Bleak, succinct and uncompromising, the person this message would face would usually just stare at the screen in slack-jawed disbelief for a few moments before getting out of their seat and refusing to play Oregon Trail again for a few weeks while they grieved their own death. Oregon Trail was one of the first games to confront players with a meaningful, consequential sense of death. Players were tasked with managing resources and keeping a group of travellers alive as they traversed the American mid-west, with the permadeath mechanic ensuring it was always a highly suspenseful journey. It was a tough game, and one of the first to present death by disease, rather than by the traditional 'Game Over' screen. These sombre words remain one of the golden nuggets of retro video game nostalgia.
Gamer, Researcher of strange things.
I'm a writer-editor hybrid whose writings on video games, technology and movies can be found across the internet. I've even ventured into the realm of current affairs on occasion but, unable to face reality, have retreated into expatiating on things on screens instead.
