Middle - Aged Gamer

Introduction

I normally prefer to play single player videogames, but there are so many good multiplayer experiences out there that I have to jump in from time to time. What follows is a list of the multiplayer videogames that I've enjoyed, along with the names of the people who enjoyed them with me.

Pong (1975 Arcade, Home)

Multiplayers: Amy Loch, Joe Loch

Pong appeared at the local pizza shop one day in 1975, and my sister and I played it a few times. The following Christmas, Dad got us a home Pong knockoff, which we played against each other for a few days after Christmas, until everyone got bored.

Warlords (1982, Atari VCS 2600)

Multiplayers: Andy Kiss, Barry Ledbetter, John Henry

Four player Warlords required two sets of paddle controllers, so our sleepovers where someone brought an Atari VCS over and everyone else brought their games and controllers was a perfect chance to try out the full multiplayer battles in Warlords. These battles were epic, fast-paced, and fun.

Tales of the Unknown Volume 1: The Bard's Tale (1985, Commodore 64)

Multiplayers: Barry Ledbetter, Andy Kiss

While this epic RPG was a single player game, my friends would come over and hang out and help map the game. So this was more of a co-op situation. 

Super Mario Kart (1992, Super Nintendo Entertainment System)

Multiplayers: David Frye, Adam Silverman

Nothing like an after work smoking of fine herb and some Super Mario Kart for the SNES. With its simple controls and risky shortcuts, this game provided many nights of fun for myself and these friends.

Doom (1996, PS1)

Multiplayers: Chris Chase, Andy Kiss

In early 1996, Chase and I both had Playstations and Doom and were able to sometimes set up local multiplayer with separate monitors. One night we drove the whole thing up to Galion to play it with my old friend Andy Kiss.

Mario Kart 64 / Goldeneye 007 (1997-98, Nintendo 64)

Multiplayers: Chris Chase, Jeff Shupe, Michael Meija, Matt Hanks, Noah Cushwa

Chase and I had an apartment together at this point and the after-work party gang loved both of these games. With four controllers and a large split screen, many nights were spent with these classic titles. I was forbidden from using Mario Kart 64 shortcuts to keep things "fair". 

Ultima Online (1998-2003, PC)

Multiplayers: Chris Chase, many others through guilds/community

Chris Chase followed me into the insane world of Ultima Online in early 1998 and stuck around until around the year 2000. I had dozens of other friends in the game through the guilds Urban Knights and later Runic Knights. Amazingly, when I returned to Ultima Online in 2021, the Runic Knights were still semi-active and my character still a member.

Tetris (Gameboy) / Mario Kart: Double Dash(Gamecube) / Mortal Kombat:Shaolin Monks(PS2) (2005-2008)

Multiplayer: Monique Miller

When we started dating, my future wife and I played a few games together. Linking our Gameboys with the cable to play head-to-head Tetris was fun (she kicked my ass). Mario Kart: Double Dash was her introduction to Mario Kart and we played a lot. She also had me play Mortal Kombat: Shaolin Monks with her co-op, and we came very close to beating the damn thing.

Wii Sports/ Wii Sports Resort (2007-2012, Wii)

Multiplayers: Monique Loch, others

My new wife and I played a lot of this, of course, with occasional friends joining us. Even her elderly mom, who spent decades of her life bowling, got into it:

Boom Blox (2010-2011, Wii)

Multiplayers: Monique Loch, Phil Smith, Anne Smith

We had these friends over from time to time and they liked this Wii game a lot.

Never Alone (2014-2015, PS4)

Multiplayer: Sarah Jordan

My good friend Sarah read an article about this game, so we tried it's cool co-op gameplay together, eventually finishing it.

Lovers in a Dangerous Spacetime (2017-2019, PS4)

Multiplayers: Monique Loch, Sarah Jordan, Mark DeBruin

They wanted a 4 player game we could play and I found this crazy and unique title. Each of us controlled a little guy running around a large round spaceship, shown in cross section, and each with a different job (navigation, shields, guns, etc). We beat it and our little crew somehow didn't kill each other in the process.

Mario Party Superstars/Mario Party Jamboree (2022-2025, Switch)

Mutliplayers: Monique Loch, Sarah Jordan, Mark DeBruin

The next four player game we got into was one built for quick, easy multiplayer fun, and we played Superstars so much that we eventually got burned out on its measly four game boards. The late 2024 release of Jamboree brought a whole bunch of new boards and minigames, so this will keep us busy for quite awhile.