Ah, Pong! The first time I ever saw any video game, this was it; in a bowling alley of all places. Must have been the latter 70's, and I remember being amazed that here was something on a tv screen you could actually manipulate! A humble start to a huge entertainment form.
When I think of video games, the 80's classic arcade era is dear to my heart. Actually worked one summer during college in an arcade; mostly handing out tokens and making change, and resetting games. But there was a big bonus: after your shift you got a big bag of tokens and could play all the games you wanted free. Thus I got pretty good at Pole Position, Spy Hunter, and my particular favorite, Galaga.
Nowadays my wife and I like to spend an evening with Mario and friends on the Wii U. I could play Mario Kart until doomsday...
We had Pong when I was a kid, parents ordered it from the Sears catalog. My parents still have it somewhere, I wonder if I can get it connected to an HDTV. I got the Atari 2600 in '82, I think my favorite games were games that didn't exist in arcades. Megamania was one I played every day for months. That was it, didn't upgrade until the Sega Genesis in '93.
When I was in high school I had a friend who had an Atari, but in college I don't recall that we ever played video games -- how different would that have been from college kids today?
I'm not a big gamer, so most of my experiences with it came through playing with my sons. We have had a Nintendo, Sega Genesis, Playstation, and a Wii. Of those, the latter two were the first to quit working. Go figure. My wife and I occasionally enjoy a game of Super Mario Bros. 3, and I'm pretty darned good at Tetris.
Other games we had fun with through the years, on various platforms, were Frogger, Jungle Book, Toy Story, Spider-Man, an Atari Arcade Pack of classic games, Disney's Tarzan, and of course NBA Jam. Lots of hours spent, but I remain pretty awful at all of those. But it was quality time spent with the boys when they were growing up.
I am amazed at how the graphics have gotten to the point that the players are almost inside a movie. Pretty cool!
We had Intellivision and my friend had Atari, so between us we got to play quite a bit. I remember liking Pitfall, Popeye, Baseball and Skiing. My early Apple computer had a fun Donkey Kong-style game called Hard Hat Mack with a guy climbing around on construction girders. Bandito, Punch Out, Joust, Frogger...when I think of it there were a bunch, either at home, in the arcade, or at the corner store. I always liked driving games. I didn't stay with the games after university, so the new stuff with top notch graphics is something I've rarely sampled. I like what I've tried, but other things in life are better than video games now.
I had a few games played at arcades in High School ('77-'81), but besides Pong (just for the initial video game novelty..) the simple b&w Asteroids was always my favorite.
When I returned to the states after my 3yrs in Germany on active duty, I got big on 'Castle Wolfenstein' (the first one..), that was the only role-playing game I've ever got hooked on, at least for a few months. Was never much into games.
Very impressive graphics nowadays.., just no interest.
As a kid I had an Atari 2600 (as well as an arcade in town), so I played most of the classics. Nowadays, I like the Grand Theft Auto games (though I haven't played all of them), and I still love some older games like Banjo Kazooie...which is loads of fun! There are plenty of newer games I'd like to try (Uncharted, Saints Row, Dragon Age, etc.), but everything's so expensive now, just getting started is prohibitive.
I haven't played a single video game in over 15 years, but I had Atari 2600 back in the day, then Atari 5200, then Nintendo. Pong was probably the first game I had, Galaga and Galaxian were my favorites at the arcade. I remember spending a lot of time on Legend of Zelda on the Nintendo. Mortal Kombat and Mortal Kombat 2 are the last video games I ever played.
Every time I try to show my dad a cool new video game like "Batman: Arkham City" or something like that, he always (and I mean always) says the same thing.
"I still thing PONG was the best video game they ever made. That was good enough for me."
In grade school, one of my friends had an Atari, but I don't recall any of the games we played. Later, in the early '80s mainly, I played Asteroids, Space Invaders, Galaxian and Tempest occasionally, but never enough to get good; the thing is, I preferred to use the money that could have been spent playing games on comics, and books, and then later music. My nephew is pretty big into gaming, and a few times when I visited the States I watched him play, but it never interested me enough to join in. But yes, the graphics are really quite amazing...
Galaga, Ms. Pacman, Frogger, helped me kill some afternoons throughout early high-school (81-86). Had Intellivision and loved the sports games & Burgertime. Can't remember playing during college but then years later, the Sega genesis' Jungle/Desert/Urban Strike plus the Madden and FIFA series were great when one first starts working night shift and can't sleep during the day. Only game that ever hooked me was Age of Empires on the PC; damn that was addictive.
I met my husband playing an MMOG (City of Heroes), so I guess you could say I'm a gamer. The first video game I ever played was the venerable Pong, on a friend's console. First arcade game, at a 7-11, was Space Invaders, and then Pac-Man rolled around. Soon we had actual whole arcades and I was hooked. Our family finally got a system -I can't recall which one it was, we had a couple but I think the first was Atari. My Dad loved tank games and wore out several joysticks on them. I played a little bit of everything.
My game playing went dormant in college (like my comic collecting), but sprang back to life after I graduated. Current faves are Dragon Age, Disney Infinity 3.0 (can play Star Wars and Marvel characters with hubby), and we just got Star Wars Battlegrounds, although we haven't had time to do much with it. Time is usually the reason I don't do half the stuff I'd like to. As much as I enjoy computer gaming, I'd really love to have a fun pencil and paper role playing group again, but the last time I tried that I wound up with some deadly dull stat nuts.
I LOVED old video games. From Pac-man and Space Invaders at the local bowling alley, to our Atari 2600 (Adventure, Indy 500, Football, and Baseball were the family favorites), to various early-mid-80's games at the arcade.
Nowdays, my 13-yo son and I visit the retro-arcade mostly for pinball.
I was never into anything too complicated. More than 3 buttons? You will destroy me.
I was never allowed to have video games in the house when I was a kid. My best friend had an Atari, then a Nintendo, so I got my fill. My favorite was the often-maligned Castlevania2: Simon's Quest due to the fact that you fought monsters.
We have a Wii and an X-Box One. Currently, I'm dangerously obsessed with Fallout 4. I really like open-world games, and the world of F4 is huge. It takes place in post-apocalyptic Boston, and I live a town away from the pre-apocalyptic version. My son & I like the Lego Batman series. I loved Marvel Ultimate Alliance on Wii. I wish DC had an equivalent game, but Lego Batman 2 & 3 come close.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteAh, Pong! The first time I ever saw any video game, this was it; in a bowling alley of all places. Must have been the latter 70's, and I remember being amazed that here was something on a tv screen you could actually manipulate! A humble start to a huge entertainment form.
ReplyDeleteWhen I think of video games, the 80's classic arcade era is dear to my heart. Actually worked one summer during college in an arcade; mostly handing out tokens and making change, and resetting games. But there was a big bonus: after your shift you got a big bag of tokens and could play all the games you wanted free. Thus I got pretty good at Pole Position, Spy Hunter, and my particular favorite, Galaga.
Nowadays my wife and I like to spend an evening with Mario and friends on the Wii U. I could play Mario Kart until doomsday...
We had Pong when I was a kid, parents ordered it from the Sears catalog. My parents still have it somewhere, I wonder if I can get it connected to an HDTV. I got the Atari 2600 in '82, I think my favorite games were games that didn't exist in arcades. Megamania was one I played every day for months. That was it, didn't upgrade until the Sega Genesis in '93.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was in high school I had a friend who had an Atari, but in college I don't recall that we ever played video games -- how different would that have been from college kids today?
ReplyDeleteI'm not a big gamer, so most of my experiences with it came through playing with my sons. We have had a Nintendo, Sega Genesis, Playstation, and a Wii. Of those, the latter two were the first to quit working. Go figure. My wife and I occasionally enjoy a game of Super Mario Bros. 3, and I'm pretty darned good at Tetris.
Other games we had fun with through the years, on various platforms, were Frogger, Jungle Book, Toy Story, Spider-Man, an Atari Arcade Pack of classic games, Disney's Tarzan, and of course NBA Jam. Lots of hours spent, but I remain pretty awful at all of those. But it was quality time spent with the boys when they were growing up.
I am amazed at how the graphics have gotten to the point that the players are almost inside a movie. Pretty cool!
Doug
We had Intellivision and my friend had Atari, so between us we got to play quite a bit. I remember liking Pitfall, Popeye, Baseball and Skiing. My early Apple computer had a fun Donkey Kong-style game called Hard Hat Mack with a guy climbing around on construction girders. Bandito, Punch Out, Joust, Frogger...when I think of it there were a bunch, either at home, in the arcade, or at the corner store. I always liked driving games. I didn't stay with the games after university, so the new stuff with top notch graphics is something I've rarely sampled. I like what I've tried, but other things in life are better than video games now.
ReplyDeleteI had a few games played at arcades in High School ('77-'81), but besides Pong (just for the initial video game novelty..) the simple b&w Asteroids was always my favorite.
ReplyDeleteWhen I returned to the states after my 3yrs in Germany on active duty, I got big on 'Castle Wolfenstein' (the first one..), that was the only role-playing game I've ever got hooked on, at least for a few months. Was never much into games.
Very impressive graphics nowadays.., just no interest.
As a kid I had an Atari 2600 (as well as an arcade in town), so I played most of the classics. Nowadays, I like the Grand Theft Auto games (though I haven't played all of them), and I still love some older games like Banjo Kazooie...which is loads of fun! There are plenty of newer games I'd like to try (Uncharted, Saints Row, Dragon Age, etc.), but everything's so expensive now, just getting started is prohibitive.
ReplyDeleteMike Wilson
I haven't played a single video game in over 15 years, but I had Atari 2600 back in the day, then Atari 5200, then Nintendo. Pong was probably the first game I had, Galaga and Galaxian were my favorites at the arcade. I remember spending a lot of time on Legend of Zelda on the Nintendo. Mortal Kombat and Mortal Kombat 2 are the last video games I ever played.
ReplyDeleteEvery time I try to show my dad a cool new video game like "Batman: Arkham City" or something like that, he always (and I mean always) says the same thing.
ReplyDelete"I still thing PONG was the best video game they ever made. That was good enough for me."
In grade school, one of my friends had an Atari, but I don't recall any of the games we played. Later, in the early '80s mainly, I played Asteroids, Space Invaders, Galaxian and Tempest occasionally, but never enough to get good; the thing is, I preferred to use the money that could have been spent playing games on comics, and books, and then later music.
ReplyDeleteMy nephew is pretty big into gaming, and a few times when I visited the States I watched him play, but it never interested me enough to join in. But yes, the graphics are really quite amazing...
Galaga, Ms. Pacman, Frogger, helped me kill some afternoons throughout early high-school (81-86). Had Intellivision and loved the sports games & Burgertime. Can't remember playing during college but then years later, the Sega genesis' Jungle/Desert/Urban Strike plus the Madden and FIFA series were great when one first starts working night shift and can't sleep during the day. Only game that ever hooked me was Age of Empires on the PC; damn that was addictive.
ReplyDeleteI met my husband playing an MMOG (City of Heroes), so I guess you could say I'm a gamer. The first video game I ever played was the venerable Pong, on a friend's console. First arcade game, at a 7-11, was Space Invaders, and then Pac-Man rolled around. Soon we had actual whole arcades and I was hooked. Our family finally got a system -I can't recall which one it was, we had a couple but I think the first was Atari. My Dad loved tank games and wore out several joysticks on them. I played a little bit of everything.
ReplyDeleteMy game playing went dormant in college (like my comic collecting), but sprang back to life after I graduated. Current faves are Dragon Age, Disney Infinity 3.0 (can play Star Wars and Marvel characters with hubby), and we just got Star Wars Battlegrounds, although we haven't had time to do much with it. Time is usually the reason I don't do half the stuff I'd like to. As much as I enjoy computer gaming, I'd really love to have a fun pencil and paper role playing group again, but the last time I tried that I wound up with some deadly dull stat nuts.
I LOVED old video games. From Pac-man and Space Invaders at the local bowling alley, to our Atari 2600 (Adventure, Indy 500, Football, and Baseball were the family favorites), to various early-mid-80's games at the arcade.
ReplyDeleteNowdays, my 13-yo son and I visit the retro-arcade mostly for pinball.
I was never into anything too complicated. More than 3 buttons? You will destroy me.
--Joseph
I was never allowed to have video games in the house when I was a kid. My best friend had an Atari, then a Nintendo, so I got my fill. My favorite was the often-maligned Castlevania2: Simon's Quest due to the fact that you fought monsters.
ReplyDeleteWe have a Wii and an X-Box One. Currently, I'm dangerously obsessed with Fallout 4. I really like open-world games, and the world of F4 is huge. It takes place in post-apocalyptic Boston, and I live a town away from the pre-apocalyptic version. My son & I like the Lego Batman series. I loved Marvel Ultimate Alliance on Wii. I wish DC had an equivalent game, but Lego Batman 2 & 3 come close.
- Mike Loughlin