Home Gaming Flamebait Friday Debate: What was your first game?

Flamebait Friday Debate: What was your first game?

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Yesterday was March 10th, also known as MAR10 day. For many of us from the older generation, Mario was one of the first games we ever played. I remember watching my brother play it was a kid, and the joy I had when I finally had the fine motor skills necessary to play it myself (without just dying in the first minute). But since I had to share it and other games with my brother, I’m not sure it counts as my first game.

Being a younger sister, I almost always had to share gaming experiences with my big brother. Or, more aptly put, he had to share them with me. It was only as he got older and less interested in gaming that I was able to play games to completion on my own.

The first game I ever beat without watching someone else do it first was Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego on PC. It was an MS DOS game and I remember using the almanac to find out what country he had traveled to next – I had to look up foreign currencies and flags. Perhaps that was my first ever use of a cheat.

It’s hard for me to remember which game I played totally on my own to completion. I was thinking it was Final Fantasy II or III, but I believe I had to share the controller still then. Secret of Mana I played as couch co-op, so that doesn’t really count.

I think my first ever game that was all mine that I played from start to finish was either Secret of Evermore or Chrono Trigger. No wonder I have such fond memories of both, and it makes sense why both games have continued to inform the genres and gameplay elements that I enjoy so much to this day – single-player RPGs for life!

What was your first gaming experience? Did you also have to wait before you could play games on your own? Or did you start by playing with friends and continue that tradition to this day?

Last Updated: March 11, 2016

137 Comments

  1. Ottokie vs the forces of Evil

    March 11, 2016 at 10:31

    Sim Farm

    Good old Sim Farm~

    Reply

    • Pariah

      March 11, 2016 at 10:35

      Man, that game… And Windows 3.11. Haha, more afternoons and weekends lost.

      Do you remember Sim Tower?

      Reply

      • Ottokie vs the forces of Evil

        March 11, 2016 at 10:36

        That crazy levels on levels style game

        Reply

        • Pariah

          March 11, 2016 at 10:47

          Yup. So much fun. There was also Sim Ant and Sim Copter, both of which were terrible. But lols for days.

          Reply

      • HvR

        March 11, 2016 at 11:14

        Replayed Sim tower 4 or 5 year ago.

        Reply

        • Vulcha

          March 11, 2016 at 11:19

          There was actually a sequel of sorts. More like version 1.5. Yoot Tower. Made by Yoot Saito, the lead developer of SimTower itself.

          Reply

  2. Ottokie vs the forces of Evil

    March 11, 2016 at 10:33

    First game ever from start to finish was probably Contra 2 followed closely by Urban Strike

    Reply

    • PoisonedBelial

      March 11, 2016 at 10:39

      Have you tried to play Contra 1 recently?

      I have a new appreciation for how hard Nintendo games were.

      Reply

      • Ottokie vs the forces of Evil

        March 11, 2016 at 10:41

        No, I am trying to get my hands on a an original NES. These emulators suck all the fun out of retro games xD

        Reply

        • PoisonedBelial

          March 11, 2016 at 10:44

          Good luck.

          I resorted to an emulator. 😐

          Reply

          • Pariah

            March 11, 2016 at 10:46

            That sounds like Darryn’s sex life. I’d also be quite depressed about that.

          • Ottokie vs the forces of Evil

            March 11, 2016 at 10:48

            I got myself a Nintendo 64 recently with Mario 64, Donkey Kong 64, Ocarina of time and Star wars Racer. So that will keep me busy until I can track a NES down 😛

  3. For the Emperor!

    March 11, 2016 at 10:34

    If I remember correctly, something like DigDug…

    Reply

  4. Trevor James

    March 11, 2016 at 10:34

    Midtown Madness.

    Reply

  5. Pariah

    March 11, 2016 at 10:35

    Golden Axe and Xenon 2000 – played both on my 386 from floppy disks. 1 for Golden Axe, 2 for Xenon 2000.

    Many afternoons were lost.

    Reply

    • Guava_Eater

      March 11, 2016 at 10:36

      I could never get past the second stage of Xenon 2000….

      Reply

      • Pariah

        March 11, 2016 at 10:46

        I can’t remember how far I got to be honest. I preferred Golden Axe, and I finished that often.

        Reply

  6. GBoy

    March 11, 2016 at 10:35

    Pong or Space Invaders or Asteroids on the Atari 2600.

    Reply

  7. PoisonedBelial

    March 11, 2016 at 10:36

    I think it was either Enduro, Pong, or Dig Dug on the Atari or Monty on an old-school DOS PC.

    Reply

  8. Guava_Eater

    March 11, 2016 at 10:37

    I can’t remember the game’s name but it was on a Green Screen and you have to climb a building avoiding hazards thrown out the window… pot plants and stuff.

    Reply

  9. Jan Prins

    March 11, 2016 at 10:38

    Space Invaders. In the Cafe on the corner. I had to stand on my dad’s safety boots to reach, and he did most of the playing. But it was MY hands on the controller and shoot button.
    His big hands merely guided my own tiny digits…

    Reply

  10. AfricanTime

    March 11, 2016 at 10:40

    Ice climber first game i finished on my own

    Reply

  11. Alien Emperor Trevor

    March 11, 2016 at 10:40

    One of those hand-held clamshell Donkey Kong games that I got as a hand-me-down from my older siblings. With my 1st PC it was stuff like Battle Chess, Airborne Ranger, California Games – all in a lovely monochrome.

    Reply

    • Jan Prins

      March 11, 2016 at 10:42

      Street Rod, all in green. Great times…

      Reply

      • Alien Emperor Trevor

        March 11, 2016 at 10:44

        I remember that one. Racing for pink slips, bro! Also Outrun, Death Track. I loved Death Track.

        The very first Sierra Quests too.

        Reply

        • GooseZA

          March 11, 2016 at 11:17

          Death track!!!

          Reply

    • GooseZA

      March 11, 2016 at 11:16

      BATTLE CHESS!!

      Reply

  12. Francois Knoetze

    March 11, 2016 at 10:44

    Super mario and some tennis game on the famicon. Loved those games

    Reply

  13. Aries

    March 11, 2016 at 10:46

    Super Mario and tetris

    Reply

  14. konfab

    March 11, 2016 at 10:47

    • Ottokie vs the forces of Evil

      March 11, 2016 at 10:50

      I think all of us had the “Jump Start” games at some point 😛

      Reply

      • konfab

        March 11, 2016 at 10:52

        Probably, but this was the first game that I actually wanted to finish.

        Reply

      • Pariah

        March 11, 2016 at 10:52

        I didn’t. O_o

        Reply

        • Alien Emperor Trevor

          March 11, 2016 at 10:53

          Me neither. Guess some of us didn’t need it. *run fast*

          Reply

          • Ottokie vs the forces of Evil

            March 11, 2016 at 10:53

            Damn, sudden realization that I was an idiot as a kid 🙁

          • Alien Emperor Trevor

            March 11, 2016 at 10:54

            lol

          • Pariah

            March 11, 2016 at 10:57

            I forsee 2 more realisations. First, that you spelled a word there incorrectly. Second, that Trevor is an ass. I mean, joking. Yeah. That.

          • Ottokie vs the forces of Evil

            March 11, 2016 at 10:58

            I spells it like i says it

        • Ottokie vs the forces of Evil

          March 11, 2016 at 10:53

          My mother bought stacks of these for me xD

          Reply

      • HairyEwok

        March 11, 2016 at 11:00

        Only jump start i did was blowing into a cartridge :/

        Reply

      • Guild

        March 11, 2016 at 11:23

        Nope was too old by then so I never saw these

        Reply

  15. Ottokie vs the forces of Evil

    March 11, 2016 at 10:47

    • Pariah

      March 11, 2016 at 10:48

      I raise you:
      Edit: It’s actually this one:
      https://i.ytimg.com/vi/v3HmhSHgxJI/hqdefault.jpg

      Reply

      • Ottokie vs the forces of Evil

        March 11, 2016 at 10:49

        I forgot about that game xD

        Reply

        • Pariah

          March 11, 2016 at 10:51

          So did I until you posted the racing game screenshots. Also, I got it wrong, I Played an older one than I linked. I edited, so refresh. :/

          Reply

          • Ottokie vs the forces of Evil

            March 11, 2016 at 10:52

            That was Need for Speed 2 in my pics. I remember having to wait 6 months for our first vacation to go and buy this in the big city.

            (I had no internet and cell signal until I was 18 years old, we lived in the middle of nowhere xD)

          • Pariah

            March 11, 2016 at 10:56

            lol I had no internet until I was 18 either. But then I had a job, so nobody could tell me otherwise. Fuck em. MY INTERNET!

          • Ottokie vs the forces of Evil

            March 11, 2016 at 11:08

            True, when I was finally unleashed upon the world. I went and found the fastest internet at the time and kept upgrading as speeds increased.

          • Pariah

            March 11, 2016 at 11:09

            Aww look at us. All grown up. 😛

          • Ottokie vs the forces of Evil

            March 11, 2016 at 11:09

            I wouldn’t mind going back to 15 year old me sometimes xD

          • Pariah

            March 11, 2016 at 11:10

            Me neither, but pretty much just for the afternoon naps and no responsibilities. Everything else is better as an adult. Well, sort-of-adult.

  16. The Sten

    March 11, 2016 at 10:52

    Completed it approximately 30985768490398475 times…

    Reply

  17. ApolloTubby

    March 11, 2016 at 10:54

    Pong, TV console, in 70’s… before Atari… in black and white… some refer to it as “good old days”.

    Reply

  18. DragonSpirit009

    March 11, 2016 at 10:55

    Alex Kidd… It was a built in game in one of the Sega consoles. Those were some awesome memories!

    Reply

  19. Captain JJ the Isolated

    March 11, 2016 at 10:57

    I have no idea
    But THANK YOU.

    Reply

  20. Ottokie vs the forces of Evil

    March 11, 2016 at 10:57

    • Pariah

      March 11, 2016 at 11:00

      Because it was shit?

      Reply

      • Ottokie vs the forces of Evil

        March 11, 2016 at 11:02

        GASP! You take that back!

        Reply

        • Pariah

          March 11, 2016 at 11:05

          It’s my opinion, I never relinquished it to you. So, in fact, I can’t take it back. It never left.

          Reply

  21. Raptor Rants

    March 11, 2016 at 10:57

    eish. Good question. Let’s see now…. Contra. aaah yes. That good old Golde…. Ur I mean Famicon console

    Reply

    • Pariah

      March 11, 2016 at 11:00

      Let me guess, you played it every day of the week. So, how many days is that?

      Reply

      • Raptor Rants

        March 11, 2016 at 11:00

        Will I ever outlive the 7’s?

        Reply

        • Pariah

          March 11, 2016 at 11:01

          We can’t outlive 20+ year old games. So, probably not.

          Reply

  22. Captain JJ the Isolated

    March 11, 2016 at 10:58

    I remember playing that tank game in dos a lot where you had to launch bullets using trajectory and stuff.

    Reply

    • Ottokie vs the forces of Evil

      March 11, 2016 at 11:00

      I remember it but never played it a lot, was pretty boring even by olden time standards 😛

      Reply

      • Captain JJ the Isolated

        March 11, 2016 at 11:01

        Haha. Back when you rather went outside because the pc games weren’t exciting enough.
        These days I don’t even know where outside is anymore most of the time.

        Reply

        • Pariah

          March 11, 2016 at 11:02

          It’s that evil place where creatures lurk in the light.

          Reply

          • Captain JJ the Isolated

            March 11, 2016 at 11:03

            Sunblock is expensive.

    • Jan Prins

      March 11, 2016 at 11:06

      That reminded me of this Gorilla game we used to play in school. You chug explosive bananas at your mate…

      Reply

    • Alien Emperor Trevor

      March 11, 2016 at 11:39

      Scorched Earth!

      Reply

      • Captain JJ the Isolated

        March 11, 2016 at 11:41

        YES!
        That’s the one

        Reply

  23. Raptor Rants

    March 11, 2016 at 11:00

    It wasn’t my first, but who remembers this gem: http://dosomegames.com/Images/Screenshots/DukeIa.png

    Reply

    • Ottokie vs the forces of Evil

      March 11, 2016 at 11:01

      Duke!?! what are you doing?

      Reply

    • Captain JJ the Isolated

      March 11, 2016 at 11:02

      I was playing this just the other day.
      Bought an entire bundle of these classics (included 42 games) for $5.
      It also had Wacky Wheels, which I quite thoroughly enjoyed playing last Saturday. 😀

      Reply

    • Alien Emperor Trevor

      March 11, 2016 at 11:38

      😀 I have that on my work laptop right now, play it from time to time.

      Reply

  24. Vulcha

    March 11, 2016 at 11:04

    The saddest thing is that I can’t remember exactly what it was. Either it was LHX in MS-DOS, Super Mario Bros on NES, or Pong on an old system stored in the back of some cupboard… I can’t remember which one came first.

    Reply

  25. VampyreSquirrel

    March 11, 2016 at 11:07

    Some bowling game on an ancient console… and then I was blown away by Striker! SO MANY MONOCHROME PIXELS!!

    Reply

  26. GooseZA

    March 11, 2016 at 11:11

    Earliest gaming memory is putting a lot of 20c pieces into Tiger-Heli at the corner cafe when I was about 5 or 6 i think. So… 1986/7? There was a top-down soccer game there as well. Can’t remember the name.

    Reply

  27. Ryanza

    March 11, 2016 at 11:11

    First video game – Leisure Suite Larry Dos black and yellow

    Trying to prove I was 18, a game in it self.
    Trying to play the game = how do you spell that.

    Reply

    • Ryanza

      March 11, 2016 at 11:12

    • Vulcha

      March 11, 2016 at 11:14

      Ah, yes. Didn’t that game ship with a form of DRM/anti-piracy? Explains a lot.

      Reply

      • Ryanza

        March 11, 2016 at 11:18

        Proving you were 18 was the DRM lol. But the DRM did get really bad for some games. Not like today. Today DRM is far worse, just easier to use, unless you not on Steam or playing always online DRM.

        Reply

        • Vulcha

          March 11, 2016 at 11:20

          I might have been thinking of King’s Quest or Monkey Island.

          Reply

          • Ryanza

            March 11, 2016 at 11:24

            yeah one of those two had the really fucked up DRM.

          • Vulcha

            March 11, 2016 at 11:25

            I think Monkey Island had a compass thing of sorts where you had to line up different symbols that you found on specific pages of the manual.

            Imagine that in today’s industry…

          • miaau

            March 11, 2016 at 11:32

            I enjoyed the crap out of the DRM for Leisrue Suit Larry 3. What a great Quiz game! With so many different questions. I would get in and then quit, to redo the quiz. 13 year old me. yeah. play mostly for Quiz.

          • miaau

            March 11, 2016 at 11:33

            And monkey island had the questions that you needed the manual for, in order to play the game.

  28. HvR

    March 11, 2016 at 11:17

    One of those X-in-1 game cartridges with Super Marios Bros, Islander, Circus and Sky Destroyer. Probably Mario because it was first on the list menu.

    But the game that bit me and got me hooked was Dune 2 on a friend’s PC.

    Reply

  29. Jac7

    March 11, 2016 at 11:21

    Wicked Game, Chris Isaak.

    Reply

  30. Guild

    March 11, 2016 at 11:25

    Pong is the first one I remember. Then somewhere after that was Test Drive and California Games.

    Reply

  31. miaau

    March 11, 2016 at 11:31

    Hereos Quest 1, Kings Quest IV, Leisure Suit Larry III

    Other than Hero”s quest, two games caught me with the whole infinite possibilities in gaming thing.

    Master of Orion 1
    Civilization 1 + 2

    There were games before this, Test Drive, DigDug and the like, but these are the games that really got me hooked.

    Reply

    • Captain JJ the Isolated

      March 11, 2016 at 12:08

      The Dig was also a good one.

      Reply

  32. Morne Nell

    March 11, 2016 at 11:33

    Brick breaker and DigDug.

    But the best was a Golf Game think it was the first links or something, with the first ever voice over the internal speaker.

    Always remember the bad shots.

    “Can’t be to happy about that one”

    Reply

    • Alien Emperor Trevor

      March 11, 2016 at 11:36

      Links Golf?

      Reply

  33. Darren Peach

    March 11, 2016 at 11:34

    Yikes, My first game was………..I have no Idea. It could have been Rogue. It could have been Tetris or Pong. I also remember playing a game called California games.

    Reply

    • Darren Peach

      March 11, 2016 at 11:38

      PAC MAN comes in there somewhere. Also those type your adventures. A mate of mine had a game called Astro Tit. Space Invaders……

      Reply

  34. Darren Peach

    March 11, 2016 at 11:40

    Rogue.

    Reply

  35. Kromas untamed

    March 11, 2016 at 11:45

    I really don’t want to say pong so I am going for Nibbles.

    Reply

  36. OpticFusion

    March 11, 2016 at 11:50

    One of my first games was Alley Cat.

    Reply

    • VampyreSquirrel

      March 11, 2016 at 11:55

      I loved this game

      Reply

    • Captain JJ the Isolated

      March 11, 2016 at 12:07

      Alley Cat!!
      Man, that game was awesome

      Reply

    • Mossel

      March 11, 2016 at 12:21

      Yes!!!!! Omf blast from the past! And then you get into the cheese and climb on the telephone wires!

      Reply

      • Captain JJ the Isolated

        March 11, 2016 at 12:23

        • Mossel

          March 11, 2016 at 12:27

          Soundcloud is blocked at work, sadly. But Ill listen to it at home!
          EDIT: Oh no, wait, I’m still waiting for Telkom to install my telephone line.

          Reply

          • Captain JJ the Isolated

            March 11, 2016 at 12:40

            Damn man.
            Soundcloud is one of the few things that aren’t blocked here.

  37. Captain JJ the Isolated

    March 11, 2016 at 12:08

    Hugo’s House of Horrors was a good one.

    Reply

  38. ChaosPixy

    March 11, 2016 at 12:14

    Was in Standard 1(Grade 3) playing on my 286 it was either Cadaver, Civilization 1, or KIngs Quest 1. I can’t remember the order but winning a game of Civ on Warlord sent me over the moon!

    Reply

    • Guava_Eater

      March 11, 2016 at 12:50

      Damn I remember those, wasted many hours!!

      Did you ever play Cadaver: The Pay Off. was the sequel?

      Reply

  39. Mossel

    March 11, 2016 at 12:24

    Ladies and gentleman, I present to you: Dangerous Dave.

    http://www.bestoldgames.net/img/ss/dangerous-dave/dangerous-dave-ss3.gif

    Reply

    • Captain JJ the Isolated

      March 11, 2016 at 12:25

      You just blew my mind

      Reply

    • Dresden

      March 14, 2016 at 07:00

      Think Dave 5 was the first game i played on PC with my brother. That game was so damn hard at the time, could never finish it.

      Reply

  40. Mossel

    March 11, 2016 at 12:28

  41. Deceased

    March 11, 2016 at 12:42

    Should come as absolutely no surprise to the dwellers on this site:

    Sonic 3 – man I don’t think I’ve reached the hours invested yet, and I’m on almost 4K hours on DotA 2

    Reply

  42. Johann

    March 11, 2016 at 12:56

    First game ever played, that would be Asteroids on the Atari… First ever completed from start to finish? Space Quest 3: The Pirates of Pestulon

    Reply

  43. Ghost In The Rift

    March 11, 2016 at 12:59

    Aside from the old Nintendo stuf like Mario and Bomber Man(Duck Hunt ofc) my first 3D games was with a Playstation 1 i got, games were Toca World Tours, Digimon World 1 and 2, Metal Gear Solid, GTA 2, Dino Crisis and Resident Evil Nemesis, that was when the bug bit me and a a gamer was born.

    Reply

  44. V@mp

    March 11, 2016 at 16:50

    Probably Breakout, Space Invaders and Outlaw on the Atari 2600 that my dad used to rent for us every month or two.

    On my own pc? Hmmmm. Alley Cat, Battle Chess, Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego and Prince of Persia on our first 286 🙂

    Reply

  45. Matthew Holliday

    March 11, 2016 at 18:23

    played the odd mortal kombat game on my friends sega, but on my first pc, the first game i actually played played, when i finally got a PC i was allowed to use, was Total Annihilation, an old RTS game, it was pretty great and stuff.

    Or Felix the cat on Game Boy

    Reply

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