BETT 2023 GIVEAWAY - What is your earliest gaming memory?

[DChurch]

My earliest gaming memory would be playing Flimbo's Quest on my brother's Commodore 64. He is seven years older than me so to start with I was only allowed to watch him play and if I was really good (read he was in a good mood!) I would get a go. Probably the reason why I got into computers really as I was brainwashed by this and him programming in QBasic a few years later.

[Sil3nt]

My earliest memory was playing Civilization 1 on a 386DX.

 

The struggles of having such a small HDD that I could only fit Windows 3.1 and a single game on. Probably still got the 5 1/4 inch / 3 1/2" install disk around somewhere

[Liquids]

My earliest memory was Grand Turismo 2 on the PS1 just smashing into every wall of every corner.

[morboss]

Thro' the Wall on the ZX Spectrum from 1982

[nicholab]

Space invaders on a black and white crt machine at my Grandparents houses. This was some time in the 1980’s I was playing it.

[Davit2005]

Keep toying with the idea of getting a BBC model B. Was the computers we used when I was in secondary, we did have a Commodore PET too but we never got to use it as students. The Beeb had a cool supermarket sim and I managed to make a healthy profit.

[FragglePete]

Earliest memories were of the 'rich' kids who had the original Atari VCS at home. Space Invaders, etc.

 

But for me, getting hold of a ZX81 is where it all started. 3D Monster Maze - even now it's a wonder how they crammed that into 16K who knows!

 

Pete

[Bumhug360]

First computer was an Acorn Electron, it came with some sort of demo tape with a few basic games on it. It was a Christmas present that I knew I was getting and my dad would often set it up in the evenings after I had gone to bed (I was about 8 I think) and one weekend I was allowed to have a play with it. Thinking back now think my parents went out somewhere and used the computer as a babysitter, but kept me entertained. Until that is I was prompted to press "any key" and I decided this time to press the break key, which was basically a reset key that took you to a command prompt. This of course made me think I had broken it.

 

It served me well until it became impossible to save games, for 6 months I had Elite loaded and the computer left on, my mum noticed one day and switched it off, I was heartbroken as was very close to reaching elite rank

[Dos_Box]

My best friend at the time got an Atari 2600 (wooden furniture) in 1980. Spent so many hours around his house playing Combat, Adventure etc.

Then I got my first computer, a ZX81 (with RAM pack) and it opened up a whole world to me!

Edited March 22, 2023 by Dos_Box

[LukeRowberry]

I don't have the best memory to be honest but I'd probably go for a tamagotchi!

[Noxid_w]

My parents brought home a Playstation 1, Christmas 1999. I believe we had 2 games, Toy Story 2 and Speed Freaks. Boy did I love playing Speed Freaks, and will often talk to my sister about that early memory of playing that game with her on Christmas day. I would have been 5!

[Dan2025]

PS1 I think, would go round the cousins to play on his only for one day to turn up and being offered to have it. I assume my parents likely paid for it behind the scenes.

 

Recall spending so much time achieving very little in Tomb Raider:rolleyes:

[north-ict]

What was you playing? Tetris

 

What console or computer? Acorn at primary school

 

Any fond gaming memories welcome - Use to love playing the adventure games on the bbc at school which i loved.

 

First computer I got at home was a Commodore 64 and it came with Terminator 2 Judgement Day loved that game and also got me into basic programming and got me fascinated with computers and wanted to work with them when i grew up.

[Liquids]

Toy Story 2 was my favorite at the time, I had completely forgot about it.

[dafyddf]

2004 baby here (working in edu IT, I know, weird) - my earliest clear memory was creating my character on the family Wii!

[localzuk]

Earliest gaming memory for me was sitting with my Mom, who was playing Repton on a Acorn Archimedes that my dad brought home from school over summer. I was 3.

 

Then my own gaming was playing Nettrek on a Mac Plus at school.

[MartinT]

Back in 1975 or so, logging onto the City of London Polytechnic system from our school Teletype terminal and playing Star Trek on its printer. Long range sensors, anyone?

[Garacesh]

My earliest gaming memory would probably be when I got a Sega Mega Drive, with the Master System converter add-on thing. So many great memories (y'know, way back when, before publishers started nickel-and-diming their player-bases!) Numerous Sonic the Hedgehog titles, Alex Kidd, Krusty's Super Fun House, Altered Beast, that stupid Aladdin game where the Genie would just be like 'er, I dunno?' in the magic carpet section..

 

My earliest PC gaming memory would have to be Chip's Challenge on floppy disk! Never did actually manage to complete that.. I just found out it's actually on Steam now! Might have to pick that up... And no PC gaming memoir can be written without mentioning the copious hours spend on Unreal Tournament.. If I had to pick one game that summarised how I got into computers as yoof, it'd be UT99. GOTY edition, patch 436. Why do I still remember that?

 

Edit: new memory unlocked, Titanic: Adventure Out Of Time (which I've just seen is also on Steam).. A wonderful puzzle game I did manage to complete but never really to any satisfaction.. Another soon-to-be-purchased, I think!

Edited March 22, 2023 by Garacesh

[azc]

The family's first computer was an Acorn Electron. I remember it having been set up by my dad, hooked up to the black and white telly we had in the bedroom I shared with my sister at the time. I was playing Snapper; a clone of Pacman. It had been loaded from cassette tape, which always seemed to take forever and failed just as often as it succeeded, all while making mysterious screeching noises. It was like magic. Sat on the floor, with my head tilted up at a ridiculous angle to see the TV, and playing Snapper on a black and white telly. The ghosts were different shades of grey, I had no idea they were supposed to be red, magenta, cyan, and green, and I didn't care. It was one of the few times I connected with my dad. I went on to be a computer person, while he was a engines person.

[kearton]

Jupiter Lander on my Vic-20 in 1982...

[arwen]

I've loved reading everyones early memories!

 

My first gaming memory would be around 1991 me aged around 3, sitting on the couch not feeling well but "helping" my mum play Tetris on my brothers GameBoy. I'm pretty sure the repetative music helped me sleep at that age!

 

First time I remember me actually gaming would be playing the "hidden" game on the Sega Master System when I was around 4/5 years old. We had just moved house and my older brother showed me how to load the game up. That little snail game kept me busy while everyone was moving all our stuff into the new house

[RedwayNetworks_Michael]

I had the Gamegear if anyone remembers those haha

[LeMarchand]

I had the Gamegear if anyone remembers those haha

 

Still got mine somewhere.

[RedwayNetworks_Michael]

Still got mine somewhere.

 

Wow such a classic now, i never hear people mention these anymore,

 

I have a PSP somewhere at home that i thought was a classic but the gamegear i spent so many hours on as a child

[EssentialRug]

I had the Gamegear if anyone remembers those haha

 

My first handheld games console that was all mine (and not sharing with my brothers!). Memories of playing that 4 in one game with tennis, football, a tetris like game and a racing game. I think it must've come bundled with the console