As a gamer, I’m someone who’s always looking to be entertained and immersed into a game. Whether it’s multiplayer or a good story or even some good action, I want to be able to lose myself in a game. I’m always looking to be amazed by a game, and not just by its technical achievements.

What makes games amazing to me are things that suprise me. I don’t want to play a game that I have completely called out even before I open the box. Even if it’s the tenth game in a series, as long as it can make me suprised and do things that I would never have expected, then I would still consider that fresh and amazing. It’s all about good ideas. Only the designers who put their hearts into developing games have the good ideas and there’s is the only games I will buy.

Subpar games, to me, are the games where people obviously didn’t put their hearts into making the game and obviously half assed it. Whether it’s a sequel that feels and plays exactly like every previous iteration or it’s a new IP that’s lackluster in every way, if the designers don’t have fun making the game it will show. Yes EA, you’re the epiphany of it.

What attracts me to a game? What attracts anyone to anything? It has to look fun. Or entertaining. Either it will have to appear as something that would make me think or it would have to appear as something that I could completely get lost in and not think about anything else.

Why don’t I play certain genres? I dunno, I don’t like paying fifty dollars to play the exact same racing or sports title I bought last year. Which, incidentally, was the same as the one released a year before that. When I buy a new game, I want a new game.

What companies define me as a gamer? There’s no doubt Nintendo is at the top of the list. They stand for everything I believe in about gaming. Yes, there are other developers out there who I respect and release things that please me, but Nintendo is definitely the epiphany of creative interactive entertainment. Well, to me at least.

For me the best games are the ones that suck you in and never let you go. Ones that are open ended enough that you can tell your friend a story about an in game experience you had and they could respond with their own, or at least be interested in it even if they don’t own the game. Games that make you feel like you worked for everything and that you made your mark on the world. (I just realized i’ve been describing Morrowind this whole time.)

Games that are subpar to me are ones that lead you around and tell you where to go and what to get, so you do it, the whole time knowing it won’t make any difference in the outcome, and you’ll be led down the same path regardless of how you play the game.

I’m normally attracted to games that are unique or stand out with some kind of flair that differentiates it from other games in the genre.

I don’t play certain games either because the franchise doesn’t interest me (anime/japanese stuff) or because the gameplay doesn’t interest me (most platformers).

I would normally fill this out with glee, but I have spent too long in the AOL chat rooms arguing with newbs about gaming, and don’t feel like restating myself again. I just want to say that I am one for Nintendo.
They constantly deliver originality and innovation and just plain fun.
I don’t need to play mature-rated titles. I don’t need to kill things and bang bitches and smoke crack to “feel mature” or “cool.”
I would choose simplicity and originality like Katamari Damacy and Nintendogs over some shit game like Halo 2 or Madden 200280 anyday.
Which brings me to another thing. I hate EA. They only bring out games based on titles, and all their games are shit.
And the new consoles [minus the Revo.] are all about power, and MS and SONY are open about it. All those mainstream graphic whores just eat it all up, too. I want more HomeLand and Chibi-robo and Katamari Damacy and Ocarina of Time! Not another football game they release a new version of weekly. Not another FPS [which made up at least 70 percent of the games shown at E3 05.]
Let me end with this quote from Ken Kutaragi:
“The PlayStation [3] is not a game machine.”
[snicker]

Oh, crap. I am sorry. I meant to fill it out once, and post it once. I posted it once on AOL, and thought it didn’t work, and so I posted it in Internet Explored…oh, god, please kill me. Strike me down, lord! Or, you can just remove one of those posts…

Edit: Done - CoffeeMan

[…] uo; Happy Matt Chan Day! On Gaming I wrote this entry because of this post over at […]

This might offend, but I really don’t consider big Playstation and Xbox fans under the age of 20 to be ‘gamers’. To me a true gamer needs, if not more experience, more exposure. Especially to the classics. I got into video games way back when I was about six years old after my dad bought me Casio’s ‘Dandy Cowboy’. It quickly moved to Game & Watch, an NES and a Gameboy.

Irks me to no end to hear kids refer to ‘Final Fantasy VII’ as ‘classic’. People who feel they have to own every console, I also don’t consider them to be true to gaming. They feel they have too much to prove. These are also often the people who feel compelled to buy ever first person shooter released. This way they can finally feel like a grown up. I’m 25. Paying my rent (and eating chocolate cake for breakfast) tells me I’m a grown up.

Enough about everyone else and more about ME! Even though I’ve been a gamer for all these years, I still don’t consider myself exactly hardcore. I’d say I’m a couple notches below.

Games that are actually FUN are amazing to me. Games that pull me in in some way that the hours become a blur.

What I find subpar are most of the things that make me avoid certain games. Games seemingly made for sheep. The first person shooter clones that won’t go away no matter how many times I close my eyes. That and the need for excessive violence and ‘realism’. Not saying I don’t get into some violence now and then. I’ve finished Resident Evil 4 three times and it’s still fun to play.

Innovation attracts me to most games and this, in turn, attracts me more to Nintendo games than any other. I was playing Yoshi: Touch & Go the other night and thought, ‘damn, this is pretty hard AND pretty cool. I don’t think I’ve done anything like this before.’ Entertainment plays a bit role as well, of course.

I’m with Kammo, more Homeland (would it ever be released here?). I’m dying to play that game. I love little gems like that.

As a gamer, I am a little compulsive. I like to buy games the day they come out. I get games that are must-haves like your Mario’s or Zelda’s but I sometimes go with what I like.

What makes a game amazing to me is complex simplicity and good gameplay. Advance Wars 1/2 is my best example of this, it is a game someone can learn fairly quickly but can spend an eternity trying to master. Quirky games are also worth mentioning, WarioWare and Katamari Damacy are both off the wall titles that seem weird when we first see them but after playing them you wonder how we ever got along without them.

What makes a game subpar to me is overhyped, kill everyone type games. Grand Theft Auto 1 brought in the idea that you can go anywhere and do anything, and 3 brought it into 3-D and got the title to where it is today and I respect that and will give it its due, but all the other rip-offs and games that want to cash in on the trend makes me sick. They are all hindrances to the industry, making it harder for new game ideas to bloom.

What initially attracts me to a game is its concept. New ideas and art styles get me interested in new titles and get me to read about them.

I don’t play certain genres because those are probably the games that people know will be disappointments such as movie or tv based games. Other than that I can play pretty much anything.

Nintendo easily defines me as a gamer, they’ve been one of the very few companies to know that gameplay is the most important thing.

Oh, wow. People are actually writing it all in their comments. I decided to make my own blog post based on your post. The URL is here: http://eggplant.nexusvector.net/posts/46. I figure it might be good to get my thoughts out on my own blog.

Whoa. I think something went weird when I posted my comment. It’s the sixth comment down. Sorry about that.

I am one of the ones who has been around forever. Not as old as the first-first gamers that sat in with Pong and played Space Invaders to no end at the arcades, but the wave that remembers having an Atari and really coming into it with the NES/Master System days. I miss the times when you were one or the other–a Nintendo kid or a Sega kid. Rarely was one ever both.

I always swore I would never stop playing games; that I would never outgrow them. I have definately tapered off, for sure. I don’t play nearly a quarter of what I did even two or three years ago, but I honestly believe that the “new generation”, the kids who bought it with FF7 and the ones whose first system was Xbox, are pushing me out. The market is 95% for them now, which makes me sad.

That’s not to say I don’t still play.

I still play the gems, but they’re becoming harder to find. That’s why the GBA and the DS are so appealing to me right now, they seem to act as throwbacks to the old days. I am so frigging excited for Fire Emblem it’s not even funny.

I tried God of War and played all the way through it. It was fun, but it seemed more like “it was fun enough to keep me playing”. I haven’t gotten that OH MY GOD I NEED IT feeling for a while. Zelda, yeah, I’m super pumped, but I feel like I am not as interested as I once was. Is it because I’m getting older? I doubt it. I’m just losing interest in what’s available.

I was a late-comer to Burnout 3, and normally I wouldn’t put any thought to it, but wow, that game was fun. I got suckered into buying it though, I tried it at a friend’s house and it blew my mind, but the novelty really wore off after the first weekend.

Namco’s really picked up lately, they’ve impressed me so much lately. Konami is trying to keep things different, which is cool.

I feel like I could keep on going forever and my thoughts are getting too mixed up. I keep thinking of great games and I want to mention them all and how I feel but it would take so long, ha ha.

MGS3 was really awesome. I think that’s what does it for me the most. A story. Not just “save the princess, blah blah”, but something with substance. I like the standard princess stuff too, but it’s a fun distraction; I like them based off gameplay.

To really capture it all, that’s what I look for. A game that is fun to play, has a great story, etc., but how stupid is it that I am writing “THE BEST GAME IS THE KIND THAT HAS THE BEST EVERYTHING”, but I guess it is kind of true.

Wow, good questions. Long answers. I’ll give it a shot, I think.

1. Cranky. Pissed off a lot. Old school, with a vengeance.

2. An interesting storyline, with an involving plot and honest characters, and/or an atmosphere that keeps me guessing, like Metroid. Barring that, I crave fun gameplay like old Sonic, Sparkster, Shinobi (3!), pre-3D Mario. Controls I can feel and have fun doing it. Good music also boosts my enjoyment of a game.

BTW, Doukutsu Monogatari is, as far as I’m concerned, the most perfect game ever.

3. It’s hard to say… but it is usually a failure to make the game fun/interesting enough to keep going. The controls are frustrating, or the plot’s predicatable and flat, or I just can’t get into the aesthetic. Sometimes, I just can’t like a game because it’s not visually interesting enough. I know I’m a shallow bastard. I can’t help that though.

Also, when a game is way too long, and it feels like I’ll never finish it. There’s a point at which I give up on really long games, unless they’re really fun. There’s been too much emphasis on game length in the past 10 years, and it’s given us huge epic games that my semi-grown-up self dosen’t have time to deal with.

4. Going back to that shallow bastard thing, yeah, it’s gotta look pretty to me. I fell in love with Disgaea at first screenshot, and I despise most western-made console games because the visual style just dosen’t appeal to me. I’m probably way too much a fan of the “cute” Japanese style, but hell, that’s me.

Certain franchises are never bad to me though. I bought Minish Cap, and I’ll definitely buy the next 2D Capcom-made Zelda because they’re always fun. 2D Castlevania & Metroid also.

5. I don’t play FPSs. I suck at them terminally, and I can’t enjoy them. Multiplayer, which is only be about competition and testosterone, is lost on me. I can’t do single player either.

I don’t do sports games either, but that’s only because every time I’ve tried one, it has been boring and uninspired, since I’m usually not into the sport in the first place.

6. Nintendo, definitely. Effing NIPPON ICHI, the best company ever. Game Arts, the RPG maker of Lunar and Grandia. Working Designs by the same token. Sega on a good day.

the responses to this have made me happy. i’m not alone!

I’ve written least 5 times trying to answer this post but halfway I totally go blank.

You CAN’T DEFINE what a gamer is which the most common word being “geek” which is a thing all of us hate but don’t care or try to hide it. A gamer is a person that enjoys playing games and enjoys reading about games (I remember the first time I saw video games on Popular Mechanics I went crazy, even if most of the info was pretty old and misunderstood.) Or going to the Mortal Kombat and feel that the movie was excellent even if it was kind of crappy from a movie goer point of view.
Those a re the kinds of things that make a gamer, things like missing those times at the arcade and just going inside to see what new things it had. Getting all “Cool” when noone could take you out on Street Fighter 2, or thining about the future the first time you saw Virtua fighter. Most people today never felt some of those things and think of “fragging” as the cherry on the gaming pie. That’s just one side of the things a lot of us have seen. I remember seeing Wolfestein 3d on a Radio Shack tandy PC, and thinking it was original and different but feel like a faster “Faceball 2000″ which was developed by Sony Psygnosis (so they would be the pioneers of FPS!!) but never crossed by mind tht if was going to be what metroid would evolve into (which I think is bad: I liked better Japanese Metroid than American Metroid and never tought Castlevania would become the new Metroid!!!).

I think there are two kinds of gamers: very old-school (arcades & atari), old-school 8bit & 16bit(nintendo , sega & nec) and new-school 32bit and over (Sony, Microsoft & old nintendo)

Grampa old-school: Pinnacle games are asteroids, Pacman, Joust, Qbert, Mario bros, Donkey Kong, Tempest, Space invaders, Galaga, Missile commander & Pole Position. The worst game of this generation was E.T. and became the alltime low of gaming.

oldschool 8bit & 16bit: are defined by Tetris Sonic 2, Super mario bros 3, Street Fighter 2, Megaman 2, Final Fantasy VI (or III as we knew it), Starfox, Joe Montana and the crown of worst game ever turn to Friday the 13th for nes.

new school 32bit and the rest: since this carries alot of masterpieces everywhere and most of eveyone has played them I’ll only mention the greatest and most of them ot a load of sequels which are Legend of Zelda Ocarina of time, mario 64, Tomb Raider 1, Ridge Racer 1, metal gear Solid, gran turismo, Dance dance revolution, Parappa the Rapper, Dead or Alive, Tekken, Final Fantasy VII, Grand theft Auto, Wipeout, Resident Evil, Viewtiful Joe, Smash brothers, Silent hill, Katamari damaci, ICO, Warioware, and for alot of people Halo & Metroid Prime which look to much like everything else to consider them original but still bought them to play FPS. Also Pc gaming has become mainstream since those old games that I only could play on a school computer like heman and that historicl fgame about americans going west which I don’t remember, (and Maniac Mansion which was pretty Strange so it scared me and Willy Beamish on that new thing “CD-ROM”. and the pinnacle of bad games became the now famous “The Matrix” which also carried a new problem of the times, bugginess!

Ok. I’ll shut up now. Just keep playing and if someone starts questioning, kick their ass, they are probably gonna make fun of you for being a geek.

P.D.
you are all a bunch of geeks!!!!!! gimme your money now!!!!

I forgot ninja gaiden. that game rocked my life. Maybe it was because of that “Ninjas are cool” era just before Karate Kid blew it up. I still got some stainless-steel Shurikens and my nunchakus (or was it nunchuks?) in a box somewhere… heroes in Half shell, turtle POWER!!!

When I was a kid, I didn’t even know who Nintendo WAS. I got a Sega Genesis when I was like 5 or 6, along with Sonic the Hedgehog, and Sonic was my idol from that point till my preteen years. I was a total Sega fanatic,. Sure, I had a Game Boy too, and at around the same age, but I didn’t have any Nintendo games for it. They were still great games, like Bugs Bunny’s Crazy Castle and Batman, but I was still like, “Mario who?”

When I was about 9 or 10 I finally picked up some Nintendo games for my Game Boy. Link’s Awakening And Super Mario Land 2. I played both obsessively, and had great fun with both, but Sega was still the best. In any argument, I would side with the awesomeness of Golden Axe and Atomic Runner.

The game that changed all that for me and earned my true and total respect for Nintendo came along in the 6th grade. It came suddenly and quickly began spreading like a disease. Soon I found myself watching the cartoon and spending all my money on the card game. Pokemon, along with Nintendo, began to own my life.

However, I didn’t abandon Sega after this. I loved both Nintendo AND Sega. Of course at this point it was considered blashphemy among gamers, but, uh, I didn’t have that many friends, specially gamer friends, so I didn’t really know. As far as I was concerned I wondered why Sonic and Mario didn’t star in a game together.

Anyway, I have elaborated far too long on my backstory as a gamer. Basically, I will try any game, as long as it looks like fun. ESPECIALLY unique and quirky experiences like Katamari Damacy or Pac-Pix. This is one reason I loved the DS from the start. It’s a completely new experience, and it practically SCREAMS quirky and unique.

Games I usually WON’T try usually include generic first person shooters. A lot of them are very similar, and most of the people who play them exclusively are morons. Spinoffs to franchises that don’t fit the character well (Mario Pinball Land) strike me as shallow, and unless the game itself happens to be fairly innovative and fun (Wario Ware, though they made that spinoff work well with the character), not worth my time. Puzzle games usually can’t grasp my attention for too long because I enjoy having an avatar in my game that I control and play as, and I also enjoy games with storylines, even the most basic and lame.

The storyline and avatar angle is probably why RPGs are my favorite genre. The storyline and characters you play as are usually so elaborate and well thought out that they get me really into the game. Get me playing an RPG that succeeds in creating an involving environment and you will not see me eat or sleep for days. Haha, okay, that’s an exaggeration, but how long I’ll sit there can be scary sometimes.

Like I’ve said before, Nintendo and Sega have made a beautiful gaming sandwich throughout my life. However, a sandwich has to have condiments. and for me those condiments are the action packed ingenuity of Capcom, the consistent quality of Namco, and the innovation and Castlevania-filled goodness of Konami. Those guys make gaming delicious.

Who are you as a gamer?

I am a casual gamer, and am a very much Nintendo fan. I currently own a N64, GameCube, Game Boy, Game Boy Colour, GBA SP, DS, and a GameGear with a fully working TV Tuner (a bit of my pride lies in that).

What makes a game amazing for you?

To me, a game is amazing when it does something new. Sure, GTA is fun, I accept that I get enjoyment out of it, but it really isn’t ‘amazing’. I like games which are interesting, and an amazing one does that well.

For example, although Yoshi’s Universal Gravitation is far from being ‘good’ in my books, I still enjoyed it, and was nearly laughing with enjoyment when I was turning my GBA - something which GTA has never provided. Of course, as already said, Yoshi’s Universal Gravitation is far from being good, but if it were refined I’m sure I would call it amazing, something I hope WarioWare: Twisted! will achieve.

Other games that I find amazing are Beyong Good & Evil, Donkey Kong: Jungle Beat & LOZ: The Wind Waker.

What makes a game subpar for you?

A game is subpar to me when it doesn’t do a mixture of things. These include not being long enough, generally too hard, and just not interesting enough, an example being Animal Crossing, which has left many gamers with a game box permanently on their sehelves. Many people have dubbed this the ‘Animal Crossing syndrome’. This is where the player is amazed with the game for a couple of days, a week, just up until the day that they can’t play it. They don’t play it the next day, and the next, and a week later, even when they do have time to play, they don’t, as they can’t be bothered to clean up all the weeds. A game may have an idea as fun as that, but when it starts to seem like a chore to fulfill, I hear the words subpar.

What initially attracts you to a game?

Graphics - i.e. LOZ: The Wind Waker, Okami and Paper Mario: TYD
Innovative Gameplay - i.e. Project Rub and Donkey Kong: Jungle Beat
Good Scores - i.e. Astro Boy Omega Factor
Low Price - i.e. Beyond Good & Evil (in combination with the above)
General Interest - (the original) Paper Mario

Why don�€™t you play certain genres?

I don’t play certain genres because they don’t appeal to me. I can’t really think of too many good examples, but I don’t like the Metroid series because I’m not a big fan of the FPS genre.

What companies define you as a gamer?

I would definately think Nintendo does, but otherwisen I wouldn’t know.

as a gamer i am soneone who loves a good story, someone who is bored with the reality given to me so i love to be fully immersed in a complete fantsy world of emotion and adventure.

an amazing game for no matter what is a game that has the ability to make me cry even if its just a tear drop (call me a sissy i dont care)whether its cos im overly sad, angry, or happy doesn’t matter so long as it brings that extreme emotion. very few games do this for me which is why there are only a few that are exceptional for me as examples: ocarina of time, final fantasy VII (7), and even in some ways tetris (im so happy that i passed the level and get to watch my little rocket soar to the heavens!)

a subpar game is one where you can tell thats its a game made simply made for the sake of making games and nothing more, where you know the creators heart wasn’t involved and the creative lust that this game once had is gone…also anything thats just a nikelodeon show turned game, ala lizzie mcguire (hurl)

im a sucker for cover art, so most things initially attract me but once i read the blurd and the story line or objective of the game then i can truley asses my opinions on whether or not i want that game or not.

i dont like to play genres that are just simply real life in video game format, such as sports games, if i want to play sport then ill go out side and get the full on immersive real life experience after all thats the only thing about sport i find interesting, otherwise im just watching from the stands,

NINTENDO DEFINES THE INDUSTRY AS GAMING!!! not just me, if not for nintendo then the world of gaming would not only have died (i think twice) but i would have just become that genre of entertainment that mixes all forms of entertainment: mp3, cd, dvd, home media and oh lets stick games in there too. in other words it would have become what microsoft and sony are trying to create now but much longer ago, i am ashamed at sony cos they had a chance to truly show the world what gaming could be after the PS1 but instead they became blinded by popularity and folled the same path as mtv, they used to be cool but now its just embarrasing to watch them.

- Who are you as a gamer?

Someone who plays games for fun?

- What makes a game amazing for you?

Good gameplay.

- What makes a game subpar for you?

Bad gameplay.

- What initially attracts you to a game?

Concept, design, reviews….

- Why don�€™t you play certain genres?

Because they bore me.

- What companies define you as a gamer?

What companies? Um. I’m not willing to believe companies define me.

I blogged it.

Who are you as a gamer?
I am someone not influenced soley by pretty colors or realism. I am primarily a mathematitian and such system pounding graphics to me are a very crude solution and use of computing power, when there is no innovation behind the idea. Games are to me a recreation. something to pull me out of the daily grind, and hnece, the first qualifiacation is fun. if its not fun, i can easily read a book i have many books i know reading will be fun, a game must offer me something more.

What makes a game amazing for you?
for a game to be amazing it must first be fun and itneresting. following that, it has to be deep. it has to be clear enough on a first go thought that i can play it though and beat it, if given time, then it must have something that makes me come back to it, something else. the games that do this best are primarily mario titles.

What makes a game subpar for you?
restign soley on the quality of graphics.

What initially attracts you to a game?
the “fun” factor.

Why don�€™t you play certain genres?
I dont play FPS’s because they dont intrest me very much. i dont get my jollys off on merely being violent for violences sake, dotn get em wrong, there are a few FPS’s i do like Halo, regradless of anythign else, was very fun, as was goldeneye, and metroid prime. I dont play fighitng games becaus eto get good enough to compete with people would take up far too much of my time.

What companies define you as a gamer?

none really define me, but the ones that get closest are treasure, nintendo and (old school) sega. they all made games that were first and foremost fun to play, and still do, which is really what i look for in a game. i do not want a chore i do not want to feel as if i have to complete a game, i play games because i find entertatinment in them and will play games because they entertain me.

Who are you as a gamer?
Have been a gamer for about 15 years I think. As a gamer, I am one who analyse the games quite a bit and look at what is BEHIND everything. Character depth, background story, mechanics and things like that. I also like Games as a way to tell stories due to the interactive factor. I�€™m a gamer that sees games as partly �€œart�€� (In lack of a better word) as well as entertainment. I play games because I find it a meaningful way to spend my extra time.

What makes a game amazing for you?
The interactivity. Games allow me to be an active part of the content in them as opposed to movies and books for example. To be able to do things I cant in real life is the most interesting and thus I find most realistic sports and racing games quite boring. Another really important thing is attitude. You can take two games that are about equal on all levels like visually, sound, gameplay and so on… But one may not get even close to the others greatness due to the attitude. It is hard to explain exactly what I mean, but a game can be mediocre and straightforward, or stand out extremely individually and extraordinaire, and that is a important difference to me.

What makes a game subpar for you?
Either when the game misses the gameplay or the game length. You may be presented with the most ultimate gameplay, but it wont do the trick if the experience last for only 10 hours for me. I want to be able to decide myself when I�€™m done playing. Also, if the game is filled with bugs and incomplete mechanics that is really unfortunate. But there are few games I think outright sucks. I�€™m really tolerant and if a few things don�€™t work as they ought to, it can be OK anyways as long as it doesn�€™t get in the way of the entertainment to a point where it gets annoying.

What initially attracts you to a game?
Again, mainly attitude. The game needs to stand on its own and be strong enough to uphold is existence in its own right no mater if it is based on a completely new and original idea, is the tenth sequel in a series or a spin-off. New concepts are also nice, and I also think that the evolution and revolution of something old can be good, if they do just that, evolve or revolutionise as their purposes. When it comes down to it, strong characters, interesting plots with a twist to then, unique and cool gameplay are attracting for games that I haven�€™t played yet. Games where I get to try things and experience things I could not in real life or take part of as in other entertainment mediums.

Why don�€™t you play certain genres?
I don�€™t play racing/driving games and realistic sport sims. I don�€™t find that interesting as most often, mainly for sports game, the controller don�€™t work fair for the game to actually be realistic, and I rather try the sport myself instead of playing a half decent simulation of it. This applies to nearly all sports game ever created in my opinion, and that is sad, but understandable.

What companies define you as a gamer?
Hard to say really. Most of the time, a company can be behind so many games, some that I like and others that I hate. The main answers are Nintendo, Capcom, Namco, Westwood (sadly they don�€™t exist anymore), Banpresto, Square (not SquareEnix) and a few other I probably forgot. These are the ones that seem to make games that I feel worth taking interest in and often find myself enjoy playing.

Who are you as a gamer?
I’ve played games since I got my first Atari way “back in the day”…playing it only occasionally when my cousin would let me (either he was mad at it or bored with it). I was given a NES for my birthday and haven’t looked back. Since then I’ve had nearly every console and would consider myself more than recreational but less than obsessive. Certain games bring out the obsessive side to me (Guild Wars currently), but I typically am able to keep things in check.

What makes a game amazing for you?
An amazing game is one that takes me away from the busted couch in my living room and puts me right in the game. Whether it’s sneaking into buildings and shutting down security systems, running from zombies, or rescuing a princess from certain doom…a great game is one that doesn’t have to rely on violence or great graphics but rather uses a great storyline to draw gamers in.

What makes a game subpar for you?
Games that rely on a gimmick to get you to buy them. GTA III, Vice City, San Andreas and Manhunt…shoddy movie games…bad controls…etc
Prince of Persia is the perfect example. I loved the first, loved it. Played through twice without blinking because it was so great and enjoyable. The sequel though relied too much on being “dark” and “edgy” and it turned me off after less than 4 hours of play.

What initially attracts you to a game?
There’s no set thing that attracts me to a game. I like RPGs, sports games, platformers, puzzles, mysteries, anything. If i can tell that there’s depth and love put into the game then it will have me hooked, but if it’s slopped together and there’s nothing to it under the skin, then it’s over.

Why don�€™t you play certain genres?
Because I have an incredibly short attention span. Sandbox style games bore me after the novelty wears off. Games like The Sims and Black & White are great and cool ideas, but I get bored with them rather quickly.

What companies define you as a gamer?
I don’t think any one company defines me as a gamer. I think Nintendo comes closest, but slapping Mario on nearly every title coming out now feels cheap and gimmicky. I’m a fanboy though, so I give them more slack.

Who are you as a gamer?
I consider myself a serious, old school, contemporary gamer. I have all the major systems(including NES, etc) and several games for each. I only own 1 game I never finished. I got my Atari 2600 in the early 1980s. I remember waking up at 4am on Christmas 1986 and unwrapping my Nintendo and the Legend of Zelda and playing it till dinner time; since then I think Ive beaten that game over 20 times. I love videogames. Videogames saved my life.

What makes a game amazing for you?
3 things:
1)IMMERSIVENESS - Games like Animal Crossing, Final Fantasy 3(SNES), Metroid Prime(1&2), any Zelda game, Actraiser, Blaster Master, Ultima, any Castlevania, etc… These games and many others draw you into their own universe, and when you look up to see the time, 8 hours have passed.

2)FUN - Games like Super Mario Bros, Ms Pac Man, DOOM-Quake, Gradius, Street Fighter 2, any Castlevania, Galaga, Tetris, Mario Kart DD, Pikmin, etc… These games define for me what a “fun” game is.

3)”Jaw-dropping” moments - The perfect example is in Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker—[spoilers]— When you finally descend into the sub-oceanic, time-frozen Hyrule Castle! Seriously, I have goose-bumps thinking about it while typing this!
Another example is in Final Fantasy 7—[spoilers]— when Sephiroth kills Aries… mindblowing!

What makes a game subpar for you?
Obvious compromises on quality. I dont believe a developer ever goes out there thinking about making a game with krappy controls, or glitches/bugs galore. Having worked for a while in the game development industry, it has been my experience that these kinds of problems almost always arise due to time constraints imposed by publishers. I think Miyamoto-san sums it up best, “A delayed game is eventually good, a bad game is bad forever.”

What initially attracts you to a game?
It depends on the game. Sometimes I am attracted to a game because I have played it’s predecessors and want more of the same. Other times I am attracted to a game because I think my wife might enjoy playing it with me. Sometimes games just look/sound/appear to be “gotta-haves”. And sometimes games just creep up on you, and the next thing you know, you cant stop playing!

Why don�€™t you play certain genres?
Because they don’t make me a part of what Im playing.

What companies define you as a gamer?
Nintendo
Konami
Capcom
Id soft
Square Enix
Activision

8)

Basically only so many companies still exist
that seem to be making the kind of games I
enjoy playing.

Mainly these ones:

1. Nintendo
2. Namco
3. Hudson Soft
4. Capcom
5. Konami

I notice that my entire modern game collection
is composed mostly of games from those 5
publishers, with a few exceptions. I don’t mind
Sega, Atlus, Square-Enix etc. but they are a
lot more hit and miss lately.

For me a game has to have an instant pick up and
play appeal. A game should be appealing and
entertaining from the first moment you power it
on to the moment it’s completed. A really good
game will leave you with good memories of the
experience and a general appreciation for the
title that never fades.

Games like Yoshi T&G, WarioWare and Pac-Pix are
great titles for me. I also enjoy high quality,
engrossing RPG games like TalesOfSymphonia and
SkiesOfArcadia. I love playing shooters too,
particularly on my classic TurboDuo/PCEngine
console. I still collect and play many classic
games and systems to fill in the missing gaps
from the current generation of games.

On modern consoles I find a bit less to choose
from but Mario, Metroid, Zelda, RE4, SmashBros.
etc. are quite fun. Most modern 3D games do not
seem to hold my attention very long, for instance
Mario Sunshine or 64 are great but I really dont
play them a lot anymore, on the other hand I
often go back to the classic sidescrolling Mario
titles over and over again. Same with Sonic, I
liked SonicAdventure 1 + 2 but they don’t have
the replay value of the originals.

I try to avoid PC style games as they generally
are weak in technical and gameplay terms imo.
Many modern games are very generic and uninteresting
in general for me. I am also one that grew up with
the Atari, NES, SMS, Genesis, SNES, Turbografx,
arcade games etc. and really miss the days when there
were so many cool and innovative games to pick from.
Now I find it difficult to find a few titles between
all the next generation consoles that I want to purchase.
It always makes me happy to see some classic forgotten
title like RiverCityRansom or Boy&HisBlob make an
appearance in the new age of games.

The Nintendo DS is somewhat of an exception, the
DS seems to be getting many good titles even if
the games aren’t rolling out too quickly. It’s
become one of my favourite consoles already.

I just thank Nintendo, Namco, HudsonSoft, Capcom
and the few others in the industry that are keeping
the spirit of gaming alive.

My Entry

Who are you as a gamer?
I’m a bit of a cheapassed gamer TBH.
With the exception of handheld games,which i import,i tend to wait for prices to drop before i purchase newly released titles.

I feel like i’m kinda inexperienced in some ways.I’ve never played a resident evil and have never even owned a nintendo home console despite having desperatly wanted a gamecube since its launch…theres always been something else to spend my money on while i wait for the prices to drop.

When they announced the backwards compatability of the rev i gushed. Every ninty console i’ve ever mised out on in one box? sign me up for five. I’ll have one in each room.

What makes a game amazing for you?

There are two kinds of game i play- The ones for the all out instant (usually bizarro) gameplay fix (wario ware, gitaroo man,puzzlers etc) and those which grab me atmospherically (Tomb raider, Ecco, REZ.)

What amazes me? Having my breath taken away, be it by mind knumbing frustration a la gitaroo man, Laughing like a maniac with wario ware,being blown away by the mixture of sound and sight which is REZ, or having my emotional strings pulled at by Ecco: DOTF (please tell me i’m not the only one who practically cried when confronted with the incredible atmosphere in the ‘mans nightmare’ levels . )

What makes a game subpar for you?

Something which doesnt really scream out from the crowd..rather mingling in and stealing ideas from other games. I was really dissapointed by Ratchet and Clank, I honestly expected a bit more from insomniac after enjoying the spyro sequels.

What initially attracts you to a game?

New,quirky concepts that we’ve never heard of or played before…and i’m an artist, so box art.Other player word of mouth really helps pick up those which pass under the radar. To think, i dimissed gitaroo man as a DDR clone!

Why don�€™t you play certain genres?

The sports/racing things already been done to death by other people, same stands here. Sports games put me off dreamcast.Doubt i can forgive them for that.

I refuse to play MMORPGS.I dont like the idea of effectivly signing a contract to waste time,plus i’m a bit of a completist at times and like my games to have an ending.

RTS i just don’t get. I bought shogun:total war under someone elses advice and it bored the pants off’ve me. RPGs bore me if there isnt a great plot or interesting twist on the genre(such as pokemon)

What companies define you as a gamer?

Probably Sega,but only because i’m obsessed with Ecco.