Community Game experiences you will never have again

Adnor

Tetris Hell
Dec 11, 2018
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So I'm sure we all have had that moment, that memory about a game, or a system, that was truly special, not just because the game was good, but for all the things surrounding it, be the people you were playing it, the situation your life was at the moment, anything.

Mine was Ultima Online, playing that game with my brother and some family friends in a few... not actually totally legal shards. It was perfect, the game was immersive, the people in the servers were amicable, the GMs did events for us. All those servers were truly close and friendly communities.

And I will never experience it again.

Don't get me wrong, there are good shards of Ultima Online out there, but no matter what, it will never be the same. I will not be 10 again, I won't be playing with the same people we will not be as close, the discovery of it all will not be there. The Ultima Online of my childhood can't be replicated, no matter how much I want it to.

So what are your gaming experience that, no matter what, you won't be able to experience again, but you still treasure?
 

suiko

saviour of worlds
Nov 12, 2018
307
650
93
this is Journey the thread. You had to be there and know close to nothing about it.

if we think older stuff, M&M6, you can't experience this kind of gameplay change for the first time ever again.

and my favourite moment in gaming was Suikoden of course, I was blown away by scope of it, by uniqness of it and no other game ever came even close to that to this day, we never even had any alikes that are worth mentioning, to this day.
 

Kuroyume

Spokes for the Wheel of Torment
Oct 21, 2018
133
266
63
The move to 3d was overwhelming. So, probably playing DOOM for the first time. I remember thinking it was the coolest thing ever. And then WCW vs nWo World Tour instead of SM64 (my first n64 game) for the 3d person perspective and seeing polygons and a ton of stuff going on. I played a bit of Multiplayer BattleTech: Solaris on AOL a few years earlier, but I was young and didn't know what the fuck was going on, so I'd also say playing the online portion of PSO on the Dreamcast was incredibly cool since I was able to play alongside people I was friends with online. It was the first time I was able to gather a party together to play a game over the net. And lastly I'd say my entire time with Halo 2. While I did't experience anything new while playing that game (ie 3d gameplay or online gameplay), the multiplayer was so much fun that I like to think fondly of it. H3 and Reach were disappoitments relativley speaking so I haven't tried the others.
 

Deku

Just nothing
Oct 19, 2018
4,262
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20XX
www.seikens.com
For me it was original Secret of Mana when back in the early 90's

It was the most beautiful game I have played at the time. The graphic and the music were so great. Even the intro music was great
 
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Nahkapukki

Finest Finn
Sep 7, 2018
699
1,116
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40
The Iciest Hole
Outcast... The first time I stepped out to the Adelpha proper it took my breath away. The music, graphics, the sheer scope of it was something I've never seen before and I had played for a decade. Everything about it made me feel like I was a pioneer in a world that had not yet been explored. I wish I'd get that feeling back with some game.
 

MegaApple

Just another Video Game Enthusiast
Sep 20, 2018
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I think this applies more about leaving childhood "innocence" and moving to be an adult, but I've seen that the way we get so entangled with adult stuff in life that it clouds our judgement.

I don't think the values I obtained from playing Shadow of the Colossus and Okami back in the day, back when I was "innocent", there's no way my mess of an adult self would have gotten an ounce of that.

Okami in particular, as much as it is a fun lighthearted anime like story, is one of the most powerful depictions of Faith (the Buddhist/Hindu kind). No way my overly analytical and critical self would have gotten that.

This games and their memories serve me as a reminder of being a better person.
 
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Blizniak

MetaMember
Sep 19, 2018
368
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Walking out of the Mortuary in Planescape: Torment will never be the same. It was my first RPG and it starts very low key, you just wander around fairly empty halls and then you leave and Hive is just brimming with life - people running around, noisy streets, so many interactions, a world of possibilities.
 

Alexandros

Every game should be turn based
Nov 4, 2018
2,670
11,488
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Graphics-wise, the first time I saw graphics from a 3D accelerator, my mind was blown. I could not believe the graphics on screen, it was a feeling that I was witnessing something on a whole other level compared to what had come before.

Game-wise, that time I visisted a friend's house as a teenager and saw him playing X-Com: Terror from the Deep. Not only did the game have an amazing atmosphere of tension and terror, once my friend fired a missile that levelled a big part of the map, structures and all, I was floored. That game had everything that I ever wanted and I played the shit out of it and every other game in the series.
 

Routa

Non-Stop MMO Searcher
Dec 22, 2018
861
3,797
93
So many things in Everquest.

With MMOs these days, all information is on the internet near instantly (PTR, data mining, etc). There were so many rumors that were impossible to confirm that it only added to the mystery of the game, and the social aspect became near forced in having to communicate with other players if they knew the answer, or if you needed help (also helped soloing was only viable for a few classes). It really built the idea of a unique world and a community. Everyone was lost and confused together.

I remember being a 40 Druid failing at kiting some mobs when a higher level Wizard ran by, noticed, and saved me. He then took me to some zone, and killed some high level vampires giving me all the loot from them. I made so much platinum and got a sweet item that I ended up using for the longest time. Fun times.
 

RionaaM

Vogon Poetry Appreciator
Sep 6, 2018
887
2,187
93
I remember being 10 and playing Pokemon Blue on an emulator with my best friend at the time. We hung out at his house pretty much every afternoon after school, and we took turns playing it. It was really fun.
 

TubaZef

MetaMember
Dec 19, 2018
90
155
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Defeating Gygas in Earthbound.

I tried everything until I realized I haven't tried praying and then I completely forgot I have given my name to the game (it does it so well, nowadays would be so much easier), it blew my mind
 
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Firewithin

MetaMember
Dec 19, 2018
791
1,590
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two games immediately come to mind for a topic like this

1. Mario 64. it was my very first time in a 3d world like that and at the time there just wasnt anything really like it.

2. The Last of Us. Ive never felt real emotion from a game until this one. once that opening act was over i knew this was going to be a dark game. Then there were scenes like the cabin after Ellie runs off :cry: and stuff like seeing the giraffes. gameplay aside it was just a real story
 

Ex-User (307)

MetaMember
Dec 11, 2018
1,105
2,597
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Playing Gran Turismo 3: A-Spec for the first time on a friend's PS2.

I've loved every racing game I've played since, and I'm pretty sure a huge portion of them are actually objectively better, deeper experiences than GT3 was.

But nothing will ever capture the awe and love I felt the first time I saw those tracks flying by on the screen.
 
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Durante

I <3 Pixels
Oct 21, 2018
3,835
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Wow.

When I read the thread title I thought "Ultima Online on dialup". And there it was.

Call it elitist or whatever, but the kind of online experience you could have when only RPG geeks played MMOs and everything about it including the concept itself was new to everyone just can't be replicated.
 

Guilty of Being

META MAN
Dec 5, 2018
1,607
3,971
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Texas
In the 90s, I was a big wrestling fan. WCW/nWo Revenge blew me away in every aspect. I wish I could bottle that up and jump into it all over again.

Also, Halo 3 multiplayer in college. It was my first real experience with online gaming. However, I was the weak link in our group. I’ve never been good at FPS with a controller.

The first time I “went PC.”

My first Steam Sale back in 2012...

Lastly, Hotline Miami was an experience I wish I could relive for the first time again. Everything about that game just touched me.
 
OP
Adnor

Adnor

Tetris Hell
Dec 11, 2018
97
194
33
Wow.

When I read the thread title I thought "Ultima Online on dialup". And there it was.

Call it elitist or whatever, but the kind of online experience you could have when only RPG geeks played MMOs and everything about it including the concept itself was new to everyone just can't be replicated.
One of the things that made UO for me was the sense of community it had. If you wanted to be the best swordman in the server it wasn't enough to be the best swordman, you needed to have the best sword, and to have the best sword you needed the best blacksmith and the best miner. Also if you for some reason used leather armor you needed the best tailorer. And to have all that you needed a guild. And then the guild would need a castle because of course, if you have the best of the best in the server you need a castle. And to have the best castle you need a good mason, and a good carpenter! And if your guild doesn't have all that, you will need to trade with other guilds!

Such a fantastic game.
 

Hektor

Autobahnraser
Nov 1, 2018
5,682
15,493
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The first playthrough of all my favorite videogames.

Al those closed online games i played in the last 10 years.

The Borderlands 2 playthrough with my BFF.
 

Kuro

"Oh yeah? Aren't you gonna punish me?"
Dec 22, 2018
597
806
93
Thinking every game I got was actually good as kid.
Bloodborne first playthrough.
 
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Le Pertti

0.01% Game dev
Oct 10, 2018
8,279
21,203
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Paris, France
lepertti.com
For me it was original Secret of Mana when back in the early 90's

It was the most beautiful game I have played at the time. The graphic and the music were so great. Even the intro music was great
Me and my friend went home from school every lunch break to check the postbox to see if the game had come. We were so incredibly hyped for it and it lived up to in every way. Really is one of my best gaming memories. So yeah I agree with you that is probably one of a kind moment.
 
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