Most of my experience of video games as a kid was when we visited my cousins in England. I have a distinct memory of watching my older cousin play a skateboarding game. I think it must've been the original Tony Hawk's Pro Skater. Sometimes I got to play, but I think mostly I watched.
A game I did play was one of the early Grand Theft Autos with the top down view. I didn't do many missions, if any. Instead I stole cars and drove around, often crashing.
At one point I realized that when you stole a particular vehicle, you started seeing them more often. So I stole an oil tanker. I parked it in an open area and stole another tanker. And another, and another, lining up each next to the previous one. Then I got out a flame thrower and set one on fire.
I definitely died in the giant firey explosion, but it was worth it.