When I waited outside of my local Wal-Mart in the foggy cold for 12 hours two years ago on launch night, people scoffed at me, saying the Wii would be in plentiful supply and the PS3 would be the one that was hard to find. But for us lucky 21 people, that night will always be a special night. A night of people who were right when others were wrong, a night of childrens' excited voices as they curled up in their sleeping bags next to their indulgent parents, playing the portable Gamecube setup my friend and I had provided for impromptu SSBM tournaments. As Penny Arcade observed, there was a pleasant camaraderie between Wii campers that was unknown to those who braved the cold for a PS3. Through full bladders, stale Mexican food, and cold coffee, us lucky few smiled through it all, and even caught a few hours of sleep.
The next morning, the manager presented us with hot cocoa. But nothing was as sweet as the victory of holding triumphantly aloft the prize that awaited those with patience and prescience. As I drove away, I heard the groans of agony, the anguished screams of gamers' dreams unfufilled and dedicated fathers who were just a little too late on the uptake. Amid the tumult in the distance, the millions of phone calls to myriad retailers across the country, all with the same, desperate question "Do you have Wii???", I smiled. Because, exhausted and bleary-eyed, I switched on Twilight Princess for the first time in the warmth of my own home, while my friends watched in awe. Some cheered me on, some ridiculed me, some stayed in line with me all night and got a Wii themselves. But that day they knew, gaming would never be the same.
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When I waited outside of my local Wal-Mart in the foggy cold for 12 hours two years ago on launch night, people scoffed at me, saying the Wii would be in plentiful supply and the PS3 would be the one that was hard to find. But for us lucky 21 people, that night will always be a special night. A night of people who were right when others were wrong, a night of childrens' excited voices as they curled up in their sleeping bags next to their indulgent parents, playing the portable Gamecube setup my friend and I had provided for impromptu SSBM tournaments. As Penny Arcade observed, there was a pleasant camaraderie between Wii campers that was unknown to those who braved the cold for a PS3. Through full bladders, stale Mexican food, and cold coffee, us lucky few smiled through it all, and even caught a few hours of sleep.
The next morning, the manager presented us with hot cocoa. But nothing was as sweet as the victory of holding triumphantly aloft the prize that awaited those with patience and prescience. As I drove away, I heard the groans of agony, the anguished screams of gamers' dreams unfufilled and dedicated fathers who were just a little too late on the uptake. Amid the tumult in the distance, the millions of phone calls to myriad retailers across the country, all with the same, desperate question "Do you have Wii???", I smiled. Because, exhausted and bleary-eyed, I switched on Twilight Princess for the first time in the warmth of my own home, while my friends watched in awe. Some cheered me on, some ridiculed me, some stayed in line with me all night and got a Wii themselves. But that day they knew, gaming would never be the same.
Would I do it all over again? Absolutely.