I’m a 40-year-old who has been captivated by video games since the days of floppy disks and navigating the depths of MS-DOS. Early on, I was obsessed with platformers on the Super Nintendo, but I also had a blast exploring point-and-click classics on the PC. My first RPG experience was with Tales of Symphonia for the Nintendo GameCube in 2004. Having never played anything resembling a JRPG before, I did not understand the first thing about how to play them. I can distinctly remember running away from enemies on the world map instead of fighting them. I was also easily confused about what purpose items served and did not grasp how to equip armor and weapons. Being raised on a diet of platformers and point-and-click adventure titles, RPGs seemed way too elaborate and complex for my brain to handle. Needless to say, I didn’t get very far in the game and it collected dust on a shelf for many years. It wouldn’t be until 2013 that my love and appreciation for JRPGs surfaced while playing through Dragon Quest VIII. Much like a kid in a candy store, I have been indulging in them ever since.
