Games are an interesting medium.... one that is both grossly misunderstood and at times, undeservingly criticised. For every Postal, we have a Katamari Damacy.... for every Solider of Fortune, we have a Shadow of the Colossus. Many detractors of the video game medium are, in my honest opinion, either ignorant through lack of experience/exposure, or simply choose to distance themselves away from what they still consider to be mindless entertainment with no redeeming qualities, bar visceral entertainment.
So, I'd like to put forth some games, that for whatever reason, transcend simply an 'interactive experience' for me, and actually hold a genuine dear place in my heart.
Whether or not all of you agree with some of my choices is beside the point entirely - I'm sure I'll feel the same about many of your suggestions.... just like a good book, film or album, the medium of video games is a completely objective one - we're all affected by different games in different ways.
1. Bubble Bobble (Arcade)
Obviously, many of our fondest memories are rooted in our childhood, and the joys of being easily amused. Some of the greatest memories I have from my childhood involve me heading down to the local milk bar (general store) and playing Bubble Bobble on an old coin-op. The game blew me away.... at that point, the extent of my video game experiences had involved our old Atari 2600 sitting at home with River Raid practically glued to it. the game affected me to such an extent that I constantly hum the theme song off the top of my head, even around other people - hoping that somebody will recognise it.
2. The Addams Family (SNES)
Now, when most people think of their fondest 16bit memories, games like Super Mario World, Zelda 3 and Street Fighter 2 Turbo are probably likely to come to mind.... but myself? What is the one game I probably played more than any of them?
Addams Family.
Granted, when my family got our Super Nintendo (Atari 2600 to SNES.... good jump), we were over the moon, and probably would have loved any cart that was plugged into it, but it was our first game, and in my opinion, one of the greatest and most challenging classic 16bit platformers of the era. To this day, the conservatory level still kicks my ass, and I've beaten them game probably close to 30 times.
3. Terranigma (SNES)
When discussion come up regarding which game most emotionally affects people, or brings a true tear to their eye... I am always incredibly happy to see Terranigma constantly brought up, because in my eyes it is possibly the most underappreciated piece of gaming this side of Beyond Good & Evil. It is honestly very hard for me to put into words really just how much of an impact this game had on me. I played this game pre-FF7, and before all future RPGs that really tried to tug on your heart strings with hours of CGI cutscenes and overdeveloped characters.
This game didn't need to 'try'.... the sense that you were a lone character attempting to accomplish an impossible task was immense. The game is perfect case study for the benefits of a 'silent protagonist', because even though Ark didn't speak, I became so involved in his character experiencing all that he did.
Terranigma had such a profound impact on me, that I had to force myself to finish the game. It was almost as if I didn't want it to end. I spent over 100 hours levelling my character up, almost as a way out of finishing the story. But when I did finish it....
Goddamn it... the only time I've ever cried because a game was because of that bloody ending. I urge everybody who has not experienced this game to play through it.
4. Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence (PS2)
Lastly, the most recent game to completely suck me in, and one that I am sure many of you would include on a similar list yourselves. I won't waste much time/space saying things that have already been said a million times over.... but this game fucking rocks.
The characters rock, the atmosphere/setting rocks.... just play this damn game if you haven't already.
One small note: I personally find the character of EVA to be one of the most interesting and enigmatic characters I have ever seen in a game before. The fact that we hardly still know anything about her is a testament to the pure genious of character writing from Kojima & co.
Honorable Mentions:
Deus Ex - my favourite game of all time
Secret of Evermore
Test Drive 2 (Amstrad style~!)
Lemmings
Final Fantasy 9
Zelda: Majora's Mask
Body Harvest
Donkey Kong Country 3
Well, cheers for reading if you got through all that. Now I must ask:
What games hold a dear place in your heart, for whatever goddamn reason?
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