How Video Games Got Me Into Computer Science

It all started with Halo.

That was the first game I loaded onto my USB drive, and I don't regret it. As a kid, I sought out the latest gadgets and games on the market, and made full use of them.

Halo: Combat Evolved was one of the first first-person shooter games I played, and it felt like stepping into an entirely new medium — one I never really left.

It was engaging, and Capture the Flag brought out a fiercely competitive side of me. The game is set on a ring-shaped megastructure, where players fight through a strategic, team-based campaign against an alien alliance.

The graphics look dated by today's standards, but they were impressive at the time. The gameplay was smooth, the multiplayer server selection was extensive, and the maps were large for the era. I'd happily play it again.

So how did this game lead me toward computer science?

Artificial intelligence — and yes, in a launch-era Xbox title.

At a time when most people hadn't even heard of Microsoft 365, Microsoft was already embedding AI systems into its games. Cortana's role in guiding player interaction and providing in-game assistance was advanced for its era and set a benchmark other titles would follow. The AI is rudimentary by current standards, but the underlying design intent was ahead of its time. Halo wasn't the first game to use AI, but it was among the earliest to layer it meaningfully into gameplay. My favourite implementation was Vehicle AI — the systems governing enemy and allied vehicle behaviour added a level of tactical depth that was rare for the time.

Playing wasn't just entertainment; it sharpened how I thought. Trying to understand how the game worked, while balancing movement, weapon choice, and strategy for Capture the Flag in real time, was an early exercise in systems thinking. At eight years old, I had no grasp of the underlying AI or mathematics, but the exposure meant that when I later studied these subjects formally, I could visualise the concepts rather than memorise them abstractly.

This was my first real step toward computer science, and it also sparked an early interest in AR/VR. I got genuinely good at this game.

Recently, I found that same USB drive after roughly a decade and reinstalled the game. It crashed more often than I remembered, likely a hardware compatibility issue, but the experience was worth it. I revisited my favourite maps, even though no other players were online, and the exercise brought back a surprising amount of detail I'd assumed I'd forgotten.

Second Phase: Nintendo

Nintendo was next, and for a few months it doubled as my main source of physical activity, largely thanks to Wii Sports baseball and tennis. The console in question was the Nintendo Wii.

The Wii was a commercial success at the time, and once I set it up, it saw near-constant use.

What differentiated the Wii was its motion-sensing controller, built on infrared pointer tracking rather than the more complex input schemes of other consoles at the time. Its games were simpler and more social by design, making it a console the whole family could use. The Mii avatar system was a particular highlight — I created dozens of them, and the Mii Channel's ambient interactions, and its now-iconic menu theme, left a lasting impression.

The technology behind it was what struck me most. Attaching a motion sensor to your wrist and seeing an on-screen avatar mirror your movement in real time was a significant conceptual leap for someone who, until then, had only really understood a screen as something you watched. It also solved a practical problem: I could get a form of physical activity indoors, out of the summer heat, without being limited to a single sport.

The other Nintendo device worth mentioning is the Nintendo 3DS.

This was arguably my favourite device, partly because of its portability, and partly because of its autostereoscopic 3D display — a screen that produced a stereoscopic 3D effect without requiring dedicated glasses. I took it everywhere, using both its camera filters and its game library extensively while travelling.

The 3DS's connection to computer science came through augmented reality.

It shipped with AR cards that, when viewed through the console's camera, overlaid interactive 3D animations onto real-world surfaces. As a pre-teen, this was my first practical exposure to augmented reality, and it gave me an early appreciation for how much of what we perceive as "real" can be constructed computationally.

Last, But Not Least: Minecraft

Minecraft needs little introduction.

Whatever creative instinct I have today, I largely attribute to this game. Its crafting system was intuitive in a way that similar mechanics in other games weren't — I typically found crafting-and-resource-gathering loops tedious, but Minecraft's open-world design made the mechanic genuinely engaging rather than a chore.

This is also when I developed an interest in survival-mode games more broadly. I built more structures in that world than I can count, and the one thing I still haven't done is experience it in VR, something I'd like to try eventually.

Minecraft's connection to computer science, for me, was its use of procedurally generated, effectively infinite worlds.

The concept isn't unique to Minecraft, but it was one of the first times I encountered procedural generation, long before I knew the term for it. It raised an early, if unrefined, question: how do you write something that produces effectively unbounded output? That question stuck with me longer than most things I picked up from games at that age. Beyond that, the game reinforced resourcefulness and lateral thinking, both practically relevant to working in technology.

Closing Thoughts

Between work and other commitments, I don't play as much anymore, but I'd like to spend more time in AR/VR going forward, and I'm open to game development as a longer-term interest — I've started working through a Unity course, which has been going well. I've also played a fair amount in other genres, racing games in particular, though without any specific titles I've stuck with long enough to speak to in detail.

These devices gave me enough early exposure to technology that I developed a lasting habit of researching new hardware and its specifications. More importantly, beyond shaping my technical interests, these games taught transferable skills — teamwork, strategy, creativity, and adaptability among them. I think there's value in everyone trying a handful of games at some point, screen time managed sensibly, if only for the self-awareness it can produce.

Going forward, I'd like to play more, including some space-themed titles in the vein of Interstellar, given a broader interest in astronomy. Recommendations for games suited to short breaks or commutes are welcome.

I hope this was an interesting read — feel free to get in touch.

PS. This is my first blog post, written without AI assistance — a small personal note given the subject matter of most of what I write here.