GameInformer

  My first introduction to gaming came through my dear old Dad. He played a lot of games on his PC when I was little, and us kids (that being myself and my brothers and sisters) had a ritual of sitting around his desk and watching him play. Watching the adventures of Lara Croft and Rynn from Drakan was every bit as enthralling as the cartoons we watched religiously every Saturday morning.  On that topic, it wasn’t until several years later that it occurred to me that my Dad only played games that featured not-so-modestly dressed female protagonists. But- you live and learn. And sometimes what you learn irrevocably changes how you view your loved ones.   Aside from that, all the gaming in my childhood took place on the Nintendo 64. Mario 64, Ocarina of Time, and Donkey Kong 64 were the games that made me love games. But when my cousins came to visit us, we had to play Mario Party. Had to. The game always kept us up past our bedtimes and always resulted in someone getting angry and quitting. But what else were we supposed to do with our time? Play outside? Please.   When I think of my favorite games of all time, it’s clear to me that Nintendo shaped my gaming tastes. I do most of my gaming on my Xbox 360 today, but I still have a soft spot for Nintendo- particularly with the Zelda series. So yeah. I’m one of those gamers. I would love to have a PS3 and play some of Sony’s awesome-looking exclusive games, but buying a new console costs a lot of money- money that I don’t have. Oh well. Life could be worse.