Being the age I am December 25th brings back fond memories of the Christmas days of my youth. This year was no different in that regard, but this year I noticed an odd pattern regarding those years and the “major” gift each year.
Namely, the years 1993, 1998, and 2003. 25, 20, and 15 years ago are what I consider the “big 3” of all the Christmas days I can remember, and they all happen to fall perfectly in 5 year intervals which also, coincidentally, follow the time period between me being 8 and 18 — an interesting time span in the growth of anyone. These events and the stories surrounding them I feel are worth sharing here, not only as they relate well with the site theme, but also I think they serve interestingly to show the march of time for a kid who likes to game who grew up in the
That being said, let’s get started with Christmas 1993, and the day I got a Sega Genesis!
I’ve told this story before, somewhat recently as well, in a previous article, but for the sake of the full trio of stories I wish to tell in this mini-series, I felt a retelling of the story was in order.
1993. I was 8 years old. At this time in my life, I had owned a Nintendo Entertainment System since 1990. Times were changing, though, and the 16-bit revolution was well underway. At this time in my life, I wanted a new system because, well, what child wouldn’t? Especially when the other kids in your neighborhood are all getting new systems!
This was also in the time frame when Nick Arcade was still new on Nickelodeon, it
At this time my best friend in the neighborhood was a kid a little younger than me named Matthew. He happened to have a Sega Genesis (A model 1, for what it’s worth) and a good assortment of games – the best of which being Sonic the Hedgehog, a game I had already seen just a bit of on Nick Arcade. Oh damn, from the moment I first played it, I knew I wanted a Genesis.
I don’t quite recall how much I may have spoken about it, but clearly my family got the hint as Christmas of 1993 brought not just the usual assortment of toys – I recall a large Godzilla figure, a Knex set (those were new at the time) and quite a bit of other random goodies – but of course the key thing was the Genesis!
It was a model 2, which was current at the time – not the model 1 my friend had, but that was fine with me as this package came with Sonic 2, a game that needs no explanation. I can’t recall what other games I got with the Genesis at that time, but it’s of no concern – Sonic 2 was the big draw.
I can’t recall if the NES was still connected to the TV or not – I want to think it was. For whatever reason my mom had our neighbor come over to connect the console to the TV in my room, but once it was done I got to experience 16-bit gaming power in my own room.
This was a great Christmas on a whole, not just for the Genesis, but it was also the year I got a new bike – a Huffy Electrolight bike! Oh yes, for an
The Genesis would keep me well entertained for several years. Some other kids in the neighborhood would get Genesis consoles, and that expanded the gaming circle I had to share games with. Sadly, by 1996 the console had a controller port break and given this time period I just kind of was out of luck – buying a new one wasn’t something my family would do, and it was before used game stores became commonplace, at least anywhere around here, so that too wasn’t an option. For the time being, my days of playing the Genesis were over. 3 years was a long time for a console, at least to me back then, and I’d eventually find my old NES and hook that
Over the years the console worked, I learned of and wanted the Sega CD and eventually when it would be released the 32X add on. I would get neither over the life of the Genesis, probably for the better. I even desperately wanted the Sega Channel, a cable-based game download service which aired a 24 hour infomercial for a few months on local tv in 1996, just before my Genesis would finally break completely on me.
By 1997 I’d get a Super NES – late, sure, but at least I got one. Later on in high school, around 2001, I would buy another Genesis and things would come full circle, but the memories of that Christmas and the experience go down as one of my favorite childhood memories, and certainly a high point in my gaming memories as well. I dare say this was the beginning of the point where I went from being a kid who played games to being a “gamer” – in 1994 I got a subscription to Game Players Magazine, and start paying attention to the scene on a whole. It’s crazy to think back to it all starting 25 years ago to the day I started writing this, with a Sega Genesis being a Christmas gift.
Next up we move 5 years into the future – 1998, and the day I got a Sony PlayStation.
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