Games that shaped/matured you as a gamer

[SeriousSquirrel]

Kinda hard to say what I'm thinking, but I guess what I mean is: What games matured you as a gamer? Made you want more in a game, or want different games?

For me it would have to be KoTOR. This was the first RPG I ever played through the entire way, this was the first game I played with such a compelling story. This was the first game that made me want every game I played to be spectactular.

It was the first game where I cared for the characters, and was the first game that made me replay it more than once or twice. It wasn't until I played KoTOR that I would have called myself a gamer. Since beating KoTOR, my standard for games has been raised drasticaly, and I have a harder time playing through games that I find mediocre.

And I've had a hard time finding games that have met that standard, and have found even less that have exceded that standard. (Note: I didn't even play KoTOR until like 2007, so it wasn't like I played it when it was brand new. Yet, it still stood up spectactulary)

For those who haven't noticed, I'm a HUGE KoTOR/Star Wars fanboy. I tend to grovell about/rant about the glory that is KoTOR a lot...

 

[Sacman]

Deus Ex pretty much shaped my standards for what a truly well designed and ambitious game should be...

 

[Miumaru]

Morrowind, Kirby's Dreamland 2, Duke Nukem 3D, Sim City 2000, and Mystical Ninja starring Goemon.

 

[sketch_zeppelin]

Well Persona and FF 7 were the games that turned me onto RPG's, Halo's the game that got me into FPS. I've always been into platformers and adventure games so...

 

[aithilin]

Earthbound/Mother 2 for the SNES. I've had a really hard time finding something that whimsical in style but dark in tone, or that had such a great sense of humour about itself and its players. I also haven't found much that had such charming locations, unique characters, and so much to do in the overall game as side quests and little interactions.

Though, Chrono Trigger comes as a close second.

 

[delet]

Prince of Persia: Sands of time - Showed me what a good story, platforming, and generally good gameplay is like.

Star Ocean 3 - Showed me that not all JRPGs are turn based and can be quite involving.

Disgaea - Gave me a hilarious story and the ultimate grind; I can grind anything now.

Prinny - Gave me a hilarious story and the ultimate button mashing skills; I can ram a single button faster than anyone else now.

Bioshock - Gave me a wonderful story and a lovely twist, and showed there could be a little more to an FPS.

Shadow of the Colossus - Wonderful puzzles and a very unique way of handling things; information isn't handed to the player; the player is to come up with the information. It also made me nearly cry for a horse, so that's a bonus. Also, it taught me how to spell 'colossus' correctly...

 

[Lem0nade Inlay]

Deus ex. - Showed me that you could do more in a game than just blast through people.
Baldur's Gate. - Taught me the basics of an RPG and was really the first non-linear game I ever played.

Two games that many of my friends still refuse to play because they are "too complicated" and have "shit graphics"

 

[Lust]

Silent Hill 2

It made me appreciate the dynamics of human emotion. It's still one of the few games that had me on the verge of tears. The "In Water" ending was kinda hard to sit through. It still is.

 

[Reveras]

Half Life 1, Starcraft, WC3 and ........the wretched WoW.

 

[MrShowerHead]

Operation Flashpoint Cold War Crisis

And that's how I started to love realistic/tactical games

 

[Jimrollson]

Morrowind did it for me. It had such a seriously epic atmosphere that everything I saw seemed to sucker me into involving myself. The story was morally grey and heaped with responsibility and the free roaming let me run wild in a deep and detailed environment. I loved it.

 

[PurpleSky]

I'm sick of the word "Gamer", I play games all the time, but I don't think myself as a gamer, it sounds like it's the only thing I'm capable of.

 

[Kialee]

Deus Ex pretty much shaped my standards for what a truly well designed and ambitious game should be...

This, mostly. Before Deus Ex, I took the DOOM approach to problem solving.
WITH HOT LEAD.
AND SOMETIMES MISSILES.

Morrowind comes in a close second, as it was my first true experience with a sandbox world. Grand Theft Auto 3 ties in with that as well.

Basically, any games I played early enough that allowed me a healthy amount of freedom to do whatever I wanted (within reason), but still had well-defined goals that were entertaining to pursue.

 

[Frequen-Z]

Oblivion. The first games to make me feel part of a story. While I liked Morrowind as well, it pretty much just assumes you'll find your own way willy nilly.

 

[r0mulu5]

In terms of shaping me as a gamer, definitely the original Half Life with an honorable mention of Age of Empires 2. Granted I was quite young but before these I was predominantly a Nintendo(SNES)fan.
Apart from that..errmmm... plants vs zombies?

 

[Eponet]

None of them did really. I guess the recent Call of Duty games bored me enough that I'm reluctant to play most FPS games.

But in general...I still play and enjoy almost every game I own.

Ohh wait, Age of Empires 2. That taste of glory made me demand both gates and a population limit limit higher than 50.

 

[Cowabungaa]

Pokémon was the first game I owned for myself and the first game that really got me hooked, shaping the way for things to come.

Shortly after that, the combination of Simcity 3000, Rollercoaster Tycoon, Unreal Tournament and Age of Empires 2 really got me into PC gaming and made my taste of games so very universal.

I'm sick of the word "Gamer", I play games all the time, but I don't think myself as a gamer, it sounds like it's the only thing I'm capable of.

Well, if you ask me, a gamer is someone who's passionate about the genre. Someone who follows the news, looks forward to releases, talks about games, that sort of thing.

Playing them is just one thing.

 

[Imp Erection]

Kinda hard to say what I'm thinking, but I guess what I mean is: What games matured you as a gamer? Made you want more in a game, or want different games?

For me it would have to be KoTOR. This was the first RPG I ever played through the entire way, this was the first game I played with such a compelling story. This was the first game that made me want every game I played to be spectactular.

It was the first game where I cared for the characters, and was the first game that made me replay it more than once or twice. It wasn't until I played KoTOR that I would have called myself a gamer. Since beating KoTOR, my standard for games has been raised drasticaly, and I have a harder time playing through games that I find mediocre.

And I've had a hard time finding games that have met that standard, and have found even less that have exceded that standard. (Note: I didn't even play KoTOR until like 2007, so it wasn't like I played it when it was brand new. Yet, it still stood up spectactulary)

For those who haven't noticed, I'm a HUGE KoTOR/Star Wars fanboy. I tend to grovell about/rant about the glory that is KoTOR a lot...

THIS. This so much.

It's my absolute favorite game. I had gotten Kotor when it first came out, and since then the only other game to meet that standard is Mass Effect. Kotor had such a huge impact on me that I instantly liked Kaiden Alenko because he was the voice of Carth Onasi. Hell, I think part of the reason why I'm so drawn to Female Shepard's voice (aside from her being incredibly badass) is because she was also the voice of Bastilla in Kotor.

Yes, I'm pretty much a Kotor fangirl. DON'T JUDGE ME!

 

[StriderShinryu]

Going way back, I think I actually started with a fairly diverse and mature taste in games. The first console I had notable experience with was the Intellivision, so I played everything from simplistic arcade ports to the really cool D&D game that the system had. On to the NES, I would say Zelda 1&2 along with Dragon Warrior and Final Fantasy helped spur on my taste for engrossing worlds full of story and adventure. This path was then pretty much cemented by the 16bit Phantasy Star games on the Genesis and Square's SNES classics (notably FF4, Secret of Mana, FF6 and Chrono Trigger).

To this day I'm still a fan of not just RPGs but any games that give me an intriguing world and cast of characters to experience.

 

[Eponet]

Kinda hard to say what I'm thinking, but I guess what I mean is: What games matured you as a gamer? Made you want more in a game, or want different games?

For me it would have to be KoTOR. This was the first RPG I ever played through the entire way, this was the first game I played with such a compelling story. This was the first game that made me want every game I played to be spectactular.

It was the first game where I cared for the characters, and was the first game that made me replay it more than once or twice. It wasn't until I played KoTOR that I would have called myself a gamer. Since beating KoTOR, my standard for games has been raised drasticaly, and I have a harder time playing through games that I find mediocre.

And I've had a hard time finding games that have met that standard, and have found even less that have exceded that standard. (Note: I didn't even play KoTOR until like 2007, so it wasn't like I played it when it was brand new. Yet, it still stood up spectactulary)

For those who haven't noticed, I'm a HUGE KoTOR/Star Wars fanboy. I tend to grovell about/rant about the glory that is KoTOR a lot...

THIS. This so much.

It's my absolute favorite game. I had gotten Kotor when it first came out, and since then the only other game to meet that standard is Mass Effect. Kotor had such a huge impact on me that I instantly liked Kaiden Alenko because he was the voice of Carth Onasi. Hell, I think part of the reason why I'm so drawn to Female Shepard's voice (aside from her being incredibly badass) is because she was also the voice of Bastilla in Kotor.

Yes, I'm pretty much a Kotor fangirl. DON'T JUDGE ME!

Pretty much? I'd say it's quite well established.

Regardless, we've established that you like KotOR, but what did it leave you wanting more of in a game?