Insert Coin to Continue

It took about 20 minutes and lots of cursing, but it came to life, Dad had just tuned the television into an arcade machine with a borrowed games console and the screen lit up with the word ‘Pong’ and from this day onward I would become a self-confessed addict to video games. It must have been 1978 when this machine turned up in our living room and as quick as it was here it was gone again, I had no idea where Dad got this technology but it was above our standard of living, I mean we were having to put 50 pence pieces into the back of the television to get it to work, there was no extra money in this house for a games machine.

We had one weekend with this machine from outer space and then it was returned to its owner, but it had left a lasting impression on me that would never leave. A simple game of bat and ball but in sprites on the family television, first to 21 points, it was as simple as that and now I’m going to take you on a potted history of my video game addiction, right up to today…

Shortly after that initial slither of home entertainment arcades were opening in the UK and game technology was moving fast, as was I, doing all I could to earn and gather 10 pence pieces for the arcade at the back of my local video shop. Ironically, I was 12 years old and started my paper round for the local newspaper and my local newsagents to fund my habit and the game of choice on a Friday pay day was ‘Paperboy’, launching newspapers at the coloured house and avoiding non-subscribers, their dogs and drain gates, hoping and trying my best to get to the end of ‘Easy Street’ as many others watched over my shoulder, waiting for failure and hoping for my demise, coins in hand, kids wouldn’t think twice to trample all over you to be next to grab those handlebars.

I was off school with tonsillitis one day and went to the shops with my Mum and persuaded her to let me go and have a look around the arcade behind the video shop whilst she shopped for food across the road. I walked in and two blokes were removing the Paperboy cabinet and replacing it with a new game, and I was first to see it, all alone as all the other kids were in school. I was beaming waiting for it to be plugged in and when it was the screen lit up ‘Bubble Bobble’ it said and one of the blokes put a 50 pence piece in it, 5 credits… “Go on then son, away you go!” FREE CREDITS! I got in trouble that day as mum had to ask the local policeman to help find me because she didn’t even know the arcade existed at the back of the video shop and therefore didn’t look in it to find me and 5 credits will get you a long way with a 100-level game like Bubble Bobble and this was my first experience of being a video game ‘completionist’, an obsessive who wouldn’t give up until I had beaten the machine, blasting bubbles at the enemies, hoping to burst them before they got out and chased me. The other thing about Bubble Bobble was that it had a soundtrack, something that would become so important to gaming, like the game it was repetitive and addictive but brought on huge anxiety as it sped up if you were running out of time on the level. Next to Bubble Bobble was R-type, my next love affair, encouraged to blast off and ‘Strike the Evil Bydo Empire’, a small space craft with a detachable gun taking on huge end of level bosses, one of my greatest achievements in life is leaving that arcade on a rainy Saturday morning having completed R-type and my name ‘MAD’, being at the top of the leader board.

Autumn 1986, It’s a Saturday and there is a school trip to Alton Towers, not the most popular kid I decided to go alone, no family, no mates, just me. It was easier that way anyway, I could go where I wanted and go on what rides I wanted but I was side-tracked, I spent all my money and most of my day in the arcade playing the new kid on the block… Out Run! Out Run was my first love when it came to the racing genre which would become my game of choice over any other.

Get Ready!

The object of Out Run is to speed across the map in your Ferrari Testarossa Spider with your beautiful lady sat beside you as you listen to the Magical Sound Shower, it was dreamy, the sound and graphics were incredible but it was difficult and I always ended up seeing the request ‘Insert Coin to Continue’ which was now a 20 pence piece, times they were a changing’, so I did what I was asked and zoned out in awe of the game in front of me, day dreaming “They’ll never beat this, this is the ultimate game, there’s nowhere to go from here”, The End.

1987 was the year when the arcade truly came into the house, games consoles had made a huge leap and in 1987 the consumer had a choice of 8-bit systems, the Sega Master System, or the Nintendo Entertainment System. Luckily, my paper round had turned into a job in the newsagents during all holidays and weekends, so I was earning a wage at 14 years old and eventually got both the consoles mentioned above and my gaming stayed that way, always buying the latest, next generation system… Sega Master System, Nintendo, Sega Dreamcast, PlayStation 1, 2 and 3, Xbox, Xbox 360, Xbox One and now the Xbox Series X.

My first...

My last, my everything

Along the way I had some massive highlights like Tony Hawk Pro Skater (1999), Call of Duty 3, Eder Dam being my first ever truly immersive online experience (2006) and then there were the games that had those outstanding soundtracks that I touched on earlier. Fifa 10 (2009) rocked out The Enemy, Be Somebody, GTA V (2013) Damien Marley, Welcome to Jamrock was perfectly fitting, to me, music is a special part of the whole gaming experience.

I’ll try to conclude here but I really could go on forever writing about something I’m extremely passionate about like this. A recent blockbuster for me and many others was Rockstar’s fantastic prequel; Red Dead Redemption 2 (RDR2), a fictional recreation of the American Old West in 1899, RDR2 focuses on the life of Arthur Morgan and his position in the notorious Van Der Linde gang. The game follows the gang’s decline as they are pursued by lawmen, fellow gangs, and Pinkerton agents. This was the closest to being in an actual motion picture as it would get, an emotional roller-coaster of a game that blew me away.

Arthur Morgan - RDR2

5^th November 2021 00:01, 200mph in the Mercedes-AMG Project ONE as I launch the latest release from Playground Games; Forza Horizon 5 (FH5), now this game is incredible! Based in Mexico the latest instalment of the series is breath-taking, in my opinion this is the first true experience of next generation gaming, sure the Series X was released in the UK on 10^th November 2020, but I think it was waiting in the darkness until this moment. The scenery is mouth-watering, and the car selection is hugely extensive, the play list comes with a recommendation from me – ‘Midnight Kids, Everything You Are’ and the missions, well the missions are a plenty! In fact, to begin with, there’s too much to do, it’s slightly overwhelming in that respect. One thing I haven’t mentioned until now is what video games truly mean to me, why are they so important to me, well they mean the world, they are a leveller, my disability is non-existent in the gaming world, I am equal. With that said FH5 is the most accessible game ever made. Accessibility features include American Sign Language (ASL) and British Sign Language (BSL) support for cinematics; a game speed modification setting that allows gamers to play at a reduced rate; customisable subtitle options; High Contrast mode, Colour Blindness mode, personalised button configurations and more. It seems that the developers made inclusivity a priority and I love it!

I am 47 years old, and I am stunned by this game… “They’ll never beat this, this is the ultimate game, there’s nowhere to go from here”, The End.

The Champion of the World!