As I mentioned on this week’s Snatchcast, I just finished up Game Center CX 2 and I loved it. It gave me a taste of something that I didn’t have when I was a kid, experience with landmark retro titles. While the games of GCCX2 aren’t real games, they’re excellent representations of the kind of games considered classics by the nerdier parts of my generation. When I was a kid, most of the games I played are now largely considered throw away titles, that no one will remember 20 years from now. I didn’t play Mega Man, Phantasy Star, or Castlevania. I was too busy playing sports games. And in 2009, there’s little reason to reminisce about Madden 93 or Bases Loaded 2. Or at least not how Alex remembers the RPGs from his youth. I never went on grand adventures with Link. I never saved the world from dark lords. And I never really fought anything aside from Shao Kahn. I’ve been feeling a sense of remorse over my 8 and 16-bit gaming days. I started to make up for it in the 32-bit era, but even then, I still ignored a lot of Japanese classics I wish I had gotten the chance to play; especially when they were state of the art.

The retro homages in GCCX2 have lit a fire in me that is starting to drive me nuts. I feel compelled to play all these games that passed me by when I was younger, but I can’t decide where to start. It’s a little overwhelming. I’m trying to make up for probably three generations of lost gaming. It also makes me wonder if I can hold my own in nerd conversations with Alex. There are times when I get lost trying to keep up with him. I know about all these classic games, but there are a lot that I’ve never even touched. As I venture back in time, I’ll attempt to catalogue my retro roadtrip, and find some sense of peace with my inner-nerd.