Early Childhood Memories

A look back at the past of how my gaming passion began ~

It was a very distinct memory but I remember it like yesterday. My family has just moved to Antipolo at that time and I was an incoming third year at the best Catholic school in town. I was making the most out of my summer and got so tanned because of it in the process too, My mom had to get something from my godmother’s house and I went with her. It so happens that my godmother’s nephews were there as well. I peeked into the entertainment room and there they were, huddled in front of the TV and flustered over a game.

It was my first glimpse of Contra, a video game and as I watched, I felt like someone held in a trance. When they finally took notice of me and handed me the controller. I know I will be hooked. I felt guilty. Why? Because I would be pestering my folks to get me a family computer. That I did. Shamefully. 😀

So there, when I finally got the console. I was in retro game heaven. Me and my sister would sit in front of the TV for hours. We forgot about lunch and even dinner. Hunger was the least of our worries back then. We were more worried about finishing Super Mario 1. But then too much of something is always bad. We were so addicted. Our grades slipped and we were punished for being irresponsible. The result. Banned from playing games for a loooong time.

I forgot about gaming for a while and it felt like a part of me was lying dormant for years. Yes I got my grades up and even got into the honor roll. Then I requested to be bought a desktop PC. The PC package we bought came with a gaming bundle. I re-discovered my passion for gaming. But this time I knew better. I was a responsible gamer this time around and I didn’t let my grades slip. Needless to say, no banning from gaming happened again.

The PSP, is the only other gaming device I ever play with. Don’t get me wrong. I would love to have a PS3 but currently just don’t have the budget for it. I bought my PSP because the guy I was with was really into handheld gaming. I used to just look over his shoulder while he played and I got so envious. Pretty soon, we were having PSP dates and gaming took a pretty good central core in my life again. It’s fun having someone who shares the same passion I have for gaming.

Nowadays, even though my days are pretty filled up with work and blogging and everything else. I still find time to kick back and just be immersed even for a short bit in a video game. Other people may find it hard to believe but gaming can be a great de-stresser. And oh of course, it’s great to be adding to my curio of virtual trophy achievements too. Gaming will always have a place in my life, after all without it, life can get pretty BORING. (spoken like a true geekette, I know haha)

As the “great” Kevin Butler once said “A gamer stays up until 3 am for a trophy that isn’t even real.”