6. Finding A Great Game Second Hand - Garage Sales
VariousThere are those of us who remember a time before the internet. It was horrible. There were corduroys everywhere, and perms. You couldn't even spy on that girl you like, because Facebook wasn't a twinkle in Zuckerberg's eye yet. But it wasn't all screaming terror until our web based pacifier arrived. There were moments that were much better because we were alone, because the information was hidden from us. Before Ebay, there were things that still rarely happen around the world. They were garage sales, or car boot sales - depending on your preferred nationality. Occasionally, at these dreary fields early on a saturday or sunday morning, you would find something miraculous. In between the brick 'n' brack that is inexplicably cherished by some people was a game. An actual game, that you wanted. Desperately. It was only a single pound. You just happened to have a pound, given to you by your parents, and so the game was yours. And now the long millennia until you arrived home. The car ride that took an age as you desperately thumbed through the manual, for the smallest detail until you could finally play your game. Then it was here. The moment. The game was in, and it worked, and you were playing it. This is a moment of pure ecstasy. A new game, your only new game for the next six months. And then you got stuck. The game was hard. Without a website to turn to, you would ruminate on the problem for hours. Endless weeks of experimentation, bringing whole rostas of friends from the playground to serve as advisors and aides, as they had a cousin whose parents bought them Nintendo power. These were frustrating moments at six, but at thirty-six they are extremely happy memories. They are memories of a time when video games literally were the most important thing in the world, and everyone you knew and respected as a peer agreed upon it. Except the girls, who were icky back then (mostly). So just once we implore you. Find a second hand gem hidden away at a CEX or at a garage sale. Take it home and struggle through without reaching for a laptop. Bring your other adult friends round and attempt to figure out how you beat this stage, only this time with beer and pizza. It's a moment worth every frustrating second of build up.