Celebrating 400 followers, 100 blogs, and 18 years of me.

Prologue: An Introduction

Well, it's my birthday today. I'm officially 18 years of age. I'm an adult. I can drive. I can buy lottery tickets. I can become a pedophile. I can do a lot of things now, but first I'd like to tell you a story. My story. My gamer story.

And, just to be clear, I don't want to become a pedophile.

Much of who I am is largely unknown here on MyIGN, and by "who I am" I mean my personal life. I've written a series of "personal blogs" (of which this post belongs) before that attempts to delve into what I do outside of gaming and IGN, but most of them lack depth and only go so far as to explain me as a person. And this is why I wanted to write this post. I wanted to tell you more about me.

I must warn you that what you're about to read is over 4100 words long, so I suggest you set aside a few minutes of your time before digging in. I've divided my post into several different sections to make things easier for you guys, so don't feel compelled to read the whole thing in one go. Also, why don't you leave a comment at the end when you get done? I'd love to hear some feedback from my fellow MyIGNers.

But enough of me yapping around. You're here for the story, so here it is. Enjoy!

Let me tell you a story...

Chapter 1: The Battle Begins – Nintendo 64 and My First Gaming Experience

I remember my first video game experience quite fondly. It's kind of strange, isn't it, how of all the amazing things you've experienced as a toddler the one thing you remember is just some random moment on some random day? I guess this wasn't that random though; it was, I mean, the first time I've played a video game.

The game was Mario Kart 64. I got a Nintendo 64 from my cousin for some odd reason. Don't remember when, don't remember where. It just kind of showed up. I'm not sure why he decided to give it up either. Was he headed off for college? Or was he planning to upgrade to the GameCube. Wait... wasn't it too early to upgrade to the GameCube?

Anyways, back to Mario Kart. I remember seeing my dad play it one day and somehow the controller ended up in my hands in the middle of Kalimari Desert. Me, being dumb and not knowing what the hell I was doing, drove it off the track thinking it was an adventure game. Yes, I thought Mario Kart was an adventure game. Hey, don't look at me like that; I couldn't tell the difference between the road and the sand!

So yes, that was my first gaming experience with my first gaming console. It only took a few seconds before my dad took the controller back (but not before laughing at me and asking what I was doing). But that's really it. Those few moments were brief, but it was the beginning of something that would change my life forever.

The Nintendo 64 meant so much to me. I only owned about seven games, but I had the time of my life with all of them (with the exception of Turok: Dinosaur Hunter... no explanation necessary.) My small library was probably due to the fact that my parents only brought out the Nintendo 64 during summer vacation, and even then I was only allowed to play for an hour a day. Of course, as a kid, I always broke the rules, and I somehow ended up finding the time to one-hundred percent Super Mario 64, the first game I've ever truly completed.

My first game went a little like this...

Chapter 2: Portabliss – The GBA and Nintendo Power Guides

While the Nintendo 64 brought me into console gaming, my Game Boy Advance brought me into the wonderful world (and one that I've since realized I prefer) of portables. I remember walking into Costco with my dad and buying the $100 Gameboy Advance bundle with Super Mario World. I played that game for hours on end, and it remains one of my favorite games of all time.

My parents, of course paranoid that I'd play too much and go blind, also bought one of those plastic lamp-light-thingies that you'd clamp onto the GBA in order to let you see what you were actually playing since the GBA didn't have a backlight (remember those days?). That thing stayed on my GBA forever and for some reason I never could figure out how to take it off (until now, but of course it doesn't really matter anymore) so as a result, whenever I think of the Gameboy Advance, I can't help but remember the big black monstrosity that was always attached to it.

I do have one funny story to tell about my GBA, and I'm not sure why I remember it so well. The day after I got Super Mario World, my cousin came over to hang out. I showed him my sexy new Gameboy Advance, and he helped me get all the way to like the World 2 castle in Super Mario World. My brother, realizing that I've "cheated", tattled on me, and my dad forced me to delete my file and start it over. I'm not sure why I remember this day so well; perhaps it had to do with it being the first time I've ever "cheated" in a video game, though I'd argue that there's really no such thing as "cheating" in Super Mario World...

There's another game that I have fond memories of when I was a kid. That game was Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga. I remember seeing it in an ad for National Geographic Kids (I know, of all places!) and immediately telling my parents I wanted it. It's weird; all I had were a couple of screenshots and a few short sentences and I was already confident in my intent and desire to find that game and keep it all to myself. I'm not sure if I actually asked them to get Superstar Saga for me for Christmas, but lo and behold on Christmas day, wrapped in an oddly-shaped package was Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga and its "Official Guide from Nintendo Power." That was a damn good Christmas. I played it for over seventy hours and I'm almost up to level 99. In case you couldn't tell, Superstar Saga is my favorite game ever.

Speaking of game guides, I remember purchasing quite a few. In fact, I'd say they were just as important as my games themselves. I would always take them with me to the bathroom whenever I needed to take a dump, and my parents would always yell at me because all I'd do is sit there for half an hour reading all about Yoshi's Island. I made sure those guide books were mine, and only mine! I read them before I went to bed! I brought them on vacation! I hid them from my brother! I got in trouble for hiding them from my brother! I loved them, and I still have them, and I will definitely cherish them forever. There was even a point in my life where I'd create my own guide books for my own imaginary games, and my brother and I would take turns creating levels and "playing" them on a daily basis. I'm not sure where they are now, but I still remember my brother drew a huge book of "Mario and the Running Onions." What a stupid idea. Or was it my stupid idea? Oh dear...

TENATATEN.

Chapter 3: PC Supremacy – My Lost Love for RollerCoaster Tycoon and Neopets

So yes, I grew up around Nintendo. Perhaps that's why I love Nintendo so much. But my gaming needs didn't stop there. Like every kid growing up in the late 1990's and early 2000's I had a fancy shmancy new thing called a computer, and I could play one of the best games ever created: RollerCoaster Tycoon 2. Actually I played both RCT and RCT2, but most of my time was spent on the second one since it had more rides and more options and, of course, a scenario editor. I remember creating my own Nintendo Land before Nintendo Land even existed; I had Mario Kart courses complete with Mario Kart music and a fully-functional Rainbow Road rollercoaster. It was awesome. I'm a bit mad that RCT3 ended up being so mediocre though, and even more mad that N-Space decided to be idiots and ruin RCT3D. The franchise is dead, and it saddens me that we may never get a RCT4.

But my love for PC gaming didn't end at theme park building. While much of my time on the computer was spent playing RollerCoaster Tycoon, there was this one website that sucked just as much time out of my life, and that site was Neopets.com. I was first introduced to Neopets back when McDonalds sold those Neopets plushies with the online codes on them. Together, my dad and I created a Neopets account, and the rest is history.

Neopets was the shiz back then. While my friends were busy playing the (at the time super-ugly) old version of Runescape, I was raising my own little green wolf, hitting Kass and chasing Meerca. I have so many memories when it came to that tiny little virtual pet site, though unfortunately over time Neopets became more or less a cash-grabbing mess. Nowadays I'll log in once in a while to see what's going on in the world of Neopia (and then go on to zap my pet to see what defective contraption it would turn into next), but it's clear to me that Neopets and I have moved on, perhaps for the best of both of us.

Best. Ride. EVAR.

Chapter 4: A Twist in the Story – PlayStation 2 and GameMaker

I remember coming back from a trip to Taiwan with a PlayStation 2. I'm not sure why it came back with us. Was it cheaper to buy a PS2 there? Was it a gift from a friend? Whatever it was, I came back with one, and I'd fall in love with it.

Yeah, I know. I grew up with Nintendo and now I was betraying them for Sony. But I didn't care. I had no idea this "console war" thing was going on; I was just an innocent little boy who loved playing video games. I actually did have a chance to get a GameCube; my dad told me that if I got into the top three at the third grade spelling bee, I'd get one as a gift. Obviously, that didn't really go as planned...

Back to my PlayStation 2. Being that most of the stuff in Taiwan at the time were imports of Japanese products, I ended up having a Japanese PS2 with a bunch of Japanese games. It didn't really bother me though; I still managed to 100% Ape Escape 2 and play a bunch of Dynasty Warriors (which, let's be honest, was much more hilarious in Japanese anyways).

Somewhere down the line, my dad began pirating PS2 games. He burned them onto disks and we got to play them on our PS2. At the time, I didn't really think much of it. I just got the games and played them. I got to experience a ton of games that way, including some of my favorites of all time like Burnout 3 and Ape Escape 3.

Damn, all this talk about Ape Escape is making me want an Ape Escape 4. Sony, get to work!

My PS2 was also the home to a TON of peripherals. I had at least two memory card extenders. I had a huge steering wheel with pedals for Burnout. I had a DDR mat that got me addicted to dancing on arrows. Though my Wii eventually won the "most peripherals" award, my PS2 wasn't too far behind.

Unfortunately I don't have very many memories with my PS2. I don't really know why, but I did notice that I was losing interest in gaming in general. Of course, looking back now, I regret not giving my PS2 enough attention. I missed Kingdom Hearts. I missed Jack and Daxter. I missed Sly Cooper. I missed Sony's golden years.

Oh well. I still love my PS2, despite my limited experience with it. It kinda sorta still works right now, but in a year or so that machine's going to be done. It won't run most of my games now...

One other thing that took place during this time was my desire to create video games. As I said earlier, I used to draw little Mario levels on tiny little notebooks to keep me occupied. It was my dream to one day create my very own video game. When one of my friends introduced me to GameMaker, I saw a chance to make that dream come true.

I have around a dozen unfinished projects, one of which is nearing completion... or at least it has been for the past year and a half. But I did manage to release on game on YoYoGames.com in 2010 when I decided that I would quit procrastinating and make it up to myself to complete at least one game. So here, let me introduce to you my very first video game: Hit-O-Drum Bowser Mix. Hopefully, it's just the start of many things to come (though my track record seems to indicate that it may take quite a while...).

SONY. Y U NO MAKE APE ESCAPE 4?

Chapter 5: The Calm Before the Storm – DS and Wii

I'm fairly certain I got a DS before a Wii. It was the Lite version, of course, and my dad got it with the original Brain Age. It's hard to imagine such a strange game being the DS' killer app, don't you think? I still remember my dad calling Dr. Kawashima an idiot because he couldn't recognize the word "blue" thanks to Nintendo's early attempts at voice-recognition software. Boy, have times changed.

Meanwhile at school, the DS was the thing to have. I was in sixth grade when the DS came out, and countless lunch and afterschool hours were spent playing New Super Mario Bros., Mario Kart DS, and Mario Hoops 3-on-3. This trend went on through my Junior High years, and even certain parts of high school like a couple of friends and I had multiple back-of-the-bus Mario Kart tournaments all the way from San Francisco to Los Angeles and back.

Somehow, my dad thought that it would be a great idea to buy a DS for my mom. What happens when you find out you have two DS' in your house? Too much Animal Crossing, that's what. I remember camping out in the backyard (hey, it's fun!) and playing Animal Crossing: Wild World the whole night with my brother. Damn that was fun. Animal Crossing was my drug.

As you might have expected, my dad pirated the hell out of the DS. There actually came a point where I asked him to stop doing it, because I felt bad about "stealing" these games from Nintendo. It's kinda funny too, since I actually got to experience a lot more games through piracy than from actual purchases. When our SuperCard (read: R4 card) broke, that was the end of DS for me. When my brother broke his DS through playing too much Mario Kart, that was the end of DS for him.

I got a Wii with Super Paper Mario about a year after it launched. This was back when you still had to wait in line early in the morning if you wanted one. The Wii was, like with most people, the party system. When I had friends over, we played Wii. When I had relatives over, we played Wii. When I was alone with my brother, we played Wii. Wii had Smash Brothers. Wii had 4-player Mario. Wii had Mario Kart. Wii was great.

But the strange thing is that I didn't really care about my Wii. In fact, it wasn't until the next decade did I really begin to pay attention to it...

Everyone is high. EVERYONE.

Chapter 5.5: Apples to Apples – iOS Gaming

What, I can't put a chapter within a chapter?

To be honest, I forgot about talking about my beloved iPod Touch 2G until I finished writing my gamer story, epilogue and everything so without a place to put it I just, you know, stuck it here (I hope you don't mind!). So yeah, here you go: a short segment iOS gaming.

I got an iPod Touch after I graduated from Junior High. It was something I had really wanted, and I finally got one. It was actually the first iPod I had ever owned, since I had originally stuck with a Sandisk Sansa since sixth grade.

But yes, on to the gaming aspect of my iPod Touch. Through the then-very-young App Store, I bought a ton of games, and I meant a ton. Among my favorites were Zenonia, Toki Tori, and Castle of Magic. Eventually, the platform went to crap and I've since given up on finding good games on it, but I'm not going to lie that I've still been enjoying a bit of Mega Jump and Jetpack Joyride here and there.

Yeah, that's it for iOS. I'm getting an iPhone 5 soon, so maybe my iOS gaming habits will return. But anyways, back to the main story.

Still one of the best games on iOS.

Chapter 6: Battlestriker123 – 3DS, Wii U, Steam, E3, and MyIGN

If you know me, you'd know that I didn't really get into gaming until around 2010 thanks to a little website known as 3dsblog.com. I hate going back there now because of all the stupid commenters and trolls that reside there, but it marked the beginning of me following gaming news closely. I remember coming back from school every day and reading all the awesome little stories about the 3DS, getting excited for every announcement, and looking forward to the day I could finally get my hands on this crazy new glasses-free 3D technology.

In fact, I'd say gaming became a major hobby of mine thanks to the 3DS. Unlike most gamers, I absolutely adore 3D. I truly believe 3D is the future of gaming. And a glasses-free 3D portable created by my favorite gaming company? You can take my money, thank you very much.

My brother got a 3DS as a gift when he graduated from eighth grade. Admittedly, I probably played it more than he did, something I kind of regret now that I look back at it. I remember complaining about him taking the 3DS to the bathroom once, and he fired back telling everyone that I was the household's 3DS hogger. Hey, it's not my fault Nintendo makes great games!

I eventually bought my own 3DS XL with my own money in 2012. It was the first console I ever bought myself, and I absolutely love it to bits.

But back to 2010. That was the year that I began actively purchasing games, as in I started following games, planning my purchases, and going out to buy the games myself. You may remember that 2010 was a ridiculously good year for Wii. I purchased several games – among them Super Mario Galaxy 2 and Kirby's Epic Yarn – all on my own. Of course, not every game turned out the way I expected; Kirby's Epic Yarn ended up being a frustrating mess, but Super Mario Galaxy 2 was a surprisingly refreshing experience.

2011 was a dead year for many Nintendo gamers. I was lucky enough to have a 3DS in my hands, and since I had no interest in Zelda, the 3DS was really all I had. So yes, lots of Pilotwings and Star Fox and Mario for me. My Wii, on the other hand, just kind of sat there. I think the only Wii game I got that year was Kirby's Return to Dream Land, which was a fine game itself, but that was in October (which if you didn't know, is a full 10 months after the new year).

But a ton of other things happened in 2011 that were very important to me. For one, I watched E3 live for the first time in my life. Yup, I happened to not have finals that one day, and when they announced the Wii U, I was like OH DANG HERE IT COMES! And less than a week later I joined MyIGN.

My main reason for joining MyIGN was to post reviews, so you can imagine how I felt when I found out IGN didn't have reader reviews anymore. What the heck! So I did the next best thing and started blogging. And look where I am now!

So I guess now is a good time to talk a bit about my little MyIGN "career." I started blogging in 2011 with a terrible and embarrassing introductory blog which I refuse to provide a link for. But as time went on I began to gain followers. I began to write better. I began to write longer. It became an unexpected hobby of mine, something I felt was responsible for my sudden increase in writing skill. Over time, more and more people began seeing my work, and as a result I have been featured on the front page three times (four if you count the Pokemon video) and garnered over 400 followers in less than two years, all while never winning a single community spotlight or Comm Nom (not to brag or anything... hehe).

But back to gaming. 2012 was a terrible year to be a Nintendo gamer, at least until the Wii U came out. But that was okay, because 2012 was the year when I finally got Steam! Thus, 2012 became the year of going back. I got to play all those classic titles that people have been clamoring over, including Portal, Trine, Super Meat Boy, Bastion, LIMBO, and Mass Effect, Mirror's Edge, among many, may others. I had a similar (but to a wayyyy lesser extent) experience with the Wii, which led to my purchase of Sin & Punishment: Star Successor for $5 at Best Buy (what a steal!).

2012 was also the year of trying something new for me. The Steam games were a good start, but games like Kid Icarus: Uprising and Xenoblade Chronicles began widening my scope when it came to gaming. Xenoblade especially, a game in a genre that I despised, was a surprisingly fresh experience for me. And yes, I played the whole 70 hours. That's when you know you've just played a good game.

I also got a Wii U in 2012, but I don't really have much to talk about when it comes to that. To be honest, I never really wanted one in the first place, but my dad got one for Christmas and, well, that's that. Perhaps in the future I'll fall more in love with it as I did with consoles past, but with my first year of college coming my way in just a few months, that seems more and more unlikely.

A new beginning?

Epilogue: The End?

So far I've been having a pretty good 2013. Though my Wii U hasn't gotten much playtime as of late, my 3DS has more than made up for it. Steam is being as awesome as always (those sales, man!), so I'm slowly but surely crunching through my backlog and enjoying those games I missed years past.

I'm not sure what the future holds for me now. With the prospect of college creeping up on me, my gaming habits may or may not change. I may quit games altogether, or I may begin to indulge in what may possibly become the biggest gaming years of my life. The gaming industry is moving on, and with next-gen just around the corner, who knows what's going to happen?

My gaming story may not have been the most exciting you've read, nor the most interesting. But I hope you enjoyed it nonetheless. For those of you who have reached this far, I thank you for wasting half an hour of your time with me. Just proves how awesome MyIGN is.

And alas, a final parting note. AP season is here again, which means I'm going to stop blogging for a month in order to focus on my studies. Don't worry, I'm not leaving MyIGN. I'll be hanging around commenting and socializing here as usual. You just won't see me posting any new content here until around mid-May. So this is goodbye, for now.

Story time is over, kids.

Keep it cool, guys! ;D

~Battlestriker123

P.S.: Thanks for the 400 follows! See you guys on blog #101.