Computer games you played as a kid

[Ironclad Alibi]

I did not play any computer games as a kid because there weren't any. I got my first computer, a TI-99/4A at the age of 35. On it I played all three Zork games, Hunt the Wampus, Miner 2049er, and others I don't recall offhand.

My second computer was an Apple //e two years later. I played my first CRPG on it, Might & Magic. I was hooked. Other games included Sokoban, Into the Eagles Nest, King's Quest, and many others. I had that computer five years.

When I got the PC in 1990, I really took off with CRPG and adventure games. I have played:

Might & Magic 1-9
All of SSI's Gold Box AD&D games, including the two Bucks Rogers games
Wizardry 5 & 6
Ultima 6 & 7 (both parts)
Space Quest 1-6
Tunnels & Trolls
Savage Empire
Martian Dreams
Dungeon Master 1 & 2
Amberstar
Cobra Mission
and many others.

[protege]

I did not play any computer games as a kid because there weren't any. I got my first computer, a TI-99/4A at the age of 35. On it I played all three Zork games, Hunt the Wampus, Miner 2049er, and others I don't recall offhand.

I had a TI-99/4A too! Of couse, I was about 5-6 at the time. I remember Hunt the Wumpus! But, because the TV we had the TI hooked up to, playing it was sometimes difficult--it was hard to tell between the 'regular' (blue) rooms, and the ones that were just before the pits (green rooms). Other games we had...

Car Wars
TI Space Invaders
The Attack
Munch Man (similar to Pac Man)
BurgerTime
TombStone City: 21st Century
Parsec
Alpiner
Chisholm Trial

Of course, that's all I can remember now In addition to the TI, we also had an Apple III. Games for that were nearly non-existant. Mainly, because color monitors were expensive as hell then. It was either text-based Adventure, or crudely-rendered Atari-based games.

[charred]

Microadventure

[Racket_Man]

I did not play any computer games as a kid because there weren't any. I got my first computer, a TI-99/4A at the age of 35. On it I played all three Zork games, Hunt the Wampus, Miner 2049er, and others I don't recall offhand.

.

OMG!!!! someone remembers a TI-99/4A?????? I did a small programming project for one of those back in the early 80's (TI Basic) for some guy that came into my fast food place.

[protege]

I did a small programming project for one of those back in the early 80's (TI Basic) for some guy that came into my fast food place.

Hehe I used to mess around with TI Basic, usually with code from old magazines. the 'Basic Training" articles in 3-2-1 Contact nearly always had something for the TI. Pain in the ass to save something though--even though we had the casette player, saving didn't always work. Still, I miss playing the games--the TV connector for my TI no longer works (not really surprising, since it's about 30 years old!)--and finding a new one isn't happening.

[Ironclad Alibi]

Hehe I used to mess around with TI Basic, usually with code from old magazines.

I typed in a program from one of those early computer magazines. I not sure if it was the TI-99/4A or the Apple //e. The accompaning picture showed a cannon on a ship firing at another ship, and I thought it was some kind of shooting game. So I typed it in and ran it. All it did was play a song through the computer speaker. That was my first exposure to Pachelbel's Canon.

[dalesys]

That was my first exposure to Pachelbel's Canon.

This is the vaccination for your exposure: Christine Lavine- Tacobell Canon.

[Caffienated_Caramel]

I forgot about two more.

Commander Keen

Jill of the Jungle

Chances are I'll remember more as time goes on.

[Dilorenzo]

Hah, Commander Keen.

Last year, I think? I got a iD pack on Steam which had 2 or three of the Keen games.

Yeaaaaaaah... my reflexes suck compared to back then.

[Lace Neil Singer]

My brother had an Atari ST; used to think that was the shit back then. My fave game on that, when he condescended to let me and my little brothers play on it, was Bubble Bobble. ^^

[firecat88]

So....they've made a Windows 7-friendly version of The 7th Guest, apparently. I bought it. Haven't played it yet, but...

[fireheart]

Jill of the Jungle

I remember this.

First of all, HOLYCRAP NECROBUMP!!!!!

I remember Jill of the Jungle. They also made a "male" version of that called Xargon IIRC.

There was also a really old game that we played on one of the OSHC computers called "Stunt Driver" I think. You were allowed to create your own track. A LOT of people took great pleasure in creating a track with a loop and making your car crash (kind of like building a rollercoaster in RCT and sending everyone flying)

There was some game on Windows 3.1 that my cousins had and I always liked playing it. I can't remember much about it, except for that it had some strange monsters and you could be killed by water quite easily. The graphics were sorta decent-ish.

I actually dug out my old copy of Nancy Drew: Stay Tuned for Danger the other day. Holy smoke, graphics have come a Loooooooong way. (I am not going to compare Secrets can Kill since it got re-mastered ) In that particular game, all the characters look somewhat "blocky". Compare it to the game we have NOW and the characters actually look human, plus they also added little kids into the mix . (for those who follow the series, Tomb Of The Lost Queen is due to be released soon!) And again, if you search arglefumph, he does this hilarious commentary on the Nancy Drew games. And yes I do say "he".

[Sapphire Silk]

Hmm. I'm surprised no one mentioned one of my all time favories:

Wing Commander. I loved that series of games.

I had the version of Wing Commander II that had the "bug" in it that showed one of the female characters nude when she was talking in the speaking scenes. You didn't actually see anything, you could just tell that she wasn't wearing a shirt because you could see skin down to where the breasts started (those were out of frame).

It was also the first game I ever used a cheat code for. I really didn't have a choice; I had an expansion set that had a bad bug in it that wouldn't let you complete one of the missions. Every time you killed the last enemy ship, a new one would pop up and you couldn't return to base without forfeiting the mission and losing the war. I had to get a cheat code to bypass that mission and move the game on.

I'd spend WEEKS trying to beat that mission before I found out online that the problem wasn't me, it was the bug.

[Pixilated]

*ahem* <cough cough COUGH>

They didn't have computers when I was a kid.

Well, not personal computers, anyway.

But one of my alltime favourite games a couple of decades ago was Commander Keen.

[Jester]

At home, we had the Atari 2600, and I fondly remember playing Pitfall and Yar's Revenge on it.

But I was a demon in the arcade as a child.

Not only do I remember Space Invaders and Asteroids from my youth (and vaguely Pong, though it didn't really interest me, being such a boring freakin' game), I VIVIDLY remember the day Pac-Man came along and was installed in the arcade attached to the swimming pool of the complex we lived in, and remembering thinking, "This is a really cool game, and it's gonna be a huge hit." It was, of course.

Other arcade games I lovingly wasted my childhood money on:

Joust. Damn Pterodactyls.

Golden Axe. I was ALWAYS the dwarf.

Berzerk. "Intruder Alert! Intruder Alert!" Otto was a badass.

Star Wars, the one where you had to destory the Death Star by flying through the trench and other such missions, with a killer ship-controller controller. LOVED that game.

Indiana Jones, Temple of Doom. Sorry, but I KICKED ASS at that game. KILLED it. And it was a blast, especially the mine rail cars.

Sinistar. "I HUNGER!" I so loved this game, and would play it again in a second if I ever saw it. "I...am......SINISTAR!" "Run, run, run!"

Q-Bert. Clearly the result of game designers smoking WAY too much dope!

Defender. I was terrible at it, but it was fun.

Burger Time. Clearly a different kind of game.

Tapper. Eventually they made a kid-friendlier version called Root Beer Tapper, but come on...are that many people gonna line up that deep for root beer, or go that nuts when they don't get it quickly? Even as a fourteen year old, I realized that Root Beer Tapper was a pussy-ass version of the original Tapper, which is still a badass game. (For the record, I didn't start drinking till I was SEVENTEEN, and didn't really appreciate beer until I was in college, or good beer until I was in my mid-Twenties....but I still appreciated the hilarity of this awesome game.)

Dragon's Lair and Space Ace. At the time, these games were cutting edge, and were damn impressive. I myself wasn't very good at them (okay, I sucked), but they were those types games where it was just about as much fun to watch as it was to play. And I could be wrong, but I think these were the first (or among the first) games that gave you the option to continue with another credit, not losing your place. Which in these games would have been a royal pain in the ass.

Spy Hunter. What boy didn't want the James Bond car with machine guns and oil slicks? Seriously? The Dragnet music didn't hurt, either.

Rolling Thunder. Bonus points to anyone else who remembers this underrated fun way to waste your money.

Mortal Kombat. Far better than the movie.

Dig Dug. Another game clearly inspired by drug use on the designers' part.

Punch Out! Who doesn't want a chance to kick Mr. T's ass? Yes, I know he was called something else...but that one dude was clearly Mr. T. And I kicked his ass on many occasions. The Indian dude was tough, but beatable. But after those guys....I was in trouble!

Considering my juvenile delinquency in the arcade, it is kind of odd that I did not end up being a gamer later in life, don't you think?

Mouse Trap - Seriously you were a mouse who ran from cats in a pac man like maze..and if you found a dog biscuit you turned into a dog....

Funny. I remember playing Mouse Trap, but it was a BOARD game. Easily one of the weirdest (and most fun) board games ever, as you raced the other players into building the most elaborate mouse trap ever, and then tried to trap each other under it. Possibly the greatest board game ever for its complete insanity.