retro PC gaming memories
Jan 9, 2018 9:16:12 GMT -5
Post by anayo on Jan 9, 2018 9:16:12 GMT -5
Thought this would go nicely with the “arcade memories” and “video game rental memories” topics.
I identify more as console gamer, but the very first games I ever played were on my Dad’s 386 IBM compatible in MS DOS. PC’s stood out from consoles with better graphics and online capabilities until consoles became more PC-like, starting with the Microsoft X-Box in 2001. This has a lot to do with why I’m so unimpressed with PC’s today. When I played Doom on my Dad’s PC in the early-mid 90’s, the level of simulation was fundamentally beyond what a Sega Genesis or Super Nintendo could do (at least without the help of an extra GPU like the Super FX chip. Even then, the SNES version of Doom was a pale imitation). Nowadays PC’s just feel like they run console games with higher resolutions and frame rates. To me, that would be like spending three times the sticker price of a home game console in 1993 in order to play Final Fight without any slowdown. The benefit of that is somewhat lost on me.
Jetpack
This was so simple it may as well have been an 8-bit game, but it had good sound, colorful graphics, controlled smoothly, and the premise was fun. I guess in that way it reminds me of “Flicky” for the Sega Genesis.
Lemmings
I don’t have the patience for lemmings today, but 5 year old me was transfixed. The animation was buttery smooth, the music was so catchy I still hum to it today, and it had a surreal atmosphere. I used to imagine a game of lemmings being played on the walls around me, such as when I was in grade school and my attention started to wander.
Commander Keen
This doesn’t hold my attention like it used to, but it was colorful and the graphics were appealing.
Goblins!
A quirky point and click puzzle game where you control a trio of dwarves trying to save the king from a malevolent sorcerer. I remember it seeming really difficult to 5 year old me. Maybe it would be easier now.
Doom (1 & 2)
This was creepy and violent and would tease you with power ups and weapons you could see but not directly reach. I replayed these in 2015 and I still think they’re perfect.
Duke Nukem 3D
I loved how Duke was more talkative than the Doom guy (“Come get some.”, “I’m gonna rip ‘em a new one.”, “Piece of cake.”) I also liked how the levels actually had a setting rather than Doom’s abstract mazes (a lounge, a prison, a submarine docking station, an assembly line, etc.) This game is why I adore FPS’s like “Blood” and “Shadow Warrior” even though I missed out on them in the 90’s.
Quake
I never got the full version until I picked it up at Goodwill in the mid 2000’s, but I played the shareware version to death. I loved the weapons, the labyrinthine dungeons, and the macabre enemies. The graphics look pretty crusty today, but in 1996 they were amazing. I still attempt a play through in Dosbox every year or so. The difficulty ramps up fast, though, so I rarely get far.
Lego Island
This doesn’t do much for me today, but for a Lego obsessed 7 year old this game was perfect. It was basically just an open-world activity center. The main thing it had going for it was its charm. My most interesting memory about this was a mysterious cave on the far side of the island. Inside was a skeleton and a locked door. If you approached the door, an ominous, pirate-y voice would say something like, “Arr, be ye gone from here.” I spent a lot of time trying to figure out how to get in. I doubt there was anything really on the other side, though.
Lego Racers
My favorite thing about this was how you could “build” your own race car, which just amounted to stacking bricks on an unchangeable car body. For some reason this game didn’t jive well with my Dad’s graphics card. It would start off looking like a respectable Dreamcast game, then fifteen seconds later it would revert to N64 mode. I still played it to death, though.
I identify more as console gamer, but the very first games I ever played were on my Dad’s 386 IBM compatible in MS DOS. PC’s stood out from consoles with better graphics and online capabilities until consoles became more PC-like, starting with the Microsoft X-Box in 2001. This has a lot to do with why I’m so unimpressed with PC’s today. When I played Doom on my Dad’s PC in the early-mid 90’s, the level of simulation was fundamentally beyond what a Sega Genesis or Super Nintendo could do (at least without the help of an extra GPU like the Super FX chip. Even then, the SNES version of Doom was a pale imitation). Nowadays PC’s just feel like they run console games with higher resolutions and frame rates. To me, that would be like spending three times the sticker price of a home game console in 1993 in order to play Final Fight without any slowdown. The benefit of that is somewhat lost on me.
Jetpack
This was so simple it may as well have been an 8-bit game, but it had good sound, colorful graphics, controlled smoothly, and the premise was fun. I guess in that way it reminds me of “Flicky” for the Sega Genesis.
Lemmings
I don’t have the patience for lemmings today, but 5 year old me was transfixed. The animation was buttery smooth, the music was so catchy I still hum to it today, and it had a surreal atmosphere. I used to imagine a game of lemmings being played on the walls around me, such as when I was in grade school and my attention started to wander.
Commander Keen
This doesn’t hold my attention like it used to, but it was colorful and the graphics were appealing.
Goblins!
A quirky point and click puzzle game where you control a trio of dwarves trying to save the king from a malevolent sorcerer. I remember it seeming really difficult to 5 year old me. Maybe it would be easier now.
Doom (1 & 2)
This was creepy and violent and would tease you with power ups and weapons you could see but not directly reach. I replayed these in 2015 and I still think they’re perfect.
Duke Nukem 3D
I loved how Duke was more talkative than the Doom guy (“Come get some.”, “I’m gonna rip ‘em a new one.”, “Piece of cake.”) I also liked how the levels actually had a setting rather than Doom’s abstract mazes (a lounge, a prison, a submarine docking station, an assembly line, etc.) This game is why I adore FPS’s like “Blood” and “Shadow Warrior” even though I missed out on them in the 90’s.
Quake
I never got the full version until I picked it up at Goodwill in the mid 2000’s, but I played the shareware version to death. I loved the weapons, the labyrinthine dungeons, and the macabre enemies. The graphics look pretty crusty today, but in 1996 they were amazing. I still attempt a play through in Dosbox every year or so. The difficulty ramps up fast, though, so I rarely get far.
Lego Island
This doesn’t do much for me today, but for a Lego obsessed 7 year old this game was perfect. It was basically just an open-world activity center. The main thing it had going for it was its charm. My most interesting memory about this was a mysterious cave on the far side of the island. Inside was a skeleton and a locked door. If you approached the door, an ominous, pirate-y voice would say something like, “Arr, be ye gone from here.” I spent a lot of time trying to figure out how to get in. I doubt there was anything really on the other side, though.
Lego Racers
My favorite thing about this was how you could “build” your own race car, which just amounted to stacking bricks on an unchangeable car body. For some reason this game didn’t jive well with my Dad’s graphics card. It would start off looking like a respectable Dreamcast game, then fifteen seconds later it would revert to N64 mode. I still played it to death, though.