That Christmas Morning in 1998 That Defined my Video Game Life

If you know me, you'll know that I am quite the avid video game player, specifically Nintendo games. I have been playing video games for the majority of my life, and it still is a major part of it. Heck, even writing this blog is directly related to my video game playing! Gaming has impacted my decisions in life, and even my career.

There was one Christmas morning that little did I know, would define the rest of my gaming life and will never be topped.

The first Zelda game I had ever played was the original on NES. It was a fun game, but as a very young kid, I didn't really understand it very well. It was this massive open world that was ripe for exploring. At the time of the original Zelda, I was all about fast paced action like TMNT, Super Mario Bros, etc. I loved Zelda, but it wasn't the game that defines the series for me.

Years had passed and Zelda games came and went. Many people love the SNES game, but amazingly, I chose to pass on that game. I know...blasphemy right?

Then this new console named the Nintendo 64 showed up on the scene. At the time, I never thought it could get better than this! Exciting 3D worlds in Super Mario 64, awesome racing action in Wave Race 64, freaking Goldeneye 007 and Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire! So many amazing games came out for the Nintendo 64.The first game I owned was Super Mario 64, and it was a blast! My brother at the time opted for the Sony Playstation, but I stuck to my guns and continued to love the Nintendo 64. I even got a subscription to the now defunct Nintendo Power magazine! I was HOOKED on Nintendo!

One day, I was watching cartoons or something and a commercial showed up on TV. It was the most epic commercial I have ever seen and it advertised this game...named...The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time.

Good god...how could you not want to be part of it?! The moment I saw this commercial, I had to be part of the adventure, I had to play this game, and fortunately, I owned a Nintendo 64. Nintendo Power started marketing the hell out of the game and I sunk into every word that was printed in that magazine. The game just seemed like so much more!

Of course, I put it onto my Christmas list. This same year, Pokemon hit the scene (Man, what a good year for Nintendo). I wanted Pokemon too, but getting two video games for Christmas? That's more common than a blue moon! I waited patiently for Christmas morning, seeing that commercial 80,000 times, reading about everything. I was immersed in the world that was Zelda: Ocarina of Time.

Christmas time was coming close and my parents and I ended up at Target for some reason. I always stumbled away from my parents to head over to the video game section and see the glass cases full of video game treasures, and there it was. Well over 20 copies of the game in a cardboard box sit before me behind a glass wall. Keep in mind, I had never played the game, not even a demo. I stared at it, hoping that one of those find boxes will be under my tree. My mother found me and I pointed at it. Her eyes widened and she took me to the fishing poles or something (nice cover up there...). Guessing she was luring me away so my dad could get a copy of it...again...assuming this.

Christmas morning arrived. I was still young so I forced my parents to wake up at 7am (Sorry parents...). It was a pretty good Christmas, and I was always really fortunate to get pretty much everything on my list. I got a lot of great presents, and one of the first ones was Pokemon Blue on Game Boy! I really wanted Pokemon Blue and was extremely happy I got it, but remember, it's very rare to get 2 games on Christmas. I looked at it knowing that there was no chance in hell that I was gonna get 2 games.

All of the presents were almost opened and I stumbled upon one more present. It was a pretty large box, definitely not the shape of a N64 game box. Wondering what it was and pretty set on the fact that it wasn't Zelda 64, I opened the present and it was a generic box, nothing written on it. I grabbed a scissors to cut the tape away, peeled open the lid and....

I saw a 'Z'...then an 'E'...then an L...D...A

Holy s***...It was The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time for Nintendo 64

I forgot about all of the presents I got that year (except Pokemon). I almost refused breakfast to go an play it, but I love breakfast...it's the best meal of the day. But man, I received 2 video games on one Christmas morning. Talk about an epic Christmas morning!I ate my pancakes and secluded myself to my room for hours. The game was everything that I ever wanted.

Why does this game define my video game life? Nothing has ever been able to top it. I have never been as excited for a video game since that Christmas. Games come and go these days, but when people usually mention Zelda: Ocarina of Time, it's with fond memories. Even if people say this one is better or it sucks, I will defend it to the grave. Since this game has come out, I own every version that has been released. The game was so good, it even got a re-make on the 3DS (which was a direct reason why I bought the 3DS). Once again, proving the power that this game has over me.

To this day, and I am sure will always be...

Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time is my favorite game of all time!