CGG's Top 20 Games!

ChainGangGuy · Post by **ChainGangGuy** » Sat Jul 17, 2010 12:20 pm

Lately, I've received a few harsh, if not downright nasty, e-mails saying I turned my back on Jolt Country and that the only registered users without a video game list are k.roo, Bugs, KING POOPY, and me. I appreciate everyone's concern, but, come on, do we really need another list? Perhaps I could do something a little bit different. By George, I think I've got it! Instead of the typical series of my most treasured, most prized video games, I'll compose a short, simple list of games I couldn't bring myself to buy, never got around to playing, or just didn't 'get' but oh so wanted to.

I know what you're thinking, "Can this be accomplished?" Let's face it: Failure, nonstarters, and procrastination are all standard practices for me. But no longer! Beneath this lazy, torpid exterior is a video game list of goodly length ready to burst out. Believe it.

Get ready for...

Gerrit's Top 20 Games I Just Couldn't Pull the Trigger On!

But first some fried chicken wings, pork lo mein, and a few cold beers.

Lysander · Post by **Lysander** » Sat Jul 17, 2010 8:38 pm

Without reading, I predict the list will consist of, in opposite order:

#1 - ZORK I: THE GREAT UNDERGROUND EMPIRE
#2 - X-COM: UFO DEFENSE
#3 - DUKE NUKEM 3D
#4 - KNIGHT ORC
#5 - BOMBERMAN '94
#6 - FRONT PAGE SPORTS: FOOTBALL PRO '98
#7 - ROBOTRON 2084
#8 - DOOM
#9 - TALES OF THE UNKNOWN VOLUME I: THE BARD'S TALE
#10 - CIVILIZATION II
#11 - NHL '98
#12 - MS. PAC-MAN
#13 - I-0
#14 - ULTIMA VII: THE BLACK GATE
#15 - FREESPACE II
#16 - RESIDENT EVIL 4
#17 - SENTINEL RETURNS
#18 - JAILBREAK
#19 - FREEDOM FORCE
#20 - HALF-LIFE

ChainGangGuy · Post by **ChainGangGuy** » Fri Jul 23, 2010 11:24 am

I gotta tell ya, I'm right smack-dab in the middle of boxing up my meager belongings and moving clear across town (not to mention it's also Frosty Ass Friday), so let's keep this short and sweet.

With a pocket full of quarters and the then popular dual-flavored Nerds candy, I'd head down to the nearby Aladdin's Castle arcade, a place filled to the brim with arcade machines, acrid cigarette smoke, shiftless hooligans, and sticky, soda-soaked carpeting -- but mainly arcade machines. This was my 80's summertime routine. After exchainging my roll of quarters for a handful of soiled golden tokens, I'd peruse the cramped space for the latest games, formulating a mental to-play list as I went. Maybe Shinobi, Ghouls 'n Ghosts, Rastan Saga, or Double Dragon had arrived at my hometown arcade. Perhaps a visit to the luxurious sit-down Tron cabinet. Of course, there were always the stalwarts like Pac-Man, Pole Position, Tempest, and Asteroids, which essentially were permanent fixtures in any arcade worth its salt. With plan in head, I'd make my rounds.

I'll tell you right now, friends, I played'm all. Well, all except for one.

#20: TEMPEST

Here are my first impressions of Tempest. I vividly recall abstract, multicolored imagery seemlessly merged with rich, booming sounds. Oh, and that one older, suspect gamer who'd remain camped in front of the machine for hours on end shoving in token after token. A true leader in the Colorful Line Fight genre if ever there was one. Though I felt an urge to play the game, I never once did. I would tell myself, "Maybe tomorrow, Li'l CGG." Like a bad father, I never made the time for Tempest, never made the effort, though I was given many opportunities to develop and build a rich, lifelong relationship. I'm sure you could drop me and Tempest into that Cats In The Cradle song and it would still totally work. Yes, I'm sure of it.

And then, one day it was gone, most likely replaced with one of the many 90's fighting games. Maybe Tekken, maybe Pit Fighter, it doesn't really matter. Why, it wasn't too long before Aladdin's Castle was replaced itself, the spot given new life... as a Piccadilly Cafe.

Wondering what it was all about, I took a few minutes to bounce around the net and eventually stumbled onto a site full of good Tempest-based information, even giving a breakdown of the entire game. It mentioned crab-shaped shooters and listed some of the various level designs: circle (1), bow-tie (4), and flat (11). I still didn't fully get it, but instead had grown shamefully hungry for a big, heaping plate of seafood pasta. Thankfully, a few choice YouTube clips revealed it to be a simple, yet satisfying game.

Damn. My confusion and consternation seem so silly all these years later. A life without Tempest, what the hell was I thinking?

Is this what this project is going to turn into? A list seeded with regret and remorse? Time for a beer!

ChainGangGuy · Post by **ChainGangGuy** » Wed Jul 28, 2010 10:20 am

There's a strong, healthy likelihood that I will make the needed effort to acquire some of these old games and finally, after all these years, just give'm a try, leaving me to ponder a Marvel's What If-type alternate universe of time-altering possibilities.

Borrowing negotiations for a few of the titles on my list are already in progress!

Flack · Post by **Flack** » Wed Jul 28, 2010 1:08 pm

I would be glad to help fill holes where needed.

pin · Post by **pin** » Wed Jul 28, 2010 1:23 pm

Flack wrote:I would be glad to help fill holes where needed.

So would BRUEC

ICJ · Post by **ICJ** » Sat Aug 28, 2010 12:17 pm

I am also willing to help get these games.

We gotta fly you out here for a weekend Gerrit, so you can hate Colorful Line Fight properly. Or maybe blossom a romance. Can love bloom on a wireframe battlefield??

Ice Cream Jonsey · Post by **Ice Cream Jonsey** » Tue Jan 25, 2011 12:12 am

Four-month BUMP.

What is #19, Gerrit?