Happy Groundhog Day, everybody! It’s the most menial, silly, and uneventful “holiday” of the year in the United States, but I love it.
For those outside of the states (or those unaware), every year on Feb. 2, the people of Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, gather around to pull a groundhog out of his temporary home called Gobbler’s Knob. And that’s really about it! There’s festivities, there’s food, there’s music and dancing, but it all revolves around the groundhog, and his name is Punxsutawney Phil.
Phil has taken on a legendary, sort of mythical status, that this one fluffy rodent has been predicting the weather since the 19th century. Well, it’s clearly not the same one; there have been several throughout the centuries. The idea is that if Phil “sees his shadow,” he predicts six more weeks of winter. And if he doesn’t, well, springtime weather is coming early. It’s silly, it’s nonsensical, and it’s fun.
Anyway, I’m here today because of a movie of the same name, Groundhog Day, released in 1993. Starring Bill Murray and Andie MacDowell, it has a simple but fun premise: “A cynical TV weatherman finds himself reliving the same day over and over again when he goes on location to the small town of Punxsutawney to film a report about their annual Groundhog Day.” It’s an all-time classic romantic comedy, and Bill Murray is at some of his best. It’s on Netflix, and you should watch it.
The movie itself pokes fun at the holiday and town of Punxsutawney for its silliness, but it’s got a lot of heart. Through re-living the same day over and over again, Murray’s character learns some lessons. And it got me thinking about some of the enjoyment I’ve gotten by playing and re-playing (over and over) some of my favorite games.
So in the spirit of this “holiday” and the movie that gave it a whole new meaning, these are the games that I love re-living again, and again, and again.
Final Fantasy VIII
Go ahead. Talk your trash. I know a lot of people dislike FF8 for a variety of reasons, but I do not care. It is my first Final Fantasy game, and it’s one I re-visit often. I played the original on PS1 (with all four of its discs) about a dozen times, and I’ve played the remaster a few more since.
I love the characters the most, I think. Squall, Rinoa, Zell, Quistis, Selphie, and Irvine bring me joy just thinking about them. Is it the best FF storyline? No way. Do most people hate the Junction and Guardian Force system, although I love it? Yep. FF8 feels like home to me, and even playing it again as an adult without the rose-tinted glasses, I love it. I see more of its faults, sure, but I still enjoy going back to it.
Simply writing about the game makes me want to play it again. And I want to see it remade one day, no matter how unlikely it may be, considering there are several others that probably deserve the honor more and would sell better as well. But I don’t care. Catch me in Balamb Garden, stuffing hot dogs down my throat forever.
Resident Evil 2
While the RE2 Remake may have improved upon and surpassed the original in many ways for modern audiences, I still can’t get enough of the OG. Way back in 1998, for my birthday, all I wanted was a PS1 and RE2. And, as a spoiled kid, I got them both.
I watched my uncle play the original RE1 years prior, and it scared the god out of me. And truth be told, I didn’t finish RE2 until years later, because the zombies busting through the windows of Kendo’s Gun Shop also scared the god out of me, and I couldn’t sleep for days.
But eventually, I persevered, and I think this game is still a masterpiece. Leon A and Claire B, or Claire A and Leon B, matters not. Both scenarios are perfect and worth replaying. And when I do go back to play it (sometimes I even bust out my old PSP to re-play it, or even via the cloud on PS5), I have to do all four of them.
Marvel SNAP
The only “modern” game on my list is one that I should probably consider a minor addiction at this point. I’ve played Marvel Snap on Steam and on my phone for thousands of hours since it launched in October 2022, and I don’t see myself stopping any time soon.
Marvel Snap admittedly pisses me off quite a bit. The game has issues with balance, progression, and microtransactions, but I’m an absolute sucker for Marvel and card games, so this one has had me by the throat for a while. I start just about every day pedaling on an exercise bike while playing Snap, doing daily missions and ranking up, or just messing around with new decks. I can’t stop, and I don’t want to stop (most of the time, anyway).
Even if I’m not at my desk, Snap is a few seconds away on my phone when I’m out. And I spent more money on it in the past than I should have, I’ve tempered that spending, and stick with monthly season passes that keep me coming back constantly.
Metal Gear Solid
When it comes down to it, Metal Gear Solid on the PS1 is still probably my favorite game of all time. It’s a game I return to often to re-live the incredible voice acting, iconic boss fights, and memories that shaped me as the gamer I am today.
I have a ton of memories in MGS1, but this game gave birth to several more, including the rest of the series and just about everything else Hideo Kojima has done since (I have an Outer Heaven tattoo to showcase my love for the series). It means a lot to me, but even from an unbiased standpoint, MGS1 still stands the test of time as one of the best games ever made.
This is another game I can play just about anywhere, whether it’s PS5, or even my Steam Deck thanks to the Master Collection that launched a couple years back. It’s a quick game, beaten in just a few hours, but a lot of the time I like to sit back and let the Codec calls play.
The sound of Solid Snake’s footsteps in the snow or on metal grated flooring is like ASMR to me. It’s comforting. It’s happy, and positive, and that’s in short supply these days, so MGS1 is a game I will want to keep re-living forever.
Oh, did I mention that Groundhog Day is my birthday? And every year growing up, my mom used to ask me when I woke up, “did you see your shadow?” Yeah, I may be biased, but sharing the day with Phil is one of my favorite uninteresting tidbits about myself. Maybe I’ll play some MGS1 or RE2 today for old time’s sake.
And why not? Because Phil saw his shadow again this morning, meaning six more weeks of winter, so I may as well stay warm.
