There's definitely sentimentality in this year in gaming for me as it was basically the year I was finally able to purchase my own games and picked what I wanted after buying GameCube at launch - vs just having my dad come home with a game of his choosing every month or so or getting games as gifts from like '90-2000.
As is the case with rock music, the early 2000s was my golden era in some ways, at least second to the early 90s (Mario 3, Turtles in Time, Mario RPG, Secret of Mana, etc).
Loved SSBM, Conker, Tony Hawk 3, Golden Sun, Halo, Advance Wars, Pikmin, Monkey Ball. Plus I was really getting into PC gaming around this time and stuff like Everquest (with the first few DLCs), Roller Coaster Tycoon, Counter Strike. And was getting catching up on Dreamcast stuff like Grandia II, Crazy Taxi, Chu Chu Rocket, Power Stone 2, etc.. Was the first time I was really broadening my gaming horizons beyond just NES/Super NES/N64. Then the following year there was Eternal Darkness, Metroid Prime, and other gems.
I think I'll have to pick up FFX as my first FF game and recapture some of that 2001 gaming magic. I remember watching my friend play it when I'd come over and loving the atmosphere, and Blitz Ball looked like a good time.
"We hold these truths to be self-evident - all men and women created by the, go-you know.. you know the thing!" - Joe Biden
