A Halloween costume that will possibly never be topped. Image: Beverly Palau
Who can forget the Game Boy Camera, or Kirby's Dream Land, or Donkey Kong Land's yellow cartridge? Or the Game Genie? Image: freespamfree/Flickr
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I never actually owned a Game Boy, but my grandma did have one that was left behind by my Uncle John, who's a few years older than I am and always has been the cool guy in the family—or, at least to my 12-year-old eyes, cool enough to have owned an original Game Boy way back when.I remember playing a volleyball game that was pretty confusing, but naturally my favorite game was the wonderfully-titled Skate or Die: Tour de Thrash, whose shred-tastic aesthetic was probably more important than the gameplay, which was largely confusing (I never could figure out the half pipe). But man, I did feel cool playing that crazy thing.—Derek MeadI mostly played Tetris, Marble Madness, Pokémon, and Super Mario Land on the different Game Boys I had between ages 9 and 16. Between Game Boys and various CD Players, I easily consumed more AA batteries in a week as a kid than I do in a year as an adult. When my family was in the process of moving to the Seattle, we stopped by my dad’s office on a Sunday for a brief tour. As we left, I glimpsed the Nintendo of America building across the highway. Of course, my brother and I did what any self-respecting, Mario-playing kids would, and forced an inquiry with Nintendo’s weekend security guard for a tour. When the guard said “sure,” after a bit of hesitation, my brother and I instantly became cooler than any other kids in the world, and proceeded behind the gentleman through the hallways where dreams become pixels. We saw a number of desks with all sorts of non-retail Nintendo equipment, desks scattered with blank game cartridges, giant posters featuring Duck Hunt and Super Mario Bros., and the employee cafeteria.
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