Videogame Moment 2oo7

 I've played a lot of videogames this year. Metroid Prime 3: Corruption [Wii], Assassin's Creed [PS3], The Legend Of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass [NDS], God Of War 2 [PS2], Kingdom Hearts 2 [PS2], Runaway 2: The Dream Of The Turtle [PC], .skate [PS3], Call Of Duty 4: Modern Warfare [PS3], Sam & Max: Season One [PC], Counter-Strike: Source [PC], Super Mario Galaxy [Wii], Final Fantasy XII [PS2], plus several demos. Hmm, actually, when I see this list, I did play few videogames this year ... nevertheless these were the most important ones - I hope I didn't miss any. But of all these games which one could bewitch me the best with its unique charm? Which one made me gasp or swallow hard? Which one got me most taken aback? Which one did I want to share with my girlfriend the most if I only had any? What was my personal Videogame Moment of the Year 2oo7? [...]
(show me)(don't show me)

I like to think of Prince Of Persia: Sands Of Time [PS2] in this context. This is a game that I finished within "only" 24 hrs., yes ... but those were good 24 hrs, no doubt. But what I liked most about this game, what makes me think back with heart-warming reactions and what fascinated me most about Sands Of Time was not the gameplay. It was also neither the story nor the timewise thrilling combat. It was the moment, somewhere in the last fifth or so, when I climbed up the upper part of this huge castle, the depths of Persia beneath me where death awaited, the inevitable conclusion of the game about a dozen of monsters and mortal traps ahead - when I saw the yellow burning sun raising from the orange blurred horizon and covering the shape of the arabian castle in glistening shimmering flames ... for me that was probably the most wonderful moment of videogaming of that year, 2oo3 or when it was released. Yes, 2oo3.

So, thinking about this year's games there were certainly few, if not none, of those moments that I can easily think of. Most of these games I just "played" without emotional happenings. That's why I had to do some dangerous expeditions into the depths of my fading memories but I think the most heart-warming moment would have to be when I started Kingdom Hearts 2 only to be welcomed by the - although re-arranged still familiar - title music of "Dearly Beloved" by Yôko Shimomura, a touching piano tune that almost made me cry instantly, accompanied by a beautiful piece of artwork showing .. was it Sora or Roxas, who I didn't know yet when I first put in the disc? I don't know. But it was most certainly memorable. How it brought back the joy I've had with the first part. The fun, the sadness, the depression - all at once. *sigh*

All the more I was disappointed by the game itself. Somehow it didn't pack me like its predecessor. That's why I have to decided to stop wasting my time with it - I rebelled against my instincts and didn't finish it. And I probably won't finish it anymore either. Have I grown up too much? Or is it really that different? I can't tell. The combat was the best of part two and the story was the best of part one. Maybe the storytelling of part two was too slow for me. It sure was regarding to the two to three hrs. of tutorial ... but nevertheless, this brief moment when I didn't want to start the game but listen to the wonderful music instead, I felt the mixed feelings of happiness on the one hand, the happiness that surrounds you when you explore a new Hyrule with a little elf boy in green clothes, and melancholy on the other hand, the melancholy that confronts you when you slaughter a coloss.

Those are the moments I play videogames for. Those are the reasons why I am a Gamer.
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