Ever since I was little I have been fascinated with video games. I started out playing "Super Mario 64" on my Nintendo 64 and since then I have owned countless gaming consoles and handhelds. Yet, as people grow older, the number of people that play video games decreases and the amount of time those people play also decreases. As for me, I have never lost the craving to play video games and I find plenty of time in between classes, homework, hanging with my friends and my girlfriend, and the occasional shifts I work at the school library, to play enough video games to satisfy my craving. Some people don't get why I play so much, especially my roommates. So here I am going to clear up why I play video games as much as I do.

First of all, I have to specify the type of games I like to play most. Sports games are my favorite by a landslide. I've owned every "Madden" since 1998, nearly every "NBA 2K" game since 2007, almost every NHL game since 2009, and I've recently rekindled my love for baseball games by purchasing "MLB The Show 15" (which is basically all I play now). I've loved sports growing up and I still do. They've always played such an important part in my life. The fact that I can control the actions of all my favorite athletes is awesome, and also a challenge.

But I don't just like sports games. In fact, my favorite running game series is "The Legend of Zelda." I love being able to set out on an adventure with "Link" and solve puzzles and fight off monsters and save the world. There's obviously much more to it, but the amount of history I have with "Zelda" might show why I love it so much. Growing up, I would love going to my Auntie Nance's house. Two of her favorite games to play were "The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time" and "The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask." I was in awe watching her play these games as a little kid and wondering when I would be able to beat them just like her. It wasn't until my freshman year of college that I decided to go buy "Ocarina of Time" and "Majora's Mask" on Amazon and beat them.

The nostalgia it brought back to the good old days of hanging with my aunt and playing video games was unbelievable. So many details about the games gave me the feels. I guess in a sense I play some video games to bring back good memories. Here are a few examples. Playing "Snowboard Kids" and "Mario Golf" brings back memories of me, my dad, and my three brothers having a good time on weekend mornings. Playing "Guitar Hero" brings back memories of trying to beat the game with my brother Kevin one summer he lived with us. Playing Mario Baseball reminds me of how my younger brother Steven and I made our own teams and played out a couple full seasons (if I explained that in detail you would all think I'm crazy and weird). The endless hours I spent on XBOX Live playing "Call of Duty" with my high school friends will be something I can always jump back to. This is the main reason I never sell my gaming systems or games. I know one day I will want to blow the dust off that old "Mario Tennis" Nintendo 64 cartridge and win a tournament just to bring myself back to the days I would get smoked by my two older brothers. To me, video games contain so many memories, and they are things I will always want to have with me if I ever want to bring back those memories.

There is one other major reason why I play video games so much, and it relates to sports games mostly. Like I said before, sports have pretty much dominated my life, whether or not I was any good. The entire time I was growing up, I, like many other kids, wanted to be a professional athlete. But a very high percentage of those kids eventually realize that they won't be going pro in any sport. I had to go through that realization too, and I have more than come to terms with it. Still, it haunts me that I didn't try harder back in the day. If I had known how hard I had to work, I would have worked even harder. I would've told my young and naive mind that this is something that I can do if I actually put in the work. It was too late. One of my favorite things about sports games is the career mode. I haven't met anyone who loves this mode more than me. Other than the fact that it is really cool to see yourself in uniform and playing out your career, there is another aspect in it that has stuck with me. I take it extremely seriously and I just immerse myself in it, almost to the point that I think what I'm playing is reality. It's kind of a way to make up for not becoming what I wanted to be my whole life. And it does not matter the sport. I never even played hockey or football and I love playing in the career modes for their respective games. I'm addicted to these video games because a deep longing to be a professional athlete, to be in the spotlight, to be a part of a team and perform at a high level. Since my time to do that has already past, this is best way I can do it now.

I guess there are other reasons why I like video games but they are very minor, like the endless customization there is, the graphics, and the reaction time practice and cognition skills it helps with. But really, it comes down to me missing the good old days and also making up for what could have been. I know that sounds rather depressing, but it really isn't. I have fun with it. They are good memories. And if I mess up along the way in my fake sports career, I can always start over. Or cheat. Or switch sports for that matter. All that without the effort. I guess it's the next best thing next to actually doing it.