Christmas is one of those holidays that is really hit or miss. Everyone speaks of being together with family and enjoying their company is the main goal, but we all know that this is the Hallmark definition for Saint Nick's busiest day of the year. In the back of our minds all we think about is what we are going to get and how fast can I unwrap it.

It's not a selfish thing, because gift giving goes hand in hand with Christmas and to a lot of kids it's the most important Holiday. Now, I'm not an ungrateful person in the slightest. Anything that I receive as a gift is well appreciated. In 2004 however, I got hit with two bombs that just really messed with my head.

Every year my parents ask my brothers and I for what we call a "Christmas Wish List." It just more of a guide than a "this is what to get me" list. That year all I really wanted were games. Splinter Cell, Ghost Recon, Ninja Gaiden, and Knights of the Old Republic were all available at the time and those are all I really wanted. I desired spending that Christmas Vacation inside the house playing my Xbox. I had a Gamecube but it wasn't used as often and Xbox to me was all that mattered.

The wish list was then out of my hands and I eagerly awaited Christmas morning. My parents would be gone Christmas shopping before I woke up and then get back late into the night. I loved that. Felt like they were just out buying gifts all day for us. I had daydreams of playing all these blockbuster titles endlessly and telling alll my friends about them. I was pumped for this year to say the least.

Now on Christmas morning I woke up at the crack of dawn. I looked over the banister and saw an ocean of gifts. I shook my brother like mad until they got out of bed and we all ran downstairs. Going through all of these gifts were fun and we were getting a lot of "filler" stuff. Clothes, toys, gift cards to our favorite restaurants, etc...None of the really big things that we wanted. Not to say the other things weren't great, just not at the top of the list.

Gifts started to dwindle and we've gotten a few of the big stuff. Ninja Gaiden and KOTOR are what comes to mind immediately. There were two other gifts that really stuck out. One was a rectangle and I could clearly tell it was a game. The other was a long oval shaped object and I just couldn't tell what it was. So I went for that first assuming I knew what the rectangle was.

Croquet.

My mom said since we play outside, thought you'd like to try something new. I didn't want my mom to show my disappointment so I said something along the lines of "That's a good idea!" When I really meant "Am I being punished?" That croquet set stayed in my closet until I graduated High School. Then we donated it.

I started to get ever more eager about the other box that was there. Was it Splinter Cell? Knights of the Old Republic? Ghost Recon? My brothers and I ripped open the wrapping together to find...

Aquaman: Battle for Atlantis.

The Gamecube title that is easily one of the worst games ever made was now in our possession. I must have had the worlds’ largest shit eating grin that moment. We all simultaneously said a monotone yay. I actually played it because my dad loves comics so he thought it'd be good. My dad got bored of the game quicker than I did. The dull colors, choppy animation, and swimming in this "open world" environment was the equivalent of watching black paint dry in the dark with your eyes closed.

That's how my Christmas that year ended. With a long haired man with one arm who swam underwater. Gave that to Gamestop the following week.