As the festive season envelops us, it's a time for reflection and nostalgia, particularly for gamers who recall the unparalleled joy of unwrapping a new console or game on Christmas morning. The gaming industry, with its remakes, remasters, and retro compilations, thrives on this sentimental connection to our formative years.
SEGA Mega Drive and the Mortal Kombat II Surprise
For Reach Gaming Journalist Liam Martin, the pinnacle of Christmas joy arrived in 1994. That year, his parents gifted him a SEGA Mega Drive 2, the model with distinctive red buttons, bundled with Sonic the Hedgehog 2 and Mega Games I. However, Liam had been utterly obsessed with Mortal Kombat II, having studied magazine pullouts detailing every Fatality and special move.
Despite his gratitude, he couldn't hide his disappointment at the missing brutal fighter. In a classic festive twist, his mother then produced one final present: the coveted copy of Mortal Kombat II. The sheer happiness from receiving a game featuring such visceral combat remains a vivid memory, though he now concedes that Sonic 2 was likely the superior title.
The Magic of Nintendo 64 and Xbox 360
Liam Ryder, Digital Production Editor, will never forget Christmas 1998. He and his brothers opened a joint present to discover the Nintendo 64 they had desperately wanted. Their parents had saved to bundle it with classics like Mario Kart 64, Lylat Wars, GoldenEye 007, and The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time.
The console provided years of entertainment, with memories like the terrifying first encounter with the Stalchildren in Hyrule Field still resonating today. Meanwhile, for Reach PLC Gaming Editor Nathan Bliss, 2005 was the year of the Xbox 360.
After adamantly requesting only the new console, he faced Christmas morning with growing despair as no large green-boxed presents appeared. Just as hope faded, his father returned from his van holding aloft the prized Xbox 360 and a copy of FIFA 06: Road to FIFA World Cup. He later learned his dad had camped outside a store overnight to secure it, creating a truly magical festive moment.
From PlayStation to Xbox and the PS4 Launch
Fellow Reach Gaming Journalist Joshua Boyles made a pivotal switch in 2010. A dedicated PlayStation 3 gamer, he desperately wanted an Xbox 360 to join his friends playing Halo. His parents played an elaborate prank, gifting him an egg box adorned with Master Chief after claiming they lost eBay bids.
The joke culminated after Christmas dinner when they revealed the exact second-hand Xbox 360 he had shown them months earlier, leading to a holiday filled with Halo Reach. For Ethan Evans, another Reach Gaming Journalist, the highlight was receiving a PlayStation 4 at launch in 2013, complete with Killzone Shadow Fall and Call of Duty: Ghosts.
However, the following Christmas in 2014 was marred by the infamous Lizard Squad DDoS attacks that took PlayStation Network and other services offline. The excitement of new games like Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare turned to bitter disappointment when online play was impossible, a gut-wrenching feeling for any gamer on the day.
These personal stories highlight how gaming and Christmas are intrinsically linked for a generation, with the thrill of a new console or game creating some of the most enduring and joyful memories of the festive season.
