LONG BLOG
Ten video games that inspired me to write about video games on occasion
So, it seems like everyone who writes on here seems to make an introductory post of some sort, so it made me think I should do the same thing. I didn't want to just talk about myself, and I really don't know ten things about myself to talk about, so I decided to write about ten games that inspired me to blog about video games in the first place. It's an easy topic for me, so I decided to be lazy and much less personal. Maybe others will write about games that inspired them as well? Who knows. just to be clear, these are the top games that inspired me, not my top ten favorite video games, and these are in no particular order at all.
1. Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
A video game that I bought for dirt cheap in a Costco's as a young teenager, oddly enough ended up becoming my favorite video game of all time. It made me grow an appreciation for the Castlevania series that still resonated with me today, even if the newer games are completely mediocre. Oh yeah, the music. THE MUSIC!
2. Donkey Kong Country
I've already said a lot about this game in my last post, but seriously this is my favorite platformer of all time. The controls are perfect, the graphics are great, even looking at it today, the levels are inspiring, the bosses are fun, and the music? This might be my favorite SNES soundtrack ever, and that's saying a lot. I love a lot of SNES soundtracks.
3. Chrono Trigger
I consider this to be the best video game ever made. It took the conventions of the JRPG, and expanded upon them in ways no other game before it did. The story was interesting, the characters; multidimensional and diverse, the combat system was actually fun. While I love this game completely, I do not have the same type of emotional connection that I have with the others on this list. It doesn't make this game any less amazing. Calling it a timeless classic doesn't do it justice. It's just Chrono Trigger.
4. Dark Souls
(I'm sorry for using a let's play here, but it seems to be basically impossible to find gameplay footage from Dark Souls and have it not be a let's play.)
Dark Souls came out at a time when I was just completely finished with games of the seventh generation. I found mostly everything but a very rare few on home consoles to be boring, and incredibly easy. Everything was overproduced, lacked creativity and left me wanting more. Before this game came out, I was spending a lot of time and money getting older games, mostly for the Super Nintendo. I ended up deciding to get this game after a coworker got to play a demo of it somewhere and was talking about how amazing it was and how I would totally love it. I ended up buying it on a whim, and well... I'm incredibly happy that I did. It blew my mind. A Japanese RPG with an emphasis on gameplay, and the gameplay is actually amazing... and tough as all hell. Online interactions that actually work very well. Completely maddening and awe-inspiring boss battles that left me actually feeling satisfied, like I accomplished something when I beat them. This was everything that I was looking for, and what I compare every modern game to when I play them, and nothing else really compares. Oh, and the story? If you really feel like delving into it, it's actually really, really good.
5. The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
Like many people my age, this was the first Zelda game that I could really get into. It may not be the best Legend of Zelda game ever, but it really left an impression on me. It started a life-long love for the franchise that has yet to ever disappoint me. I even enjoy the CDi games, quite a lot actually. you have a problem with that? Come at me, bros!
6. Phantasy Star Online
Oh man, Phantasy Star Online; the game that introduced me to online gaming. I remember coming home from school and using up our one phone line for hours each day, ripping people off on trades, killing scores of really ugly enemies and just having a great time. The game really didn't age well at all, but that doesn't stop it from being fun. I was kind of a jackass back then, now thinking about it...
7. Earthbound
I first played this game in middle school when my father brought home a CD with a Super Nintendo emulator with a lot of ROMs on it. I was playing games at random when I stumbled upon this one, which completely hooked me. After that, I started looking up Earthbound on the internet, where I found out it was OMG SUPER MEGA RARE HOLY CRAP! Which isn't true, but whatever. It was because of this game that I ended up getting interested in retro gaming, and subsequently, collecting.
8. Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne
Nocturne is really one of those games that completely changed my view of what RPGs are, and what they can be. A lot of people call this series Pokemon in Hell, but it's much, much more. The story is much darker than most RPGs that I have played at the time, and everything was much more mature. Not mature in the whole "there is blood and sex" way, but in a way where the story and characters are more appealing to adults than they are to kids. It was also probably the hardest RPG that I have played at the time. As a 17 year old, this game really helped expand my horizons when it came to video games.
9. Pokemon Red
This was the first RPG that I ever finished, just like so many other kids in my age group, but this is the game that started to get me into competitive gaming. I used to go to tournaments yearly for a very long time. I have since retired from playing Pokemon competitively, but I still have yet to find another game to replace it. That Into music though, it takes me back and pumps me up all at the same time.
10. Progear
I have loved shoot 'em ups before I knew to call them shoot 'em ups. I remember playing a lot of 1942 at my friend's house, and whenever I went to the arcade, I would always find a few quarters for Raiden or whatever other shooter they had there. It wasn't until I discovered MAME that I truly became an enthusiast of the genre. The first game to really captivate me though was Pogear. A horizontal bullet hell shooter made by the king of vertical shooters, Cave? I'm down! This game might not be as popular as the DonPachi or Mushihimesama series by Cave, but this one game is by far my favorite out of all of their works.
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1. Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
A video game that I bought for dirt cheap in a Costco's as a young teenager, oddly enough ended up becoming my favorite video game of all time. It made me grow an appreciation for the Castlevania series that still resonated with me today, even if the newer games are completely mediocre. Oh yeah, the music. THE MUSIC!
2. Donkey Kong Country
I've already said a lot about this game in my last post, but seriously this is my favorite platformer of all time. The controls are perfect, the graphics are great, even looking at it today, the levels are inspiring, the bosses are fun, and the music? This might be my favorite SNES soundtrack ever, and that's saying a lot. I love a lot of SNES soundtracks.
3. Chrono Trigger
I consider this to be the best video game ever made. It took the conventions of the JRPG, and expanded upon them in ways no other game before it did. The story was interesting, the characters; multidimensional and diverse, the combat system was actually fun. While I love this game completely, I do not have the same type of emotional connection that I have with the others on this list. It doesn't make this game any less amazing. Calling it a timeless classic doesn't do it justice. It's just Chrono Trigger.
4. Dark Souls
(I'm sorry for using a let's play here, but it seems to be basically impossible to find gameplay footage from Dark Souls and have it not be a let's play.)
Dark Souls came out at a time when I was just completely finished with games of the seventh generation. I found mostly everything but a very rare few on home consoles to be boring, and incredibly easy. Everything was overproduced, lacked creativity and left me wanting more. Before this game came out, I was spending a lot of time and money getting older games, mostly for the Super Nintendo. I ended up deciding to get this game after a coworker got to play a demo of it somewhere and was talking about how amazing it was and how I would totally love it. I ended up buying it on a whim, and well... I'm incredibly happy that I did. It blew my mind. A Japanese RPG with an emphasis on gameplay, and the gameplay is actually amazing... and tough as all hell. Online interactions that actually work very well. Completely maddening and awe-inspiring boss battles that left me actually feeling satisfied, like I accomplished something when I beat them. This was everything that I was looking for, and what I compare every modern game to when I play them, and nothing else really compares. Oh, and the story? If you really feel like delving into it, it's actually really, really good.
5. The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
Like many people my age, this was the first Zelda game that I could really get into. It may not be the best Legend of Zelda game ever, but it really left an impression on me. It started a life-long love for the franchise that has yet to ever disappoint me. I even enjoy the CDi games, quite a lot actually. you have a problem with that? Come at me, bros!
6. Phantasy Star Online
Oh man, Phantasy Star Online; the game that introduced me to online gaming. I remember coming home from school and using up our one phone line for hours each day, ripping people off on trades, killing scores of really ugly enemies and just having a great time. The game really didn't age well at all, but that doesn't stop it from being fun. I was kind of a jackass back then, now thinking about it...
7. Earthbound
I first played this game in middle school when my father brought home a CD with a Super Nintendo emulator with a lot of ROMs on it. I was playing games at random when I stumbled upon this one, which completely hooked me. After that, I started looking up Earthbound on the internet, where I found out it was OMG SUPER MEGA RARE HOLY CRAP! Which isn't true, but whatever. It was because of this game that I ended up getting interested in retro gaming, and subsequently, collecting.
8. Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne
Nocturne is really one of those games that completely changed my view of what RPGs are, and what they can be. A lot of people call this series Pokemon in Hell, but it's much, much more. The story is much darker than most RPGs that I have played at the time, and everything was much more mature. Not mature in the whole "there is blood and sex" way, but in a way where the story and characters are more appealing to adults than they are to kids. It was also probably the hardest RPG that I have played at the time. As a 17 year old, this game really helped expand my horizons when it came to video games.
9. Pokemon Red
This was the first RPG that I ever finished, just like so many other kids in my age group, but this is the game that started to get me into competitive gaming. I used to go to tournaments yearly for a very long time. I have since retired from playing Pokemon competitively, but I still have yet to find another game to replace it. That Into music though, it takes me back and pumps me up all at the same time.
10. Progear
I have loved shoot 'em ups before I knew to call them shoot 'em ups. I remember playing a lot of 1942 at my friend's house, and whenever I went to the arcade, I would always find a few quarters for Raiden or whatever other shooter they had there. It wasn't until I discovered MAME that I truly became an enthusiast of the genre. The first game to really captivate me though was Pogear. A horizontal bullet hell shooter made by the king of vertical shooters, Cave? I'm down! This game might not be as popular as the DonPachi or Mushihimesama series by Cave, but this one game is by far my favorite out of all of their works.
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About kyoryu blackone of us since 9:55 AM on 03.20.2014
I'm a serious video game collector who focuses mainly on RPGs. My favorite console is the SNES, but that doesn't stop me from playing modern games, thankfully.