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Absolute best gaming memories since you were a little kid...

S

Sea-Dragon

Member
Yeh, I know, this thread gets done a lot... but not "teh best game you ever played" or "the most meaningful in the genre" or "the first game you ever played...", but..

What game made (makes) you admit to being a video gamer? There's a difference.

I guess mine would have to be:

Sqoon on the Atari 2600 - I saw the older brother of one of my good friends playing this and was blown away as compared to my parentally-provided Odyssey I system. Piqued my interest permanently.

Dragon warrior IV on the NES: the hours I spent on this game with my cousin before we discovered girls :) ... and then those magical nights when we realized girls were so far out of reach that we kept going trying to beat this game. Popcorn, Dr. Pepper, 3am nights trying to make a little progress.

Phantasy Star on the Sega Master System... taking nearly a full 12 months to beat this with a friend, yet again before the discovery of the elusive, magical race of Girls.

After discovery of Girls:
Yoshi's Island: found a girl that likes to play it. Still with her. :)
 
(no order)

1. Trying to get Mario to jump OVER the pole at the end of the levels

2. Seeing Sonic 1 for Genesis for the first time.

3. Playing Night Trap and thinking how dastardly I was.
 
Resident Evil 2 - The whole game, really, but specifically when
Ada goes over the rail
. I was only like 13 or 14, so it was pretty traumatic.

Metal Gear Solid - Just an all around fan-fucking-tastic game. Nothing like the first playthrough.

God of War - Wish it were a little longer, but pretty much the same as MGS.

e: shit, #1 of all time is GTA3, of course.
 
Walking into a Sears department store around Christmas and gathering with the other kids to play *ATARI* That is so godamn priceless for me,games were games back then,none of theis 60 frames per second or C- non sense.

Later it became the year I got a 2600,around 1977 I believe. At the end of the week when school ended and weekend was here I had relatives come over with their new games and we would all play the games,passing the controller around,joking and listening to music and moms home made food,damn good times. You really enjoyed games when you were a kid,I sure did.

Traveling to the big city and finally finding a Daytona U.S.A. machine. I pumped about 50 dollars into it that day,such a beautiful sensation of speed and great, great fun. I played so many games that day that my hands were literally shaking for most of the evening.:)


One more-the day the UPS man pulled up to my home and my imported Dreamcast arrived. Sonic Adventure and VF3TB were pretty amazing for me. A few months later I then ordered Sega Rally 2 and HOTD2,god what amazing sequels for their time. Godamnit do I ever miss *Sega* and the DreamCast:(
 
Nothing compares to the first zelda for me. I remeber when my cousin got it for christmas, I was so jealous :lol About the only game to this day that I'll sit through over and over again.


From that day on, I've been a overly active gamer. And also why even through all the Sonys, Segas,etc.- I still gravitate towards Nintendo first.
 
Playing Space Invaders on my dads 2600

Playing Super Mario Bros

Playing Super Mario World
2 Player Super Mario kart
Street Fighter 2

Playing Civilization

Playing Super Mario 64
Multiplayer Goldeneye
Hyrule Flied Zelda OOT

The Dialogue and Presentation of MGS
FFIX and FFVII

Playing GT3 (first game that was head and shoulders above all else this gen)
Playing GTA3

KOTOR
Halo 2 Multiplayer


Oh yeah and taking my first character through Baldurs gate 1 & 2
 
Out of this World - SNES/Genesis (Delphine)
Madden Football - Genesis (EA)
NHL 94 - Genesis (EA)
Need for Speed - 3DO (EA Canada)
Slam-N-Jam - 3DO (Crystal Dynamics)
Myth: The Fallen Lords - PC (Bungie) <--- nothing will ever top this. nothing. it's impossible.
Quake II - PC (id Software)
Rainbow Six - PC ( Red Storm)
NBA Live 95 and 2000 - PC (EA Sports)
Nascar Racing 200x - PC (Papyrus)
Diablo II - PC (Blizzard)
Halo: Combat Evolved - Xbox (Bungie)
Battlefield 1942 - PC (DICE)
Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time - Xbox (Ubisoft)
 
So many good gaming memories...

When my older sister got an Atari for her birthday. There is not many things as fun as Riverraid.

First time I saw the NES playing Supermario at my friend's house. I was pretty much against the new system because I loved my Atari so much at the time until I saw Supermario. That experience blew me away.

For some reason I have to put Gumshoe here, I always loved that game. Though when I tried to play it again a few years ago it was horrid crap.

Phantasy Star 2 blew me away. The story was so good for its time.

Beating Secret of Mana with my cousin and little sister. Awesome experience. Wish I had the time and people to do something similar again (WOW sounds like the ticket, but sounds like it needs a hell of a lot of time).

Playing through Crono Trigger. Expected a average rpg and it ending up being my favorite rpg ever.

Playing Street Fighter 2 in the arcades for the first time. My god, that game sucked away so many hours of my life. It actually made people go back to arcades too.

Nights on my friends Saturn. Such a fun game, I miss the good Sega. :(

Playing Mario64 for the first time. Probably one of the biggest holy shit moments I have had in gaming.

Wasting most of my 3rd year of law school playing the greatest sports game of all time. Winning Eleven.

Fire Emblem

There are a ton of others too, but those jumped out right away. Damn, this is making me feel old as most of my best memories are on older systems.
 
Super Mario Bros. 3 This was a turning point in games imo. There was so much to do. I remember playing it over and over again. It was also the first game that I remember making it into a movie (The Wizard).

Contra Probably my favorite game of all time. Whether it was single or multiplayer, this game was a blast to play. If I couldn't make it to the third level without dying once, I would start the whole game over. When I found "The Code" for 30 extra lives it was on.

Street Fighter 2 I bought this game for SNES and then had to buy Championship Edition. When I wasn't playing football, I was playing SF2. It was everywhere, at the arcades, at my bddies houses and in my room. Great times.

Donkey Kong Country Wow. This game was a masterpiece. The graphics and soundtrack were mesmerizing. There was so much to do and so many secrets (The swordfish, barrels, rhino, etc.) This was another turning point in games imo.

Super Mario 64 Another "Wow" game that was a turning point as well. This game pretty much brought 3D graphics into the mainstream. Like the original Mario Bros, it's still the defining game and control scheme for 3D games to this day. Such a cool game, I had to have 120 stars.

Zelda:OoT Just as groundbreaking as Mario 64 imo. It was so cool to be able to ride a horse, fish or upgrade your weapons. Another gaming masterpiece.

Resident Evil 4 I was late to the party as all I ever owned prior to this gen was Nintendo systems. Resident Evil Remake was the first survival horror game I ever played. RE4 mixes up the gameplay just right to make it one of the best games I've played this gen. The idea of having to do the button combinations in certain areas was so refreshing. Beautiful graphics, great gameplay and a great story. Games like this are what makes gaming so much fun.

Need For Speed: Hot Pursuit 2 (PS2) This game really isn't that groundbreaking, but it's the one game that I've spent the most time playing this gen. Racing games have been around since the get-go, but this one has so much variety in both the gameplay and the cars to choose from that it's probably the best racer I've ever played. With games like Gran Turismo that require a lot of time to get into, this is an old-school, pick up and play game that's both challenging and rewarding
 
first game system I owned (after sega master system when I was 10 or something) was a PS2 with tekken tag. Me and flatmates logged ludicrous amounts of hours into that.

Pyjamarama on spectrum. beating that was soo satisfying.

More recently, beating super monkey ball 1, every level. I'm the monkey master.

oh and

wooo.jpg


:lol
 
knightlore.gif


Seeing this in a "game store" (someones living room - they were running a private operation!).

Me and my dad walking in and just seeing it with a bunch of kids clambering over the store trying to get a better view. Then my dad just going "i'll take a copy!".

It was just one of those WTF IS THIS!!!?? moments.
I've not had anything that has come close to that level of shock.

Bear in mind most spectrum games looked like this :

techted1.gif

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it was quite a jump! God bless Ultimate (laterly Rare...)

Oh, finishing this on one life with friends watching in disbelief was a great moment :

wizball.gif
 
Playing Twisted Metal II for the first time, that got me into gaming hardcore and pushed me to buy a Playstation. I asked my mom for Twisted Metal II and a Playstation for Christmas, but instead she bought me Vectorman II for my Genesis. I was dissapointed and smiled, but it turns out that it's one of my favorite games ever. Long live Vectorman II. I just bought a PS and TM II with my Christmas money later. I guess that's actually my two favorite gaming moments. Hum.
 
Actually Beating Castlevania II with no FAQ when i was 13. Lord only knows why i kneeled at that cliff waiting for the tornado.
 
Adventure (Atari 2600) - I remember memorizing every inch of the mazes.

Activision games (Atari 2600) - Believe it or not, I actually went through and mastered these games so that I could send in a picture of my high scores and get the badges/patches from Activision. I must have about a dozen of those badges for high scores from various Activision titles (Barnstorming, Chopper Command, Decathlon, Dolphin, Dragster, Enduro, Ice Hockey, Kaboom, Keystone Kapers, Laser Blast, Megamania, Pitfall, Pitfall II, River Raid, Skiing, Spider Fighter, Stampede).

Donkey Kong (Arcade) - Blew me away when it was released.

Dragon's Lair (Arcade) - Just fell in love with this game. Spent countless quarters mastering every level.

Miner 2049er (Colecovision) - The speed and precision required to get through all 11 levels was breathtaking for the time.

Zork I (Atari 130XE) - This was before walkthroughs on the internet, and I spent a couple of years on and off working through all of the puzzles for this game. I was enthralled by how immersive and fleshed-out a game world could be.

Legend of Zelda (NES) - The sheer scope of the game overwhelmed me. I lost countless hours searching every nook and cranny of this game. I still remember being amazed by the invisible Ganon at the end.

Castlevania (NES) - The first time I realized how much of a role atmosphere could play in a game.

Ninja Gaiden (NES) - First time I remember cut-scenes of this magnitude. I loved the feeling of participating in a real story. (Damn this game was hard too - I was so relieved when I finally won and got to see the conclusion of the story).

Metal Gear - (MSX) - A friend of mine from Japan had this, and I played through it to the end. The combination of stealth, action, & strategy really astounded me at the time.

Punch Out (Arcade) & Mike Tyson's Punch Out (NES) - Just the perfect combination of fun and challenge.

Ultima IV (Atari 130XE) - The size and scope, along with understanding all of the virtues and stuff - I lost many, many nights with this game.

Ripper (PC) - Adventure game with tons of name actors (Christopher Walken, Karen Allen, Burgess Meredith, John Rhys-Davies, Jimmie Walker, and others). This was the first time that I realized that gaming and Hollywood were beginning an inexorable march towards convergence.

Baldur's Gate & Tales of the Sword Coast (PC) - Brought back my love for PC D&D gaming, and cost me many months or searching through every last corner of the game.
 
being introduced to playing videogames at HOME by my childhood female friend in 1986 or 87. - she had an Atari VCS / 2600 and showed me how much fun it was. from there, I was hooked and wanted videogames of my own.

getting a Sega Master System in 1989

playing Altered Beast at favorite steakhouse in 1989-1990 every month or two

getting Phantasy Star over winter vacation 1989-1990, then finishing it after a few weeks and crying from the emotion of it all.

getting my Genesis in April 1990 after doing well enough in school from a challenge I had starting August 1989.


getting a Dreamcast and using it to get on the internet and do various things with it.
 
Dodge 'Em for the Atari 2600 and beating it...I knew it so well, that I reset the point counter!

Adventure for the 2600 was another favorite that I managed to memorize and loved playing about a billion times.

Samba de Amigo...showing it to friends who'd laugh at me and be at awe all at the same time...so much fun.
 
Too many to list but here's a few:

Final Fantasy III - I can't recall 100% but I parked my airship on an island and accidentally took this waterway to the mainland and saved the game for some reason. I thought I'd have to start all over again which sucked cause back in the day I used to rent RPGs and beat em in a week. This was gonna cost another $5 which was huge for me back then. Since there was no way back I decided to go through the ghost forest and it magically appeared at the bottom of the mainland when we exited the forest. I literally jumped for joy in celebration.

Renting an SNES with SFII was bliss. I still remember leaving a party and then renting it late at night. It was worth it.

Getting Mario 3 for Christmas. I remember reading the Mario 3 Nintendo Power Flash newsletter endlessly. It was only 2 or 3 pages double sided.

Playing Super Mario World at Walmart. I could have stayed for hours.

Playing the Final Fantasy VII demo blew me away. I didn't think graphics could get better, I really didn't.

Killer Instinct 2 cutscenes really wowed me back in the day.

4 player X-Men at lunchtime where we'd let the smaller kids waste their supers on the bosses while we tagged them when it was safe. We managed to finish the game on one quarter that way while those dumb kids kept pumping them in. I remember some random kid screaming "What the hell is Colossus doing?!?!" and then trying not to laugh :lol

Samurai Shodown was 8 credits for one quarter at a local pizza store. We'd run at lunch just to be the first in line and then run back cause we'd stay too late. A nice side effect was that really helped my track times in gym class!

I also remember being amazed by Resident Evil. It was so realistic at the time. My friends and I would rent a PSX and the game with no memory card and eventually did it so many times that we beat it with no saving. A big payoff for many times when we made it so far and a hunter would just end it in one swipe.

But I think the best feeling ever is just waking up early to play a game that I rented. I can't remember the last time something was that enthralling. The last game that gave me that effect was probably FF3 US.
 
(0) the full Zelda OoT but the most beautiful moment was when i came back in the future time to the forest temple and I found Saria, that was epic

(1) When i saw Super Mario 64 on a shopping

(2) The day i bought my first console (SNES) with Super Mario World & Street Fighter 2

(3) Playing Sonic 1 Genesis for the first time

(4) First time i saw 3d running on a machine (virtua fighter 1 on Staurn)

(5) playing duck hunt
 
I think my fondest gaming memories about being a kid were that since I didn't have any money and only relied on parents and friends for games on special occasions, I would get like two games a year. And I would beat those two games thoroughly and fully master them.

In many ways, I wish I could go back to that. Now I get about 60-70 games a year, play about half of those, and beat perhaps 3. :(
 
It was a Super Mario Kart game I had with Wyzdom late at night. I don't remember the stage, but I think it was Mario Circuit 2.

Anyways, the map had that little jump at the end, and then it turned to the left for the finish line.

I was ahead, like 1 or 2 seconds, and it was the last lap. He was just behind me and had this mushroom (boost). I knew I was in deep shit because the little jump was just in front and he would take his boost to propel himself to the finish line with the jump and win like this. So, as I was turning the last curve before the jump and I decided that my only chance was to block him from using that mushroom. I tried to align myself right in front of him while getting my kart to go slower and slower. We were really near the jump when he finally decided to take the boost right behind me. He just jumped a little bit over the jump, and landed back in the middle of the track while I was proppelled in the air far away in the grass. Lakitu brought me back right at the finish line and I won like that.

Never laughed so loud in my life I think.
 
As a kid, saying I would just play games when I get older.

I've lived up to that claim dammit!
 
SnowWolf said:
I think my fondest gaming memories about being a kid were that since I didn't have any money and only relied on parents and friends for games on special occasions, I would get like two games a year. And I would beat those two games thoroughly and fully master them.

In many ways, I wish I could go back to that. Now I get about 60-70 games a year, play about half of those, and beat perhaps 3. :(
Click to expand...
I feel the exact same way
 
I used to help my dad play RPGs when I was little. I'd draw maps for him and look up info in magazines. He played pretty much all of them from the NES up to the Dreamcast.

One night when I was about 6 I woke up to the sound of my dad playing Zelda in my room. When I talk about it on a message board it sounds kind of weird, but it made me happy at the time.
 
My dad bringing home a whole box of 2600 carts when I was a kid... around 1982.

Playing Sinistar in the dollar cinema lobby each saturday before the film.

Seeing Dragons lair for the first time.

Seeing Street fighter for the first time.

Seeing Stryder for the first time... this is the first time I remember thinking the game looked like playing a cartoon (a big deal to me when I was a kid).

Seeing Terminator2 the arcade game for the first time.

Seeing Virtua Racing for the first time...

Seeing Cruisin USA for the first time. (first 3-d textured graphics I saw)

Playing AVP on the Atari Jaguar at the time of release... I couldn't believe a home game could look that good at the time, (quickly realised no game on the Jag would ever look or play as good as AVP)

Seeing Wipeout for the first time.

Playing GT3 for the first time.
 
SMURFS/TARZAN on Collecovision

KUNG FU on nes was never able to get to the second boss...bloody snakes

DUCK-HUNT on nes - swearing it was magic how the machine knows where i am pointing on the screen

MARIO LEMIEUX HOCKEY on Genesis - I can score everytime from the goal line

DONKEY KONG COUNTREY on SNES came as a bundle with my SNES. It is the first game i beat by myself and deleting my 99% game file by accident trying to play 2 player.

MARIO RPG - Intoduced me to the world of RPG's

MARIO 64 - Was playing with his face for an hour before realising i hadnt started the game yet.

WAYNE GRETZKY HOCKEY 64 - Never has hockey been so fast...still to this day i swear it

METAL GEAR SOLID - BRUCE WILLIS EAT MY SHORTS

FFVII - When the line between Gaming and other medias blurred

GRANTURISMO - There is a god.
 
I won that stupid Blockbuster Videogame Championship - I got free rentals for a year, like 10 free games, free pizza for a year, a pin that I still have, a shirt, a sticker, and a bunch of coupons I threw away immediately.

Majorly awesome moments:

Getting my SNES - long story behind it, but a truly memorable moment
First time seeing Mario 64
Impossible Mission, Desert Fox, Raid Over Moscow on the C64
Getting Street Fighter II on the SNES
Getting Super Mario Bros. III
First time finishing Super Metroid under 2 hours w/o a guide
 
Wow, a lot of stuff comes to mind. I'll try to spread it out.

Phantasy Star: First RPG I ever played. Got my ass handed to me repeatedly but kept at it. Phantasy Star Collection, where are you?!

Legend of Zelda: This was one of the first games I ever played, and like I mentioned in the collection thread, I still remember every little portion of the game. Engraved in my mind and soul I guess.

Metal Gear Solid: I was just amazed at how cinematic the game was. There were times where I didn't understand what the hell the characters were talking about but damn if didn't all look cool.

Street Fighter 2: Both in the arcades and on SNES. I remember beating people twice my age. I still remember the majority of the power moves and I used to be able to beat all my friends with any character they wanted me to play as.

Ocarina of Time: I have to mention this. It would be criminal if I didn't. Most likely my favorite series of all. I remember the first time I booted it up. The music that was playing at the title screen and Link riding Epona. Then, when I actually started the game, when you first leave your house and the game pans over Kokriki Village. Such a powerful memory that is still in my mind. Just thinking about it makes me want to play OoT over again. Damn backlog.
 
Super Metroid - First time I was ever REALLY, REALLY, REALLY excited about a game. I still remember begging my parents to drive me 45 minutes to the Toys 'R Us in the nearest city, after collecting all my change and pennies and everything. And I still remember the look on the cashiers face as I emptied my entire piggy bank on the belt at the register. The game most certainly lived up to expectations =)

Final Fantasy 7- My first RPG, and what an experience it was for me.

Chrono Cross - Haters be damned, this is still my favorite game of all time.

Quake 2 - Absolutely owning the Quake2.com server along with DeathKiller and Jewel and Calypso back in the day. Me and DK would take turns creaming everyone, we'd play hardcore for a match, then chat the next while the other ripped everyone up. Our domination of that server was near legendary, and to this day I've never been so good at a game before. DK and I were extremely close in skill, however I could never QUITE beat him. In all the hundreds of games that I tried, and came within 1 or 2 frags, I never beat him. That used to frustrate me so much. After the server crashed, I had a similar experience at my isp's server, and the Reign of Terror clan's homeserver. I wasn't quite top dog there, but I was close.

PGR2 - Got in a little group with some other guys in this game. This is the only other game I was ever REALLY good at. I was in the top 10 on Nurburgring for awhile, and stayed in the top 50 until around december the year it came out. Getting all Platinums is still one of the coolest moments in gaming history for me. Then proceeding to realise the Speed 12 is a peice of shit to drive is one of the most dissapointing.

Metroid Prime - Phendrana Drifts. I don't think any more needs to be said.

FFX - Second time through. Maybe it was because I constantly had my mom peering over my shoulder because she managed to get interested in the story on my first time through, but the game just didn't click with me when it first came out. I played through it again about a month ago, and absolutely loved it. Probably my favorite FF, maybe tied with 7.

Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver 2 - The ending, those last few words, and that last twist, was the single, most spine tingling chill I've ever gotten from a game. Those who've played it know exactly the part to which I'm referring. The way it was presented, the things it clarifies, the worlds it shatters, the cruel finality of it's implications, and the simple fact that in a million years, I did NOT see it coming at all, makes this, in terms of individual scenes, the single most memorable moment in gaming history for me. I don't think I'll ever be as shocked and dumbfounded as this part left me by a game again, but I certainly hope so.


EDIT - Oh yea, one more. This was more hillarious than anything.

Delta Force (maybe it was DF2, don't remember really). My dad loved this game and we had sniper battles all the time on our home network. Well, there was one map that, for some reason, he could never beat me on. He was generally better than me, but for some reason I would crush him on this map. Well, nothing topped one the second time I played him on it. He never...ever...saw me. We played to 20 I think. Long story short...I ran out of ammo on kill 19. So I trekked close to a mile to sneak up behind him and knife him in the back.

Keep in mind...he never saw me. Not just never shot me, or never got a shot off...but in the entire game, he never even SAW me. It was....funny.
 
Super Mario Bros. 3 - I remember playing this game all the time with my babysitter. She was so awesome.

Sonic the Hedgehog - Damn that game was fast.

Super Mario 64 - The first time I booted up the game and just messed around in the courtyard. The battles versus Bowser. Such an amazing game.

Goldeneye - The first time I played the snow level where you have the sniper rifle, wow I forget the name of the level. That was awesome.

Zelda OOT - The whole game. In particular, the first time in Hyrule Field and the sun setting, and the final battles versus Ganon.

Soul Calibur - The first time I played it at a local EB, I couldn't believe my eyes. It was unreal. I remember thinking that games couldn't look any better.

Halo - 16 player LAN matches
 
MetalAlien said:
My dad bringing home a whole box of 2600 carts when I was a kid... around 1982.



Seeing Virtua Racing for the first time...



Playing AVP on the Atari Jaguar at the time of release... I couldn't believe a home game could look that good at the time, (quickly realised no game on the Jag would ever look or play as good as AVP)
Click to expand...

Damn those are good ones.:) I had a Jag. after E.Storm and that umm *acid trip* article of his sold me on the system. Its true that nothing really topped AVP but was it ever something else for its time. I eventually sold the stuff to pay for a Saturn on launch day but about a year ago I bought a Jag. along with AVP again,its ugly as sin nowdays but still very hair raising to play.

Props for mentioning Virtua Racing. That one totally slipped my mind. That was the first 3D polygon racer I had ever played. I remember walking back and forth telling myself to take it easy and not leave all my money on playing this game that day. But the game was kicking my ass it was so good and amazing to play. It was worth the money I pumped into that VR machine that day though.
 
endless hours of Combat on the atari 2600 with my brothers

playing Legacy of the Ancients, Maniac Mansion, and Zak McKracken on the c64

going to a friends house and experiencing SMB for the first time

The first time i beat Dragon Warrior

me and my brother finding a PlayChoice 10 arcade machine that had Super Mario Bros 3 BEFORE it came out in stores... we spent sooo much money playing it

my brother and i saving up our paper route money to buy a SNES at launch

maxing out my characters on both FF2 & FF3

playing Altered Beast at home!

and the one i miss the most is when arcades were everywhere :(
 
Super Mario Brothers - My first video game. Playing this with my sisters.
Blades of Steel - My second NES game. Tons of fun.
Karate Kid - Another NES game I enjoyed.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Arcade Game - Quarter munching mayhem.
Skate or Die - Also one of my favorites. Very fun action.
Mega Man 2 - Excellent platformer
Mario Paint - I created the coolest animations with it.
Animal Crossing - Countless great times.
 
Angelus said:
Damn those are good ones.:) I had a Jag. after E.Storm and that umm *acid trip* article of his sold me on the system. Its true that nothing really topped AVP but was it ever something else for its time. I eventually sold the stuff to pay for a Saturn on launch day but about a year ago I bought a Jag. along with AVP again,its ugly as sin nowdays but still very hair raising to play.

Props for mentioning Virtua Racing. That one totally slipped my mind. That was the first 3D polygon racer I had ever played. I remember walking back and forth telling myself to take it easy and not leave all my money on playing this game that day. But the game was kicking my ass it was so good and amazing to play. It was worth the money I pumped into that VR machine that day though.
Click to expand...


I've got more, but those were the first that came to mind.. I bought a Jag just for AVP, hoping to bring back the good ole days..I was bragging to everyone I just bought an Atari in 1994!

I first saw Virtua Racing at Circus Circus in las vegas,, a huge crowd was gathered around... it was also one of the first games (if not the first) arcade game I saw that was a one dollar to play... I had 20 bucks, spent 20 bucks on VR.. :)
 
Battletoads

You guys remember that speed bike level? All my friends used that cheap portal (after the 10th cement block), and I did, too, for a while. But I was tired of missing out parts of the game, so one day, with my friends around, I decided to do something next to impossible --- I wanted to beat the entire level, all of it, start to finish. I was speeding through the tracks, dodging cement wall after cement wall, thumbs rapidly going up and down, up and down, eyes fixed on the cart, duck, jump, duck, jump....FWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOSH!!!!!

Beat the level. That day, I was the man. My friends couldn't believe it. I felt good for a week and I never felt that way again...
 
DCharlie said:
Oh, finishing this on one life with friends watching in disbelief was a great moment :

wizball.gif
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I always got stuck on the last colour because I didn't plan properly.

I'll always remember the feeling of joy when I first reached the vertical stage in Salamander. I was like "OMG! I didn't know Salamander had vertical stages"... then I got creamed by the boss.
 
OOT: Everything. The anticipation, playing it, beating it, replaying it, rebeating it. Best fucking game ever. Ever.
 
Earliest was beating TopGun on NES, I think I actually ran around the house
Selling my NES collection in a week long yardsale to buy a SNES.
Radmobile woke the racing nutt in me.
SanFrancisco Rush and its TFF wheel blew me away.
Gran Turismo full blown racing addiction took me over
Colin McRae woke the rally nutt.
too many to list.
 
Renting Mario RPG for a month straight until my mom finally said "screw it" and bought it for me.

Playing FFVII in general, as it's my favorite game ever. Skipped like three days of school for that (only other game I skipped school for was FFXI, maybe Mario 64).

Speaking of, Mario 64. A fully 3D world. "Holy crap" is the best was to put how I felt, heh.

Or how about my first gaming memory ever? Mega Man 2 was the first game I ever played, at my grandma's house. I picked Wood Man, not realizing there was, you know, a jump button. I kept walking right and into the little wall and the bats killed me. ):
 
I've played and loved a lot of games in my years, but these are the moments that first come to mind when I think about my history as a gamer.

Playing Ghosts n' Goblins on the NES. My first game ever. I was never the same afterwards. It sent me down the path that brought me where I am today: a hopelessly compulsive videogame buyer.

My parents buying me Battletoads and Little Nemo The Dream Master as gifts without me ever asking for them. Talk about good choices.

Beating Legendary Wings for the NES back when I was 7 or 8. I had borrowed the joystick from my sister's boyfriend and beat the game using it without losing any lives. He couldn't believe I had gotten so good at it while he couldn't even come close to beating it.

Another great memory is beating Gunstar Heroes in two player with my cousin when I was 11 or so.

The many hours my cousin and I spent playing through Landstalker and Shining force back in the day.

After reading so much about it, walking into Hill's Department Store and seeing a playable Mario 64 kiosk. I was blown away when I first played it. From that point until I got my N64 for Christmas I forced my mom to go to Hill's quite a bit.

Like many, the whole Ocarina experience was awesome for me. I soaked up every piece of information I could get concerning the game prior to its release. When I finally opened that shiny gold box and plugged it into my N64, I knew I was experiencing osmething special. One of the greatest games ever made.

Going to the arcade to play Marvel vs. Capcom. I was never much of an arcade guy, but I loved dumping quarters into this one, being both a huge Marvel and Capcom nut.

Playing GTA3 on the PS2 the first day it came out. The next day I went to school and told everyone that would listen about it. The day after that it seemed like everyone had the damn game.

The final boss fight on Shinobi for PS2. Damn that was a bitch. I spent the better part of a Sunday afternoon trying to take that bastard down.

Most recently, the late nights I spent being totally addicted to Lumines. I credit this game for basically rekindling my love of games. I went to quite a few classes bleary-eyed after getting the game.
 
My best gaming memory (besides playing Shenmue) would be the summer I worked in the center of Paris where me and 3 of my co-workers (all doing a summer job) would go play Daytona every noon at the arcade next to the office. We were so good at the end of the month that the boss of the arcade would have us play everything for free (even these awful and expansive virtual reality games) because we attracted such a big crowd. We could play the whole advanced track having all 4 cars not 5 meters away from each other. I don't think I ever had this much fun ever since playing a game.
 
SO many moments.


TMNT 2: Fucking ninja Turtles Arcade on my TV screen i didnt think it was possible,

SMB3: Teh giant level wowed me at the time and also teh first time i flew.


Mario 64: I was really amazed everything was so huge and perfect. The sense of awe was something i never felt again in a game.

Mario KArt 64: me and my friend use to see who could finish the wario stadium race taking the shortcuts the fastest. He finished in 21 seconds i was so bummed but then the next race i beat him by finishing in 19 seconds.


Goldeneye: 4 player splitscreen license to kill Basement map = bliss


also opening a system at launch is just pure magic. Its the only reason I cant resist buying systems at launch, its just so damn exciting.
 
Playing Super Mario World in the months following my brother and I getting the SNES for Christmas, 1991 I think.

Playing through the first quarter or so of Secret of Mana with my slightly-older uncle during Christmas break 1994.

Super Mario 64 in December '96. Wow.

Staying up super late the night I got Um Jammer Lammy, playing through all 37 (?) stage permutations to get everything unlocked. What a blast!

Animal Crossing. Considering the small (and sometimes large) amounts I've put into this game on literally hundreds of days, I've probably played it more than anything else ever. The real world communal aspect of this was pretty big for me, too. First being one of the Pioneers I think we played an interesting role in getting some interesting "viral" attention going for the game. Then later working on Anicro Desapro; something I haven't updated in over two years and am still getting queries and positive feedback about.

I could easily triple the list with specifics, but those jumped out first. Certainly without these experiences I'd be a very different person today.
 
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