So here's a nice, "tell us about your gaming history" thread. They say software sells hardware. (Some of us know that sometimes hardware failure sells hardware. *eyes his DSi*) There's some special game out there with every system you buy. A gem we knew we couldn't call ourselves respectable gamers/nerds without, or sometimes even a consolation prize while we wait for the big guns. So, let's hear about it!
As the youngest in my family, I just leeched off of my brother's systems for the most part. It was quite a while before I had gaming hardware to call my own, but here we go:
Gameboy Color - Pokemon BlueWell, my brothers each had their own brick-Gameboys that they weren't particularly protective over. One had a bunch of lines on the screen, though. When Pokemon came, I thought nothing of it. Then I watched the show. Couldn't stop. Found myself buying a Player's Guide before I even had the game. Got the game, but I needed to be able to TRADE, right? GBC was out by then, so I saved up yard sale money, fumed that the link cable plug was different (hey, I didn't have the internet back then to check this stuff), got the adapter, and the rest is history. My, how I enjoyed demolishing my brother with my Rare Candied Dragonite....
Genesis - Sonic 3 & KnucklesEvery Christmas, Birthday, and any excuse for gift-giving, it was always the same. Sure, we all liked Nintendo's stuff, and my love of plumbers riding dinosaurs wasn't going anywhere. But I wanted Sonic. Watched the cartoons, leeched off of friends, drooled over the store demos. Begged my parents at every opportunity. One day, it finally came, and there was only one game (well, two "locked on" together) that came to mind. Blasting through Flying Battery as Super Tails just never got old.
An honorable mention to Toejam & Earl, as well. Lots of fond memories there.
Gameboy Advance - Super Mario AdvanceOh sure, I liked SMB2, but there was more than that. See, I loved SMB3's battles, and always wanted to get my hands around some incarnation of the old arcade Mario Bros. These days I play it more for SMB2, though. I was particularly anxious for this due to hardware failure, as well: a nasty fall cost my GBC half its screen, so I'd been leeching my brother's again. This one is still with me, though the shoulder buttons are shot to hell.
Playstation - MegaMan Legends 2Okay, so this was a hand-me-down when my bro hooked up his PS2. But even if it wasn't, I craved X and Legends like a fish craves water, I wasn't going to be left without it. Never. And Legends 2 is easily the champion of them all. The Geetz fight never gets old. Hell, half the boss fights in the game never get old. The thing is an absolute masterpiece.
Dreamcast - Sonic AdventureAnother hand-me-down, but ever since I saw the first Sonic Adventure screenshot, I knew I had to find a way to play it. And I damn well did. Played but never owned the original SA2. However I did nail both on GCN, and as a result, this thing pretty much stays tucked away now.
Gamecube - Super Smash Bros. MeleeWhat else? My brother got this at launch for Rogue Leader, and as time went on it occurred to me we wouldn't live under the same roof forever. I had long since bought Melee, at release, with my own money, and NO WAY IN HELL was I going to take the chance of being stuck without Melee.
So, next birthday check from Grampa, I came home with a lovely black box, and tricked it out with a GB Player, too.
Nintendo DS - Super Mario 64 DSAs you know, I am a raving Yoshi lunatic. Yoshi playable in an enhanced Super Mario 64? Hell yeah, no way I was passing that up. WINGED Yoshi was even more exciting (too bad it's multi-player only, damn Power Flowers...).
GBA SP - MegaMan Xtreme 2Yeah, you read that right. As the DS showed me the glory of a "back light" for my GBA games, I craved it for the one GBC game that outranked any MegaMan action the GBA ever dished out: Xtreme2. I had money set aside from a trip that I hadn't spent, so I sank it into one of those backlit models that was released alongside the GB Micro.
Wii - Zelda/Excite TruckI'm one of those guys that never really accepted the Wind Waker style. So Twilight Princess was huge. Twilight Princess with a wand to swing as my sword? Even more huge.
But Zelda was coming to Gamecube as well, even if later. So I have to give this one a respectable tie with Excite Truck. I love high-adrenaline racers. Boost blasting monster trucks, shifting and crumbling terrain all around, and your own custom soundtrack? I wasn't about to miss that.
Slim PS2 - MegaMan X8/Namco X CapcomYep, I didn't get my own PS2 until after I had my Wii. I'd long since been leeching my brother's for X8. Not only did I need my own for that, but I'd been drooling over NxC for ages. So the very split-second my own PS2 was home (thank Uncle Sam for that economic stimulus), the order for a flip-top cover and an imported disc were sent. New cover was installed immediately, and I enjoyed the kickassiest strategy crossover of all time.
Nintendo DSi - still trying to figure that one outI mainly picked this up to replace my original DS, which got severe cracks in the top screen during my move. I love the new features, I really do, but Nintendo really needs to release some DSi-specific software that's actually worthwhile. Did pick up Dr. Mario Express, but that's more of a diversion than anything.