Do you remeber "how" it comes that you are here, making maps?

It's a silly question, maybe, but now that i am a little bit active inside this communitiy, i started thinking about myself: amongst my friend i have ever been recognized as a map-fanatic, since childhood... but how it started?
For me, the answer dates back to '80s: as my reading ability quickly improved (i am born in 1975) i started enjoying history books, at the beginning mainly WWII related works, usually coming with maps depicting Normandy or Okinawa. Military maps, with precise but schematic landscape, and no space at all for fantastic representations.

The first "fantasy" map i've ever seen probably it is this one:

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the map was related to the game for PC Hillsfar, set in the universe of Dungeons and Dragons.

It was a sort of revelation: heck, maps with "realistic" trees? Buildings with details? Skeletons of dragons? A "dragon's eye view"!!?
WOW.

It was 1989.

And shortly thereafter, i bought two games from Origin (the company that created the Ultima series of rpg), and both complete with maps ... that I found online just today, and I will paste below.

Meet the kingdom of Ashtalea (Knights of legend) and the one of Albareth (Times of lore)!

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Click image for larger version.  Name: TimesOfLore_Map.jpg  Views: 251  Size: 1.41 MB  ID: 58231

A little simplistic ones, one could argue ...

Albareth has to trees and buildings as viewed from above, while some elements like the mountains are seen in perspective; Ashtalea has little variety in the graphics.
And both maps would make the happiness of your river police, with rivers flowing from lakes without tributaries, or intersect with others at 90° angles, but without specific reasons

However: somehow, i guess for me the beginning was with these maps!