X is for Xbox

I couldn't resist this one, folks. SERIOUSLY. :)

I'm a huge video game fan. My "G" post from last year should give you some idea of how much I enjoy games in general, but video games are a real passion of mine.

Picture it: It's February 2003, and I'm living in Staten Island, NY. My beloved Jennifer Wells, whose title as MOST AMAZING WIFE ON THE PLANET was already very much in hand, decided to get me my first Xbox. To say I was thrilled is a total understatement. It ranked only behind one other Valentine's Day gift at that time: My cat, Josephine.

I had a Playstation 2 at that time, and had played Xbox at a friend's house. This was my first experience with online consoles. As much as I loved the PS2, either they didn't have a network at that time or it was just in its infancy. Xbox Live, however, was already going strong.

I'll admit that I was a HUGE fan of the PS2. I didn't think there was a better system out there, and at that time Microsoft was new to the game console market and I don't know that I wanted them to be successful, either. Turns out I was wrong on both counts. The first Xbox and its subsequent iterations are just plan awesome.

I spent hours on that thing, playing Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six online with the friend who originally introduced me to it originally and his group of friends. I had a blast.

Later, one aspect of this connectivity that I hadn't even realized was the possibility of playing with people from other nations. Xbox Live is worldwide and you never really know who you'll end up playing with. I met lots of British folks, but I kept up my French skills as well. Most French people were stunned to find out I was American, but once they did they enjoyed playing with me. Lots of good conversations happened over the course of those games, too. I learned many, many terms that they don't normally teach you in school--like about 100 ways to say "to kill" and various military terms, like "grenade" and "sniper".

I play a lot less online these days. Sadly, after being called every name in the book by teenagers who do nothing but sit and play Xbox all day, the online aspect has definitely waned for me. But that doesn't take away the enjoyment of playing on my own.

Currently, I'm into Borderlands 2, and I've started playing Skyrim...but I'm afraid I'll be sucked into it so far that I don't play it that much. Perhaps I will play more once the blogging challenge is over. :)

Thanks for tuning in! Come back Monday for my "Y" post, which will be as much of a surprise to me as to you since I don't know what to write about yet. :)