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Amazing Moments in games that amazed you?

ResurrectedContrarian

Suffers with mild autism
- Riven (Myst 2; the original version, haven't played remaster) to some extent, because I had never seen such beautiful worlds in a game before, wanted to live inside it

- the 3DS screen for the first time; far from being some gimmick or secondary effect, it was everything to me, stereo display a more radical change in experience than any generational graphics leaps of my 4+ decades

- The opening of Half Life: Alyx, seeing the city stretched in front of me and the tower in the distance, the sheer awesome scale of vr was breathtaking

First time playing Mario 64. You just had to be there in that moment in time. It was incredible.
100%, what a time to be alive... I was mesmerized just staring at this game's store demos and reels

Super Mario Galaxy (the first one) came very close to that; wandering on the tiny planets, the glass "pill" in the opening level, it was sublime
 

Hero_Select

Member
I like this thread. There's quite a few that I remember very fondly.

Questing through Dun Morogh in WoW for the first time... I love the game so much that I faked being sick to stay home and play more.

Reaching Rito Village in BotW for the first time and that Dragon Root Island theme kicks in legit made me tear up - it's so god damn beautiful.

Getting off the train at the Sector 7 slums in FF7 Remake.. and panning the camera up to see the plates above all while the main theme plays was magical and it felt like coming home

That ending sequence in Arkham Knight where you're Joker is pure fucking genius and it was so well done.
 
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God, too many to even remember. Just a few off the top of my head:

-People on fire in Street Fighter 2. I got a SNES solely based on seeing that.

-First time seeing all the people running around in Everquest. Holy shit, those were actual people!

-Playing through Tomb Raider and marveling how more like a world it was instead of just a game level.

-Seeing the cars in the replay for Gran Turismo on PS1 amazed how life-like it was.

-FMV and voice acting in games rather than digital bleeps and bloops.

-Jumping Jack Flash and Wipeout demo making my stomach flop.
 

Husky

THE Prey 2 fanatic
I recently played VRChat on my friend's Quest 3S and was totally blown away. I need VR now. A random guy in VRChat also taught me how to play without any controllers, just using hand tracking. I met someone who took in-game photos of me and sent them to me on Steam.
It's supposed to be an Alan Wake skin, but everyone thought I was John Wick. The second pic is me genuinely stunned by how well my VR hands respond to my real hand movements.
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The raytracing in Metro: Exodus Enhanced Edition totally blew me away. It's the first game in years that stunned me with its visuals, and I can't wait to start playing more raytraced games. Even though I could often see the limits of the texture or model quality, the lighting brings everything to life. I kept feeling like I could reach in and touch the game world.

The opening to the original Prey is famously amazing. I won't say more.

I'm still pretty blown away by Skyrim. No other game makes me feel as much like I've slipped into its world. I always love that moment in every Bethesda game where you emerge from the opening section, and are thrown straight into the vast open world, free to head in any direction and ignore the game's guidance.

Outer Wilds is all-around an absolutely stunning experience, but when I first reached The Stranger, my jaw was probably on the floor. Reaching that place for the first time is one of my most memorable gaming experiences. Don't look it up, it's best witnessed in-game, with absolutely no idea what you're in for.

The 3D on the 3DS is still amazing. Oh, I'd love a Switch 3D. When I have a VR headset, I'll have to start playing some of my PC games in 3D.
 

rapid32.5

Member
Shadow of the Colossus and Halo CE the whole games: isolation, art style, gameplay, architecture, music, ambience, originality.
 
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AJUMP23

Parody of actual AJUMP23
The last sequence in Indiana jones and the golden circle.


The colossus in shadow of the colossus.


Sliding down a hill in mario 3

Wing commander just the whole thing.


Starfield the first like power gate you find.
 
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Most recently, the masterful slow burn of the opening of Silent Hill 2 Remake spiraling into chaos and ending in the eerie silence of Wood Side's vestibule. The coup de grace was entering the room with the desk puzzle and that gorgeous, haunting music starts playing while the curtain blows in the wind.

The pacing and cathartic release with that tranquil and haunting music made me actually say "Wow..." out loud.
 

proandrad

Member
Most recently, the bahamut fight in FF16. Pretty much the Dragon Ball Super Broly fight. The music went so hard during that boss fight.
 
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GTA3. Felt like you could do anything and Liberty City really was alive.

Gears of War 1. For a game to look that good and be that fun to play. Can't think of any other games that has as satisfying of kills as chunking someone with a shotgun or popping heads with a sniper.

Killzone Mercenary on Vita. Couldn't believe a handheld was capable of that. Think I just spent 20 minutes staring at it before actually doing anything.

Definitely a bunch more but just a few off the top of my head.
 
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NotMyProblemAnymoreCunt

Biggest Trails Stan
Blue Dragon (XBOX 360) - This was my first HD game I ever played. I remember being amazed by how good the game looked and loved the colorful characters and backgrounds. Great game overall

Mass Effect Trilogy (XBOX 360)- WRPGs are hit or miss for me, I'm either gonna to love them or hate them. But the overall experience of the whole trilogy was memorable and I loved how the choices carry from each game. Also Thane is my favorite character from the Trilogy. Doing the Suicide Mission and having everyone survive was a tense and fun experience

Chrono Trigger (DS)- To this day it's still my GOAT. Gameplay, graphics, story/cast, lore and music is to me all perfect. One of my favorite parts is Using a fake doll of Chrono to save the real Chrono by going back in time to the specific time Lavos kills him and pausing the scene and replacing real Chrono with fake doll Chrono. Magus Castle. Learning that Schera is Magus Sister. ETC ETC ETC. So many memorable moments

Star Ocean Second Evolution (PSP) - Beating the final boss at the top of the tower with only one party member alive and at 1 HP

Baten Kaitos/Baiten Kaitos Origins (GameCube)- With the first game finding out that the MC is a spy and a bad guy you are playing. With Origins, having Guillo sacrifice itself for Sagi and Milly brought a tear to my eyes. Fuck that Holo Holo Bird boss though

Eternal Darkness (GameCube)- This game is my first horror game. When I beat a boss in the game, my Sanity Meter was super low, and when I went to save my file, it said it deleted my save file. Than the screen flashed white and I got punked. That was a fantastic sanity effect and got me good lol

Zelda The Wind Waker (GameCube)- This was the first 3D Adventure game I ever played This game took me an year to beat because I wasn't used to these types of games. I have since gotten better. The 3d Celshading was fantastic. Loved the music. I loved exploring the world with my sailboat. Some of my favorite parts was discovering Hyrule is underneath at the bottom of the ocean.

Odin Sphere (PS2)- Other than loving the gameplay, music and graphics. I thought the story was fantastic, one of my favorite parts of the story is the romance between Gwendolyn and Oswald

Persona 3 FES (PS2)- This was my first Persona game. Story wise, finding out the school is a a massive dungeon you have tranversed to get to the top. Finding out that the leader of SEES is actually a bad guy. The MC dying at the end really made me teary eyed

Persona 4 (PS2)- My favorite Persona. Has the best cast and story I seen in the franchise. Huge shipper of Kanji/Naoto. Huge fan of Adachi. Also love the Cabbage MEME with him. He was a great villain too. There was so many good characters in the game.

Okami (PS2)- Truthfully I don't remember much of the story but the visuals and gameplay were fantastic. The music was banger too

Final Fantasy 10 (PS2)- As the first 3D FF, it was a fantastic effort from Square. Yes there's that infamous laugh scene but it just adds to the charm I say

Ar Tonelico II (PS2)- I love all the games in this franchise but the second game is my favorite due to the scope being bigger than the first game I really liked both heroines too, I ended up choosing Luca despite her being a two faced bitch. I really liked how complex both Heroines are. And I remember having to grind as all hell to get past that game breaking bug. That was a pain lol

Star Ocean 3 Till The End of Time- This is still my favorite Star Ocean and the first I have beaten. Yes there's that infamous twist in the story that everyone hates. But I play Star Ocean for the gameplay not the story. I loved how different Item Creation is from the other games and they even incorporated a time mechanic too. And you have to spend money which was different but I didn't mind. Still has my favorite battle system in the franchise. I loved using MP Death to my advantage. The game overall was fantastic and I hope one of these days Square Enix releases a remaster of the game for all consoles/steam

Suikoden 3 (PS2)- I love the trinity system where you can switch between three main characters. And at one point you can even play as a Dog MC. Really crazy there lol. This was my first Suikoden game and my favorite. The fifth game is great too

Tale of the Abyss (PS2)- I'm not as big of a fan of the Tales franchise when it comes to JRPGs. But the story is what drew me in. It has the best cast in a Tales game. I loved Luke growth as a character. He went from being a spoiled brat to someone who actually grows up and you cheer for. The supporting cast is fantastic as well. Tear and Luke romance is one of my favorite ingame romances I seen. Also Guy being scared of women was funny to watch and see all the gags that come from that

Xenosaga Trilogy (PS2)- I love all three games and I really enjoyed my time just following the story across all three games. The second game has my favorite battle system. The cast across all three game was memorable and they all had really well done character development throughout. I was disappointed that we never got the full six games but at least they were able to complete the story

The Witcher Trilogy + DLC (STEAM)- I'm a huge fan of all three games and have been playing them since the first game originally released. The story and characters for each game are fantastic. For The Witcher 3, I did everything even Gwent and even explored the full map of each area. Such good games. Also totally a Shani guy

Yokai Watch Trilogy (3DS)- It's hard to choose which game is my favorite. They each have fantastic story, cast, music, graphics and gameplay. But one of my favorite moments is in Yokai Watch 3, there's an actual parody of The X Files called The Y Files, complete with a spoof on Mulder and Scully. And being a huge fan of the show, I loved those parts whenever they showed up

Eastward (Switch)- This game was fantastic from the beautiful visuals to the story and cast I especially loved the sneaking segments on the train. I have to play the DLC some time

Final Fantasy 9 (PS1)- This was the first game along with Chrono Cross I ever played. I loved everything about it. Chocobo Hot And Cold is one of the few minigames I spend so many hours into

The House In Fata Morgana (Switch)- My favorite VN by far. There were so many moment where I shed tears. Also that music is one of the best Videogame OSTs I have heard

The Legend of Mana (Switch)- I loved the nonlinear structure the game had. If I ever get the chance, I'll do a replay and use a guide to see everything the game has to offer

The Legend of Zelda Link's Awakening (Switch)- This is my first 2D Zelda and I loved it. The colors poped with that visual style. I got everything in the game before I took on the final boss. Extremely fun

Live A Live (Switch)- This one was a pleasent surprise. Each story was fun and unique. I really liked the overall story and got the true ending

Luigi Mansion 3 (Switch)- Fantastic game all around. It has to be the best looking Switch game there is. I enjoed going through each floor and really loved how they differiate each floor by making them based off different themes. I did everything in this game too. I got all the Boos and all the Gems. I wish there was more but I still enjoyed my time with the game. Loved most of the boss fights but at least three of them gave me trouble

Mario + Rabbids (Switch)- I went in thinking this game would be bad, I was wrong. It was colorful addicting take on the XCOM battle system. I spend so many hours into this game

Resident Evil Remake HD Remaster (Switch)- This game was another pleasent surprise. Great gameplay and having to figure out how to progress through the mansion was fun. Still my favorite Resident Evil

Steamworld Dig 2 (Switch)- This one is another pleasent surprise and is my favorite metriodvania. I love the gameplay loop. It's a mixture of dig dug with leveling/stat system. It was really addicting. Wish we got a Steamworld Dig 3

Xenoblade Chronicles 2 (Switch)- This game is still my favorite Xenoblade. Yes it has issues in the graphics and gameplay department but I love it. I especially love the story and cast. To this day I still remember each of them. It has the most laugh out loud moments in the franchise for me. I love Tora (Meh Meh Meh), Poppi, Rex Rex, Mythra, Pyra, etc. The story made me extremely emotional too. And to this day still my favorite Switch game. Also love the WAIFU designs.

Xenoblade Chronicles 3 Future Redeemed (Switch)-
I prefer this game to Xenoblade Chronicles 3, while the third game is a good game with some very good twists I felt Future Redeemed had the better story and best yet, you can play as a grown up Rex Rex and Shulk. And I'm glad they didn't back down from certain triggered "fans" since Rex Rex has three daughters from three women

Chrono Cross (PS1) - This was the first game I ever played. I can understand why it's divisive. I got the true ending I can understand why people are upset with the story since most of the cast from Trigger are killed off and the story is much much darker. But I love the story and how dark it got. Finding out the connections to Trigger was a shock to me and learning about how they connect to Lavos was surprising

Xenogears (PS1)- The story is one of the best stories in videogames Fei having another personality, Fei destroyng the village and killing most of the villagers. The story went to some pretty dark places. I don't want a remake of this game because I'm sure SquareEnix would screw it up

The Last of Us Remastered (PS4)- This was another surprise. I really enjoyed the story and gameplay One of the most heart wrenching moments are when Joel has to shoot that one guy and his little brother that turned into zombies. The whole beginning of the game with Joels actual daugher dying. So many emotional moments and that music is so good man.

Tomb Raider (PS4)- This game is the first PS4 game I played. I explored every tomb that was optional. The story was nothing to write home about but the action set pieces were very memorable. I still consider it one of PS4 most beautiful games

The Legend of Heroes Trails Games- I love how there's an overarching story over 12 games and counting. The characters are very memorable and I love the dialogue between each of the casts. The story itself is fantastic and there's so much lore. So many twists too. That's all I'm saying too, since i gush too much at times about these games lol

There's a lot more but I'm too lazy to write anymore
 
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If you are mid 30s nothing will top this leap. The only similar feeling was half life alyx and it still didn’t feel the same as saying Mario in front of peach’s castle for the first time

It’s like 9/11 for video games. Everyone remembers where they were when they saw Mario 64.
 
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hemo memo

You can't die before your death
The only thing that stuck in my mind is Uncharted 2's ice level introduction. I don't know why. It's so old, and I'm sure if I revisit that scene it will be underwhelming, but it's the thing I keep thinking about.
 

Three

Gold Member
Mario 64, just being dropped in the castle and the paintings you could jump into felt magical having only played 2D mario before. Only experiencing Astrobot Rescue mission on PSVR gave me that same feeling of amazement after that.

In terms of holy shit moments in games that were spectacular. Uncharted 4 jeep chase is up there as one of the best, MGS in general but especially psycho mantis.
 
Tales of Phantasia - the final twist after you beat the final boss.

Darksiders 2 - the fight against the Guardian. The entire first arc was just to prepare you for one of the most epic battles in the game.

Xenoblade Chronicles 1 - when you enter Gaur Plains for the first time. The Wii can do that?!
 

Hunter 99

Member
Many of you have listed moments I loved like mario 64, mgs2 , Silent hill, resi ect
For me seeing Shenmue for the first time and the opening for this 👇
 

TheKratos

Member
Man so many:

- Horizon FW when you get flying mount and see the amazing world from highs
- MGS when you enter Rex chamber, the music, the setting, simply fantastic. The game has many wow moments
- Here Comes The Pain had wowed me how good it respresented certain wrestlers
- Killzone 2 amazed me many times
- GOW2018 when you get the blades of chaos
- Monster Hunter wows me 24/7

Many many moments, forgetting a lot.
 

Mortisfacio

Member
Entering Ironforge for the first time in a WoW beta in 2003. I chose Gnome Warlock as my first character to try out. Was 12 years old and walking up the path to the big gates was just awe inspiring. First time I'd played a vast open world like that and seeing the scale of everything at a young age was a core gaming memory for me.
 

AndrewRyan

Member

I hate mazes in games and caught a glimpse of the maze level for Control before buying. Decided ahead of time if the level was really annoying would just quit after getting to it. Imagine my surprise after actually experiencing it- what a level!

The airport level in Max Payne 3 is amazing
 

larrybrady

Member
3.28 when the plane flew towards your screen in contra for the snes,i was blown away..everything I’ve ever played at that time was left to right simple movements with your little 2d spirit characters.. I was like ,we have advanced….
 
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