I'm on the left :)

I suppose the best place to start is at the beginning.

My parents tell me they bought me an Atari when I was three (thanks for being badass parents, guys!) and an NES not long after. I have no memories that go back that far, so I've been gaming for literally as long as I can remember. My first recollection of playing a video game is from around '88 or '89 I believe; I would sit in front of the TV and play Super Mario/ Duck Hunt all day long. The games have changed but the habits remain the same!

From those beginnings I grew as the technology did. Next came the SNES and a Sega. I don't think I even knew what a "console war" was back then. I just loved playing games. Again, not much has changed. Back then I wasn't what you would call a "hardcore gamer" (in the parlance of our times). Dad and I would take turns playing Sonic The Hedgehog stages or playing a few rounds of Mortal Kombat. I'd play maybe an hour or two at a time, tops. Then the game I consider to be the catalyst that changed video games from a simple pastime to a full-blown obsession for me came along.



Super Mario RPG! This was the first game I sat and played for six hours straight. I turned down offers from friends to hang out outside so I could play this game. Thankfully, those habbits have changed. Looking back, I have to admit I was pretty much a nerd from birth, but Super Mario RPG sealed the deal. When this game came out I didn't even know what an RPG was. I think the only reasons I wanted to play it were: one, because it was Mario; and two, because I undoubtedly bought into the hype-machine that was Nintendo Power.

In 1996 when the N64 was released my mom got up extra early with me so we could be first in line to buy one (once again, thanks mom!). My next big milestone in gaming would come not much later when a certain well known RPG was released.



Yes, that one. It was the first game that made me buy a system just for it. My friends Adam, Bryan, and I would stay up until four in the morning playing this game. Final Fantasy 7 was the first game that made me care about its characters. No, I didn't cry when Aeris died (spoiler warning by the way), but it did make me very sad. I had never thought about things like character death or the emotions characters themselves were going through before. I know for a 23 year old gamer nerd, loving Final Fantasy 7 to death is completely cliché, but I ask for no acceptance and I offer no excuses.

From there my story is most likely similar to yours. Playstation to Dreamcast to Playstation 2 to Xbox 360, Wii, and PS3. Over the years I've also owned a Gameboy (original giant brick, pocket, and color versions), Gamegear, Saturn, Virtual Boy, and DS. Sadly all the amazing games and systems I've collected over the years were gradually traded in for newer and not necessarily better stuff. I distinctly remember trading in my Dreamcast, two controllers, two memory cards, and about six games for 30 bucks. I could kick myself.


Someone write some God of War meets Shaun of the Dead fanfic STAT.

I'd also like to add that I've been lurking DToid for a little over a year now, I listen to Podtoid, and absolutely love RFGO! Some hobbies/ interests outside of video games include tattoos (I have seven), music (check out some MIDI stuff I do here), and books (just finished Atlas Shrugged and 100 Years of Solitude, currently reading Invisible Cities).

Finally, I won't suck, and I love you. :)