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The top of my personal list though includes a moment from a small developer know as Naughty Dog. They have had some limited success (dripping with sarcasm) with a franchise starring Nolan North as Nathan Drake. The first entry in the fairly young IP, Uncharted: Drake's Fortune had some real water-shed moments including the "psuedo-tutorial" opening sequence and the seamless integration of cut-scenes and action when Drake discovers a WW2 German U-Boat in the jungle. But for me, I will never forget the real stress, excitement and finally relief I felt during the battle with the mythical beast guardians of the treasure so many "unfortunate predecessors" sought. Completing that sequence in the darkend tunnels of the abandoned submarine base during the second to last chapter of the game not only gave me a real sense of accomplishment upon completion but also left me with a gaming experience I will remeber for a long time to come. It was really one of those genre defining moments and reminded me why I am a gamer and will continue to be as long as developers keep entertianing me with moments like that one."
I have been contemplating a point that you "touched on" in you article and would like to expand on the idea. The fact that used games get the developers and publishers' product into the hands of a consumer whom wasn't able or willing to have access at full price. Obviously this gamer will buy some new games at some point or, at very least, continue to create demand for the cheaper used version thus supporting the distributor and the trading consumer who continues to buy new. Imagine, there is no means to legally trade in your "finished games" and put the store credit towards something new? Alice would certainly become a much more cautious consumer at this point and only purchase games she has no intention of ever trading in, which equates into less new game sales for the publisher, developer and retailer. Has anyone been able to quantify this? Probably not, but we cannot ignore it as a factor. Secondly, used games are better than any demo the studio or publisher could ever put out (which actually costs them money). For example, Bob wasn't sure about Arkum Asylum or the new Batman franchise, but he picked up a used copy at his local gamestop for $20, now he is hooked, it's a great game and he can't wait for the sequel, he is going to buy the 2nd one as soon as it hits store shelves. Guess who else is going to buy the new one when it comes out? Alice! Just like that, and because of a used copy getting into Bob's hands, the sales turned from 1 to 2 on the second game. The argument could be made that the 3rd installment could realize another expodential increase. Now, can some market analyst please quanitfy those numbers for me?"