I remember the early nineties... I was around ten when other kids started getting the 8-bit consoles. Back in the day it was a privilege getting such a wonderous machine. Friends would soon gather around to have a look and hopefully even get a go on a Sega Master System or NES. These babies were a big step up from Sinclair Spectrums and Commador 64s. For starters you didn't have to wait five minutes for a game to load, and the graphics were a big step up in pixel count (or "resolution") and number of colours on the screen at once. Even the joypads were a new concept - with multiple buttons which served different functions! I actually remember my big brother Justin made me a special "joystick" which had several buttons like a keyboard which I was more used to. For some reason I remember playing "CJ's Elephant Antics" (a bit like New Zealand Story but two player) testing it.
It took me a while to catch up and I totally missed the 8-Bit revolution. Fortunately my friend Michael across, the street and Carl up the road had a master systems. The games of the day were Double Dragon and Golden Axe - Brillaint side scrolling beat em up which took a good while to get through. Back then you never got infinite continues and cheats were a rarity so there was a genuine challenge to games, many you would never see the end of.
As we grew up we get interested in different things and what-not. Both Michael and Carl were "naughty" and our parents discouraged us from going out and dossing around. So for me games and drawing were a way to spend time, which I'm grateful for. Michael is currently back in Prison, Carl got lucky and his parents sent him away for a stint to stop him from robbing and joy riding. Looking back I can see there's something wrong with society or just the social attitude people are raised with. When we were younger we were all happy to play with each other and were equal, later I think lots of us grew rebellious to try and make sense of everything. I can see I was actually lucky with my upbringing - Maybe I wasn't as cool as the other kids, but I learned that if have to commit arson and vandalism to hang out with people then there's something wrong.
My first console was the Sega Megadrive which I got for christmas. I remember my parents tricked me - all my siblings got a decent amount of presents and I had... crap. They saved the best for last, which was momentarily upsetting. Yes! A Sega Magadrive!!! I had an amazing piece of elite equipment!! Quite a few of my friends would come round regular to witness the spectacle... and maybe have a go. There would always be a point when you're around a friends house and some ones not happy with the amount of gaming they get done and they would cry "It's my house! I get to pick"
I'll round this blog of saying that while staying in and playing games is often seen as a waste of time, it's really not. It helped to stop me becoming an obnoxious thief and gave me windows into many different worlds portrayed through games; helped home my reflexes, lateral thinking and creativity. Will talk a bit about the Nintendo vs Sega next blog.
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