My personal experience with video games began when I was ten years old, around 2012.  I received a Wii console for my birthday and vividly remember feeling robbed of the brand new experience after witnessing my mother create a Mii for herself (a kind of avatar for the unfamiliar) while I was supposed to be asleep before I could make myself one.  It was truly a tragic occurrence and betrayal, though not one able to be reversed so, as devastating as it was, there is no point in dwelling on it.  The first game I ever got my hands on was the game we had gotten bundled with the console, Wii Music.  As someone interested in music, it was nice to have a digital experience that required zero talent with all the benefits of being a talented musician.  A relatively modern introduction to the world of video games, I never really lived in the “retro” arcade-type environment like many of my older peers.

Since then, gaming as a genre has advanced by leaps and bounds with regards to both technology and storytelling and so has my taste somewhat.  Now, I’m something of a role-playing game connoisseur with games like Star Wars: The Old Republic, Skyrim, Assassin’s Creed, and the Shadow of Mordor series, action-oriented games like Warframe and For Honor, as well as some oddballs like Human: Fall Flat and The Stanley Parable.  In short, I’m no stranger to story-driven games that lie close to the realm of literature and I play quite a bit (although the time I’ve been able to spend on them has been diminished as of late).

During this semester, I anticipate becoming closer acquainted with the devices that video games employ to craft their own narrative in an effective way so that I can better recognize and appreciate them when I play for recreational purposes.  Additionally, I will likely be stepping outside of my comfort zone somewhat with regards to gameplay genre when playing these games so I hope I can become just as familiar with these new titles as with previous works.  I look forward to this semester and playing more and learning about new mediums.