alt.hn

2/19/2026 at 3:14:18 PM

How I launched 3 consoles and found true love at Babbage's store no. 9 (2013)

https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2013/01/how-i-launched-3-consoles-and-found-true-love-at-babbages-store-no-9/

by zepearl

2/19/2026 at 4:11:48 PM

I lived through this, and it captures the era well. I'm trying to see through young eyes, but I can't stress how new things seemed every year during this era. Nowadays, there doesn't seem to be as much progress, just better iteration.

by blargthorwars

2/19/2026 at 4:16:30 PM

I am a bit younger but I agree. Going from the SNES/Genesis to Playstation/N64 with 3d graphics was amazing. It was like having an arcade machine at home. Going to the PS2/Xbox and then 360/PS3 was again a massive jump. Every console jump was a very noticeable improvement in graphics, so it became a big deal. PS4/PS5/XBONE these were just such minor improvements, there is no big wow factor.

by ecshafer

2/19/2026 at 4:46:24 PM

The snes to N64 jump to me is definitely the biggest. It wasn't just graphics, the gameplay completely changed too. By the end of the snes era I had grown out of games due to endless platforms and 2d fighters (I was 13ish). I was 16 by time I started playing them again. Wave race 64 was just mind blowing. And like nothing else I'd played before.

by pipes

2/19/2026 at 5:04:00 PM

Good times, they were. Good times indeed. (And we're still married, too!)

by lee_ars