Among the noteworthy dates on a gamer’s calendar, July 7th is one that no one should mis. As many (hopefully all) of you are aware, 7/7 is Bungie Day, and this is the holiday created by the legendary developer to celebrate their long-standing infatuation with the number Seven. The holiday was originally conceived to happen on dates where the month, day, and year are all composed of ones and sevens, but has since opted to celebrate it every July 7.

Bungie Day is a celebration of all things Bungie, and to those of us who call ourselves “fans,” it’s a celebration of Bungie’s great developments and accomplishments, and to the relationships that they’re largely responsible for helping form. There isn’t a more passionate community than the Halo community, and we all have Bungie to thank for that. Because of their partnership, Bungie and Microsoft developed the world’s #1 online gaming platform, and pioneered many of the features that all online platforms use to this day – friends lists, party chat, matchmaking, theater modes, etc.. Because of Bungie’s and Microsoft’s work, Xbox and Xbox Gamers have seen the most genre-defining titles, the best online infrastructure, and the strongest community in gaming.

But what does any of that really mean? How could one game studio really make that much of a difference? Well, I’m only one person, but over the years not only have I heard countless stories as to how Bungie’s games and community have brought people together – fostered everything from friendships to families – but I’ve lived them.

I’m writing here today not because I grew up on Xbox, but because the games that Bungie made have literally changed my life. Now please bare with me while I ramble.

As any of you from the forums may already know, I grew up on MS-DOS. I started off with the basics of Asteroids and eventually moved on to the Heretics, the DOOMs, the Thiefs and the Tomb Raiders. I grew up on Mouse and Keyboard, and this is where I thrived for the larger majority of my childhood. Then, one day a friend showed me Sonic Adventure 2 Battle. One thing led to another, and not too much later, I found myself in the possession of a Nintendo Game Cube.

Fast forward a few years, and I’ve been loving my GC. We’ve the Marios, the Metroids, the Zeldas, the Smash Bros. – you know, everything we still love Nintendo for. But that’s all I really knew about console gaming – I didn’t know there were two other whole worlds that I was missing out on. Luckily, a friend of mine changed this.

Around the winter of 2004, a friend of mine (Matthew) invited me over to hang out and play video games. His older brother hand just gotten this awesome new “shooter” that was apparently a pretty big deal, and as such I jumped on the opportunity to play it.

Foundation | 1 v 1 v 1 | Slayer BRs

I don’t know what it was about that dusty little symmetrical four-sided map, but I was hooked, and based on this game alone, 11-year-old me had an Xbox within the next 4 months. Granted, I wasn’t allowed to play Halo until a couple years later, but that didn’t stop me from spending every moment I could at several friend’s houses playing customs (and eventually matchmaking) every minute that I could. And it was fun. (Really it was more than fun, but I don’t have the words to really convey what I mean.)

However, it wasn’t until I sat down and played through Outskirts, the second mission of Halo 2′s campaign, that I realized that someone had to make what it is that I’ve been enjoying all these years. You know, these games we all grew up playing? Someone had to make these video games – to write these stories – to program the gameplay – to design the levels – to build universes!

That’s when it hit me, and that’s the path I’ve been on ever since. I want to make video games, and I want to help give others the same joy and excitement and experiences that I hold most dear. I had played and enjoyed video games for YEARS before ever coming in contact with Halo, but something about that game in particular made 12-year-old me take a step back and view this as more than a game, and instead as an interactive work of art – I had to be a part of it.

Since then, almost a decade later, I’ve met my closest friends and shared my greatest laughs over an Xbox headset. I’ve learned to appreciate and play music thanks to O’Donnell’s scores. I’ve spent the past 8 months writing for XOD simply because I love the Halo and Xbox community. I’m currently enrolled at the Art Institute of Atlanta, majoring in Game Art & Design and living with men who both share an almost identical story and passion for the work that Bungie has graced this industry with.

I was talking with RadApples about this earlier. Sometimes I wonder if the guys over at Bungie ever sit down and think about how much they have touched the lives of those who have played and loved their games. There are children born out their community, companies built around their products, and projects inspired by their successes. No matter how much their recent actions have pissed me off, the people and products that Bungie is built around are largely responsible for the direction that I have chosen to take in life, and for that, they have my deepest gratitude.

TL:DR? Halo, and in turn Bungie, changed my life. They’re largely responsible for who am today and where I want to be tomorrow. If Matthew had never shown me this awesome game on this awesome platform, I don’t know where I’d be today. That’s not to say Bungie saved my life in any way, but I probably wouldn’t be writing for XOD right now – much less going to University to earn my Game Art & Design degree while living in a house with friends who aspire to build a universe that’s inspired by their handiwork – had it not been for the Bungie team’s talent and success. And for that, I’m incredibly grateful.

But that’s just my story – and a drawn-out one at that – and now I want to hear yours! How has Bungie influenced you? And how have their products affected your life? I already know a little bit about several of you, but please go into detail. I’m more than curious to know how Bungie has affected your life, or at the very least what your favorite moment from one of their games has been. I would’ve included mine here, but I’ll save it for the comments, as I’m sure I’ll want to jump in and add my voice to the masses!