So, my buddy texts me several, SEVERAL, times about "Hey, I have this great idea for a blog" etc. Well, here we are. Finally putting things together and getting it started. Now, you might wonder what qualifies us to blog about video games and the industry as a whole and the answer to that is simple. We like gaming and other random shit we post...So, if you don't like it don't read it. What systems do you play on is another question you might ask yourself as well. This might take a little longer to explain.
If you know anything about Moose Lake Minnesota, the town I grew up in) you're going to know one thing. It's definitely no cultural mecca. To get our video game fix we would have to go to Gamper's bowling alley, Pamida in Cloquet, up to Duluth to the arcades that no longer exist, actually buy video games (saving up allowance money kind of sucked back then), or wait for the 4th of July town celebration and the carnies to come into town. Mostly we went to Gampers or waited for the 4th of July. That is until the Atari hit. I can still remember my parents bringing that glorious machine home and them setting it up. Playing Asteroids and Combat all the time. There was also that one game called Adventure where all you were was a little square and you had to collect colored keys to get into certain castles and avoid the bats and dragons. I think that is honestly my favorite game for that system still to this day.
Then along came the Nintendo. I think I was in seventh grade when it seemed like all of my friends were getting it. That Christmas all I asked for was a Nintendo. I won't go into details about how that Christmas went down but we definitely got the Nintedo and I got a NES Advantage as well. The Nintendo was used and it was missing the front flap but it worked just fine. Go to find out later that my parents bought it from one of their friends that happened to live on a reservation. For all I know the system was hot. This "friend" of theirs did some pretty shady shit in his past like stealing a fridge from a bar amoungst other things. Anywa, this is the system that really started the video game addiction for me. Things that actually really looked like things and oh the games...So many great games for the Nintendo. I actually got rid of the Nintendo a long time ago but recently bought a top loading one off of Ebay and started populating my games for it again. Personal favorite for that system is a toss up between three games. Yes, I realize Super Mario Bros. 3 is the pinacle for that system and yes, technically probably the best game for the system which is why it's a no brainer and I am not including it in my top three. First there's Crystalis. I'm sorry but without this game there may never have been Secret of Mana for the SNES. You can shoot me for thinking that but it's the truth in my world. Very simular styles of gaming for both of those. Then there's that lovely cave dwelling family in Legacy of the Wizard. I think this game is still the shit today. I can pop it in and mindlessly wander around those caves for hours. Finally Nobunaga's Ambition. Nothing really needs to be said about this game. You either love it or hate it. Personally I am looking forward to playing the latest installment for the PS2.
From here I went on to the Super Nintendo. I remember being in high school and buying it off of a guy that was in my class. That system really started showing where the video game industry could go. Yeah, I know a lot of people were Nintendo or Genesis fanboys back then and yes there were decent games for both systems but the SNES had the Genesis beat hands down. I did eventually sell that system to a friend of mine at one point but just like with the original NES I had to re-buy this on ebay and populate my games for it as well. The cream of the crop for me being Secret of Mana, Super Mario RPG, and of course a Link to the Past.
Now in college they put out the N64. I was a big fan of this and still remember playing Mario Kart 64 in one of the floor lounges with my buddy Dom until our eyes were blood red and we were so tired that everything seemed funny. No we weren't smoking weed either. Just playing all night. I have absolutely no desire to replace this system what-so-ever. Looking back at it there were only a few good games for the system and that's it. Of course the Turock games were fun and you can't beat Golden Eye for it but really, what else did this system have?
Now I am really not going to go into much detail of the systems or games but I did finally bow down to Sony and bought the Playstation. Just like everyone else on the planet I fell in love with the system and the huge library of games that it had. Then I picked up the PS2 and fell hard for that system. There were just too many amazing games for the PS2 but my personal favorite for a series had to be the Fatal Frame games...I don't know what it was about those games but they really sucked me in. The next system I got was the Nintendo DS. I got this as a reluctant birthday gift from my now ex-wife...I guess it's the one thing I ever got from her that I've actually kept. Well, that is except for a picture that's framed on the wall that has two devil children holding hands and it has the caption "Our Special Lil' Hell" which fully describes my marriage. The DS was great as a novelty but I never really fell in love with it. I did really like Hotel Dusk for that system. After I moved out of the house and into my apartment thanks to the impending divorce I bought myself a toy to try to keep me busy. I picked up the Nintendo Wii. Initially there was lots of love for this system but then the love wore off and it just sat there nagging at me. My next blog will be all about the Wii. Later the next year I broke down and bought a 60gb PS3. I was ready for the system seeing as there was nothing, NOTHING coming out for the Wii that I was even remotely interested in playing. Now, I'm some 30 games deep into this system and loving it. It also helps that I have a set-up that really utilizes it and the blu-ray player.
Now, there's also the smattering of other systems I've played but never bought. Atari Jaguar, Dreamcast, XBox, XBox 360, etc...Don't get me wrong, if I had the spare money to throw at another system I might bow down before Microsoft but as it stands I only have the time and money to put into the systems I already own. So there you go, my video game history in a nutshell.
Now that I have recently moved, again in the dead of winter, I must attempt to work on unpacking those beloved video game systems and getting everything else unpacked. Here's to all the Frozen Thumbs. Hope this starts a long friendship of blogging and video game discussions.
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