So I have been reading The Ultimate History of Video Games, bet you did not know that. I have been reading it most of the month on and off slowly.

See up until last night I was reading a history, but now I am involved. Sure I heard about the boom of arcades from my parents, relatives, and friend’s older siblings. I had a Pong and all that fun stuff, but I don’t remember the Pong, seriously. My dad keeps trying to convince me that I remember all the times we played pong…

My first “game system” was an Apple ][e (II). While my dad used it for work, I use to program games and play things like Conan, Apple Panic and Archon. I remember going to CompUSA with my dad and having games be packaged in plastic bags for the computer. Trip Hawkins was telling me about how he challenged that with his “album covers” for games. It all came together. I was there, I remember it. Page 264.

Reading about Nolan Bushnell is one thing. I know the name, knew a bit about him. It was a history lesson of a game designer, Atari owner who worked and lived like a rock star. Atari was a fucking ride. Man that would have been great to be there for that ride. Alas, it is just a history lesson.

Until now, as stated. This is when I start hitting the heavy nostalgia. I remember the house we lived in when I played my Apple ][e, the smell of the cedar beams, the - “top quality” - speaker sounds from downstairs, the light brown carpet stairs to my back. I remember it, and how big things were; the keyboard, the monitor, the sprites.

It was like a flood of memories I have not looked at in years. All because of one word, Archon. I have a feeling this is not the first time it will happen from reading this book. I have a feeling it may be overwhelming, to the point I may emulate some games that I had forgotten about.

Although I have passed this book up more times than I can count because of the cheesy cover I really wish I had not. I am halfway through a 600 page book, and I just came into the picture. Granted this almost a history of video games as seen by Atari (at this point anyways) it is a much better read than I ever though.

And yes, there really is a land fill in New Mexico where Atari would dump old carts. Yes, people found this place and dug items up.

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The Gamer’s Quarter is going really well right now. Unfortunatly I had to push the release of the site back again to next Monday, but it could not be avoided. I may end up pushing it back until Feb. 15 once and for all just to put a firm ass deadline 1 month before the issue is released. There are a few bugs with the forum, and they take for ever to to find and fix. I have also picked up a bit more staff.

Things are going well.