I think, therefore I game: The philosophy of video games

There are tons of games out there, but only one earns the title of the mother of all games... 🍿

I practically broke my controller playing this one back when I was a kid. Grand Theft Auto 👍

Then there’s Unfinished Story, which I never actually beat since my English wasn't exactly up to par at that age.

When World of Warcraft first dropped, it was an absolute phenomenon. Even the expansions later on... I remember it was the first time people in the US were actually lining up around the block just to get their hands on a single game.
Man, what a hell of a drug that was.

Yeah, honestly, once gaming and PC culture went completely mainstream, I just kind of lost interest. It’s like everything became too much.

I don't play games anymore, and I barely even touch a computer at home. Most of my screen time is just me scrolling through stuff on my phone. That's pretty much it.

The New York Times just put together a compilation of the absolute best games out there, picking 20 titles that they claim you "simply have to play at least once."

Look, you don't have to agree with their picks—let's be real, objective "best of" lists are a myth—but we did end up mentioning a few of them in our own discussions.

Eric Newman75 said:The New York Times just put together a compilation of the absolute best games out there, picking 20 titles that they claim you "simply have to play at least once."

Look, you don't have to agree with their picks—let's be real, objective "best of" lists are a myth—but we did end up mentioning a few of them in our own discussions.

I’ve played maybe half of the games on this list, if I’m being honest, which gives me just enough ground to say the whole thing feels pretty lackluster since it misses some of the true heavy hitters and iconic classics. If I were putting together my own somewhat subjective yet grounded selection of the best games, it would look something like this:

Tetris, Doom, TOAW (every version), Civilization (specifically III - V), Call of Duty (the early World War II stuff), World of Tanks, Ikariam, Total War (all versions), Panzer General (all versions), SimCity 4, Grand Theft Auto (all versions), Europa Universalis IV, and a few others that aren't coming to mind right now.

Sigmund Freud, you’ve left us completely speechless
🙂

steelridge58 said:Sigmund Freud, you’ve left us completely speechless
🙂

hehe, such a big kid.
The list he put together is actually quite solid; my only real grievance is seeing Doom placed at number two, but otherwise, the rest of the selection aligns perfectly with his personality.

Would anyone even know what to say if I actually sat down and typed out a three-page manifesto of all my favorite things? 😢

🤣

I wouldn't bother, because that would require you to produce a three-page manifesto just to satisfy what 😉
expects from you.

lonegardener said:Would anyone even know what to say if I actually sat down and typed out a three-page manifesto of all my favorite things? 😢

🤣

Just give us a top 10 or 20.

Amanda Jackson5 said:Just give us a top 10 or 20.

I honestly can't pull that off. 🤣

My tastes have shifted so much over the years that the only thing I CAN really recall is the general "vibe" I got from a game when I first stumbled upon it. But even that isn't totally reliable. If my preferences have changed this drastically, my memories might be a bit distorted too. Plus, those impressions depend on two things: my old self, and the state of gaming at the time. A game that blew my mind back then might look pretty ridiculous today, given how far we've come with processing power and modern graphics cards.

That said, I can think of one game from when I was just a kid—a broke kid who couldn't afford to drop quarters into all those flashy arcade machines at the local pier. 🤣

Scramble

Ahh, total Proustian moments right there...

When you start talking about those old-school arcade cabinets, Scramble definitely holds a special spot in my heart, right up there with the legends like Pac-Man and Space Invaders. But honestly, there’s this one game I can't quite wrap my brain around the title of, though man, it was incredibly addictive. You pilot this little spaceship, trying to pick up speed while dodging these "bosses" that are guarded by layers upon layers of obstacles. These shields are arranged in circles, maybe five or six levels deep. And the coolest part? To dodge the constant barrage of projectiles, you could actually fly right off one side of the screen and just pop out on the opposite side. That seamless loop—that whole continuum thing—was just so unique.

The only game I’ve ever played that actually inspired me to sit down and write a damn good, unforgettable book was The Last of Us.
Honestly, if you aren't even a "gamer," I'd still tell you to go play it—it’s one of those rare, deeply moving, and genuinely fulfilling interactive experiences...
It’s the kind of game that deserves its own seat at the table when we're talking about psychology and philosophy on this forum.

Eric Newman75 said:When you start talking about those old-school arcade cabinets, Scramble definitely holds a special spot in my heart, right up there with the legends like Pac-Man and Space Invaders. But honestly, there’s this one game I can't quite wrap my brain around the title of, though man, it was incredibly addictive. You pilot this little spaceship, trying to pick up speed while dodging these "bosses" that are guarded by layers upon layers of obstacles. These shields are arranged in circles, maybe five or six levels deep. And the coolest part? To dodge the constant barrage of projectiles, you could actually fly right off one side of the screen and just pop out on the opposite side. That seamless loop—that whole continuum thing—was just so unique.

I think you're thinking of Star Castle. 😁

bang!

Baldur's Gate, you guys might actually dig that.

lonegardener said:I think you're thinking of Star Castle. 😁

That’s pretty spot on, nice job. I seem to remember the actual game being a bit more visually polished—and definitely harder—but hey, that’s just how it goes. I guess all those little details depend on which specific arcade cabinet you were playing.

lonegardener said:I honestly can't pull that off. 🤣

My tastes have shifted so much over the years that the only thing I CAN really recall is the general "vibe" I got from a game when I first stumbled upon it. But even that isn't totally reliable. If my preferences have changed this drastically, my memories might be a bit distorted too. Plus, those impressions depend on two things: my old self, and the state of gaming at the time. A game that blew my mind back then might look pretty ridiculous today, given how far we've come with processing power and modern graphics cards.

That said, I can think of one game from when I was just a kid—a broke kid who couldn't afford to drop quarters into all those flashy arcade machines at the local pier. 🤣

Scramble

Ahh, total Proustian moments right there...

Mine has evolved too, though if I really sit down and think about it, maybe it hasn't actually changed that much. Come on then, just tell me—what's your absolute favorite right now? Or better yet, give me your top three from the last five years.

Eric Newman75 said:That’s pretty spot on, nice job. I seem to remember the actual game being a bit more visually polished—and definitely harder—but hey, that’s just how it goes. I guess all those little details depend on which specific arcade cabinet you were playing.

Maybe. My memory also tells me it "looked better" back then. 🤔

The thing is, I haven't been able to find any mention of a more famous, later "clone" of this original. It might have been some obscure cabinet—maybe something released years later when the genre was already dying out, even though much more advanced games were already hitting the scene (like the legendary OutRun 😬).

I mean, if that advanced clone of the original Space Invaders popped up around the same time as OutRun, it wouldn't be surprising if it slipped through the cracks and stayed undocumented. I can't even find a trace of it on Google.

Amanda Jackson5 said:Mine has evolved too, though if I really sit down and think about it, maybe it hasn't actually changed that much. Come on then, just tell me—what's your absolute favorite right now? Or better yet, give me your top three from the last five years.

Well, it's been ages since I've actually "tried out" games—not that I keep up with the scene—so it's hard for me to say what my "best" has been in the last five years (let alone a top three), especially since I haven't really played anything lately besides Diablo.

Even Diablo didn't come close to blowing my mind the way the original Civilization once did. Or, a few years before that, Dungeon Master. 😁

It’s much easier to impress a kid than an adult... plus, something "completely new" always feels more striking than something that's just an evolution of what already exists. Still, that first impression isn't everything; I think I actually spent more time playing a certain fantasy clone of Civilization (Master of Magic) than any version of Civilization itself.