My Life As A Gamer

I started playing video games when they were first introduced. I have played them for over four decades. It is amazing how much some things have changed. But there are ways that the games of the past are still similar to the games of today. When looking back on my years o playing it is fun to look at what has been, what is right now and what will come in the future and with the recent xbox 360 kinect release date and my rush to the store to get one for Christmas, it is a good time to write down my experiences as a gamer.

Pong was the beginning of my video game experience. There was nothing very complex about this gaming system. But it was impossible to put down. I would play my brother for hours on end. It was something I had to do. I just had to beat my opponent. It cost my parents a fair amount of cash to purchase the system if I recall it correctly. I think they spent around $150 to get it. In today’s money that is probably close to the cost of the current systems. The original consoles had only a little variety. You had a beginner and an expert level. That was about it.

After a few years I turned to the Atari system. You could buy separate titles that could be played on one system. I loved being able to switch the games. It was like having a mini arcade in my own home. I started to find this technology was even better than before. I still went to the arcade for really good games. But now I could play some of those games in my own home. I was spending my own money to buy different titles to play. What is amazing is if I had kept the games and the game system, there are collectors who would pay good money for it.

Through my college years and as a young adult, I still played video games.|I grew older and more independent, but I still liked gaming.|The idea o being a gamer was still a part of me even as I became a part of the adult world.} It was not as much as when I was younger. Despite the limitations, I made sure I had a video game or two wherever I was staying. As PC’s hit the market, I got involved with them. Going online gave me something to do as well. Starting a family altered my priorities away from video games. Gaming reappeared because my children wanted to play them. I was getting hooked on them again.

The Ps2 seeemed like the right choice for our family. Games were very realistic. We found appropriate games for all of our children. There were both fun and educational games for our kids. But I also found a few that were just for me. After the kids went to bed, I would start playing the games. Some nights, I would play for hours at a time. It was like I was a kid all over again. I would get caught up in the excitement of the games. As an adult, I did not have as much time to play games as I did when I was a kid. When my schedule got to hectic, the games sat idle. When I returned to the games, the excitement was still there. I do not think it will ever go away.

This Christmas bought the xbox 360 kinect and with it came a whole new world of video gaming that has my family and myself moving around and using the video gaming system as our own personal gym while my kids practice their football and baseball techniques. I do not think I will ever get too old for video games.