Growing up gamer

This is for gamers who may be under the impression that they grew up with games but kinda missed a few history classes on their way to college. I'll definitely be providing a visual aid for this in a future episode of The Jaded Gamer's show.

Age is a factor now and just because you are 15 and know everything it doesn't make you king. But seriously wait until the you at 25 looks back at the 10 year old games you used to play. The 10 year jump between 1980 to 1990 was far more drastic and 90 to 2000 was unreal. But now games are aging much better. They age so well that companies are able to polish them a little, add a reward system and knock the price down and people buy them like they are brand new.

Here's a test answer as many as you can honestly.

With the standardized controller we know today, what is the first game you remember playing with it?

Yoda's Revenge.

The Konami code and the first and last place you remember using it.

What do Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and and the first two GTA games have in common?

Final Fantasy ____ was skipped in North America?

Bonus: Final Fantasy 2 and 3 are actually numbered what in Japan.

Xenophobe?

MUDs?

BBS boards and L.O.R.D are what?

Kojima debuted Metal Gear on what system in North America?

Ness, Poo, Paula and Jeff belong to what franchise?

Name a Blizzard games that that doesn't have craft or diablo in it's title.

What system did Ninja Gaiden debut on?

Why did Fred Savage take his little brother to California?

Bonus: Name the peripheral and game that debuted in that movie.

Name a machine that played pong.

Without any peripherals or adaptors what was the first 4 player game you remember playing?

Qix?

Name the 3 game characters Zack Ward has played in his movies based on games.

Greatest line uttered in a movie based on a game?

I'll stop there. Now chances are the 30 and up crowd can get most, if not all of these. The 25 and up probably had to do a bit of retro gaming in the 80s.  Between 20 and 24 its a little more spotty but 18 and below start bottoming out real quick.

Here is the key to some of this. It is simply age. Games weren't played at home or online actively for a while even whem consoles got more popular. They were played at arcades. When was the last time you went to an arcade that was just an arcade? No bar, no restaurant, no movie theater... just video games back to front, a pool table, a soccer table and maybe air hockey. (This being Canada the table hockey thing was huge. Not air hockey. I know some Americans call air hockey "table hockey" actual table hockey is a similar concept to the soccer version)

Forget going to the store to buy a new game you have not lived until you walk into an arcade with your friends and the dookie enters your pants the moment you spot the new game machine.

I don't mean to sound like a geezer but you young whippersnappers don't know how good you have it.

IamFN2K aka The Jaded Gamer

I made "Kraft Dinner"™

Right now you're all "Huh?" So I'll get that outta the way. Kraft Dinner is KD and KD to a competitive gamer usually means Kill/Death ratio.  Now it's not as simple as me taking the abbreviation for Kraft Dinner that everybody knows and applying it to gaming. When I say a game is all about Kraft Dinner or it is a Kraft Dinner game... It is an insult. Here is how the phrase evolved.

Kraft Dinner is the standard which most other generic mac & cheese dinners that come in a box are judged by.  Kraft Dinner is an instant meal.  Instant macaroni, powdered cheese. Simple concept but nothing fancy. There is no "soul" to a kraft dinner meal yet people eat it a lot.  Kill Death is Kraft Dinner. They are both generic boxed concepts. But one is food.. The other costs 60 dollars. One is allowed to be generic (and possibly delicious) because it is cheap. The other better have some sort of innovation behind the KD.

So that's "Kraft Dinner".

But since we are on the topic of catch phrasery. .

I'd like to discuss "Ding!Platinum!" Now I wont be arrogant and say I invented the phrase because the "Ding!" Is really a shared experience between all Ps3 users. We may even yell Ding! After a trophy. Putting "ding!" and "platinum" together is practically public mindshare. Those of us with platinum trophies have probably said it. However, when most gamers get the trophy and hit the Twitter and forums to brag how do they describe it? I'll give you an example of the creativity. Some of these I wish I started.

"Went/gone Platinum."

"Platinum status on_____"

"Platinum unlocked"

"Platted/Plat'd"

"Plats/Platz 4"

"Chromed"

"P-bagged"

"Wearing platinum socks"

and on one occasion "Plaqued!"

I pretty much say "Ding! Platinum" or "I dinged platinum" (Even made a youtube video about it.

Yo, most vain and self wanking blog post ever!

IamFN2K aka The JadedGamer