Your most exciting time in gaming

[The Beans]

From the release of the 360 onwards really. This is easily the most enjoyable time I've ever had in gaming. The sheer availability of it all! The routinely high quality of everything! From awesome indie games to big budget blockbusters across all platforms! All the genres, nothing has gone away! Cheap as cheaps too.

If I had to say something retro I'd go with my Spectrum days. A very enjoyable time. Loved it to bits. But nothihg like as good as nowadays if I'm honest. Sorry retroheads but there it is. As much as I like playing the stuff from the past from time to time, modern gaming is currently frickin awesome and has been for a good while.

[gman72]

I've loved gaming since it started. I've had exciting times with games, computers and consoles in every generation. For me the technical progress in the scope, size and appearance of games since the onset of the 360 to the current gen makes that my most exciting time in gaming... with special mention to the PS1 that ushered in 3D console gaming and was also a special time for me.

[Negative Creep]

From the release of the 360 onwards really. This is easily the most enjoyable time I've ever had in gaming. The sheer availability of it all! The routinely high quality of everything! From awesome indie games to big budget blockbusters across all platforms! All the genres, nothing has gone away! Cheap as cheaps too.

Conversely I'd say that's actually taken away some of the magic for me. In the 16 and 32 bit days I'd only get bought a handful of games a year, so I'd have to choose very carefully, wait until my birthday or Christmas with the excitement building, then make sure I got my money's worth. Today I can just go online, instantly buy whatever I want and just move on to something else if I don't like it.

That said, from the 360 onwards truly bad retail releases are fairly uncommon, although Steam has become a dumping ground for unplayable garbage

[koopa42]

From the release of the 360 onwards really. This is easily the most enjoyable time I've ever had in gaming. The sheer availability of it all! The routinely high quality of everything! From awesome indie games to big budget blockbusters across all platforms! All the genres, nothing has gone away! Cheap as cheaps too.

If I had to say something retro I'd go with my Spectrum days. A very enjoyable time. Loved it to bits. But nothihg like as good as nowadays if I'm honest. Sorry retroheads but there it is. As much as I like playing the stuff from the past from time to time, modern gaming is currently frickin awesome and has been for a good while.

Good call.





If I had of seen what the bottom pic woul have become when I was 8? I would have exploded and just sort of oozed about.

[learnedrobb]

Early through mid 90s.

I moved (quite rapidly) from owning a ZX Spectrum to a Master System, to a Mega Drive, to a Windows PC.

[paranoid marvin]

1980-1990 The time of the arcade.

Walking into an arcade in the 80s, the sight the sound the smell. Rows of cabs of Double Dragon, Gauntlet, Paperboy, Space Harrier, Outrun; most with attracts calling out to you to play them. It was the time of the high-score hero, with crowds gathering round to watch a master at play on the toughest game in the arcade. It wasn't about props or cabs to make the game (although Outrun, Space Harrier, Afterburner etc) were all pretty special, it was about gameplay. It wasn't all about feeding machines for a few more minutes of play (although there were a few like that - eg Gauntlet, Rampage) it was more about the skill of the player.

Also there was always excitement for what the next big innovation would be. From Punchout!! with it unusual (at the time) double monitor, to Dragons Lair , to innovative controls on the cab, to 4-player multiplay action; there was always something new and exciting around the corner. And unlike most other gaming which can be replicated, there's no way that an '80s arcade can be emulated.

Arcades, like pubs, have had their day and we will never see the like again.

[Combo-Breaker]

1980-1990 The time of the arcade.

Walking into an arcade in the 80s, the sight the sound the smell. Rows of cabs of Double Dragon, Gauntlet, Paperboy, Space Harrier, Outrun; most with attracts calling out to you to play them. It was the time of the high-score hero, with crowds gathering round to watch a master at play on the toughest game in the arcade. It wasn't about props or cabs to make the game (although Outrun, Space Harrier, Afterburner etc) were all pretty special, it was about gameplay. It wasn't all about feeding machines for a few more minutes of play (although there were a few like that - eg Gauntlet, Rampage) it was more about the skill of the player.

Also there was always excitement for what the next big innovation would be. From Punchout!! with it unusual (at the time) double monitor, to Dragons Lair , to innovative controls on the cab, to 4-player multiplay action; there was always something new and exciting around the corner. And unlike most other gaming which can be replicated, there's no way that an '80s arcade can be emulated.

Arcades, like pubs, have had their day and we will never see the like again.

Brilliant post, sir!

Arcades will always have a special place in my heart.

Stepping up to face a stranger on say SF II because it's 'winner stops on' or searching like a maniac for some change before your credit runs out, telling your friend that there's a game like SF II but better, actually coming across an arcade and finding gem after gem in there.

I remember when even the local chippys and video shops were decked out with cabs or at least had one in there.
Same goes for cinemas.

[NorthWay]

Someone snuck in before me I see, but: Arcades.

The time when you walked into an arcade, nearly started dribbling, and knew you could never get tech like this in your home.
Just seeing an arcade gave me a buzz and I always went to those traveling tivolis to find the arcade alley (though those pennyfalls and prizegrab machines never made any sense to me).

[Dam]

Early to mid 90's. SNES and MD in full flow, SF2 in the arcades, the anticipation of a new era on the horizon with 3DO and Jaguar, then the new era actually arriving with the PS1 and Saturn.

I don't think gaming will ever reach the heights of this era for me, though I guess being a kid and having few cares or responsibilities probably helped it seem so great too!

[koopa42]

The mid 90's became a blur what with finding booze, girls and independence .... not necessarily in that order. There is actually a void in my gaming exclusively filled with aforementioned things.

[Spector]

1982-1990, which for me really was gaming's golden period. After that, gaming slowly went the same way pop music did after Sgt Pepper: more and more cinematic, which I think is a sign of decline. Christmas 1986 was just crazy for me. I'm surprised I actually made it to Christmas Day alive and didn't explode with excitement beforehand But yeah, the whole Eighties 8-16 bit scene, from Combat in the local shop in 82 aged 5 to the console explosion in 1990. Screenshots looked better in the mags too!

[Scratch_Porkings]

The thing about the arcades circa '88 was you could be a bit of a star on the latest games. Get a high score and you could get a crowd watching. I suppose those days are kinda back with YouTube and twitch.

[The Laird]

Arcades is a great shout but something else just edges it for me and that is the arrival of handheld consoles. Being able to take a console (Lynx in my case) anywhere I wanted and play games that were often better than the ones I played in the home was just mind blowing at the time. Playing under the duvet at night, taking the Lynx to school to play in Chemistry class, long car journeys . . . happy times

[psj3809]

It would have been my first experience (oo-errr)

Back in the 80's, boring board games, suddenly home computers arrived and i was blown away. Tons of games, tons of tapes to take to friends to get these games Just opened up a whole new world. Amazing the memories you get from these games, many of which are still so good all these years later. As i always say graphics/sound changes but the gameplay remains.

Of course during this time arcades were stunning, quite sad seeing them disappear but of course consoles became just as/more powerful in the end.

Being around during the emulation years in the mid 90's was great, there was me on my PC and then saw an advert for a 'spectrum emulator', didnt have a clue what that was, bought it and it was bizarre playing these games all these years later.

Discovering MAME in the late 90's blew me away. All these old classics. Discovering a gameboy for the first time, again brilliant stuff, finding a '128 games in 1' cartridge in a shop also was good

The internet and all the games you could download for old systems was amazing. Knowing there were other people like me gaming was great, chatting on forums etc.

Discovering a Pocket PC in the early 00's, could put tons of games on it, emulators, a great device. Then years later discovering iOS and ipods/iphones. All these old classics on one device. Doom/Sonic/Mario Brothers/MAME/Speccy and thousands more, all on one handheld gadget. Love it

So many exciting times in gaming, the 80's to me was the best but i'm like a born again kid with iOS gaming discovering all these new games and having emulators and more on this device. Wherever i go, travelling with work or abroad its great to have all these with me

I love how popular gaming is, retro is huge, arcade games (and pinball) are popular, think its a great time for gaming. Nothing will be the same as that excitement as a kid back in the 80's though

[The Hardest of All Freds]

I think the early to late Nineties. The decade Iin the Fred household started with a Amstrad CPC and finished with a Playstation. That was a mind boggling leap to me. There was Bad Influence and Gamesmaster on the telly. Every piece of info came from either CVG or Super Play. There was the post school checking of Digitiser. Wonderful times.