Christmas of 1991
Thinking back to my childhood, there are many great memories on receiving new games. I can remember when I got my copy of Super Metroid on my birthday, abandoning my party and hooking up my SNES to the kitchen TV, my friends watched in awe as I defeated the first Mini-Boss. Then there was the time I got the last copy of Mario RPG, or how about when I saw that gigantic box for the awesomeness that was Earthbound? None of those events can compare to getting three solid titles for my NES, that indeed was a very memorable X-mas.
Christmas was always a glorious day, it was the jackpot, the big haul, the day where I would make a huge list and knew I'd get at least 2 of the games I listed. I remember looking through a Service Merchandise catalog with my sister and she was showing me a stock list of NES games. With only game names to guide me and being the tender age of 7, I went down the list to pick the coolest sounding name. If you were a video game and your name was appealing to a 7 year-old boy, you made it on my list with no questions asked. With some help from my sister, the list was done a few minutes later and I quickly handed the list to my parents.
Now all that was left was the wait, the long period of time where a kid would search their parents room, with hopes to get a peak at what they got. It was a mighty dangerous tasks because if you made one false move, or if you get caught, God only knows the horrifying results that would occur. Fortunately, I was never caught, nor did I ever leave any revealing clues on the scene. Then again the searchers were very quick, so the usual results were just a bunch of clothes, or whatever it was my mom was using as a stocking stuffer.
A few weeks go by and the anxious task of falling asleep, the day had finally come and I made sure to be the first one up. After inspecting the items under the florescent glow of the Christmas tree, I then went to my stocking to see what was left in it and watched TV to wait for everyone to wake up.
Well the time has finally come, my siblings and I gather around the presents, ready to tear the wrapping to shreds and rescue the items help captive within. First it was the envelopes, who the hell cares about envelopes? Just rip them open, pretend to read the card and pocket whatever money may be inside. The I go for those small rectangular packages, the time has finally come, I rip them open and rescued the games that were trapped inside. Then it was big the boxes, they were clothes. The usual Thank You and a kiss to my parents occurs, then I run off for some NES goodness.
What were these three magical games?
Well the first one was Tiny Toon Adventures. Unlike usual licensed games, this one was actually good, remained faithful to the original material and best of all you could play as Dizzy!
Then there was Code Name: Viper, it had a cool sounding name and it's one of the best NES games to go unnoticed. Women and Children being held captive, skeletons crumbling after being discovered, gun shooting galore and a mature storyline for the time. How did all of this get past the big N? After all, this is the company that would remove any religious symbols out of their games.
Then there was Maniac Mansion, my first point and click adventure game. Cool name, cool characters, hilarious storyline and quite possibly the best soundtrack for any game ever. This indeed was my favorite NES game, to the point where it stopped working and would taunt me with the blinking screen, only to work one last time a few years later. RIP dear friend, you will forever me remembered.
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