After years of fighting bosses, solving problems and being on the receiving end of smack talk, many gamers can sometimes be guilty of being a little jaded, or at worst, cynical. But every now and again a gaming related story comes along that will melt even the coldest of hearts.
Having lost his parent at only six years old, a YouTube commenter (00WARTHERAPY00) had wonderful memories of playing Rally Sports Challenge on the original Xbox. Anyone who has ever lost a member of their family will tell you how the pain never really goes away and the fear of forgetting any moments shared is a constant battle.
A video on You Tube asked the question, “Can Video Games Be a Spiritual Experience?” with the description “Have you ever had an experience while gaming that was so transcendent, so powerful, that it could almost be described as spiritual? Whether you consider yourself a religious person or not, the feeling of cosmic connectedness can strike anyone. But is there something about videogames that lends itself pto this elevated experience? Can they be more than merely a game?”
Commentator00WARTHERAPY00 stepped up to share his beautiful and touching story about racing his father’s ghost on the Xbox racer RalliSport Challenge, 10 years after he had passed away.
The spelling and punctuation have been preserved from the original post to avoid diluting how the story was told.
“Well, when i was 4, my dad bought a trusty XBox. you know, the first, ruggedy, blocky one from 2001. we had tons and tons and tons of fun playing all kinds of games together – until he died, when i was just 6.
i couldnt touch that console for 10 years.
but once i did, i noticed something.
we used to play a racing game, Rally Sports Challenge. actually pretty awesome for the time it came.
and once i started meddling around… i found a GHOST.
literaly.
you know, when a time race happens, that the fastest lap so far gets recorded as a ghost driver? yep, you guessed it – his ghost still rolls around the track today.
and so i played and played, and played, untill i was almost able to beat the ghost. until one day i got ahead of it, i surpassed it, and…
i stopped right in front of the finish line, just to ensure i wouldnt delete it.
Bliss.”
I cannot recall a more beautiful story. So often we are told that gaming is bad for you and a solitary past time that makes you appear anti-social. Yet, stories like this show how they can actually bring families closer together. Even in death.
Amazingly, other gamers came forward and continued to share their stories in the comments section of the video.
“I used to play with my younger brother all the time years ago (1 year age difference). I kicked his butt “literally: p” whenever he beat me, which was most of the time. He passed away may he rest in peace at the age of 15,” 77ToughCookie23 replied.
Whilst TommyJ771 shared his story and posted: “Dude I can’t handle this. This hits me so hard. I used to play video games with my dad too. We’d play Mario Kart 64 and Zelda. He died when i was 16. How i envy that Ghost racer. :’(.”
Typically there were a few trolls trying in vain to blame this on some sort of clever marketing conspiracy and the point of the story was sadly lost on them.
Maybe we take for granted the memories that we all make together when simply playing games. Very often, it’s not even about the game itself but sharing that special time with friends and loved ones, laughing and joking without a care in the world as you work together to conquer a level or challenge each other in a game mode.
I’m sure many of us have similar gaming memories. If you do, we’d love to hear them, so please let us know by commenting below.
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