What Game Sucked You Into This Hobby?

[Lord Nepenthean]

What was the first game that really sucked you into video games?  Was it the first one you ever played?  Something years later that just defined video games for you and made things different from then on?  An arcade game that you just HAD to beat before you could stop putting quarters into it?

For me, it was probably either Super Mario Bros. or Duck Hunt.  Super Mario Bros. was the first video game I remember playing, and I absoultely loved it.  The graphics and gameplay absolutely blew me away.  A couple years later, I borrowed a few of my cousin's NES games, The Legend of Zelda among them.  It took the mild addiction SMB had instilled in me and ingrained it into my inner being.  Damn Nintendo.  They made me the poor person I am today.

[Arrrhalomynn]

Well, the first game I remember playing was paratrooper at age 8 or so. I might have played games before, but I don't remember. That's also the game that sucked me into gaming. It's so awesome.

[Sauza12]

For me it was Pressure Cooker and Venture that sucked me in.  I was lucky as my parents liked Atari as much as I did, so i always had an influx of games to play.

[Geondp]

Night trap... I rember seting up a videocam infront of the tv trying to beat the game so that i could just watch it later on if i wanted to

[Sureshot]

The first 'proper' game I played (which I STILL haven't discovered the name of) was on I think a C64 when I was about 4, but I think the things that really sucked me into the whole scene were Game & Watches, which I played even before that.  The novelty & mystery that surrounded games just pulled me in.

[den68]

Asteroids for the Atari 2600. It was one of the first Atari games I had and it got the most play of any I had period.

To this day it's the first game I play whenever I hook up the 2600. It's also the game I always use to test  Atari consoles or joysticks whenever I find them.

[Antimind]

My history breaks down like this:

Computers: tie Adventures In The Macrozine I think is the name of the series. It was a bunch of choose your own adventure type things. That and Where in Europe is Carmen Sandiego both for Apple ][.

Consoles: first game I played and really loved is a tie between Moon Patrol and Galaga for the 2600. The one that really sealed my fate is SMB for NES though.

Arcade: Rampage is the first game I spend a zillion quarters on and beat. It really sucked me and my brother in. As far as pinball goes, Cylone ate more of my quarters than anyone else's in the city.

[Lord Nepenthean]

All great games.

I think there were probably video games before SMB for me, but that is the first one that really stuck out in my mind.  Another game I know I played a lot of was Dragon Spirit.  If I remember correctly, I got that game at the same time as my NES Action Set.  I remember my dad reading the instruction manual, doing everything step-by-step as I waited impatiently to play.  He "showed me how it worked" before I was allowed to do it on my own.  That was probably the first and the last time he ever played a video game.

Of course, the only arcade game I really got into much as a kid was Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.  I didn't get to go to arcades much, but they had one of these at the Chuk E. Cheese's near my house, and every time somebody had a birthday party, I got to play that game.

Good times.

[thx1138]

Well I'm old enough to remember Space Invaders coin-ops being introduced to the U.K

The game that first got me hooked, really hooked, and coming back for more was probably Manic Miner for the Zx Spectrum circa 1983. I'd had a Spectrum since April 1982, but only had a Spave Invaders rip-off (Spectral Invaders) a pac-man ripoff (Gulpman) and a few games that my dad programmed for me.

Then my dad started retailing video games in his shop, and he gave me a bundle of tapes to try, Harrier Attack and Manic Miner the only two titles I remember from the bundle, to play at my grandparents houes over the schoo holidays. The whole family got hooked on tryinh to do Manic Miner, we'd never seen a platformer (they were called Leve's & Ladders back then) game before, and it took us most the afternoon to clear the first screen.

[deadducks]

Mortal Kombat for the genesis got me interested, Super Mario bros hooked me for good |D

[2D-Forever]

I barely remember yesterday, let alone years ago.

I assume it was my brother's Sega Genesis and the games he had for it, the only ones that stick out are Road Rash II and Todd's adventures in Slimeworld.

[Lord Nepenthean]

I barely remember yesterday, let alone years ago.

Be very glad of this.  A good memory is something I wish I had not been cursed with.

[NESJunkie]

Excitebike....end of story!

[Zimbacca]

first game i ever played.  Spideroide (SP?) on the Atari 2600.

[T]

Mike Tyson's punchout really got me hooked for good