I can't even get past level two of Tetris. I've never made it far in Super Mario Brothers. I don't even know what an x-box looks like. I am big loser when it comes to any sort of games.
But, I never really thought I was missing out. It's just one of those coordination things I haven't figured out (like two-handed piano, or ballet). However, it appears that I can have a modicum of success with games like Zork. They are more like reading a book -- a literary game, if you will, and text games like that don't care whether or not I can operate a controller.
Back in the day of the Apple IIe, I was addicted to History Mystery, a game that my elementary school had. It didn't make any sense (the instructions were lost), but my friend and I played it every computer period we could. In it, you walked through a museum after closing time (like that book about the Metropolitan Museum of Art...Donna, help me out here, I think you know the one) and tried to solve some sort of mystery. Each room was a time period, and we always got stuck on the Dark Ages room, simply because the lights were out and we couldn't make our way.
What we were missing was an inventory of "taken" objects, like in Zork. However, the game was similar in basis because it was a journey with a challenge to complete.
My only other two successfully completed computer games? That would be Carmen Sandiego and Oregon Trail, of course.
Clearly, I need some sort of text in my games.
Posted by Julie Young at March 16, 2004 08:23 PMThe book you mention is "From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler" by E. L. Konigsburg. She was on the Today Show recently promoting a new book of hers, which I might have to read, since the other one was such a favorite of mine as a youth. Meanwhile, the Oregon Trail rules. I have another computer game you might like when you come to visit-- Elevators from Hell. It's really old and simple looking, and you have to outrun a robot while using elevators. Much fun.
Posted by: Donna R. Hibbs at March 16, 2004 11:01 PMThank goodness you remembered that....why can I never remember that title?
I will have to give that game a try.
Posted by: Julie at March 16, 2004 11:24 PMCan I just say how happy I am to hear that I'm not the only kid in the world that is NO GOOD at video games??? Oregon Trail and Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego are the only ones I've ever beaten, too, Julie. (Is anyone really all that surprised?) :^)
Posted by: Karissa at March 17, 2004 10:39 AMJulie, it seems that you and I have had opposite experiences with video games. When I was younger, I absolutely loved Mario Brothers, Super Mario Brothers, and anything that had to do with Mario Brothers. I LOVED playing Tetris on Gameboy. I would play a Nintendo game or a puzzle computer game until I figured out how to beat it. However, I was never really into fighting games like Mortal Kombat. I would choose Pac Man or Frogger any day over an XBox race car game. Now that I'm older, and I suppose more mature, I have left my fetish with video games behind. However, I just can't seem to stay away from Text Twist (Yahoo.com games) or Spider Solitaire. You mentioned that you do better at games like Zork. Zork drives me crazy! It's interesting that we are so different when it comes to our skill at games. Just curious, do you have any brothers?
Posted by: Jamee at March 17, 2004 12:01 PMJulie, I understand what you mean about liking games like Zork because they read like a book. Whenever your full-time job search is successful, and you remember to breathe, feel free to check out my favorite online MUD, Raven, a complex version of Zork although with less puzzles and more role playing. It's address is: http://ravenmud.betterbox.net/newbies.html if you are interested. I think these kind of story games bring out an interesting side of gaming. Not everybody cares so much about cool graphics (of which these games have nada) as they do about getting lost (not unlike in a good book) in an adventure. There are a lot more MUDS than Raven, perhaps which you could fall in love with, you just have to search them out.
All these games to try out! Clearly, I'm going to be an addict.
And Jamee -- I have one brother, older, who monopolized our Atari when I was a child and managed to break all our joysticks. Ugh. Boys.
Posted by: Julie at March 19, 2004 12:17 AM