If you are someone reading this article, there is a good chance that you love video games a whole lot. Odds are that there were certain games that you happened to play over the course of your life that cemented that passion in your heart. These games aren’t necessarily ones that you’d consider the best ever, but they opened your mind to new possibilities, in either life or gaming.
Obviously, I am someone who is in this camp. I am a gaming lifer. I love this art form for more reasons than I can count (seriously, I don’t have a “top 10 reasons why I love gaming” list coming, I swear). But when I reflect back on my gaming journey, there are certain games that are landmarks for me. Once again, these aren’t necessarily my favorite games of all time, but they are games that made me think about either life or gaming differently. This list is an attempt to rank games in order of the effect that they have had on me.
Some of these games have genuinely shaped my life in certain ways that are difficult to quantify. Some of them simply opened me up to a new genre, which is a pretty big deal when I think about all of the other games they helped expose me to, and the influence those games also had on me. Some of these games helped solidify friendships that have lasted to this day, and a few just taught me to be more open-minded in general.
All of these games helped make me who I am today, and I couldn’t be more grateful to all of them for what they have done for me. Let’s get to it!
Honorable Mention: Picross S
I pretty much never do honorable mentions in these top 10 lists, but I couldn’t bear to leave this game out.
When you become a parent, it’s crazy to reflect on how much free time you used to have. When non-parents comment on how busy they are, I can only chuckle to myself these days. There was a time when I felt the same before I had kids, but I had no idea how much more of my free time could get sucked away in the future.
Back in early 2020, I thought my life was unbelievably busy. I worked 45 hours a week, I drove 50 minutes each way to work, and I was playing basketball or soccer four times a week. I was also married and had dogs. It seemed like a lot, but I still had more than enough free time to play pretty much any video game I wanted to, watch my favorite sports teams, go on dates with my wife, and occasionally rewatch an episode of The West Wing.
Then, of course, COVID hit. Suddenly, I had more free time than I ever could have imagined. I was still working, but all of my extracurricular activities were done, and I wasn’t seeing friends very often anymore. I got a bit into Animal Crossing, like many, but fell out of it after a few weeks. Instead, my COVID obsession became Picross S. I would go on to play through three different games in the series over the course of 2020. These games feature puzzles that can take real work and get your mind going, but they are also usually reasonable in difficulty. Think Sudoku, but more fun.
I think the amount of time I put into these games really made me evaluate how we discuss who a “gamer” is. Gamers can be strangely territorial about this. Only certain games make you a “gamer.” But in the end, I think Picross gave me a stronger opinion on the gatekeeping that can occur in our community. Picross still involves using your mind to overcome challenges, and the reward is both the picture you unlock at the end and the sense of accomplishment. While there are many reasons that we all love games, I would argue that these are some of the very foundations of what makes video games appealing. The sense of accomplishment aspect is something that other art forms cannot replicate in the slightest.
I may have resisted before, but Picross made me realize that all of the phone puzzle games that my mom loves make her a gamer too. And if you think otherwise, you are wrong. But also, Picross got me through some very scary times for the world at large, and I’m also very thankful for that.
10. Starsiege
One of the funniest things about being a kid is how excited you get to grow up, despite every adult in the world telling you that you are probably in the greatest times of your life. One of the easiest ways to get my 4-year-old excited about doing something new is to tell her that it’s something that “big kids” do.
So perhaps it’s not surprising that my first ever “adult” game is something that sticks in my memory so vividly. Starsiege is a first-person mech game from Dynamix, which is probably best known for Tribes.
I couldn’t tell you if this game would hold up today, but I thought it was a very fun mech game with an entertaining story (in retrospect, it was generic, but I didn’t have enough experience to know that yet). The anti-hero’s codename in the game was Icehawk, and really, until BigNerdGaming, that was my online persona for over two decades. I was Icehawk on every system, and it was my alias on GameFAQs message boards. So the game influenced me in that way, but more than anything, I think it taught me that I was going to be a gamer for life. When I played Starsiege, I believe I was 11 or 12, and being exposed to a much more mature story (one of the protagonists dies) showed me that video games could be more than what I thought they could be. And obviously, I felt cool as hell playing an “adult” game like this at that time. I don’t play tons of mech games, but whenever I do, I can still vividly remember my old basement and where I’d sit when I would play this game. Growing up isn’t always so bad.
9. Zuma
I’ve written before about how important Xbox Live Arcade was to me through most of my teenage years. Xbox Live Arcade was my gateway to indie games, which are exactly why I love gaming as much as I do today. The first game that really hooked me into this service was a freaking match-3 puzzle game. Zuma had a stranglehold on me for months. That mix of puzzle solving with action elements was so addictive, and I couldn’t get enough of it.
At this point in my life, all of my gaming time was pretty much spent on all of the big AAA releases that were on the Xbox. Zuma taught me how much fun a smaller change of pace could be when thrown into the mix. From that point on, I was playing demos for damn near every XBLA game that came out for years in the hopes of finding my next small game to love, and that passion has not died out ever since.
8. Flower
If you truly love video games, they will almost always reward you for taking a chance and leaving your comfort zone. I’ve especially learned this in the past few years of doing this blog. I’ve taken way more chances than ever before recently, and I love gaming more than ever because of that.
But I was still willing to take the occasional risk before starting this blog. One of the biggest leaps I can recall taking was when Flower was released for the PS3 back in 2009. Absolutely nothing about this game seemed appealing to me. Guiding a flower petal through the wind did not seem exciting. The game also utilized motion controls, which I had never been a fan of in any capacity.
But I heard enough hype that I said, “Eff it,” and tried it out. I ended up being completely enchanted by the experience. It was unlike anything else, and I thought it was quite moving. Perhaps more than any other game on this list, Flower taught me the value in taking risks and putting yourself out there. That can apply to many things beyond just gaming.
7. Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney
Up until Phoenix Wright, I had loved plenty of video game stories, but I had never really played a game just for the story. If I was playing a video game, I expected some fun gameplay too.
While Phoenix Wright has some light puzzle elements, it was the first real “visual novel” game that I had ever played, and with it, I learned that I could enjoy video games that are entirely story focused. Safe to say, this game helped introduce me to an entirely new subset of video games, many of which are some of my favorite experiences ever. But this game is also a classic in and of itself for me, and I am very happy that I had so many message board friends who compelled me to try it.
6. Pokemon Red/Blue
Like pretty much any millennial kid who liked video games, Pokémon was an obsession for years and years. Throughout elementary school, I’d play the game with friends at recess, on the bus, or when we hung out. I’ve never been much of a video game completionist, but I actually went and got all 150 Pokémon in this game (and was incredibly disappointed at the reward for doing so).
Pokémon helped solidify several friendships, including one with the guy who was the best man at my wedding (we had other stuff in common too, but Pokémon helped!).
But also, Pokémon taught me an early lesson in life about being myself. Throughout elementary school, my buddy and I would often talk about Pokémon on the bus ride to school. When we transitioned to middle school, I remember us both mostly sitting in silence on that first bus ride. Entering a new school was intimidating, and we didn’t want to be labeled uncool by talking about Pokémon. Soon enough, I found a group of people at my new school who had the same interests, and I realized how silly it was to hide who I was to try and fit in or make friends. I’d never truly connect with anyone if I couldn’t be myself with them. So Pokémon also inadvertently taught me important lessons about being myself that I carry with me to this day.
5. Crypt Custodian
I’ve heard so many people talk about how particular music albums “saved their lives” over the years. As time went on, and I became more involved with the gaming community, I’d also hear many people use this type of term with various games.
Frankly, I never really understood it. I’ve gone through hard times myself. I once went through a very debilitating depression, but art had never helped me out of it in any way. I’ve never been one to be comforted by someone understanding what I’m going through. Games and other mediums were a nice escape for a short time, but that never got me any closer to healing. In fact, I think at times, video games and other art forms could be more emotionally damaging for me when I was depressed. I benefit much more from being outside, exercising, and spending time with people in these instances. It took 36 years for me to finally have my moment where art genuinely helped me through a tough time, over just being an escape away from my problems for a little bit, and it took an incredible coincidence of timing for it to happen.
I started playing Crypt Custodian in the days after we had set an appointment for my dog to pass on. The game just happened to be released around then, and I wanted to play it solely because I loved the previous game from the developer. Little did I know that this was a game about a cat who had recently passed away and was in the afterlife.
Crypt Custodian can be a sad game for obvious reasons, but it also has tons of humor and is just a great game in general. The game was able to help me face what was to come while still making me smile from time to time. I couldn’t get myself to play anything else before the sad day came, and after my dog Chester had passed, it was the only thing I played until completion. I’ve been fortunate not to encounter much loss in my life to this point, and Chester’s passing was one of the hardest things I had ever been forced to deal with. I’m so thankful that Crypt Custodian was able to help me through it. The next time I am going through something difficult, I now might have another way to help myself heal if I find the perfect game.
4. Halo: Combat Evolved
My only real experience with a first-person shooter on consoles before Halo was GoldenEye on the N64. I definitely enjoyed that game, but it felt undeniably weird to play with the N64 controller. Because of this, FPS was not a high priority genre for me, as I was mostly a console gamer.
Halo changed everything for me. The game immediately made me truly fall in love with the FPS genre. I played this too many times to count. I played through the campaign with my brother, my dad, and many friends. This is also the only game that I’ve ever attended LAN parties for, and it was seriously magical. Capture the flag with eight people on two TVs all in the same room was about as electric of an atmosphere as I’ve ever had playing a video game. This game (and future iterations) helped develop and strengthen so many different friendships for me that Halo will always mean a lot to me.
My second favorite memory with this game was when a buddy of mine called me over to a LAN party he was at, because someone was talking mad shit and dominating at the game. I showed up, beat some asses digitally, and then left. That memory is a lot cooler in my brain than it is to write down, but it was awesome damn it. Halo was the ultimate icebreaker for like 3 years for me, and it showed me how great a genre that has been among my staples can be. It will always mean a lot to me, and it’s a damn fine game on its own.
3. Super Mario RPG
If you have followed me for a while, you have probably picked up on the fact that RPGs are my favorite gaming genre. I love the strategy. I love the numbers. I love seeing those numbers go up, and I appreciate the effort that usually goes into storytelling for these games.
I assuredly would have discovered the genre eventually, but I managed to jump into it at a relatively young age because the childcare facility my parents had me in had a SNES and a copy of Super Mario RPG. I got through the whole game an hour at a time over several weeks, and I was absolutely hooked. The familiar characters and timed action elements were the perfect mix to get me interested in this genre. Not long after playing it, I learned how to emulate games like Chrono Trigger and Final Fantasy VI, which hooked me into this genre even more.
I shudder to think about my life if I hadn’t discovered Super Mario RPG when I did. As a parent, this game also makes me think about the kinds of games I’m going to introduce my daughters to and how important it is for that first game to be tailored to their skill sets and expectations. Hopefully, the first RPG my daughters play gives them that same feeling that this game gave to me.
2. Bioshock
A few weeks ago, I wrote about my favorite video game endings of all time. Even though BioShock’s ending is pretty short and not particularly crazy, I knew it had to make the list because it’s an ending that legitimately influenced my life, and I think about it to this day.
Spoilers for the ending ahead, but the good ending in BioShock is at least one part of why I now have two kids today. For much of my marriage, my wife would ask me about kids. I certainly saw the appeal, but I was too scared to ever say yes. I didn’t know how my life would change, and I didn’t know if I was mentally up for something so challenging.
But there is one image that always stuck in my mind when it came to kids, and it happened during one of the BioShock endings. After the protagonist escapes Rapture with the Little Sisters, he ends up becoming a father to them, and they go from having a terrible life to having a fulfilling one. And in turn, those girls give him true fulfillment as well. I think it’s beautiful. The image of the girls’ hands growing and being there to support him at the end of his life is so moving to me. When I finally told my wife I was ready, that was certainly one of the images in my mind that I centered on that helped me feel like I could do it. While I definitely think I would have taken this life path either way, that image made it much easier to take the leap. Because of that, BioShock will always mean a lot to me, especially since it’s a tremendous triumph of a video game in its own right.
1. Xenogears
When we talk about the internet, we often talk about “bubbles.” People find those who agree with them and insulate themselves to avoid hearing anything that could pierce that bubble.
It’s funny to think that there was a time before algorithms when the internet could be the ultimate way to pierce a bubble. I grew up my entire life surrounded by religion. I went to church every week with my parents (and I wanted to because I was afraid of “hell”). My entire extended family was religious. My friends were all going to church. I had no exposure to any sort of non-religious views in my life until I turned 13.
Getting on GameFAQs message boards was one of the first things that made me think harder about religion. It was the first time I had ever seriously interacted with people who didn’t have the same views as everyone in my life. One of the other big things was Xenogears. Xenogears is a game that introduces a religion that exists purely to give its leaders power and money. It’s not hard to draw some parallels from that to real life.
It wasn’t long after Xenogears that I decided I should actually read the Bible, instead of just hearing various readings at church. And not to get too into it, but the deeper I read through the Bible, the less I wanted to be a part of it. I tried to stick with it for several years after this, as the alternative of nothing seemed pretty terrifying, but I increasingly became at peace with leaving it all behind.
This is another one where I think I would have ended up on this journey either way, but Xenogears set me on it a bit earlier. This helped shape my values and probably kept me from getting deeper into my church than I would have otherwise, which would have made the break off even tougher than it already was. When I think about a game that influenced my life, I really don’t think Xenogears will ever be topped.
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