Games that changed you as a person...

[Proverbial Jon]

I own plenty of games that mean a lot to me for various reasons. Usually because they remind me of particularly nostalgic good times or specific people. I'm not too sure I can claim that a game truly has changed my life though.

Some games have prompted me to research certain IRL events. WWII games such as Allied Assault had me looking at some of the real world operations that you play through the game. Metal Gear Solid had me intrigued by the Cold War and Cuban Missle Crisis, which I never learned in school (we barely learned any of our own history, let alone that of other countries!), Bioshock Infinite had me intrigued in the Wounded Knee Massacre and the Pinkertons.

Games like Silent Hill 2, Metal Gear Solid 3, The Last of Us, Bioshock: Infinite and The Walking Dead just blew me away when I played them. I still can't believe how effective a medium video games are for conveying story, experience and emotion.

As an added bonus: "Tell me, Dr. Freeman, if you can. You have destroyed so much. What is it, exactly, that you have created? Can you name even one thing? I thought not."

When Dr. Breen said this line in Half Life 2 I had to question my role in the entire game.

 

[Battenberg]

Crash Bandicoot 2 and then, a few years later, Resident Evil 4. Between them they stoked an interest in video games at a young age and then later cemented that interest as a real passion to the point that gaming is my favourite pasttime today. Between these two games I basically became a gamer.

 

[Elfgore]

Another one for Katawa Shoujo. I only have played the first chapter so far and I have already cried. When he was in the hospital and he learns the truth behind the gifts really hurt me and the the next blow about the girl started the tears.

The game really made me look at how someone with these disabilities can keep going and how it's always darkest before the dawn. (unless you die of a heart attack because everyone rejected you)

 

[CannibalCorpses]

Call of Duty: black ops since i got a repetitive strain injury in my left thumb from running all the time...damn those 30 hour game sessions.

I've got to add Guitar hero: world tour aswell for introducing me to Dream theater...what a fucking interesting band. Been to see them twice, often listen to their albums and actually like the depth of their lyrics.

Also all the other music games i have played that , combined with my old job, gave me yet another repetitive strain injury in my left wrist. I'm also learning to play drums on the back of Rock band gaming so it's not all bad.

I'll also add a special mention to PC gaming in general because, yet again, i got a bad injury in my right wrist after ridiculous long game sessions and had to quit the PC for good. More than 2 hours on a mouse now and i'm in pain for a few days.

It seems in hindsight that the physical consequences of gaming for me have been harsh over the years...

 

[Someone Depressing]

The first COD game. COD is actually a really, really good game. So is 2. And the rest can go fuck themselves.

It was realistic, and simply facing what they faced in WWI, it's.. heart-wrenching to say the least. This game is my favourite shooter, and should be remade. Stop making more broken things, and improve what it already good.

 

[MrHide-Patten]

Maybe Metroid Prime, it was one of teh first 'serious' game sthat I played, never was interested in shooters before it and more of less from playing it I wanted to try more genres that I wasan't accustomed to. Affected me on a fundamental level, dunno, hard to tell, in some small way every game does leave a little bit of something.

 

[Raine_sage]

I would say it has to be Tales of Symphonia for me, though it helps I played it when I was still very young. It was the first game that showed me any kind of moral complexity. Most games for children are very straightforward and black and white. Here's an evil witch, collect puzzle pieces to stop her. Here's an evil Crocodile, collect bannanas to stop him. Here's an evil...turtle thing. Jump on his head to stop him.

So When I got tales of symphonia I never even considered that the story might go in a different direction. It certainly started out simple enough. Here are evil Desians, go stop them. Then the story really started, and it was the first time I really considered that there's more than one side to each story and just because I think a person is wrong doesn't mean that they think they're wrong. To say nothing of all the other themes the game touched on at one point or another.

I'm so incredibly psyched for the upcoming HD release. My old disks stopped working ages ago.

 

[CrimsonBlaze]

There are quite a few, in fact:

Spoiler: Sonic 2

Sonic the Hedgehog 2:
I've been playing video games since I was 4. The first game console that I ever played was, in fact, an NES, then some arcade cabinets (i.e. Pac-Man), and then the SNES. I enjoyed playing the games, but I was never sold on ever owning a console of my own or ever trying to do well in arcade games.

It wasn't until several years later, when an uncle of mine purchased a Sega Genesis that was bundled with Sonic 2, that I started to see video games in a new light. I went in thinking that it would just be another neat video game that I would occasionally get to play. Instead, it was awesome; Sonic's speed was so fast and the levels were so packed with enemies, items, rings, secret paths, and special stages that changed the nature of the game, it made me feel like I was playing something completely different.

After that moment, I wanted a Sega Genesis and I became fascinated with video games ever since. I've also been able to find interests in several subjects that I once believed I would never have an interest in.

Spoiler: Devil May Cry

Devil May Cry:
Due to my upbringing and my own personal taste in things, I would always stray away from anything that was too violent or scary. For a while, my library of games consisted of cartoon, movie, or mascot titles, and I didn't want to try anything outside my comfort zone.

I found that games like Jurassic Park for the SNES and Onimusha: War Lords for the PS2 where too violent, mature, and scary for me (still being in my pre-teens), so when I accidentally rented Devil May Cry for a week, I felt like I was in a predicament. The first level dealt with bloody marionettes and I had to savagely shoot or slice them to pieces, which I couldn't, because they scared the hell out of me. I actually stopped playing the game several times because of how scared I was.

After a day, I finally got angry at the game and went berserk on the marionettes. Finally, I was able to proceed and the game didn't seem that scary anymore. If it weren't for this pleasant mistake, I would have never touched awesome games like Bioshock, Dead Space 2, or Slender. I also feel like I've become a little braver as a result; though needles, veins, and broken bones still freak me the hell out.

Spoiler: ICO/Shadow of the Colossus

ICO/Shadow of the Colossus:
My main rule for purchasing games is that if I wasn't interested in the title, then I wouldn't buy it. I don't see the point of buying a game that everyone praises and says that it is good if I myself don't feel interested in. Such was the case with ICO and Shadow of the Colossus.

I was always aware of these titles, even during their time as standalone PS2 titles, but I never picked it up because I didn't find it interesting and I felt that the gameplay would really suffice my tastes. However, years later, I decided to give them a chance, on a whim.

At first, I didn't really like both titles; their controls where a bit strange and the story didn't provide enough context to keep me interest. For ICO, it wasn't until the girl was in serious danger of being taken, that I started to care for her safety and become more cautious of my surroundings. For Shadow of the Colossus, the first colossus that I encountered saw immediately and his slow moving downward strike scared the hell out of me. Afterwards, I was determined to get onto the colossus and take the sucker out.

These titles made more open-minded and as a result, I want to try a slue of other games that are highly recommended to my tastes.

 

[Alssadar]

Medieval 2/Rome: Total War.
I wasn't interested that much in history besides Age of Empires 2. History didn't seem that pressing of an issue, as Age2 always seemed too cartoony to be informational.
But I never realized how little I knew of the old world until I started played the Total War games. So much to learn, about people, settings, technology, battles, cultures, et cetera. The world is a vast place, with more things to know, most of them to be forgotten in some time, for our loss.
'Twas the first time I have tasted power: to have an overlapping campaign, whose chapters were designed and read by me. When my tactical decisions within a battle had an overarching effect on my future. It is one of the few things that gets me excited gamewise, nowadays, for I enjoy the acting of a bloodthirsty, power-hungry general. Perhaps it is the role I was intended to play...

But, most of all, I know glory. Never have I felt more accomplished, seeing an empire tumble to its knees as I raise my blade over their king's head. The power that comes with the kingdom, of having thousands of men under you command, following your banner to fight your enemies. The marks you leave behind in the battlefields you conquer, and the cities you raise.
There is never a more powerful sight then the enemy army in flight, even after they overpowered and outnumbered your own men. To have accomplished a mathematically impossible challenge, in your own pursuit. To have gained power, honor, and fame amongst your fellow man.
As a weak, pacifistic engineer, it does me well to crush my enemies, see them driven before me, and to hear the lamentations of their women. To have crushed a powerful force beyond reckoning, and to know that I am the better man--the STRONGER man, and that NONE can take it away from me, for as long as I live, ne'er an usurper nor rival shall take my power away. For the strength of my empire shall stand the test of time, and all shall know who I am.