Staff Picks, September 2025: Welcome to Our Video Game Museum (opens in new tab)
The Discord staff’s September 2025 feature celebrates National Video Games Day by asking employees which games deserve a place in their personal “video game history museum.” Their answers emphasize nostalgia, formative experiences, influential design, and the communities built around gaming. Recent favorites include *Hollow Knight*, *Balatro*, *Final Fantasy XIV*, *Oblivion*, and *The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel III*. ## Games That Shaped Personal Gaming Histories - **Super Mario 64** - Became a formative experience through childhood play with a neighbor. - Its 3D graphics, controls, music, level structure, and iconic painting-based worlds made a lasting impression. - It helped inspire a later favorite, *Super Mario Sunshine*. - **The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time** - Described as a lifelong comfort game and the contributor’s definitive Zelda experience. - It has been completed 100% multiple times and remains deeply tied to personal memories. - The proposed exhibit would include the original cartridge and a heavily worn official strategy guide. - **Kingdom Hearts** - Represents powerful childhood nostalgia through its combination of Disney and *Final Fantasy*. - Obtaining the PlayStation 2 game and its strategy guide led to hours of play. - Although *Kingdom Hearts II* is the contributor’s favorite entry, the original is valued as the groundbreaking starting point of the series. - **The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel III** - Highlights a sprawling JRPG series with interconnected arcs, countries, and characters. - Its strengths include extensive world-building, large character casts, and constantly updated dialogue for even minor NPCs. - The series’ eventual crossovers are compared to Avengers-style ensemble moments. - **Professor Layton and the Curious Village** - A last-minute purchase made because a strict birthday budget ruled out a new Pokémon game. - Its challenging puzzles and mystery narrative introduced the contributor to the appeal of story-driven games. - The experience encouraged a broader willingness to discover unexpected favorites. ## Games Staff Are Playing Recently - *Hollow Knight* is being replayed ahead of *Silksong*, with one contributor nearing 100% completion and another finally progressing after initially abandoning it twice. - *Balatro* has become highly addictive, with one player only one joker away from completing the collection. - *Final Fantasy XIV* has regained momentum after a partner began playing. - The *Elder Scrolls Oblivion* remake and *Lost Soul Aside* are also mentioned as current or anticipated games. - The contributors’ comments repeatedly connect current playtime to anticipation for *Silksong*. ## Gaming as Nostalgia and Community - The feature presents games as personal cultural artifacts rather than merely entertainment. - Physical items such as cartridges and strategy guides carry emotional value alongside the games themselves. - Several responses stress how games introduce players to new genres, stories, friendships, and communities. - The playful editorial notes about disappearing staff members after *Silksong*’s release reinforce the article’s informal, gaming-community tone. The article’s central recommendation is simple: revisit the games that shaped you, but also stay open to unexpected discoveries—whether through a discounted purchase, a friend’s recommendation, or a long-awaited sequel.