Just something I was asking my friends about earlier. Not necessarily your first game, but the one that had the most impact on your gaming tastes and preferences today.
My first game was Super Mario Bros/Duck Hunt on NES, but I would say the one that shaped me into the JRPG lover than I am today would be Dragon Warrior IV for the NES. Many came after it that blew it away in every aspect, but it was my love for that game that caused me to jump at the chance to try out any other RPG I could find in the NES/SNES/Genesis eras.
If I had to pick a follow up, I would go with Mega Man. The original game led me to meeting one of my closest friends I know, and cemented my love for side scrolling hardcore platformers just in time for Mega Man 2 and Super Mario Bros 3 to cement that love.
What about you, my fellow Hooligans?
Super Mario Bros. and Mega Man 2 as far as platformers go, Final Fantasy 4 got me into jrpgs, but FF 7 is what sealed the deal on that one and got me back into gaming. My tastes haven't changes too much since then.
Magmax for the NES is what first got me into gaming in my eyes. I would play it all the time when I went to this thrift store and finally my dad agreed to buy the NES and the game, I was in heaven. I did have an Intellivison, but at that time I did not see it was video games since I really only played poker and a few other games with my dad. It just didn't ring a bell in my head at that age that it was a gaming system. The game I would have to say that really got me hardcore into gaming was Goldeneye. Never before did I stay up all night and day to play the game. It was my first addiction that I can remember as far as gaming went.
Gunstar Heroes, Shinobi III, and Rocket Knight Adventures got me into Platforming,
Skies of Arcadia and Lunar: EB got me into JRPGs,
Radiant Silvergun, Thunder Force IV, and DoDonpachi got me into shmups.
DDR got me into rhythm games, DDR got me out of them too.
The Legend of Zelda: ALttP probably had the biggest impact on me. Granted, there are very few games today that play in 2D from an overhead perspective, but it blended action, adventure and RPG elements into one game and I love games that do that well. I still find myself playing just as many, if not more, 2D games than 3D ones these days.
Super Mario Bros. not only was the first game I ever played, it started my love for platformers that continues to this day. Braid, as unconventional of a platformers as it is, is still a platformer, and it remains my favorite downloadable game of 2008.
I played a little of Doom and other FPSs, but it wasn't until Goldeneye 007 that I found an entry in the genre that I really got into. But boy did I get into it. My friends and I played the local multiplayer for years. It was also our springboard for future titles such as Perfect Dark, Halo, Call of Duty, Halo 2, Halo 3 and Call of Duty 4.
I couldn't possibly tell you how many times I played Super Mario Bros. over and over and over and over again when I was a child. It started the obsession, the rest of the series just poured fuel on the fire. I really can't think of any game that contributed to my love of games and the gamer that I am today more than that one.
Mario 2 was what enchanted me in the beginning. FFVI made me the RPG nerd I am now.
My first system was an NES, but I was so young that Super Mario Bros. gave me nightmares. When I saw the blue dude with 'tude on TV, however, I started begging my parents for a Genesis. Playing Sonic the Hedgehog 2 sparked my gaming passion and transformed me into a total addict and devout follower of a tragic/foolish company.
Final Fantasy 7 played a massive role in evolving my gaming interests, but I wouldn't be the same without the 'hog.
Platforming: Super Mario Bros. 3
RPG: Final Fantasy IV
Action: Resident Evil
FPS: GoldenEye 007
Fighting: WCW vs. nWo: Revenge (only fighting game I ever really liked, so I guess it didn't do much outside of that game.)
Music: Rock Band
Racing: Burnout 3
A special shout out to Eternal Darkness for transforming my conception about mature video games and the potential of the medium.
Surprise, surprise Street Fighter 2. Arcades were huge when I was growing up, pretty much every convenience store had this game. This game brought out my competitive spirit and made me enjoy games in a much more social way. Going to play SF2 was like going to the block where all your friends hung out. Pulling off an awesome comeback/huge win streak made you feel like a king among men. This game is why I prefer multiplayer over single player. Kicking the shit out of a computer is nothing compared to beating a real opponent.
Combat and Warlords, Atari 2600
The first multiplayer games I played hooked me for a lifetime of gaming addiction. Unlike the videogame industry during the mid 80's, I didn't take a break and have been playing a console in every generation ever since.
Surprise, surprise Street Fighter 2. Arcades were huge when I was growing up, pretty much every convenience store had this game. This game brought out my competitive spirit and made me enjoy games in a much more social way. Going to play SF2 was like going to the block where all your friends hung out. Pulling off an awesome comeback/huge win streak made you feel like a king among men. This game is why I prefer multiplayer over single player. Kicking the shit out of a computer is nothing compared to beating a real opponent.
You know what? I was never really all that good at fighting games, so at this point I tend to only have a passing interest int them, but I have some very fond memories of playing SF2 for hours at a time at the seven-eleven down the street. Those were very good days.
Combat and Warlords, Atari 2600
Man, Combat was soo awesome. I can still play that game to this day and have fun, one of the few Atari games I can say that about. That was the one game I think could have worked as an updated Xbox Live game, too bad they never did it.
It would work out well, but I think they'd only over-complicate it
I want to say Mario Bros 1-3, any of those, but I can't because as a kid I wasn't allowed to have video games. I got to play the game at my Uncle's and friends houses, but it didn't shape my gaming, I merely enjoyed it. I also want to say Sonic, because it was the first game that really impressed me with graphics and the Genesis at the end of it's life cycle was the first console I had, but I don't really think it was that either.
So, to go against the trend here, I'm gonna name a game that will probably be considered mediocre at best by the classics listed here, Crash Bandicoot. I first played it at my Uncle's house and I didn't want to stop, I'd never seen 3D graphics, I'd never seen anything so colorful and sharp and beautiful. I got a PSone because of that game and I've been a hardcore platforming fan ever since.
The other gaming part of me is pretty much about racing. What shaped that was San Francisco Rush's incredible jumps, Driver's amazing chases, Ridge Racer 4's tight controls and beautiful graphics, and Gran Turismo's realism.