Video games have been part of my life since I was around 7 years old. Thinking about it now, that means it has been around thirty some years of playing games. I haven’t regretted a second of it. Fortunately I grew up always having some sort of computer in the house. Computers were my gateway into gaming. One of the highlights of my gaming history as a child was beating Zork. Text based games still hold a special place in my heart.
Next came Nintendo. I remember the late nights staying up with my best friend playing Tetris and The Legend of Zelda. I would dream about Tetris blocks at night. There was great excitement in the house when we finally beat The Legend of Zelda. From there things went stagnate for a few years until I discovered Final Fantasy IV. After that I was hooked on RPGs, something which hasn’t changed.
I know some people don’t see the value of video games or can’t understand why people spend so much time playing them. Personally, I enjoy games with a good story, some humour and interesting characters. For me it is an interactive story that plays out based on your actions. In addition to games that have a great story, puzzle games definitely rank pretty high as well. These seem to help with problem solving skills, especially when thinking outside of the box is required. A great bonus that video games can provide is stress release. There are some games that can calm the mind and aid in relaxation.
It is amazing the amount of thought and creative talent that goes into video games (well some of them). Games like Skyrim really are a testament to this. The amount of story development, character development and graphics that went into that game is truly amazing. Video games can be works of art.
Gaming is part of my life and it always will be. There are many interests that take up my time and happily gaming is one of them.
Adairmoon 