My first gaming memories
There are some things in life you never forget. Memories can be powerful constructs that elicit a strong emotional connection to a specific thing or time in your life. I cannot tell you with certainty what the first game was that I ever played, but I am positive of the first game I remember playing. It was B17 Bomber on the Intellivision. The game was rudimentary by any measure today, but it was groundbreaking at the time. I was amazed how the game truly made me feel that I was flying over Europe bombing German encampments. Keep in mind that I was five or six years old. And now I am gaming over 40.
Click here to read more about my history with gaming
It is astonishing to me that I still remember the Konami Code and the sequence needed to jump to Mike Tyson in Punchout!! The secret levels in Super Mario Bros are as easy to recall as my first phone number. As time has progressed and the gaming industry has transformed, these types of memories have gone the way of the dodo. Today’s games have eliminated the need for codes and tricks. Now we get beautiful graphics, Hollywood caliber voice talent, and stories that rival anything on the silver screen.
The greatest generation is Gen-X
In the 1980s, the video game marketplace exploded onto the home entertainment scene in a huge way. My entire generation was caught up in the wonder and attraction of it all. I was no exception. As a child born in the 1970s, my generation is the first to have been born before gaming’s inception, but also to have embraced it wholly. My father dabbled with gaming on the Intellivision but he never toyed around the Nintendo Entertainment System at all. I may have gotten him to check some games out over the years, but he has never shown any interest in playing anything at length.
Within my peer group, nearly everyone I know is a gamer to some extent. Many of them are also gaming over 40. The reality of the gaming industry today is that there is something for everyone. You can find nearly every imaginable genre represented. This is because while there is a robust number of gaming manufacturers, the industry has invited Indie game designers into the arena with open arms.
My kids are addicts
When my kids were born, I couldn’t wait to introduce them to the world of video games. Both of my sons spent time sitting on my lap watching me play. I would give them the occasional opportunity to take the controls on something easy. By the time they were three or four years old, they were playing certain games quite well.
In recent years we began to fight over access to the gaming consoles in the house. Eventually I could no longer avoid the need for everyone to have their own. Now we all game separately, but we are always talking about the games we play and compare our experiences with each other.
My oldest son has settled into Action RPGs as his genre of choice. His most recent games of note are Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice and Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order. I have also played both and can vouch for their exceptional quality. My youngest son loves virtual reality. He splits his time between that and Roblox. His popular games right now in VR are Boneworks, VR Chat, and Beatsaber. I have played Beatsaber and understand its appeal, but I prefer Audica by Harmonix. I can honestly say I have never played Roblox but it has been on his play list for years.
The games I play and why
When it comes to my current gaming habits, I seem to ebb and flow with my favorite games and genres. I generally have several games going at once, taking turns playing a different one from day to day. The current carousel of titles comprises Astroneer, Cities: Skylines, Batman: The Telltale Series, and I just finished the story in Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order. I still need to go in and complete all the loot quests.
That is a phenomenon that is new to gaming for me in recent years. I have this compulsive need to complete not only the main story but also the side quests and acquire all the elusive extra things. Some games are more involved than others. Red Dead Redemption 2, for example, has so many side quests and loot crates, that I almost lost my mind.
Batman: Arkham Asylum is the first game that ever gave me that level of dopamine fueled pleasure. Now that coveted 100% Completion Achievement is my constant lover and enemy. I get to the pinnacle of accomplishment just enough to keep me hooked at trying but not too much to cause me to find it useless.
So many genres, so little time
As I get older, certain games attract me more than others. I also find that I go through cycles when it comes to the types of games that hold my attention. Additionally, some of the same titles will pop back into my playlist from time to time.
Some games that I have played a ton but seem to keep coming back to are:
- Elite Dangerous
- Rock Band
- Red Dead Redemption 2
- Subnautica
- The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
- Fallout 4
Those are my favorite games of the last ten years. As a matter of fact, I will count down my favorite games of the last decade beginning next week.
Playing with my kids
As I mentioned earlier, I introduced my kids to gaming at a very young age. The first games we played together were Hasbro Family Game Night and the Lego Franchise games like Lego: Star Wars, and Lego: Batman. The fun was endless until they outgrew those titles.
Rock Band is a game that I have played since it came on the marketplace in 2007. Both of my kids were far too young to play it for many years, but they would tinker with the drums or wail into the microphone on occasion. The irony is that as soon as they were actually old enough and coordinated enough to play with me, they had no interest in it anymore. That is tragic, because I still pull that game out from time to time and I would love to play with them.
When Minecraft showed up in 2011, my kids were both immediate adopters. I resisted playing it initially because it seemed childish, simplistic, and trivial. My mind quickly changed when I finally caved to the insistence of my children. I loved that game. I haven’t played it in a long while because it has evolved into a game that is so complex and involved that only the die hard players can truly appreciate the scope of its options. But for a few short years, barely a week went by that I wasn’t playing Minecraft with one of my boys for a few hours here and there.
Multiplayer sucks
The original Doom is the first game I recall having network play. It allowed you to enter a three dimensional world with your friends. The graphics and physics were not great but the experience was transformative. The first good title that brought it to the mainstream of acceptance was Goldeneye 007 for the Nintendo 64. It allowed for 4 player PvP or Player versus Player. I literally burned away days of my life battling it out with friends in those maps.
There was a dark period of gaming in my life that I referenced in last week’s post. I was sort of broke most of the time and couldn’t keep up with the gaming world. When I finally rebounded and purchased an Xbox 360 I dove headfirst into the Multiplayer Gaming world with Call of Duty 2: Modern Warfare. The argument can be made that CoD2 is still the greatest multiplayer game every made.Even in my early 30s, I was staying up until dawn killing adolescent children in the UK on a daily basis.
Eventually I stopped playing online multiplayer games. Why? Because of asshole kids. It is astonishing to me that young children are playing some of these games to begin with. Beyond that, it is mind-numbing to hear the language that comes out of their mouths. I once had a child tell me to go fuck myself. He could not have been more than ten years old. 10 YEARS OLD. Tops…
Multiplayer continues to dominate
The industry of multiplayer gaming has taken the world by storm. Today we have tournaments filled with players from around the globe battling it out for real money. They have been dubbed Esports and they are constantly growing in popularity. I have loved gaming my whole life, but I cannot bring my self to watch Esports. I am sorry, but I just can’t. With that said, I am excited for the industry of gaming today. For the first time in history, the video game market made more money than the film industry. Without doubt, the production quality of some games rivals Hollywood productions.
For a period time a few years ago, I felt the gaming industry was forgetting about those of us that are gaming over 40. I think that changed when they saw the success of the Nintendo Wii with older audiences. The mobile gaming market has exploded recently and I am noticing more and more titles on PC and console that have adult themes, featuring characters that resemble me more than a hyper stylized Japanese teen.
I have hope for the future of gaming. I have a seen a resurgence of single player titles of late after years of multiplayer being the only option for the most popular releases. You may have noticed that until this point I have not mentioned Fortnite. I take issue with that game for one simple reason. Fortnite is a science experiment. It’s purpose was to stimulate award centers of the brain with reliable hits of dopamine. The whole game is one giant loot crate. In essence, it is free gambling. Of course there is no evidence of any of this…it’s just my opinion.
Regardless, fuck Fortnite. Never played it. Never will.
Christopher Hess, LMT
You can find me on gaming networks:
Xbox: ZeroOctane LMT
Playstation: ZeroOctaneLMT