Four Films and Games That Define Me
This week a thing was going around Twitter where people shared the four films which defined them so that's what this post is going to be. These aren't necessarily my favourite films but ones which are important to me.
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone
Future generations will not grow up in a Potter-obsessed environment like I did. Indeed, the films mostly grew up with me- Harry, Ron and Hermione were eleven in this film and I was only a few months behind them. The Wizarding World is like a second life for me and this film was the start of much of my tastes too. It got me into fantasy and even the idea of live-action films was fairly new to me at that age.
Scott Pilgrim Vs. the World
This is such a cult film now where Scott Pilgrim has to fight Ramona Flowers' seven evil exes in order to secure their relationship. It was probably the first film I'd really engaged with that was about relationships and it taught me a lot about them at the time. It's also very funny and full of geeky references which make it even more brilliant.
The Inbetweeners Movie
This is one of the few examples of films which I feel I could quite legitimately be a character in. I was at school, and let's face it remain to this day, an Inbetweener- someone who sits below the popular, talented crowd yet above the losers and freaks. I see a lot of myself in the character of Will, which gives me mixed feelings. For me the film really captures what it was like to be teenager becoming an adult at the end of the noughties.
The Avengers
I bought and watched the previous Marvel Cinematic Universe in the weeks before this film's release but it was this one which really made me obsess over superheroes. It's a superb film which balances it's characters so well with humour and drama. Iron Man and co have helped me through some difficult times and this for me is where it all began.
Following on from this, someone who claimed they never watch films (who never watches films?) started up "four games that define me", so I've done that too.
The Emperor's New Groove (Gameboy Colour)
This was in no way a good game but I was quite young when it was released so I liked it. I had a Gameboy Colour and had enjoyed the Disney film that it was based on so I was suppose it was a natural thing for my parents to buy for me. This was the game which got me into gaming as I explored the bright levels jumping from platform to platform as a llama. It was also quite tricky but the feeling you get when you complete a challenging level is something that no other form of media can give you- I discovered that here.
James Bond 007: Nightfire (Playstation Two)
For me playing computer games had largely been a solo activity until this game came along- we didn't have wireless internet at this time and multiplayer games were still quite unusual. Though Nightfire is a single-person shooter it was it's multiplayer mode which I played most. Basically you and a friend would choose a badly animated character from the James Bond films and then wander around a glitchy map shooting each other and the CPU bots with absurd weapons. I played it a lot with my brother and also with some of my friends and it was always a lot of fun.
Mario Kart Wii
This game took social gaming to a new stage for me. The Wii was so ubiquitous that all my friends had one. We'd regularly take our remotes and wheels around to each other's houses and then the race would be on. Often we'd play through all 32 tracks, racing for hours at a time shouting foul-mouthed abuse at Mushroom Kingdom characters. Utter joy.
The House of the Dead: Overkill (Wii)
I ended up getting this game after seeing rave reviews for it in a magazine. As soon as I started shooting zombies I realised I loved it and this game introduced me to zombies and horror in general, something which has remained part of my life ever since, to the extent that the book I wrote even featured zombie. It's also a superbly constructed game too, intentionally doing some things badly so it can poke fun at them (like having a limited number of zombie designs).
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone
Future generations will not grow up in a Potter-obsessed environment like I did. Indeed, the films mostly grew up with me- Harry, Ron and Hermione were eleven in this film and I was only a few months behind them. The Wizarding World is like a second life for me and this film was the start of much of my tastes too. It got me into fantasy and even the idea of live-action films was fairly new to me at that age.
Scott Pilgrim Vs. the World
This is such a cult film now where Scott Pilgrim has to fight Ramona Flowers' seven evil exes in order to secure their relationship. It was probably the first film I'd really engaged with that was about relationships and it taught me a lot about them at the time. It's also very funny and full of geeky references which make it even more brilliant.
The Inbetweeners Movie
This is one of the few examples of films which I feel I could quite legitimately be a character in. I was at school, and let's face it remain to this day, an Inbetweener- someone who sits below the popular, talented crowd yet above the losers and freaks. I see a lot of myself in the character of Will, which gives me mixed feelings. For me the film really captures what it was like to be teenager becoming an adult at the end of the noughties.
The Avengers
I bought and watched the previous Marvel Cinematic Universe in the weeks before this film's release but it was this one which really made me obsess over superheroes. It's a superb film which balances it's characters so well with humour and drama. Iron Man and co have helped me through some difficult times and this for me is where it all began.
Following on from this, someone who claimed they never watch films (who never watches films?) started up "four games that define me", so I've done that too.
The Emperor's New Groove (Gameboy Colour)
This was in no way a good game but I was quite young when it was released so I liked it. I had a Gameboy Colour and had enjoyed the Disney film that it was based on so I was suppose it was a natural thing for my parents to buy for me. This was the game which got me into gaming as I explored the bright levels jumping from platform to platform as a llama. It was also quite tricky but the feeling you get when you complete a challenging level is something that no other form of media can give you- I discovered that here.
James Bond 007: Nightfire (Playstation Two)
For me playing computer games had largely been a solo activity until this game came along- we didn't have wireless internet at this time and multiplayer games were still quite unusual. Though Nightfire is a single-person shooter it was it's multiplayer mode which I played most. Basically you and a friend would choose a badly animated character from the James Bond films and then wander around a glitchy map shooting each other and the CPU bots with absurd weapons. I played it a lot with my brother and also with some of my friends and it was always a lot of fun.
Mario Kart Wii
This game took social gaming to a new stage for me. The Wii was so ubiquitous that all my friends had one. We'd regularly take our remotes and wheels around to each other's houses and then the race would be on. Often we'd play through all 32 tracks, racing for hours at a time shouting foul-mouthed abuse at Mushroom Kingdom characters. Utter joy.
The House of the Dead: Overkill (Wii)
I ended up getting this game after seeing rave reviews for it in a magazine. As soon as I started shooting zombies I realised I loved it and this game introduced me to zombies and horror in general, something which has remained part of my life ever since, to the extent that the book I wrote even featured zombie. It's also a superbly constructed game too, intentionally doing some things badly so it can poke fun at them (like having a limited number of zombie designs).
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