Influenced by the Game

Most gamers would like to think that some video games have influenced their lives one way or another. I’ve come across numerous blogs that usually talked about top 10 games of all time but I’ve decided that the cliché is overused and thought of coming up with a different list. Video games that influenced my life and those around me. A fair warning though, once you click continue to read, be prepared for a wall of text.

So here are the games that pretty much influenced my life, in no particular order.

Command and Conquer Series

This game pretty much brought me, my dad and my brother together. My dad bought additional 2 PCs at home so that we could go beat each other in this game over the network. At one point, my dad became so good at it that me and my brother were teaming up against him. I remembered seeing my dad play this game for hours on end, and it annoyed my mom a lot. C&C: Generals was his favorite in the franchise. I’m glad that BioWare is coming up with another Generals iteration, and I can see my dad getting all over it.

Loderunner

As a kid, I used to have one of those XT computers that barely had 16 colors on the monitor. Loderunner was one of the first games I’ve ever played on the PC. It was also one of the first that let you customized and build your own levels. I had hours of fun with this building insane levels. My dad really never got the idea of this game though, so he best left it alone with me as he favored Pacman.

Prince of Persia

The original Prince of Persia that I’ve played on the PC was memorable because once again, this got me closer to my father. Back then this version did not have a save game or anything. This version had a 1 hour time limit to beat or else the Princess dies. My dad finished this game as I watched him play by his side. I cheered him on as he battled through the dungeon puzzles and fought through hordes of undead skeletons and the henchmen of the evil Vizer.

Ragnarok Online

This was the very first MMO that I’ve ever played. I’ve played through the beta until it became P2P on Level Up Games. This game was very memorable because it’s what kept me sane when I was stuck at home right after my motorcycle accident. This game also brought the Anime Illusions community a bit closer as we had AI guilds on pretty much all the servers in the game. I represented AI in the Loki server back then. Ah great times…

Tekken 5

This was the first real fighting game that I really became good at. I mastered combos, air juggles and other crazy stuff. This was also the game that I seriously trained to join a local competition in my area. Sadly I lost, but this game has brought a lot of friends together, especially when I used to work at one place where one guy who I knew stood out. It turned out he was one of the best Tekken players in the country. Getting to know him and call him a friend was an honor.

Defender

This was my favorite game on the Atari 2600. Before the advent of my PC gaming years, this game was all I wanted.  Futuristic sort of game fighting off alien ships that tried to attack the city. It’s a far cry from all the side scroll shooters we have today but this was pretty much a grandfather and forbearer of today’s sidescroll shooters.

Valkyria Chronicles

This by far is the best PS3 real time strategy RPG game EVER. I spent hours and hours playing this and it never gets old. The Anime feel and epic story sold me. The characters are voiced by prominent voice actors/actresses in the Anime industry. This is also one of the few games that made me cry, due to one of the characters who died. It affected me so much that it left me thinking for days. After a year, this game became so popular in Japan that it spawned an actual Anime series. I still play it from time to time and have never gotten tired of it.

Monster Hunter Portable 3rd

This game, although only released in Japan, has touched my life in one way or another. This game made me love my PSP all the more.I participated in a local MHP community here dedicated to fun, hunts and camaraderie. We spent hours at the local Burger King every Saturday doing ADHOC sessions that usually lasted until the evening. The Burger King manager knew that it was our day so seats were usually reserved. We could stay as long as we liked as long as we bought something. Downing a few Whoppers and fries while spending the afternoon with your friends hanging around killing that huge Rathalos? Epic.

Halo Series

Halo was one of the best FPSes that I’ve ever played. I even went to lengths to buying all the Halo Novels that released alongside with the game. I could only remember all the hype when this game was on the top charts. It practically became a household name in the US. I thought everything ended when Halo 3 dropped but looks like Microsoft wants to cash in more with the announcement of Halo 4. I just hope they don’t disappoint.

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

This game only came out recently but it has been the best I’ve played so far. As an old school Dungeons and Dragons pen and paper player, I just couldn’t be happier. The game has stunning visuals and locations that I could only wish to see in real life. The amount of quests are insane and fighting Dragons? How more cool can you get? This game has also spawned a lot of internet memes. The arrow to the knee is the most popular and used by those who don’t even know it came from a video game. I still play it faithfully ever since it was released last November of last year.

Pangya

Pangya has been the casual MMO that I have always returned to. Tons of content and costumes (See the Vocaloid costumes above, only available to Pangya Japan) have kept me playing for 7 years so far. I’ve met friends there and had the most memorable experiences in this game as well. I’m ashamed to say though that I’ve spent a lot on this game buying costumes and equipment. I spoil my characters too much I tell you!