Ever since I was five years-old I’ve been in love with video games. Most people think they kill brain cells or that they are a waste of time. I think that they are the complete opposite. Some of my most happy and wholesome memories have come from playing video games and I feel like I will continue making memories for the rest of my life. Video games to me are a way to relax and have fun with friends, family, or even alone. Here are my top 11 video games so far in my 11 years of playing them!

11. Call of Duty Black Ops II: Starting off this list, I have decided to put BO2 at the number eleven spot. This was my first Call of Duty so it will always have a special place in my heart. I remember playing zombies with my friends when we were in the fifth grade. Of course we struggled to get past the tenth round, but we had a good time. Around the time of seventh grade when I got my first X Box, I bought this game and began to play the super fun multiplayer. To this day my friends and I still play this 8-year-old game and can always have a great time.

10. Fall Guys: Although this is a newer game I have really been enjoying playing it. This game is a last man standing royale of mini games. It is a lot of fun to play with friends and it is so simple anyone can figure it out!

9. Mario Super Sluggers: This game really takes me back to hanging out with my friends from second to fifth grade. This was an arcade like baseball game with Mario characters. There was this awesome story mode that had challenges to unlock all the characters. Every time my friends were over we would play this for hours.

8. Call of Duty Modern Warfare: This is probably the best Call of Duty that I actually got into. This was a game that my buddies and I would play after school every day and enjoy grinding. This was a game that felt good to get the completionist camos for guns in.

7. Minecraft: Minecraft is a game where anyone can let all of their creativity out and do almost anything they want. It is a super relaxing and fun game to play either alone or with friends. This was the first game I ever played on my laptop and I would play for hours a day. There’s nothing much better than creating your own world that you can do whatever you want in!

6. Rocket League: Rocket League is now a six-year-old game and it still has a huge fan base. It is essentially soccer with cars. It is very popular in the esports world and is a very enjoyable game to play for fun and competitively.  There is also a trading aspect to it and it is very crazy. There are people who sell their items food hours a day to profit and get better items. At one point I was very good at this so my car is pretty dope.

5. Pokemon Black Version: This was my first ever Pokemon game that I got for my 9th birthday. I was so happy when I got a Nintendo DS with Pokemon Black Version. Ever since I was 4 year- old I’ve been obsessed with Pokemon and I still am to some extent. This game was so much fun and I can still remember the team I had to beat the elite 4!

4. Mario Kart Wii: Mario Kart is another game that reminds me of my early childhood and friends. I could play this game for hours with my buddies and I love how competitive and fun it gets. This is a game I would also play with my family after dinner most nights, so it just really brings back happy memories. Even today, I still play Mario Kart with my friends and it is always a blast!

3. Fortnite Battle Royale: There are so many things that I would do to go back to the end of August 2018 to relive my experiences with this game. I had to put it this high on the list because there was a point where all I wanted to do was play Fortnite with my friends. My friends and I found this game late August before it really blew up in March 2019. At that point, all anyone could talk about was Fortnite and how much everyone enjoyed it back in the day. This game was so great because it was free to play and it was definitely the best battle royale game at the time which was already a hot concept. Unfortunately, the game is not the same now because too many people are too good at it and it’s just not the same as it used to be. It will still have a special place in my heart as one of my all time favorite games.

2. Super Mario Brothers Wii/ Wii U: These two games are another reminder of my early childhood and it really just brings back some wholesome memories. I always looked forward to coming home after school and playing Mario Bros with my family. It has such an amazing story and it is super fun to run around with power ups and go through crazy levels to save the princess. My mom would always choose Blue Toad, I would be Mario, my dad would be Luigi and my Sister would choose Yellow Toad. Fun fact about these two games is that I have every single star coin on every single level.

1. Super Smash Brothers Ultimate: To finish out this list, I have decided to put Super Smash Brothers at the  top of the list. I chose the newest one because it has all of the characters from almost any Nintendo game you can think of. And what better way to do that then put them all in a game where you can face off against your friends. I remember playing the original Super Smash Brothers on the Nintendo 64 and beating the Magic Hand when I was only six years-old! My friends and I always love to go hangout and play some Super Smash Brothers whenever we can. Nintendo games are by far my favorite to play, so this one with all of the characters I love in one game is definitely going to have a secure place in my heart for a long time.