In 1982 our dad bought us a Colecovision TV game system. What immediately followed was joy and exultation. What followed over the next few years was an evolution of my gaming fandom into a more robust and complete part of my being.
We owned – and I enjoyed – many different games on the system. But one of them seemed to stand above all others, and it was this one I put a great deal of my time into during the year or so that followed.
I became so familiar with the game I could almost play it in my sleep. Only three screens… endless repetition… no purpose other than to get a high score.
And score I did! In fact I obtained a high score that made me proud enough to boast about it. A picture was taken of the screen, time passed, the developed picture was obtained from the store, it was placed in an envelope and sent overseas to a magazine in England.
All these years later I can’t say I remember even which magazine it was. But I think it may have been this one:
Not that exact issue of course, but one from 1983 or maybe 1984 (although I did own the above…). I was proud of my score, and the magazine I chose had a ‘high score’ section. I hoped my score was good enough to be included.
Eventually, many months later (due to the combination of the print delay and the sea-mail delay) I bought an issue and saw my name in it! I was absolutely stoked. My score had been good enough to make the magazine! All it said was my name and my score, in tiny print on one line. But it was enough for me 🙂
Although I never guessed at the time this ‘high score section’ was of course just for kids. There was no authority in the scores, and I assume is they printed any scores received just so the twelve year old that wrote to them would be as excited as I was. It is perhaps likely they didn’t even care about any real proof.
One regret of mine is that I never kept the magazine. I don’t even remember when I disposed of it, or how. It was probably destroyed decades ago, all evidence of my Kingship of Coleco Kong long lost to time.
But at least it lives on in my heart!