Every game on the Virtual Console is a reminder of gaming's past. Some of these games hold special meaning for us all as a collective while some are among the greatest games of all time. 1 of today's games is where it all began for me, the first videogame I ever played.

Game 1 - Jumpman
Commodore 64 - 500 Points

Its a trifecta of 500's today, but this won't be bothering your wallet. I really try to be kind to these C64 games but if you want the sort of basic jumping around action that Jumpman provides, the original Mario Bros is also 500 points. If you really need some bomb defusing with your platforming, then I suggest waiting for Bomb Jack.

Game 2 - Boulder Dash
Commodore 64 - 500 Points

No doubt Boulder Dash has a special place in some people's hearts, I've spoken to people who place it above Dig Dug in the list of underground digging games. However the original has been bettered many, many times. Track down a newer version, surely the GBA version is pretty cheap by now right? Failing that, I have a Yaroze version on an old OPM demo disc.

Game 3 - Sonic The Hedgehog
Master System - 500 Points

This is it, the glorious start of my gaming life. Back in 1993 I powered up a Master System II for the first time and discovered the built in joys of Sonic the Hedgehog. A completely different game to the Mega Drive version, this is Sonic at its most unforgiving. No rings on boss stages, no way of recollecting lost rings and extra lives hidden in areas only Sega Power or Mean Machines could tell you about. Its never unfair though, and maintains the Sonic philosophy of going really fast as a reward for passing through tricky platforming stages. Everyone is strongly advised to pick this one up immediately.

Only Sonic is worth buying this week really. Strong Bad Episode 2 hits next week so get the points in.

>NJ