Once again we travel back to a simpler time of gaming history. Let’s go back to a time before the internet was even a twinkle in our eyes. It was a time of wired controllers, 8-color palettes, and joysticks. This list is for all of the OG’s (original gamers) who “gamed on” and kept the industry thriving to give us what we have today. Take a moment to breathe in some nostalgia with this list of the best “Remember Whens” from our collective gaming memory.
Remember When?
You bought games based on what was written on the back of the box.
You had to blow on your game cartridges to make them work.
Arcade games only cost a quarter.
You found out Samus was a girl.
You had to have actual friends if you wanted to play multiplayer.
Controllers only had one button.
Saving the princess was all the motivation you needed to play a game.
You played for high scores.
You went to arcades for the “good” graphics
You cheated at duck hunt by sitting right next to the television.
There was no Gamestop.
Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, B, A, B, A, Select, Start was the best cheat code ever.
Nintendo Power was the only way to read about video games.
You thought games couldn’t get any faster than Sonic the Hedgehog.
Everyone was a Nintendo Fanboy
“Ragdoll physics” only happened when you threw your sister’s doll against the wall.
Sega did what “Nintendon’t”
Mom didn’t have to worry about a rating system when she went Christmas shopping.
You traded video games with your friends.
Microsoft didn’t even exist.
You had to make a new boot disc every time you got a new PC game.
Saving your game meant pausing it and leaving it on overnight.
You didn’t worry about Mike Tyson biting Mac’s ear off.
When you died you had to start from the beginning of the whole friggin’ game!
You thought Sega CD was the next generation of gaming.
Repeating the same two levels over and over wasn’t boring.
Games came in cartridges instead of on discs.
You died repeatedly trying to get 99 lives on level 3-1.
Nintendo’s Power Pad got you up off the couch.
You had to let your little sister play as Luigi.
When you ran out of continues the game was really over.
Nothing made you angrier than that damn dog laughing at you in duck hunt.
The Gameboy didn’t actually fit in anyone’s pocket
You played bad games because that’s all you had.
Sony only made televisions and stereos.
Getting a used game meant giving your friend 10 bucks for a game he already beat.
“Gaming community” meant kids who hung out in arcades all day.
These are just a few of gamers’ collective memories. Undoubtedly, there are many more fine moments of all of our childhoods that are not captured here. What are your “Remember Whens?”
Contact this writer at jeremy@thegamereviews.com
