What was the first gaming console you ever owned? Was it the Nintendo Entertainment System, Super Nintendo, Playstation, the Nintendo 64? Maybe you remember the times when the main home systems were the Atari 2600, the Commodore 64, or even the stone age home pong consoles.
My apologies for anyone whose first console also serves to remind them of their age. But we don’t have to sit on the shelf no matter how old we become, and neither do our memories of the fun we had with games from our past.
Crude Technology
One of the earliest examples of home console gaming, especially for me, came in the form of LCD handheld gaming consoles. These little devices had all the power of a regular calculator, and about the same graphics as well. For whatever reason though, these primitive and limited little games were all the rage. They were, for a long time, the easiest way to bring the fun of the arcade home.
They were crude and basic, with some of the earliest games being focused toward racing or sports. I recall with fondness one of these devices that was put out by Nintendo, a pocket version of the arcade classic, Donkey Kong Jr. It was no larger than a pocket size match box, and made sounds like a dying Star Wars droid, but it kept me entertained.
I think in part these games were made by gaming companies to drive customers to buy the more powerful and expensive hardware, or go to the arcade. Whatever the reason these caveman-esque games came to be, it is incredible to see how far gaming has come. A handheld gaming device today can play triple A games just as well as a mainstream console.
Let us never forget the days of gaming’s past. Whether they were LCD handheld games or the arcade powerhouses like Pac-Man, and Donkey Kong, they hold a place in our hearts. Come in to Flynn’s Retrocade and play some of the best games of the arcade golden days!
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