As I write this, I’m on holiday in America spending some time with my best friend, Kat. We’d be doing the requisite sight-seeing, but there’s not much to see in El Paso, Texas; it’s effectively a desert. Predictably, this has led to us playing video games. Correction: this has led to Kat failing at Super Mario Bros.
Seriously, she just jumped into the same Goomba four times and yelled at the screen. What’s going on here? This is someone with the patience to beat the fun-but-frustrating Prototype without ever toning down the difficulty or destroying a controller.
I suppose it’s sometimes hard for me to remember that not every core gamer grew up with a NES (or 2600, or C64, et al) and the thought that a gamer’s first console might be the N64 makes me feel ancient. Kat, who probably obsesses over games more than I do (which is saying a lot), first cut her gaming teeth by way of RPGs such as Harvest Moon 64 and Paper Mario. As such, she excels at games which give her the breathing room to think about a situation and make the best decision. Conversely, she’s always struggled with genres which require twitch-based gameplay and fast-reactions.
Here at Ready-Up, we’ve got gamers who specialise in every genre, from FPS to driving to the Japanese RPG. Personally, I would describe myself as an all-round gamer, although I’m utterly pants at RTS. Over the last six years, I’ve tried to introduce Kat to more old-school and action-orientated games, to broaden her gaming skill – and for the most part it’s worked. She packs a mean Bill in Left 4 Dead. She’s bested bi-pedal nuclear tanks by the dozen in every Metal Gear. Recently, she even beat Dr. Wily in the original MegaMan. Maybe she’ll conquer Super Mario Bros. yet?
Hang on, she’s figured out the warp zone! Wait, no. She died on 4-1.
Anyway, I think my point is this: just because you suck at a genre right now doesn’t mean you always have to. How you started gaming definitely influences the way you’ll play, but don’t be put off trying something new. Give fighting games a chance. Try an MMO. Go retro. Maybe you’ll love it. Practice makes perfect!
Comments made by Kat while I was actually writing this:
“Damn it, Mushrooooom! I killed the mushroom.” “Ahh, I didn’t even see that.” “I would have never found that on my own.” “GAPS!” “WHY CAN YOU RUN ACROSS THE LITTLE GAPS?” “This game would be way better if it was MegaMan.” “I miss having fireballs. That was way better.” “[while swimming] OH NO, THIS IS TERRIBLE. EVERYTHING ABOUT THIS FEELS WRONG.” “I had a mushroom that time. Eat it, plant.” “The jumping fish are scaring me.”
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