Name your first, favorite, and overall history in a game genre.

[SuperScrub]

Hi there fellow gamers (yes I'm even calling those who are "embarrassed" to be gamers gamers because denial isn't just a river in Egypt) today I'm hoping to discuss your overall history with given game genres by having you name your first, favorite and overall history in a given game genre.

For example

Fighting Games

First: My first fighting game to the best of my memory was the Soul Calibur. I remember play this game on the Dreamcast at a friends house and all the weapons in the game. It made me a fan of the series until they dropped the ball with Soul Calibur 5 other than that not too much I remember from the actual game.

Favorite: My favorite fighting game has to be one that makes strategy and skill components in a game, one that doesn't require you to memorize a hundred combos before you can play the game with twitchy controls, and one that is fun. So to that end I've made a modded version of Super Smash Bros Brawl called Brawl Minus my favorite game. It breaks the characters to the point of them being equal, every character is easy to play but hard to master, and it's fun and balanced in a competitive setting. Damn shame it requires a minor in Wii hacking to play it though but on the bright side you can make Zero Suit Samus look like Tifa.

Overall History: My history with fighting games used to be huge when I was little. I primarily played Tekken and Soul Calibur when I was young and used to have fun. Then once fighting games in general decided to give the middle finger to 3D fighting I've started to notice somethings. Like how the game requires combos that need to be pulled off with precise movements and exact button presses or else you'll get shit. This maybe just me though. Also something about tourneys have elements of things I hate about Sports and they just sap somethings I enjoy about the fighting game genre. Now a days I look for fighting games that do away with factory made combos, and focus on being easy to learn and hard to master and found tempid success with the Budokai Tenkaichi series and the Ultimate Ninja Storm series.

Anyway that's me going in to details with my history of the fighting game genre now lets hear about you history with game genres you find particularly interesting. It can be about one genre in particular or it can be about every genre you're familiar with summarized with 3 sentenses.

 

[WouldYouKindly]

RTS/World sim/Grand strategy:

I started in Ceasar 3, a funny little game that was surprisingly deep and introduces me to supply chains a a very young age.

Latest has been Total War Rome 2. I quite like it now that they've worked most of the kinks out and the mod support is excellent. As it continues to grow, I'll be able to create a nearly perfect experience for myself.

In between has been a hell of a lot. Everything from Starcraft, Command and Conquer: Red Alert to games like Hearts of Iron 3 and Crusader kings. I also played Star Wars: Empire at War, Sins of a Solar Empire, a funny space 4X called Stardrive along with Civ 4 and 5. Age of Empires, Halo Wars just to see how shit playing an RTS with a controller is. Almost all of the Total War games except the original Shogun, Medieval, and Napoleon. Company of Heroes.

The best, the one I had the most fun with, was probably Rome Total War, particularly the barbarian invasion expansion.

 

[Sixcess]

First Person Shooters

First? Wolfenstein 3D, this would've been around 1996, so it wasn't new, but I'd been out of video gaming since the early 80s so I found it terribly impressive. Mind you even then I was disapointed that when I shot at the pictures on the walls I didn't damage them... yeah, I wanted destructible environments and didn't even know it.

That game was what lured me into gaming, initially when I bought a playstation a few months later, along with DOOM. Other than DOOM I played quite a few - Disruptor, Insomniac's first game, which I loved, with its cheesy live action FMVs (hey it was the 90s) and as far as I know the first dual wielding in FPSs since you could fire off guns and psionic attacks at the same time; Exhumed, early WWII set games in the Medal of Honor series, and Quake II, which I'd later play in the far superior PC version.

After that came the XBox, and inevitably Halo: CE, which I still think is an amazing game, and the excellent (and very very long} Return to Castle Wolfenstein. Some other forgettable titles as well, the Xbox seemed to have a lot of those.

More recently, with a PC, I've enjoyed Crysis, STALKER: SoC and revisiting the aforementioned Quake II. I tried Half Life long after it was released and felt it hadn't aged well. Oh and Jericho, which is rubbish. I'm sure I'm forgetting a few others.

I've never played either COD or Battlefield - pure military shooters just don't interest me, though I did find Arma 2 impressive, if impenetrable.

The best? It's still DOOM. STALKER comes close, but DOOM still plays like a dream after all these years, and I still revisit it from time to time.

 

[Maximum Bert]

Ok I will go with fighters since I have a history with that (sub)genre

first: I really dont know it may have actually been karate champ but none made an impression until street fighter 2.

favourite: really hard to decide here either SF2 turbo or SoulCalibur on DC but I will go with SF although SC is my favourite franchise and I love all the games although I prefer 5 and 1 for the combat and 1 overall and 2 sorta disappointed.

overall history: I have loved the genre since SF2 I got burnt out for a while late during the PSX era although I still dabbled (thanks to SC) but the latest gen I picked them back up again. I dont have much time to play games anymore but I like fighters since they have such a pick up and play appeal and you can keep improving your skills each time. Im mainly concentrating on Skullgirls and DOA5U atm but when SC2HD hits next week I am gonna be all over it.

 

[porous_shield]

Point and Click/adventure games.

The first adventure game I played was either Gold Rush or Space Quest 2 and I remember struggling with the text parser to get the character to do what I wanted him to do since you would have to get the verb and the noun right. I liked the humour of the games despite the difficulty and they had a charm about them that drew me to other games of their ilk.

My favourite game would have to be...Broken Sword (I picked at random because there are four games I can't decide between). What first caught my attention was the art and then the story drew me in. The game has some good humour in it too and I enjoyed figuring out the puzzles -except that damn chess one- and the globe hopping nature of the game. At the time I first played it (97) it felt so different from the silliness I was used to in the Sierra and Lucas Arts games I had played.

I really enjoy adventure games but I go through periods of intense interest followed by hardly even touching them. Back in the late 90s early 2000s I played just about any adventure game my limited funds could get me and then I barely touched them until recently. Lately I've gone back and played some of the games I missed like The Longest Journey (which my computer at the time wasn't good enough to run) and Syberia 1 and 2. I've also played newer gems like the Blackwell bundle, Sam and Max, Machinarium, and Gray Matter (I love it's old school charm).

It makes me happy that these games have had something of a resurgence and I'm swimming in titles to play at the moment. I'll be happy if they don't make a turn for the "choose your own adventure book" like The Walking Dead game which I feel handicapped its story by giving you choices in it. If they do go that route I hope they put some thought in making your choices have impact rather than superficial copy and pastes with a few lines of dialogue.

 

[Rooster893]

Like the OP, I'll do fighting games.

First: The exact memory is vague, but I remember playing Street Fighter 2 at a good friend's house. We used to play nobody but E. Honda and see who could hit the Thousand Hand Slap first. And when either of us would attempt to beat the storyline, we would always lose on Vega. Damn that fence!

Favorite: Mortal Kombat. Whenever my good friend and I got sick of playing Street Fighter, we'd pop in Mortal Kombat 3 and have an absolute blast. We'd usually spend HOURS just picking characters and playing our butts off. It was because of those MK sessions that I bought Deadly Alliance a couple of years later for the GameCube, and I still ended up loving it. I'm still playing Mortal Kombat 9 to this day.

Tekken is also a big favorite of mine. I used to play Tekken 4 for long periods of time. I haven't really had any playtime with the new games like Tag Tournament 2 or 6 but I still have fond memories of Yoshimitsu, Law and Lee.

History: I still play Mortal Kombat, I used to play Tekken and Soul Calibur quite frequently, and I've spent some time playing Super Smash Bros. with my comrades. I like watching professional matches of all games -- as with the previous series mentioned, I also like to watch Street Fighter, Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3, King of Fighters 13, and anything else that has the potential to be exciting to watch.

 

[Hero of Lime]

Action Adventure(Is it even a cohesive genre?)

First: I guess Zelda: Link's Awakening

Favorite: Zelda Ocarina of Time, followed closely by Twilight Princess, Majora's Mask, and Wind Waker, and maybe Metroid Prime if you can consider it an action adventure game, which I kinda do.

History: As you can tell, Zelda takes up most of my action adventure gaming experiences. I consider the Metroid Prime games to be a weird hybrid of first person shooter/adventure games. There are probably a few other games that might fall under action adventure that I've played but the previously mentioned games are my general history with the vague genre known as action adventure.

 

[FPLOON]

As much as I want to choose RPGs, the first genre I played was the platformer, so I'll go with that...

Platformer

First: That goes to Rayman Advance for the GameBoy Advance... It was the first game I played on my first ever handheld console of my own and the game taught me that life is harder than it seems... (or something like that...)

Favorite: Currently, it's been Rayman Origins, since I'm replaying that game with my mother this time... Other favorites (that I own) include Rayman Legends, Super Mario Advance 1, 2, and 4, Rayman 3, Jak and Daxter 1 and Jak 2, Ratchet and Clank 1 and 2, Crash Bandicoot, and Sonic '06 Adventure and Generations...

History: Yeah, my "one-sided" love for Rayman over Mario was due to my introduction into gaming in general through Rayman... Mario followed and, soon, I was playing other games that blended into the non-platform-centered genres, like RPGs (Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga) and the Action Adventure (Beyond Good and Evil; Metroid Prime). I have gotten around to playing some of the other platformers from previous generations that I've missed out on (like the Tak trilogy, Mario 64, the Sly trilogy, etc.), and even when I'm playing a game from a different genre all together (like Project Diva F), platformers will still be one of my favorite genres of all time...

 

[synobal]

RPGs

First: Dragon Warrior, I learned to read from this game, and I can only imagine how many hours I had by the time I beat it. I was level 99 and dominated.

Favorite: Hard to say, I'm going to go with Vampire the Masquerade Bloodlines though, while there might be other RPGs I've played longer and more often there isn't one that can match the RPG aspects of VTMB. It really did feel like I was playing a role and I still remember most my playthroughs, a great game and if i could erase my memories of that game so I could play it like it was the first time again I would.

History: I dunno I play RPGs, specifically western RPGs, I've not enjoyed a JRPG since FFIX they just don't really attract me much these days. As I get older I enjoy choice and making my own path more and more so finding an RPG I enjoy is increasingly hard. Still I've great hopes and expect to continue to see the genre grow.

 

[Exius Xavarus]

RPG

First: I've been playing RPGs since old, old consoles were still new. However, the earliest RPG I can remember playing would have to be Golden Sun. Back when I was a kid, I got games with awesome box arts and awesome titles. Golden Sun was right up my ally. I actually still have my physical copies of Golden Sun and Golden Sun: The Lost Age.

Favorite: It's really close, between the Golden Sun games and the Tales series. Golden Sun and Tales of Symphonia are two of my most all-time favorite games, ever. I have several other RPGs that I love, love, love and love some more. It's really hard to pick a favorite when I love all of them, for different reasons.

History: I've been playing since the NES, Gameboy and Sega Genesis days. My very first ever game was Sonic the Hedgehog, when I was 1 and a half years old, so my parents tell me. But I love, love, love RPGs, although I just love games in general. If I find a game I like, I will play the shit out of it, and then some. Near 22 years later, this still holds true.

If you'll excuse me, my tablet and I have a date in Weyard.

 

[teqrevisited]

Ah, the RPG genre.

First: Super Hydlide. A game I've not heard many people mention outside of the AVGN video on the first game in the series.

It was quite frustrating at times, because of the weight, fatigue and hunger limits. You needed to eat twice in a day, couldn't carry much at any one time and if you didn't sleep for too long or eat enough your strength and health depleted until you were unable to hit enemies and you died of exhaustion and hunger. There was also a morality counter with hefty consequences: if you killed too many 'good' creatures you were considered evil and would fall into hidden traps and be unable to escape without a warp spell, meaning that if you didn't have that spell then you starved to death.

Favourite: Final Fantasy VIII. Yeah yeah. There's really not much in it between VI, VII, VIII and IX though. This had Triple Triad though. So many hours sunk into that game, so much rage at the Same & Plus combos. Great soundtrack by the master himself, decent graphical fidelity for the time and a fucking spaceship in the shape of a dragon. Ok the overall plot was nothing new and the orphanage 'twist' was the most contrived thing I've ever seen but I enjoyed the hell out of it. Also: Triple Triad.

History: Other than Super Hydlide I didn't play a single RPG until the Pokémon games were first released. Having played them to death I learned, through a cousin, the existence of a series known as Final Fantasy. He showed me VII first and although I wondered what happened to the other 6 I knew I wanted more. Years passed and I played up until X (I finished X-2 but only by borrowing it. The idea of the game repulsed me, but the combat system almost made up for it) and from there I went back to discover the roots of the series. So far I've finished all but II and V of the first ten. Then I found Persona 4 and quickly realized why it was so highly praised.

More recently I discovered the Disgaea series and have been hooked, right up until my PS3 died. When I get it fixed I'll be able to retrieve my Disgaea D2 disc and continue, but for now I'm moping and trying to finish Okami and Persona 3 FES (Which may have to wait because my save file is on the PS3 HDD and I can't be arsed to start all over again).

 

[krazykidd]

Jrpgs.

First: Final fantasy . I saw my dad playing this game when i was 3 years old. I wanted to play , so my dad told me i can play it when i learn to read because he will only help me with hard words. I beat the game when i was 4.

Favorite: My favorite will always be Final Fantasy 6. I still play the snes version every couple of years. Everything about that game is spot on. Also it has the best villain ever. Kefka.

History: Throughout the years iv'e played many Jrpgs. It is my main genre. My favorite series are the final fantasy and SMT series. My prefered battle system is turned based . I find it relaxing and exciting. Especially when strategy ( and a little luck) is involved . I continue to buy new and old jrpgs , and it's easily the genre which i have the most ganes in my library.

 

[Diddy_Mao]

RPG's

First - Adventure.
I spent hours chasing down ducks to poke with arrows and having my key stolen by the flying moustache monster.

Favorite - Probably a tie between Final Fantasy VI and Dragon. quest VIII. FF VI has a great cast and a great story and is probably what I would hold up as the gold standard for the SNES era RPG. DQ VIII is just a great update on a classic formula. It updates the system to streamline the experience without ever losing that classic rpg feel. The story isn't ground breaking at all but I almost feel like that might be by design.

History - I grew up with my Dad reading me the Hobbit and Lord of the Rings. I was playing D&D almost before I could really read the rule books. I may be critical of it as a genre for frequently being lazy but I do love fantasy settings and I always enjoy a good RPG.

 

[IllumInaTIma]

Turn-based-strategies.

First: I think it was Heroes of Might and Magic 2, if I remember it correctly. I was playing chess at that time and HoMM2 looked like Chess 2.0 to me! It was better looking, more tactically deep and your opponent wasn't some genius 9 year old kid who you wanted to punch in a face!

Favorite: Front Mission 3. It's not just my favorite TBS, but also my favorite game of all time! Sure, TBS part wasn't what I loved about the game the most, but it was still pretty darn good. Every wanzer had unique characteristics and skills and battles were dynamic and fun. Balance was a little iffy though. Melee attacks were completely overpowered, while sniper rifles were near useless. And also it is a Turn-based-strategy where all fighters were giant mechs! Seriously, even now seeing one wanzer beating the shit out of another with knuckles is impressive.

History: TBS is probably one of my favorite game genres. Right now I'm playing and enjoying the hell out of XCOM: Enemy within. But I remember, that before it there was Silent Storm, that did almost all the things Enemy Unknown did years before! And there were mechs! Also, I'm a firm believer that Russian developers are currently one of the best in TBS genre. Nival created amazing Silent Storm and HoMM5, while Katauri developed incredible King's Bounty remake. Seriously, if you love TBS you owe yourself to play King's Bounty, it's that good.

 

[the_great_cessation]

Platformers

First: It's hard to remember, but it's likely Super Mario World. I would often play video games at friends houses and considering that platformers were the bread and butter of the 90s, they were what I would mainly play. Some of my earliest days revolve around SNES and Gensis side scrollers and licensed games like Sonic 2, Earthworm Jim, Bonkers, Aladdin and The Lion King. However, one of the first games I ever owned for myself was Yoshi's Story for the N64. While not the best game, it was simple, cute and colorful enough to get me invested in the game. It was one of the first video games I could play and actually accomplish anything in so I have always liked it for that reason. I do find it interesting though that it wasn't until a few years ago that I understood how the game was meant to be played.

Favorite: I have a few. My all-time favorite platformer is Psychonauts. I'm replaying it now and it is still as fun, fresh and imaginative as I remember it being back in 2005. While it may not be mechanically the best platformer, it has a great sense of humor and a refreshingly self-assured sense of style that I can't help but admire. I'd give a very close second to Rayman Legends or Origins as they have some of the tightest controls, expertly designed levels, gorgeous aesthetics, tons of replay value and some of the best "game feel" of any title regardless of genre. I especially love the music levels which where both novel and rewarding. I also really love the Oddworld series, Banjo-Kazooie, Yoshi's Island, Donkey Kong Country Returns, Sly 2, Limbo, Braid and Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time.

History: The platformer was my introduction to gaming and has remained my favorite genre to this day. While few of my all-time favorite games are from this genre, platformers make up the majority of my gaming diet. I feel as if they are often the most mechanically satisfying games and take a lower level of player engagement then say an RPG, Adventure or Open-World game. They give me immediate satisfaction and are often the most "fun". It's also a genre which fosters creativity due to it being more about mechanics than creating a grand narrative. This gives designers more opportunities to base the aesthetics of the game in the absurd or the abstract which makes for a more memorable and interesting visual experience.

 

[Eve Charm]

JRPGS Mostly would be the most influential for me still.

First : Dragon Warrior, I must have been like 4 watching my brother play and soon able to take over when he finished his run though. Probably the first time with the skinner box, level up get gold get better weapons then murder everything feeling I loved about JRPGs.

Favorite : Hands down Persona 4, and golden. There isn't anything I can really say that Hasn't been said but Give this the hands down best JRPG ever title and one of the best story and characters in gaming.

History : I loved the dragon warrior series and off brand rpgs I forced myself to play in the nes days like faxanadu and simons quest. the Sega genesis had a few, Phantasy star 4 and then the online one for the dreamcast, I loved but thats another time. Beyond the beyond was the first one for my playstation and I just gave myself a total nostalgic trip thinking about it. Had plenty of Playstation 1 and 2 titles, went back and picked up an snes for for the older final fantasy's since I loved the PS1 era ones and secret of mana.

Right now tho I kinda see it as the Dark age of JRPGs. I Really miss the ps1 early ps2 era where games like wild arms, and FF7 and tactics and legend of dragoon. Back when the main characters were heroes, knights or even villains. Not it seems aside from a few your main characters are spoiled brats, emo, idiotic or just there to fill out fan services or fetishes. Man even the old mute characters are more tolerable then the new age of jrpgs.

 

[Haefulz]

Sports games... I know these aren't popular in a lot of gaming communities, but the early sports games I played pretty much laid the foundation for my knowledge of the rules and strategies for all the sports I watch and follow today, so many of these games hold a special place in my heart.

My first sports game was Kobe Bryant in NBA Courtside for the N64. Got it for $10 when I was 7 or 8 years old, and it was my introduction to sports gaming and my introduction to the rules and strategies in basketball. It was a pretty inaccurate representation of actual basketball, but it definitely created a love for the sport. Soon after that, I got Ken Griffey Jr's Slugfest, also for the N64. Similar to Courtside, it started my passion for baseball. I learned rules, player names, team names, etc. My cousin and I played both of these games competitively for absurd amounts of time.

Madden 2002 on the Playstation was my first introduction to American football, and was probably the sports game I spent the most time with in my childhood. I was especially into Franchise mode, which lets you take control of an organization, controlling most aspects of the team. Signing players, setting lineups, drafting, etc. I would usually simulate these seasons and I really had a great time building teams up over the years. I was also big into NFL Blitz, which is an over-the-top, super arcadey representation of NFL football.

Without getting into each and every iteration of sports games I played after that (because let's be honest, sometimes not a lot changes from year to year), some of my most played sports games over the years include ESPN NFL 2k5, which in my opinion is still the best NFL sim to date; All Pro Football 2k8, which is the best football sim (didn't have the NFL license); MLB The Show 13, which I have played competitively online in hundreds of games; and most of the NBA 2k series.

But if I had to choose a favorite sports game of all time, it would have to be ESPN NFL 2k5. The ESPN style presentation (halftime shows, post game shows, weekly highlights in season mode) along with the super realistic animations and gameplay style makes this better than any Madden released to this day. Oh, and it was only $20 when it came out!

 

[Evonisia]

Shooters.

I started with Half-Life 1 (as far as I can remember) in the early 2000's. My Dad had owned it for a while and I thought it was pretty fun. I mean it didn't really grip me into shooters but I enjoyed it for what it was.

My favourite in the genre is FarCry 1. I'm just a massive fan of it's huge, richly detailed world with many setting and loads of different ways of going about things. I enjoyed it's gameplay immensely with the fact that exposing yourself to guards would lead you to be dead in 0.343 seconds (on Normal) unless you went crying back to your shrubs and bushes. I like the dialogue of the guards and there are moments which are going to stay in my mind forever. The start of one of the missions has you in a broken down lift which has barely open doors, and as soon as the game starts you hear the thundering foot steps of the giant mutant with the Rocket Launcher for a hand.

I don't really have much of a history with them but they have been with me throughout my gaming life. From Half-Life to FarCry/Prey to Halo/Gears of War to Call of Duty to (most recently) BioShock. Of course there are many more games than that but it's a loose structure.

Gears of War 3 gets a mention for it's absolutely brilliant balanced and entertaining multiplayer experience.

 

[Remaiki]

FPS.
My first ever FPS was Quake 2. Looking back, I really want to hate it... but I can't. It's just too fun; one would think the aesthetic would tip you off that it's a space marine jamboree but it comes nothing close 'cause of how fast paced it is - the only cover I use is the cover of two shells blasted from my shotgun - or something like that.

My favourite ever FPS is Unreal Tournament 2004. Now and again, if I ever feel lost with nothing to do, I'll just go and have a crack at UT2004, playing on a bit of Morpheus3 on Skilled difficulty.. and it's just too fun not to get lost in it. There's the added bonus of me being rather good at the game. I find it a bit annoying because none of my skill from UT has ever seemed to translate to more modern FPS. Alas.

It'd be hard to talk about the history of FPS without going into about how much I despise the direction it's been going: i.e, modern military shooters actually being a thing. I just don't find that kind of thing fun, regardless of how mainstream it is. I also don't like how silly development has gotten for the FPS market. I mean, UT2004 had like 40 something individual maps that all had great level design and their own unique aesthetic. Nowadays it seems to just be 8 maps that's the gold standard, and they all look the same... Either way, you may as well just ignore these ramblings of a cranky old man (read: 16 year old with a fairly good memory).