Your recommended options for musical accompaniment to this closing-credits piece: Street Fighter II, Donkey Kong Country or Super Mario 64.
Well, here we are: After three and a half years, Phase 1 of the mission has finally been completed. The story of "My History with Video Games" has been told. And while the works highlighted in the "Memory Bank" section represent only a tiny portion of the hundreds of games I've played over the past 35 years, they, a specially formed collective, function to paint an accurate picture of how I became the video-game enthusiast you know today.
Truly it's been a worthwhile endeavor: Being able to share these stories with you has brought me great joy and has allowed me to grow as a person; in the process, I've learned so much more about video-game history, the wealth of experiences waiting to be had, and also myself. In particular, writing about games in this manner has helped me to become better at my craft--particularly when it comes to putting feelings into words, which for the greater part of my life was something with which I struggled. Really, it means the world to me that I can adequately express my feelings to the people who I know will best understand and appreciate them.
I hope you've enjoyed reading them as much as I've enjoyed putting them together.
But now it's time to move on to Phase II, in which I'm going to be focusing more on seeking out new experiences and creating new memories. Oh, but don't fret; there's still going to be plenty of memory-heavy content to come. I'll no doubt have a great deal to say about my respective histories with the games I'll be covering in the Treasure Trove--especially the "Prized Gems," whose grouping is sure to include many of the games that were originally on my "Memory Bank" list but were axed because quite simply I couldn't come up with enough material for them; it's just that there will be less of a focus on forming complex narratives. I'm not saying that the "Memory Bank" section is going to be sealed shut forever; there's always a chance that one day--maybe 5 or 10 years from now--I'll come to the realization that there's a game, series or system that needs to included if the story is to remain truly reflective of my history with the medium. The story is still ongoing, after all.
Also, I'm eventually going to go back and touch up some of the older pieces, some of which I know to be terrible (like Solomon's Key, Maniac Mansion, and those I wrote about during periods when I was feeling tired or unmotivated). None of the changes will be revisionary, of course; rather, mine will be an effort to tweak the formatting, expand upon existing thoughts, add in some more screenshots, and generally improve how the narratives flow.
And that's about it. Now it's time to get the ball rolling on the second phase. I hope that those of you who were drawn to this blog by my "Memory Bank" pieces (your numbers totaling somewhere in the hundreds, which has astonished and delighted me) decide to stick around and join me on this next mission. If not, I understand. For those who will be departing: It was good to have you aboard, even if only for a little while. Thanks for visiting.
It's the weirdest thing, yet it feels so appropriate: It's been so long since I started this blog that I'm actually nostalgic for its earliest days! You know--before I established handcuffing formulas and standards and was creatively unchained. I hope to be getting back to that place in time for the site's second launch.
"So you got anything else besides all of this boring sentimental stuff?" you ask as you clear the crust from your eyes.
Well, um, I think I should mention that my next piece is going to be a little different. It's something I've been waiting to do for a long time. Let's just say that it's intended to add a bit of flavor to the "Memory Bank" pieces.
Also, I'm going to be replacing the name "Modern Marvels" with something more suitable, since the former infers that a game has to be amazing to have any value to me. That's obviously not the case. I'll come up with a new name once my brain starts working again (who knew that sleep was so important?).
Otherwise, I've been playin' a whole lot of games recently. Back in July, I bought myself a new computer, after ten years, and finally got around to activating my Steam account. Since then I've been catching up on some older PC games, most notably Shadowgate (2014 version), Portal and the Apple IIGS versions of Shadowgate, Deja Vu and Uninvited (with a little Commander Keen mixed in). It's all been very enjoyable, and there's a strong chance that I'll be dedicating blog space to all of them in the future.
On the Nintendo side, I've been having a lot of fun bouncing between The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Namco Museum (my time spent mostly with the thought-"impossible" Rolling Thunder, which incredibly I can now beat in one life), League of Evil, Double Dragon IV, Metroid: Samus Returns (about which I provided some early impressions) and Steamworld Dig 2.
Oh, and of course I'm currently playing Super Mario Odyssey, which is everything I hoped it would be. Finally Nintendo is taking Mario to new, wondrous places. And look what happens--look at the excitement it brings to the experience. As I traveled from world to world, the word surreal kept popping into my head. I couldn't believe what I was seeing. And I couldn't wait to find out where we were heading next.
The screenshots I've been taking say it all, really (for those of you who haven't yet played the game, be warned that some of these images are potentially spoilerish):
Sometimes you just gotta stop and look.
Forest with a mountain view. I'm in love.
This kingdom made my gaming life. Just amazing atmosphere all around. Also, you can see cars driving on that bridge in the background!
I'm in ... Castlevania?! What you see above is the definition of surreal.
My only disappointment is that they didn't do more with this kingdom.
May my upcoming odyssey be just as compelling.
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