It's been a lazy Saturday around mi casa today. Friday, I went out and splurged a bit on myself and bought some PS2 games. Couple of WWE wrestling games, NCAA March Madness, NBA Live, and NCAA Final Four made up my purchase from GameStop, and I have to say that the two WWE games kick ass! It's always nice to come home after a stressful night at work, or anytime when I am stressed out, pop in one of those wrestling games, and go to town on some bad guy in a hardcore match.

I began video gaming a long time ago, when my mom picked up an Atari system back in the early 1980s. This was around the time the system was waning in popularity and the games became super cheap. By the time I got rid of it, I had well over 100 games, many purchased from a local Revco pharmacy who had them for a buck fifty to two dollars each.

The next step up (I usually forget the Sega Master system because it deserves forgetting) was the Nintendo Entertainment System. Once again, my mom bought it at the tail end of its popularity (she got it for my 18th birthday in 1989) and I once again loaded up on games. My faves were Track & Field and Track & Field 2, as well as Tecmo Bowl.

Around 1995, I picked up Sega Genesis and Super Nintendo, and promptly bought sports game after sports game. I soon fell for the Madden NFL football series, as well as the NHL games. Of course, I also grabbed up the Summer and Winter Olympic style games and wasted many hours trying to master each event. I think that because of all of this, I am doomed to arthritis in my hands when I get older.

For my Christmas present in 1999, my sister surprised me with a Playstation. My interest in video gaming tends to wane, and this was a pleasant surprise. Since PS2 had already been introduced, the prices for PS1 games dropped greatly, and I made out like a bandit. I stocked up on $20 or less games and soon had a very impressive collection of sports games. I soon found out that, while they were not ever really able to surpass EA Sports, 989 Sports neverthless had a very good selection of sports games. My faves were NFL Gameday and NHL FaceOFF, as well as NCAA Final Four 1999, where I took the college I have been planning to transfer to, Appalachian State University, to five straight NCAA titles.

I expanded my collection with soccer games, and really loved the FIFA series. With some of the PS1 games, you could create your own teams, and I spent a lot of time making the fantasy teams of my childhood come to life. While a bit limited, it was still fun to finally see the Forest City Hornets play the Ellenboro Outlaws in someplace other than my old backyard.

This past March, I got myself an early birthday present (my b-day is May 8th). With my tax refund, I purchased a Playstation 2, as well as Madden 2005 and NCAA Football 2005 to go along with it. I was shocked that I could create 32 teams on Madden, and spent one spring Sunday evening re-creating the old Rutherford County Football League. Four teams had to be left out, but I managed to get the right balance. So now I can go back in time and play out the rivalries I imagined as a child in my backyard, seeing the Bostic Mustangs clash with the Ellenboro Outlaws, following the Forest City Hornets as they travel to the hostile enviroment where the Ruth Wildcats reside, and so on and so forth.

Oh, sad to say that NCAA Football only allows for you to create 12 teams, but at least my URC-FC Snowheels can play against some of their Big 16 Conference Rivals. Spindale State won the RCAA title (in the way it's meant to be played, in a playoff), then went on to whip USC for the unified national championship in college football.

I don't play video games that often anymore. I usually go in spurts, sometimes playing a lot in one week, not even touching it for a couple of more. I don't really get into the whole dynasty modes, although I do play around a bit with them. Basically, I like to pick up a game, pick my team and my opponent, and simply beat the crap out of them. I'm not ashamed to say that I play on the easiest level and run up the score if I get the chance.

Now if I could only meet a hot woman who was as much as sports gaming freak as I am!