I haven’t always been a gamer.
In the 80s my parents wouldn’t buy me a Nintendo, no matter how many Christmases I asked for one. They eventually got me a Sega Genesis when I turned 13 and I played Sonic the Hedgehog 2 until my eyes were as blurry as Sonic. I missed out on the next generation of consoles; I never owned a PlayStation or a Nintendo 64. I jumped feet first into the next generation, though, and owned both a PS2 and the original Xbox.
I don’t consider myself a fanboy of either system, but I definitely spent more time playing my Xbox than my PS2, just like I’ve spent more time playing my 360 than my PS3. I loved the original Xbox and still play some of its games today.
Here are some of my favorite games from the original Xbox.
Halo 2
The first Halo was a revolutionary game. If it weren’t for Halo video game sales wouldn’t be dominated by games like Call of Duty and the Battlefield series. I enjoyed Halo but spent way more time playing its sequel. Halo 2 was the first game I really played online and at LAN parties. I still remember connecting four Xboxes at church, with four TVs and just having a blast. The Halo series has a convoluted story, but the gameplay always made up for it. I still remember ignoring papers in college so I could get one more Team Deathmatch in.
Knights of the Old Republic
Knights of the Old Republic is probably my favorite Star Wars game other than TIE Fighter. KOTOR was great because I felt like I was a part of my own Star Wars story. It came out in 2003, after the relative disappointment of the first two prequels. KOTOR was a great way to mend some of that disappointment by playing a game that had nothing to do with Gungans, Midi-chlorians or Separatists. It had some memorable characters, especially the assassin droid HK-47. But nothing was more memorable than finally getting to swing a lightsaber and Force push some bad guys.
Sid Meier’s Pirates
I love Sid Meier’s Pirates franchise. I remember playing Pirates Gold on my friends Mac in the early 90s. When an updated version was released for the Xbox in 2004 I went absolutely nuts. I cannot count the number of hours I have sunk into that game. I downloaded it to my 360 years ago and, to this day, will still sit down and play it for a few hours at a time. It’s a simple and repetitive game, but I love attacking ships, dancing with governors’ daughters and hunting down the evil Marquis de la Montalban. Seriously, this week I’ve probably spent five hours playing Pirates. It’s awesome.
While I haven’t upgraded to the next generation of consoles, I’m still happy playing games from last generation’s. New graphics and new games are awesome, but there’s something about slipping into the comfort of an old standby. Maybe if I play enough original Xbox games, Jesus will take away my desire for an Xbox One.
What were some of your favorite original Xbox games?
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