I like Video Games... wow, who didn't know that the second they checked this myspace. The progression of video game technology and gameplay keeps the world exciting and fresh. Do I use this to hide from problems? Some might say so. But it's just to take a break once in a while.
I'm a Playstation guy. Am I playing favorites? Yeah. So what? Who doesn't root for their favorite team? Does that mean they've done everything right? No. But things are looking up. It's only the beginning of the "season". Lot's of games left to play. Heheh.
I started my gaming life on the Atari 2600. An awesome "little" machine that provided hours of entertainment. The controller really didn't work well. The paddles were fine, but the joysticks took some skill to use. Oh that wood panel look across the front of the case just screamed "I'm from the 1970's you know!" I still have two Atari 2600's that I don't play often. Outlaw, Space Invaders, Pacman, Pele's Soccer, and Combat! were the major ones for me. Although the 5200 was a major disappointment, Atari struck back with the 7800. Pretty kick ass console. The problem was, the NES came out about a year before... and with it's pretty graphics and fantastic library of games, the 7800 couldn't compete. Atari went away for about 7 years. During their time off, they developed 3 new consoles; Lynx, Jaguar, and Panther. Lynx was an awkward handheld, Jaguar was a "64 bit" home console, and Panther was supposed to be Jaguar's predecessor. The development for the Jaguar, however, moved so quickly, that the Panther was scrapped and never released. Jaguar failed miserably due to a lack of big name games and console glitches. After selling only 250,000 units, Atari decided to drop out of the console market, and became a name brand that would be tossed around to help sell games.
Nintendo started as a card game company. When they decided to switch over to games of the electronic variety, they started with some simple but fun Game & Watch portable toys. Then, they created the NES. The Nintendo Entertainment System. Now this bitch really got me hooked on video games for life. The graphics were superior for their time, and their gameplay still is. Innovation and style came together very well during this period of gaming history. The controller hurt the hand after a while, but nobody really seemed to care. The console itself had flaws. If not cleaned regularly, it would make playing the cartridges very difficult. But for some, that added to the experience. Each person had a way of getting their machine to work. A system developed after trying time and again to start the console... making each NES our own. My Nintendo is yellow from the smoke that filled the house when I was a child, but after throwing a Game Genie on the pak, it works like a charm. Far too many favorite titles to list all of em, but I'll list some; Super Mario Bros, Double Dragon, Blades of Steel, Excite Bike, Duck Hunt, and a crap-load of others.
Super Nintendo. Although everyone was talking about the Sega Genesis, SNES was kicking ass in both games and graphics. The first time I played this sucker, I knew I needed one of my own. Super Wrestlemania and Cotra III simply blew me away. Later that summer, my father had a heart attack. He was in the hospital for months. My mother stayed by his side while my older brother took care of me and my little bro. My older brother's friend stayed with us, and he brought his Super Nintedo. We rented game after game, and spent all day with the "amazing" technology. Joe & Mac and Super Mario World were the first games I bought. I still play em, and hum their catchy tunes while I work. The controller was excellent, adding the first shoulder buttons and two extra face buttons made it much better than the Genesis pad. Also, cartridges rarely had trouble playing. Fun and efficient machine. My other favorites include; Tecmo Super Bowl III, Star Fox, Super Mario Kart, and WWF Royal Rumble.
The Sega Genesis. I was a Nintendo fan, but this puppy made video gaming "cool". Any non-gamer watching folks play Mortal Kombat and Sonic The Hedgehog were taken aback by how fast and mature games had gotten. This wasn't Atari. Nothing simple about the content of Sega's top titles. The controller only had 3 buttons, a start button and d-pad to compete with the SNES's 4 face buttons, 2 shoulder buttons, select and start. Button combinations were required to do simple tasks that the SNES controller accomplished with one button. But other than that, and the slightly less detailed graphics... Genesis was a baddass console to own. It's sleek black look also grabbed the attention of people not usually into gaming. Like I said, it made gaming "cool". Aside from the games I mentioned above, I spent plenty of time with X-Men, Vectorman, and Earthworm Jim.
Playstation. Hard to believe that this console was once Nintendo's ally. Hmm, it quickly became their worst enemy. Nintendo bailed on Sony and decided to back Phillips' CDi instead. Quite a mistake. A Nintendo/Sony alliance would control today's market, and instead, Playstation and Nintendo are in direct competition. Sony's partnership with Nintendo was evident in the playstation's controller... it looked like an upgrade of the SNES controller. Playstation brought CD technology and three dimensions with an affordable price. Polygons my friends. The Sega Saturn and Atari Jaguar were already using this, but not nearly as well as Playstation did. Panzer Dragoon and Nights aside, the Saturn didn't have much goin for it. Playstation, on the other hand, gave birth to many of gaming's most recognized franchises; Tekken, Twisted Metal, Metal Gear Solid (I know Metal Gear existed, but the Solid series was something new), WWF Smackdown!, Crash Bandicoot, Resident Evil, Tomb Raider... and many more. My favorites include Metal Gear Solid, Warhawk, Resident Evil 2, Tony Hawk's Pro Skater, Destruction Derby and Medal of Honor.
