Well today marks the 6th anniversary of the PlayStation Network hack. I'm sure many of you remember all the worry and fears of personal information being stolen, and I'm sure you also remember not being able to play all of those brand new online games that just came out -- including Portal 2! It was a dark hour for PlayStation, and it's something Sony may never fully live down. But, this isn't the only reason I remember this day. In fact, the thing I remember most about this event is writing about it a few days later. You see, the PSN Hack was actually one of the first gaming news stories I ever wrote about! I know I saw this all the time, but it really is scary how fast time is moving on... It seems like just yesterday I was browsing the Capcom-Unity forums when I got the idea to create my own group within the site. Back then I had this crazy dream of one day starting my own gaming related blog (mainly just for fun), and when I saw all of the freedom Capcom allowed us I couldn't help but jump on it.
Originally NGR really was just some random blog for fun (and it technically still is). I chose the name because I was using the username "NettoSaito" (as I always do), and because the username originates from the Mega Man Battle Network series. "Netto" is the main character's Japanese name, and considering I was starting this over at Capcom, I wanted to stick with a Mega Man theme. So, after a little consideration, "Netto's Game Room" was born, and I quickly got to work on creating graphics and letting everyone know who I was. Back then I was the one and only member of the group, but I was determined to achieve my goal. But, just what was that goal?
While I never actually told anyone this before, the original main purpose of NGR was to bring gaming news and reviews to Capcom-Unity. Again, since Capcom allowed us to do and create almost anything we wanted within the site, I wanted to use that opportunity to do something they themselves couldn't. While they focused on their own games and news, I wanted to be there to let the rest of the community know what else was happening in the gaming world. To do that I began following all forms of news closer than ever before, I started using press sites, and I tried to buy almost every game that came out so I could review it. Of course I never did get anything about of this, but it was something I wanted to do for the community.
Jumping ahead to now, and NGR is slightly different. We're not at Capcom-Unity (although the group still exists there), others have joined in, and technically we have lost our original goal. Since we are now on our own, there isn't a specific community we write posts for. In some ways this is a good thing (as I'm free to write about anything I want), but it can also be bad considering what I write is no longer as focused as it once was. Of course life also gets in the way of new content, but there's not much I can do about that. Really, I'd like to find the time to work harder and change this, but at the same time I don't want to force articles that I feel are pointless... But, this isn't what I meant this post to be about.
Anyway, looking back at all that's happened since I started NGR, there are so many great memories I never want to forget. NGR has also become a big part of those memories, and I plan to continue this blog for as long as possible. What shape it'll take as time goes on is unknown to me, but I want to take it as far as possible. Even with the slower content over the last few years, I still check the stats daily, and I'd just like to thank each and every one of you who still visits this site each day. If it wasn't for you guys, it's hard to say if we would even still be here! So, once again, thank you for all the support!
