Nintendo has made a
fortune over the years between Mario and Zelda. The franchises
newest entries are always eagerly awaited and fans flock to stores to
buy them at launch. Zelda enters it's 25th year with an
entry built from the ground up for the Wii: The Legend of Zelda:
Skyward Sword. Since this will be the swan song of the Wii, I
figured it was as good of time as any to finally experience a Zelda
title. So, having no nostalgia-driven memories of saving Hyrule, nor
a deep seeded loathing of Gannon to spur me onward, I delved into
Skyward Sword and the world of Zelda for the first
time. The experience turned out to be one of the best I've ever
played.
Hmm. What would be considered a "classic" game? I suppose I should go with something from my childhood. And, one that springs to mind fastest is Where in Time is Carmen Sandiego. I had this gem on the Commador 64 and I used to play it for hours! Loaded with questions based on history, Carmen Sandiego games were fun challenges. I had always loved history stuff (thanks again to my father), but this really drove it home. When questions that I'd previously answered would come up again, I was always happy because I knew the answer. Little kid me used to be so proud that I could solve the cases (really, just answer all the questions) without just guessing until I got it right. It didn't matter that the game was educational, it was fun to play and I honestly learned from it.
Chasing the red-clad villainess through history!
The series as a whole was pretty cool, too. They had typing tutors, grammar lessons, spelling lessons and geography. My parents had purchased the adventure in Time and I loved it so much that we got Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego soon after. That one taught contemporary geography and I played it to death. I remember sitting downstairs at the computer trying to solve a quick case before walking to school and rushing down after finishing homework to do another. That was the draw: it was so fun that I didn't care that I had just done school work and was doing more. Plus, I always aced Geography and History tests. Maybe this series is why.
Searching the world for stolen monuments!
I still enjoy the series, and I wish we saw more of them. I would love to see that red trench and fedora more today. Plus, it would be an excuse to revive the TV quiz show that had the amazing theme song!
Oh, man, where it all began! I suppose
my first video game was either Tank Combat (inside the
multi-game cart, Combat) or Outlaw on the Atari 2600. My father and I used to play Combat for hours together. The
fun of the multiple maps and the silly sounds the tanks made when
they exploded brought joy to my face. My father, smartly, used both
games to show me how Math could be used to make shots. The concepts
of angles and ricochets were well beyond my little 5 year-old mind,
but I'll be damned if it didn't spark something somewhere in my
brain. I started to “see” the shots before taking them. Both
games required timing and forethought to win, and my father helped me
to understand that patience can be as rewarding as “guns blazing.”
The awesome Tank Combat!
My skills with the paddle/joystick and
the understanding of simple angles improved swiftly. This also
translated well to my love of Billiards, which my father also taught
me. Sadly, I'm still rubbish at it, but I enjoy playing on occasion. Having a “real-world” application of gaming is something
that has stuck with me to this day.
Outlaw provided hours of enjoyment, too!
All of the studies showing improved
hand-eye coordination in relation to games played is something I
embody. I improved my skills by playing Tank Wars and
Outlaw and both gave me a love for video games that hasn't
left, and hopefully never will.
Kicking off 30 Days of Gaming with a picture post.
Day 1 – Current
(or Most Recent) Gaming Wallpaper
Warhammer 40K (Space Marine)
New California Republic Ranger (Fallout: New Vegas)
New California Republic Flag (Fallout: New Vegas)
Final Fantasy: Tactics - War of the Lions Cover
Lightning (Final Fantasy XIII)
Vanille (Final Fantasy XIII)
Pokemon
The 3rd Birthday Cover
Portal Pony (Portal)
Robotic Unicorn (Robotic Unicorn Attack)
Since I have my background set to rotate, these are the ones that pop up. Personally, I love the Portal Pony as it mixes two of my favorite things: Portal and "My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic."
(These images were found on 4Walled and are property of their respective artists)
The end of an eventful 2011 draws near. To celebrate, I'm going to do the 30 Days of Gaming (found via Facebook, I have the outline after the jump) for the month of December, and then do a Games of the Year post on New Years Eve. That should send everything off in style, and give everyone a bit more to read in the meantime. Feel free to chime in with your own answers to the 30 Days prompts! Let's enjoy the season and gaming!
Kind of a slow week, mostly due to Turkey Ingestion overdoses and nothing new coming out. As is every year, now we enter the "long, dark tea-time of the soul," or the doldrums until mid-January when news is more about new games coming out than shopping deals. Hopefully everyone had a great week, now on to some news items!
