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Games can be powerful vehicles for nostalgia. For me, just hearing the twangy goodness of a Sega Genesis title can transport me back in time. And for people like Jonathan, a certain level coupled with just the right soundtrack can have the same effect.
Ever since I first paired a '90s rock playlist with my Battlefield 3 matches, I started thinking about my old friends. I can't help but think of a particular high-school friend I met at a Christian camp.
Somehow, Battlefield 3 and grunge rock made me reminisce about my first romance.
I really didn't intend to fall in love with someone at a silly campsite. The wilderness environment of that place stirred up a lot of emotions inside of me, however. On top of that, a girl I met there just happened to love the same music that I listened to.
I guess grunge rock has a strange, nostalgic effect on me. My high-school friends certainly enjoyed similar types of music. The girl I met at this camp loved all the best bands, though. I mean, she liked oddball groups such as Live, Harvey Danger, and 311. She had this knack for appreciating all the most eclectic groups I knew.
At the time, she lived in the midwestern U.S., which is a long distance from my home in Southern California. As one might imagine, the relationship didn't really work out too well. But I never really forgot her. The repercussions of our meeting still haunt me to this day.
Our relationship built to the point where we were trading music through the mail. We also e-mailed each other for quite a while. Our music tastes slowly changed as I switched to gangster rap. I still remember her saying that she still preferred rock music.
I never forgot how she missed the old styles of rock. Somehow, Battlefield 3 made me think about how she always preferred listening to bands like Pearl Jam. The group's music evokes a rustic feeling that makes me want to live in the mountains. Eddie Vedder's voice always reminds me about my time with my friend from camp.
We're still friends on Facebook, but we don't really say anything to each other anymore. Still, I sometimes feel closer to her than some of my high-school friends. I really think the nature setting and the loud grunge rock brought us together. The Caspian-border map in Battlefield 3 is the perfect wilderness setting for me to blast that old-fashioned grunge music against.
Anyhow, I'm not quite sure how to keep that nostalgic feeling with me. I guess I should move on to other games. For now, I think I'll just keep playing Battlefield 3 to reminisce about all those good old days.
Which games bring back warm, fuzzy memories for you? Feel free to write about them in the comments below.
