rented it on word-of-mouth praise from another friend a day or two after it launched. The hype was practically nonexistent for the game at that point.

We popped it in, watched the opening cinematic, and then ran up to an old lady walking down the sidewalk and beat her to death, proceeding to kick her dead body over and over as other pedestrians fled in panic. After committing our first crime in Liberty City, we got into a car and drove to the first safehouse. It was during that first drive through the city that the scope of what we were about to experience hit us. We knew, right then and there, that this game was going to shake things up in a big way.

In my opinion, no game since GTA3 has represented such a huge leap in both game design and presentation. Before GTA3, Mario 64 held that crown.

 

[Eppy Thatcher]

Just a few that really stand out ...

1 - Metal Gear Solid 2 and 3 building this fantastic mythos and setting and then coming back to Shadow Moses in 4 was fuck-ton of awesome inducing. I powered through 4 in one weekend with my girlfriend crashing at my place snowed in upon visiting from college. She isn't really a gamer at all but after that weekend she knows who Solid Snake is and enthusiastically chimes in with "You mean Snake? Like Solid Snake??" whenever i bring any of the games or indeed Snake himself up in conversation. Makes me love her a little bit more everytime.

2 - This scene from half life. The guy speeding through the game on this youtube clip goes past it super fast and is talking over the top of most of this but when i played it i was creeping so slowly through those tunnels.. fully expecting the shit to hit the fan and then you see light.. then you get closer to the opening ... and then the baseline starts... and the jets do their flyby ... i was soooo into this fucking scene when i first played it. I was sold on PC gaming that instant. Forever.

3 - GTA3/Vice City/SA - All three of these games I took the day off work or two and just absorbed the holy shit out of the games. Mobbed through maybe 10 missions or so and then would simply drive around getting a feel for the driving down to a science and just enjoying myself. Did the same thing with 4 of course but i was muuuch older and out of school and everything was just a little less magical. Hoping that changes with 5 ...

4 - This is probably one of my few "Glorious" moments in gaming. I bought guilty gears x2 i believe right when it came out as i was freakin out for some fantastic 2d fighters that were fast in the same vein as MvC ... ended up getting good at the game. Like... stupid good. Me and my buddy Kyle (the only other friend of mine to freak out on the game as much as I) would go round after round after round perfecting our skills. Venom was my go to guy for just winning .. chip was my flash option ... Baiken ... johnny ... just fuckin loved it. But i could never beat dizzy. Never. Playing on hard i would always scream through the game to her ...then get stomped on. At 18 years old i would always hang out at my buddies apt where we could smoke and drink without worry and play games until 1 or 2 in the morning and then pass out. One morning ... maybe 2:30 ... i'm on my 7th or 8th time through the game at dizzy. Using Venom... get her on the ropes again for the 900th time... beat her in the first round... she goes SS and starts trouncing me and somehow.. between a flury of sweeping pool stick safety attacks i finally get her baited into jumping in just the right arc into my large slowly works its way across the screen super... she manages to perfect block almost the whole thing except for maybe the last 2 or 3 frames worth of the attack which hurt her but MOST IMPORTANTLY opened her up to a small low - low - low - med - high - med style combo with a special tacked onto the end. Literally the last contact of the special attack finished her life bar. I bolted upright at off the couch... fists clenched... sweating with i'm sure crazy eyes bulging and screamed at the top of my lungs "FUCK YOU YOU FUCKING STUPID BITCH! THAT'S FUCKING RIGHT!!!! YOU FUCKING DEAD NOW SLUT!" .... I got sent home. Shaking. But the drive was glorious. only a handful of times where a game has given me an adrenaline/high like that.

 

[Trancetronic]

I was also really excited to play Brawl. I was literally drooling at the mouth. Then when it got delayed in the US it felt like I was going to have a heart attack.

 

[stuminus3]

Christmas day. Omega Race. My own Omega Race that I could play whenever I wanted. On the Vic-20 my parents got me for Christmas. My own Vic-20.

I have no idea exactly which Christmas this was. I'd say maybe '83 or '84.

The only thing that's come close since then is the Half-Life 2 unlock on Steam.

 

[Misterhbk]

The ending to final fantasy IX. I was a kid at the time and I was so touched at seeing Garnett cry. I shed a few tears. It was the first time that happened to me with a game.

Final Fantasy X altogether. It's my favorite game of all time and is the game I credit with my love for gaming to this day. An absolute gem. Speaking of which, hurry up with dat FFX HD Square Enix.

Uncharted 2 when that building collapsed. I went into that game knowing nothing about the story. No trailers, no spoilers or anything. It was effing epic.

Tales of Symphonia. I played through the entire game with 3 friends and fell in love with the tales of series at that point.

There's more but then again we can't list em all.

 

[RockmanWhore]

The first moment was a few month after the release of Ocarina of Time, I didn't have much money has a kid, and I kept begging my parents for a Nintendo 64. I pretty much gave up on the idea of having one any time soon. But then, as I went home after a trip for a week or two, there was a god damned N64 on my room, with Mario 64 and Zelda. I was so happy, I was so hyped for these game, and the game really delivered. Even today after all these years, they're among my favourite game ever.

I have another moment, but not as happy, like I said I didn't have much money back then. But I was already a Mega Man fanboy which I played on the Gameboy or the NES. I was super hyped for Mega Man X, but I had no SNES at the moment. We had a PC though, and one day, my big brother came with a pirated version of Mega Man X. The game was playable, and like you can expect, I was very happy. But sadly there was a nasty protection, the kind that works for a level or two, and then the game crashes invariably. There was no internet to look for cracks back then, so I was fucked, we never managed to get the god damn game working

 

[JosephManderley]

I think I was 11 or 12 years old when I saw a review in a magazine for Renegade on the ZX Spectrum. I was so excited - I HAD TO HAVE THAT GAME!

My parents had a rule when I was a kid - if I wanted something I had to earn it. I remember doing lots of little jobs around the house like watering plants and vacuuming for a couple of weeks before one Saturday morning my Dad drove me into town to buy the game in Boots.

I loved that game, even though I never finished it.

 

[Deified Data]

 

[Alex Anderson]

*reminisces* in no particular order:

Playing the shareware version of Wacky Wheels with school friends over direct dial and thinking it was so cool to be able to do. I was really impressed you could pause the game and bring up a text chat menu. Up to that point I'd only played word games like Strike A Match or such and hadn't had a computer or internet access for very long.

The frantic final five seconds or so in a round of ChuChu Rocket! when you're protecting a lead or trying to win, feeling almost like the outcome isn't in your control, holding your breath and hoping you don't get a kapu kapu... or lucking out and getting some much needed mice in your ship. Then erupting with glee and relief when your ship takes off (you've won) and feeling like your heart's going to burst through your chest it's beating so fast (maybe it's a good thing they turned the server off )

Finally getting a Double Eagle in Hot Shots Golf: Out of Bounds on a completely fluky shot in an online game with pals. I was so happyyyyy. 300+ yard shot, from 15 yard elevation, driver in Full Power Shot mode, nailed it, watched it fly seemingly forever, hit the flag in the air and plopped into the hole. The funny part is I didn't know how Full Power Shot mode worked at the time. Regular power shot gives you 10 extra yards with clubs, Full Power Shot is a risk shot that can give up to 20-some yards power or even take away a few yards. And it's random. So yeah, lucky as hell! I'm glad my first one wasn't a glorified hole-in-one on the easy course or something

Playing through a full fantasy draft season of MLB 08 The Show and coming back to win down a few runs late in the seventh game of the World Series. Was playing on the hardest setting with all the gimmicky pitch-guess/zone-guess crap turned off and even then the game's too easy because the sluggers hit way too many homers --- so I drafted a team full of Asian players so my team wouldn't hit a jillion homers. Still hit 50+ HRs with Hideki Matsui and his barely above average power rating. (I didn't like messing with gameplay sliders in sports games if I don't have to)

Back when my brother still lived at home prior to getting married he'd come home during lunch hour (I guess in the summer when I was on break from school) and we'd rush through a session of Konami International Track & Field for PS1. Good times.

The first month or so of Phantasy Star Online. Not only was the type of game and game itself fresh to me, I also posted on a Dreamcast message board and just about every regular on there bought the game. It was pretty awesome having 30+ forumites including a handful of good pals to go through the game with.

KB Toy Works near my house had a Lynx kiosk and I was impressed with California Games so I asked for a Lynx for Christmas '92. Went to EB to buy another game or two with my monies and the clerk said the system had been discontinued :'(. I may or may not have cried. Okay, I did... :'(. Mom took me to stores to find games and I found a copy of Rygar at a KB Toys for a buck

Seeing a ten-second commercial for WWF WrestleMania: The Arcade Game during an ad break on wrasslin "WTF I MUST PLAY THIS"

And the most traumatic... My brother is more than ten years older than I am and he had a friend over. I was 6 or 7 playing him in Baseball Stars on NES, trailing him in the bottom of the ninth of a close game. I hit a ball to deep center, knowing it had enough distance to clear the wall and getting all fucking excited thinking I was about to win and finally beat him. Bro scales with wall with his center fielder to rob my homer and steal the game. Heartbreaking stuff, especially when I started crying and they were rubbing it in

And a silly one: Playing Arch Rivals for NES on my crappy old color TV... the black cheerleader's outfit was very close to her skin color as to be almost indistinguishable. Hmmmmmm.

Mom ended up with a bad cold 2 days later because she'd stood in the line in the cold so I could have a Wii. I see many others here can relate to the whole parents doing something great and unexpected for you thing too

Hell yeah, moms rule. I remember when mine rented me a SNES and SMW and Pilotwings from the video store. Just randomly when I got home from school one day it was set up and there And christ, all the times she drove me to the mall to preorder Dreamcast games. Then another trip to pick them up.

 

[Zee-Row]

The rain effects in the beginning of Link to the Past when the game was brand new. It absolutely floored me.

 

[The Wheel of Fortune]

I wanted a SNES for my birthday. I remember those times playing Super Mario World, Yoshi's Island and Donkey Kong Country with my cousin (he only had 1 control but man, those were the times). But little did I know that it was an old console and that, after I moved far away, a Nintendo 64(which was like a year away from being replaced by the GC) with Super Mario 64 and Star Fox 64 would be my birthday gift. I saw the box perplexed, wondering WTF was that thing and what was up with the SNES I asked for. After I opened the box, my father connected everything and handed me the control, telling me that I should try turning it on. I did that and saw the classic Mario 64's head. I remember my mouth being wide-open as I tried moving Mario in 3 dimensions. I spent months playing those two games to death, and then I moved on to try amazing games like Banjo-Kazooie, Pokémon Stadium, and Smash Bros(this was another great story, I didn't expect to see all those great characters together. It blew my mind. I also wondered why wasn't Banjo/Kazooie in the game and who the hell Ness was, even inventing a backstory and everything). Great times.

 

[Franchuzas87]

After years playing dozens of 2D games, just mess around outside Peach's Castle in Super Mario 64 was a totally mind blown.

I remember that afternoon as if it were just a month ago.

 

[evilchicken]

Hitting Realm First 80 Hunter/Night Elf during Lich King. A horde hunter was roughly my same level the whole time so we were racing. When the banner popped up and I started getting hundreds (thousands?) of whispers all at once, it was a rush.

2nd Place: Opening the N64 at Christmas.

 

[Marlowe89]

It's 2003. I'm playing The Wind Waker, about halfway through the main quest. I'm sailing and generally exploring the sea, and all of a sudden a storm brews and the sky becomes hauntingly dark. It was already night time, but now I can barely see shit.

All of a sudden, at random, I cross paths with THIS monstrosity:

DAT FEEL.

 

[AEGISX]

First time beating a fighting game in an arcade. It was street fighter alpha 2. I was using dictator doing nothing but sliding kick.

 

[rapid32.5]

Getting a PS2 then Silent Hill 2, MGS 2, FFX, and Onimusha. Pretty much whole 2001, reading magazines about the arrival of the Xbox into the gaming world. How Halo had this huge world thanks to standard HDD with no loading screens in levels.

 

[totowhoa]

My single most exciting? My earliest gaming memory, which was Super Mario World. I was either four or five at the time, given the release date.

I was terrible at the game at that age, and I was still learning how to play video games. As this is my earliest gaming memory, I can't remember how long I spent in world 1, but I remember it felt like a long time. And after a long, long time, I finally beat the first castle and watched it explode to the ground. I was excited as hell, and ran into the kitchen of our little house where my mom was doing the dishes with her hair up in a towel, and I told her all about it. She then told me she was super proud of me for doing it, and I ran back and started world 2.

A similar story is the defeat of Bowser shortly thereafter. My younger brother and I finally made it to the last level of the game after spending who knows how long at the grind wheel, but the final level scared us to death. The lightning, the terrifying King Bowser, the horrible clown face, the menacing music, everything. My dad was recruited to defeat him for us, and after all the winces and covering-of-eyes, there was cheer and excitement throughout the living room when he was finally taken down. I still remember watching the final credits of the game fondly, the first game I ever (almost) beat.

I was able to finish special world without his help a little later

 

[BiggNife]

-Getting an N64 for Christmas. My parents had told me a few days earlier that it was out of the question because it was sold out everywhere, so I was completely shocked.

-Pretty much the entire endgame of MGS3, starting with the Volgin fight up to the very end.

-Camping out at a Target overnight with my friends to get a Wii at launch. Everyone on line was surprisingly friendly.

-Watching the EVO 2010 stream and seeing this happen live. Alternatively, when this happened at EVO 2011.

-Getting Bioshock a week before official release at Toys R Us, and being able to play through the entire game on my own completely blind. It was so hard to keep quiet about it but I kept my mouth shut because I didn't want to ruin the experience for anyone else.

I'm sure I'm missing a few, but that'll do for now.

 

[Ramirez]

Porting down to the forest in PSO with a full group, absolutely amazed me back then. Pretty sure it was my first online game...

 

[shinobi602]

Opening my N64.

Goddamn such a joyous occasion, and popping in Super Mario 64. :')