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sk the average kid today what the first video them, taking basic video game knowledge and turning it
game system was and the answer will most into useless trivia. Next time you see a kid playing with
likely be “Nintendo.” I know that this sick- a Game Boy, ask him if he knows what the first portable
ens
A the typical classic gaming fan, but for game system was? When he stares at you with a blank
most people under 20, video games began with the expression, or worse, answers “Gameboy,” you can tell
Nintendo. Like it or not, that’s the way it is. Sure, him that the Microvision was the first one. Let him know
there are exceptions and some kids know about Atari, he can stump his friends with that one.
Coleco, Intellivision, and the rest of the classic sys- Other trivia you can use would be: the first home
tems that were so instrumental in developing the mar- video game system (the Odyssey), the first cartridge
ket that exists today. But for the majority of people, based console (the Channel F; make sure to tell them
they neither know, nor do they care about the the carts looked like 8-tracks, which may require some
older games. further explanation), and who was the first third
This is where you step in. party company (Activision). This way
As a card carrying member of you are giving them a quick lesson
the classic video game and it doesn't seem like real
community, you have an education. Plus, you give
obligation to spread the them something they can use
Teach Your
word. It is up to you to Teach Your to show their intellectual su-
go forth and enlighten periority over their friends,
Children Well!
the masses. It is time Children Well! and every kid wants that!
to put down that joy- Later you can add your
stick and let the world own trivia, as this is just for
know about the contri- starters.
butions that the early (Yes, that is a Crosby, Stills and So now that you have
Nash song title, so sue me!)
companies and program- done your good deed for the
mers have made to the day, helping spread the word
video game industry. on classic games and their
But before you go with By Tom Zjaba inspiration on the video game
your Digital Press in one market, you can rest for the mo-
hand and an Atari joystick in ment. Just as Rome wasn't built
the other, you need to think in a day (has any city been built in a
about how to approach this situa- day?), neither can we enlighten so
tion. If you go in there praising to many overnight. It will take time and a
the heavens about how great and collective effort to get this message
wonderful these classic games are and across. Just remember that we need to
then hook up an Atari, do you know what be patient and give them a little bit at a
you’ll get? You will get strange looks and a total time. We will get nowhere by belittling their current
lack of interest. When today's youth look at an Atari games or by praising our beloved systems. We need to
game, they will see a crudely drawn, poor sounding, start a small foundation of information and with some
repetitive game. They will not see the simple, but en- luck, we can build on it, and soon people will know a
gaging gameplay. They will not see the inspiration for little of the history of video games. Tune in next issue
the games they are playing now. They will only see as we talk about how you can build a solid foundation of
something that doesn't look like much fun to them. classic game appreciation with your own children.
Remember, they have been raised on CD Rom games
and are used to games that have all the visual splen-
dor that we only dreamed of. They are used to full Tom Zjaba has been writing about classic video games for
sound with real music, not the blips and bleeps that nearly four years with his online monthly newsletter, Retro-
we grew so accustomed to. gaming Times. He is an avid collector of video game memo-
To really get through to today's youth, we need to rabilia and has played and enjoyed classic games since the
reach them at a level they can relate to. We need to days of Pong. He can be reached at tomheroes@flashcom.
net or tomheroes@aol.com. You can read Retrogaming
use some old fashioned camouflage to get the point Times and tons of other stuff on his webstie at
across. And what better way to approach the youth of http://tomheroes.com.
today than in the form of "useless trivia." Instead of
trying to convert them, we need to start by educating

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Classic Gamer Magazine December 2000 28