ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 19 ก.ค. 2024
- Honestly an alternate title for this could've been "Things that depress 90s kids" but whatever. Drop what niche nerd thing you're sad about in the comments
Chapters
00:00 - Intro
00:22 - Fry's Electronics
03:55 - The Paper Mario franchise
06:57 - The ClueFinders
08:28 - Web comics
10:10 - Conclusion
Socials
bookborn.reviews - บันเทิง
Best Buy makes me sad. They're still around, but nothing like they used to be. Mainly because of games and music and movies becoming digital
It's all TVs and washing machines now. Washing machines with wi-fi.
@@TonyB2279 exactly! Nothing fun about going there anymore
@@TonyB2279seriously, washers with wifi are a thing now?
@@MetalGildarts I'll have to look into that. I admit I was riffing a bit by the time I got there.
Yeah, we bought a stove with wifi - you can preheat it from work! When the app works of course...
Awww man bookborn got me sad about brining up Fry’s downfall. Fry’s and toys r us were my favorite stores to go to as a kid.
Man I miss some of those flash games.
My thing is Miniclip, brought down by the anti-Flash player revolution. Like, it still exists but it doesn’t have near the catalogue of games that it once did. There are so many niche games that I played there that aren’t available because flash isn’t supported anymore. Random games that were probably created in someone dorm room as a project that they just threw up on the internet (idk but they looked like it at times) and didn’t have micro-transactions, etc.browsing that site and playing random games was a large part of my childhood.
and this brings up a majorly depressing point:
The games we’re playing now and even the games our kids are playing now won’t be available for the next generations. So many games will be shut down, deleted, lost to time since they require some sort of online support that isn’t native to the disc (among other things). So much will be lost. And we can’t do too much about it.
Ok Pete this IS DEPRESSING. I forgot about all the flash games I played growing up, I spent hours. Or those old random computer games that came pre installed on Microsoft computers. Like chips challenge or jewel thief
My miniclip obsession as a child was motherlode, I played that game for hours and hours, and even though I'm pretty sure I only ever bothered to beat it once as a kid, the experience was similar to what I imagine playing minecraft is like for kids today. A couple years ago I went and downloaded a local flash player so that I could experience some of that nostalgia. Part of me was worried I was going to hate it- and it was a lot more simplistic than I remember it being- but damn if it wasn't a chill gameplay experience.
The Ruffle browser extension lets you play Flash content still, as long as it’s still hosted. A bunch of Neopets games can still only be played with Ruffle
@@Mike-di1og Bro, this is awesome. I'll check this out. I don't think it'll work for a lot of the miniclip games I'm thinking of cuz they aren't even hosted on the site anymore, but I'm sure I could find some of them on other sites if I tried.
@@Bookborn You said depressing, I bring out the depressing. So many hours of fun, enjoyed, but not to be repeated.
I love Paper Mario. I see, I click.
I'm so excited for the TTYD remake on Switch.
I'm from Eastern Europe and people of older generations would never ever buy electronics online or digitally, you HAVE to get them to the store where they have to touch and try out EVERYTHING, I can't imagine these stores closing here, it's insane to me
I feel a bit sad about the decline in indie comic book stores. I used walk with my friends 45 mins to the local shop. We'd get the weekly releases and some tcg packs, then grab a slurpee and maybe play a few arcades. I took my son to the store this summer when we were back in BC. I knew it was closing down, but it was sad to see the dilapidated condition. The owner too, I had joked to my son that he was "king of the nerds" back in the day. I had kind of idolized him. Now, he looked beaten down by life. Still, I told him how I wanted to bring my son to see his shop, how many happy memories I had as a kid there, and thanked him for those times. That brought a nice smile. I try to see the interrelation of decay and renewal, but it can be painful sometimes, the ephemerality of it all.
I lived in the Pacific Northwest for almost 30 years and have never heard of Fry’s Electronics, strange. I do remember being really bummed when my local Borders Bookstore closed
I was sooo sad when borders closed 😭
I saw that Fry's in the thumbnail and clicked immediately.
I didn't grow up with Fry's but I was stationed in California (first in Pendleton and later in Miramar) for most of the first half of my time in the Marine Corps, im the early 2000s to 2010s, and getting a chance to go to Fry's was always a sublime experience. Plus, I made it a point to stop in before every deployment, so I could always ensure I had whatever dongles, adapters, or batteries I might need to ensure my gadgets work, no matter how austere the environment. I had a similar experienve to yours later in my career, on a detachment to Miramar, where I made it a point in the limited time I had available to stop at Fry's again, and seeing it so close to empty was almost existentially sad.
I was also huge into webcomics back then, too, but thankfully most of the ones I followed were the big ones, so they didn't really just vanish.
I always liked the 50s sci-fi themed one in Burbank with the crashed UFO sticking out of the front of the store.
@CantankerousDave I never got a chance to go to that one, unfortunately, but the "Atlantis" themed one in San Marcos with the giant fish tank was amazing! Supposedly the one in San Diego was "Aircraft Carrier" themed, but honestly I never saw it. It just looked like a store, to me. But what a store it was!
I grew up not too far from a Micro Center. In the mid-90s the place was always packed, and I mean PACKED. I remember so many computers with game demos that you could actually play, I remember staff everywhere helping people out.
Then fast forward a little more than a decade and I start a job near the same store. I hadn't been in about a decade. It was quieter, but still relatively busy. Over the years it got quieter and quieter and emptier and emptier. I moved offices right before 2020, so I'm no longer nearby, but I can only imagine what it's like now.
Sadly there's no Cluefinder community where i can share the experience but my personal favorite was 3rd grade. The music, the story, the plot twist! Come on, Monkey kingdom?! Goo Lagoon?! It was full of personality, jokes and intuitive problems. Monkeys and their shenanigans, plants and their references that i could only catch years later (John, Paul, Ringo and George) it was the best no contest.
4th grade, was still great but the story was dropped for a very simple linear one and 5th/6th grade felt like they just dropped the setting, the story/plot and intuitive games for a more hardcore approach on education. I remember the 5th and 6th were so bad i felt like i was doing homework more than learning through games, i even remember there were problems about BIOCHEMISTRY! 6th grader game about carbon, hydrogen and nitrogen elements to configure and reconfigure.
Ok but fifth was my favorite 🤣🤣 and I loved Joni getting stolen by the plant people!! But nothing beats the music of number 3 tho for sure
Oh man, makes me miss Circuit City. Remember seeing all those Funtastic N64's in the shelves back in 2000. When America Online was a thing.
BookBorn, I can so relate. As I watched your video I was in the middle of digitizing years of content and collateral I have saved, used and referenced. I have old video projects that I need to get digitized, I have old cassettes of indie bands I loved but cannot find on online, lots of memories and nostalgia. The downside is that tech changes so fast and it is all becoming digital. We can certainly back it up, but how many places do I need to back it up to so it survives a crash, a hacking, a corruption, an EMP? ;) Our old Fry's Electronics (which I used to call Tech Mecca) is now a car dealership. Sad. Thanks for the fun, weird, and nostalgic niche nerd video. If one thing is constant, it is change.
MEMORY UNLOCKED! I loved the Clue Finders games! Especially the 4th Grade Egyptian one. These along with the I Spy and JumpStart games made up the few games we had for the family computer in the late 90s early 2000s. So nostalgic thinking about those games...
They had a Fry's in Phoenix near where my parents lived and they showed up one morning to buy something and there was a note on the door stating that they were closed and "if you are an employee, please contact...". They didn't even tell the employees they were closing :P I miss CompUSA too :P And the game I remember my kids loving was the Freddie Fish franchise :P
Omg I remember those Cluefinder Games!! Wow, thanks for the nostalgia flashback. I had completely forgotten about those.
Fry's has been gone in my home town for about 3 years now. The only thing I couldn't stand about Fry's was the shopping for an item and then pulling the "ticket" from the shelf that you had to take to an associate so that they could get the item from the storage area in the back. It took an hour for me to upgrade my RAM card the last time I was there. Of course, maybe that was just a consequence of my area and theft.
I loved webcomics. My favourites were Unshelved (I'm a librarian, so I could relate), Sluggy Freelance, and Something Positive 😊
Fry's was where I saw my first Plasma TV! Crazy and sad!
I miss video rental stores. A lot more fun to browse random movies.
Looking forward to hearing your thoughts on the Ice Dragon.
Ahhh thank you for reminding me about ClueFinders! I remember back in elementary school getting the next grade version every year. I don't think I actually ever finished any of them though 😅
me only recently discovering your book videos and seeing you post about paper mario, the first is my FAVORITE game of all time. That is insane lmao
I miss plain HTML & software on CDs. Also, BASIC.
Someone else mentioned Miniclip; I'll add in Flash games, Java Applets, & web applets in general.
The author/artist who did Red String has another comic that's still ongoing and pretty good: Love Not Found.
The Frys one was sad. I feel you for those web comics that just ended though. Kinda like TV though...
I miss Fry's so much. I have lived for almost a decade of my life in Omaha NE in my late 20s and we had something very similar to Fry's called Nebraska Furniture Mart that does still exist but not the same with the decline of physical electronics, DVDs, and games. I love making trips to Game Stop, especially the one down in Southcenter next to the B&N but worried for the future of that store as well. Best Buy is no longer "fun" to go to either unless you need some "adult" and "grownup" haha. Finally, I miss Borders probably because I used to work for the company back in the day, while there were some corporate-required displays, local bookstores had free liberty for many other displays and what inventory of books we wanted to carry. Sigh... Great video down memory lane. -Cheers!
Fry’s Electronics was my first job out of HS. Great memories lol
1:01 I had the pleasure to visit a Fry's in Burbank when I lived in the LA area - it must have been one of the last ones, and it was amazing! All the nerd stuff and all of the geek stuff together.
I also miss Fry's a lot. Used to go to the one in Anaheim with my best friend and my or his dad a few times a month. Great store as long as you didn't need any customer service.
ClueFinders were my FAVORITE games growing up. I remember getting them for birthdays and playing for hours. The Egypt one is still my fave, followed closely by Mothra because the music is fire. Thanks for bringing up a fun memory!
The underwater/colonial island one (I think 5th grade?) was my fav but honestly they were all so good.
Just being able to rent video games in general. As a concept and a service it is essentially non-existent. There’s no local video game rental places where I live (if anywhere anymore) and I don’t want to pay for subscription services like GameFly (do they still exist?). So now it’s “buy it and hope you like it” or “watch someone stream it and see if you think you’ll like it.” As a result, I just don’t buy/play as many video games anymore. 😢
hah Fry's got me to sub! love your content. Grew up with Fry's, before they were huge mega nerd palaces... I remember lining up at the components sections waiting to get someone's attention so I can get a tix for new CPU or RAM etc (back when 4 mb (not gb) of RAM cost an arm and a leg... buying floppy discs to dup wares off BBSes, and SVHS tapes to dup anime shows off of rented LDs from Japanese video rental places... those were the days
My fav Fry's locations were the UFO one in Burbank, the Shuttle one in Anaheim, and one of the older OG non-themed ones in Costa Mesa
Fun fact, while researching for this video I found out that my location growing up was the ONLY non-themed frys! So I didn’t see a themed frys until I moved to California way later in life, in the 2010’s.
Fellow Cluefinders fan here! In Dutch it's called "Junior Detectives" and it was amazing. I still sometimes remember quotes or music from the games.
My mom was pregnant with me while she worked as a cashier at Fry's. My grandpa used to take me there all the time where I'd find some other kids to play games with while he shopped.
There was a webcomic for Doctor Who called the Ten Doctors back in 2007 that was this crazy crossover with loads of characters. The author was planning to do another one in 2013 for the 50th anniversary, but ended up abandoning it.
Fry’s depresses me too… After my Mom died, every Sunday my dad would take me to the Fry’s in Oxnard and I would literally spend four or five hours in there and he was so nice he just waited in the same little spot in the shitty little cafeteria just waiting. He’d give me like $15.00 a week and I could choose to save it up or spend it every week and I used to walk to him, show him the game or thing I was thinking about getting, he’d ask if I’m sure and then I’d second guess it and put it back. I’d repeat this process probably 15 or twenty times for like four hours, then on paydays, we’d get $10.00 soup and salad at the Olive Garden across the street. Yeah… $10.00 unlimited soup and salad.
My kids loved JumpStart games when they were young. Looked like they were similar....though we haven't moved since they played them, so there is a small chance those CD-ROMs are in my crawlspace....though I have purged a lot of obsolete stuff over the years. I'll likely just create image files of the ROMs and build a VM so my grandkids can play their parents favorite games...like Barbie Horse Adventures. I'd only walked into a Fry's once back in the mid 00's and it did seem like an incredible store. Sorry for you loss.
So many trip's to Fry's and so many times, while wearing a white shirt and tie, that I was asked if I worked there or where something was! 😂
Haven't been to Fry's, but it reminds me how there is right now a loss of "third spaces". I remember playing Super Mario 64 at the Toys R Us with other kids.
Also, very much yes to the Paper Mario games. Loved the first two so much. Fantastic games. They are remastering The Thousand Year Dorr for the switch and selling it for an expensive price, but I honestly hope they use it as a way to reboot the franchise.
Thanks for the fun video!
Your description of Clue Finders (which I'm prett sure wasn't a thing in the UK) has just given me such vivid flashbacks to a Merlin themed maths game that I had as a kid - on a floppy disk, no less! Off to see if that exists in a digital format...
I remember Fry’s in its heyday as a kid, it did feel special especially since the closest one to us was a bit of a drive.
And I had a lot of fond memories of playing the Cluefinder games. The Egypt one stands out on particular for me.
Did you play the Freddi Fish games as well?
I didn’t play freddi fish but my husband did so now our daughter just started! You can find it online 🥹
I grew up with the Animorphs book series (middle grade series). Nickelodeon aired a TV adaptation during their Snick time slot in the early evening. It aired in 1998 and was dropped six episodes into season 2. It probably wasn’t a great show, but my kid self was disappointed; maybe it was for the best because I was disappointed in how the books ended.
I only knew of Animorphs from the tv series and first discovered they were books as an adult from the indie game To the Moon.
I used to love going to Frys Electronics in Tukwila, Washington. I was lucky to move before it was sadly empty. Also, big Paper Mario fan!
I was never the biggest webcomic reader, I always meant to get into them more than I actually did, but then I quit the internet for a few years and never totally came back except for youtube. But _Vampirates!_ and _Teahouse_ those are the discontinued webcomics that stick with me the most.
I didn't grow up with it (because I'm too old) but I enjoyed Fry's when I moved to the bay area out of college. I especially liked the themed stores (Mayan Temple in San Jose and Egyptian themed in Campbell).
They aren't really fantasy but I still follow the webcomics xkcd (3 times a week update, no real story) and questionablecontent (weekday update, a comic about friendship, romance, and robots).
It sucks that lots of digital media (CD-ROM games, old web sites, media in the cloud) are not really preservable easily or not something you can go back to 20+ years later even if you "owned" them in the past. I didn't know the cd-rom games that you mentioned but lots of old 90s games would be fun to play again, but many of them are lost or unavailable.
HOLY MOLY, I played those cluefinders games, I had completely forgotten them, but they were awesome.
Must've been popular to reach us here in New Zealand!
If you like the paper mario games you should try showing your kids the Mario and Luigi rpg’s. I’m not sure how you access them (I think the switch online has a GBA emulator), but especially super star saga and bowser’s inside story have so much humor and charm.
This is a fresh wound, but CoolMath's end for me. Future generations will never know the vibe of being in the computer lab but you finished what the teacher assigned and so there was only one place to go (that wasnt blocked on school computers).
So sad to have to toss those old games on CD, lol. Maybe they will get a remaster. I've been a subsciber for a few months now since you started your ASOIAF reviews and have been really enjoying your channel! I've seen you're a mom and obviously an avid book fan, and as a new dad I am curious if you had any suggestions on some books for younger kids. My son will be turning 1 in a couple weeks so I know he won't be reading on his own for quite some time. But any suggestions for when he does get into reading would be great.
Oh man this is actually a video on my list for the upcoming month!! I get asked this a lot and I have a million recommendations 😂
@Bookborn That's awesome! Looking forward to it.
@@Bookborn Very cool! Being a person who doesn't have kids, but has a close relationship with my nieces, it's been really fascinating watching (and helping to shape!) their reading habits as they've grown. I had no idea that kids' books could be so much fun!
I grew up in Northern California and was saddened by the downfall of Fry's as well... luckily I live near a Micro Center on the east coast, which I love! Still so crazy that Micro Center flourishes while Fry's died... I know Fry's had some sketchy sales practices and bad customer service, just like Circuit City. Remember CompUSA and Good Guys??
Omg I LOVED comp USA!
@@Bookborn Same! It felt like the upscale electronics store haha
Wow! This was different and really fun to watch!
Oh man, Red String! I had completely forgotten about that webcomic until now. I don't think I actually ever finished it...
If you like the early Paper Marios, I hope you've also played Super Mario RPG! My husband got me to play Paper Mario by saying it was kind of a spiritual successor to Super Mario RPG. SMRPG is really fun, and I'm both scared and excited to play the remake... I hope they didn't change it too much!
So my depressing thing has more to do with me than anything else. I miss having TIME to play single player games. These days I'm just too busy :(
I don’t read web comics, but I read comics and I know web comics are probably bigger than ever. There’s a lot that have gone on for a long time.
My big niche thing that is “bad” now is just normal comics. Comics don’t sell well anymore so they restart all of the time and there are rarely stories that go on for years and years before creatives change. A lot of the time books will get just 6 issues before changing.
You should check out if there's a Micro Center near you. I've never been to Fry's but it sounds similar!
Yes! I loved Cluefinders. The Goo song was honestly played on repeat for the whole summer.
Wait, what? Fry's gone? ☹ I'm not American, but I lived in the Bay Area for awhile in 1999-2000... and Fry's were huge! The place where you could grab a shopping cart and walk up and down the isles like in a supermarket and pick out everything you needed to build your own desktop computer.
Oh my gosh; Cluefinders was basically my whole childhood!!! I had no idea other kids actually played those.
Windows 98 software will usually work on newer PCs. Windows 95 is a bit harder to get to work. And CD software is better than downloads; no waiting for a slow connection.
I love the Mario RPGs. I mostly played the ones for handheld devices like the GBA and DS. But I bounced off of the newest Paper Mario for sure too
Man the gameboy Mario games were sooo good. Especially the original. I think that’s still my favorite. Nothing beat the thrill of completing a game you couldn’t save 😂
@@Bookborn I haven't gone that far back, but I started with Mario and Luigi Superstar Saga. You know a game was good when you can remember the name without looking it up despite the decade or more it's been since seeing or playing this game.
Holy shit Clue finders. That goes way back....one of those educational games my mom forced me to play, especially that jungle one. I don't think I was ever smart enough to finish it lol
Those ole niche computer games from that era come to mind too, like the first few backyard sports games or Lego spy team.
I also really miss the old game kiosks from the GameCube/PS2 eras, straining neck to try demos in the stores, a core memory. Game magazines too! Nintendo power and EGM introduced me to so many games I never got to play or experience, but I could dream. All the this now obsolete media that got the word out on media I might enjoy.
I miss print copies of Shonen Jump too
Don't even get me started on the early internet websites too like New grounds
I had no idea that you were a Paper Mario fan! I’m so hyped for the Thousand Year Door remake and I’m hoping it’s a return to form for the series after the horridness that was Sticker Star and Color Splash
Oh man HUUGE huge fan. Although I had played and felt extremely connected/loved a ton of games before I played Paper Mario, I feel like it was the first game I felt radicalized about 🤣
I work in computer retail and Amazon is the exact reason a lot of the fun old chain stores have and will continue to die. We are a small mom and pop shop and are more expensive, but have excellent customer service and a lot of knowledge on the products. The only reason we can stick around and compete is because of the expertise and being in a small town that is fairly distant from bigger retailers. That being said Amazon has still had a fairly big impact. Amazon trades convenience for experience. Moving away from physical media was hard too. The days when new games used to come into the store were some of the most exciting days and they're now long gone.
And this is exactly why I never use Amazon for anything!
I love Cluefinders, when my daughter was in 3rd grade I managed to get my old copy to work on an old laptop I had that ran windows 7 using an external CD drive (that I probably got at Frys) I couldnt find my copies of 4th-6th grade though, we'll see if I can manage to get 3rd grade to work again when my youngest is old enough.
I never went to Fry's, but Circuit City and Best Buy were fun in a similar way. For video games, I often went to Walmart.. Not to mention all the various video rental stores that had games!
Cluefinders! My siblings and I played them! And we still have the CDs! And boxes, too!
Yeah, they're re-releasing thousand year door for $60. But I'm surprised you bring up Paper Mario and Cluefinders. I didn't realize how many people can relate to missing Cluefinders.
yikes I didn't know they were putting that heafty price tag on it lol I was hoping it would be through the monthly thing like playing Link to the Past and stuff (although I guess they aren't porting but doing an entire remake...)
See that’s the problem with these remasters: they charge more for them than they did the original back in the day.
I have never been to a Fry's electronics. But I can still relate. Brick and Mortar stores (especially bookstores) shutting down makes me sad -- not to mention how they reinforce the monopoly of Amazon :(
Would love to watch more videos about you talking about video games. 🙏
2:55 That looks like the location in Concord, CA. I'm not sure how same-y they get, but it looks spot on to me. Haven't been in several years, though.
The video specifically said our store near us! And it showed the outside so I’m pretty positive that’s the Washington one although I’m sure several look similar.
I went to both the Fry's in Las Vegas Nevada and City of Industry California before they closed. Both were super depressing. Multiple copies of a game would be spread out on a couple shelves just to make it look like they had products. Half the stores were closed off. I used to go to the ones in Burbank and City of Industry all the time. I enjoyed going to new stores to see what theme they had. Definitely the end of an era.
Yeah I had a list of webcomics. There was one about female space rangers. Powepuff Girls Doujinshi, and many more.
Gosh I miss Fry's so much! I would go to one in DFW and it was just such a fun past time to go. Towards the end I started getting these Red Bull infused drinks the Fry's cafe would make. Got an Elvira DVD and several Doctor Who box sets from them back in the day. 😅 Along with most of the PC I built.
Edit: I still hate Amazon. x)
Ouch my heart cant take the super paper mario slander😭😭 i played all paper marios and thats my favorite💀
I’m sorry look away look away 🙈🙈🙈 I just was sooo sad that we didn’t have companions in the same way
@@Bookborn thats so true though I did love the companions too😫
Webcomics still exist, but it's hard to find anything that's not on a major social media site or on a site owned by a big business.
Cluefinders! Loved the 3rd grade one! I still remember the monster song
Woah. I worked at Fry's way back when. RIP.
I played Cluefinders, butr I remember nothing about it sadly. There was another edutainment game I loved, Goofus and Gallant.. That was a good one too..
Two excellent Webcomics that I would recommend is "Scurry" and "Comic Aurora". Comic Aurora is still going and the author is active on TH-cam and Tumblr. I highly recommend them!
A nerd thing that depresses me is when the specific print or run of a book is no longer available. I makes me so frustrated when i can't find them anymore online!
Long term fantasy webcomics are still huge, they’re mostly just on sites/ apps like Webtoon these days.
The paper Mario thousand year door is one of the best games of all time
I played the Mathra ClueFinder game over and over again growing up! Even when I was taking calculus in high school I went back and played it again, it was the only one I had and I wish I’d gotten to experience more of those games!
I remember the Clue Finders games! I didn't play them as much as my older brothers did, but my family had so many great CD ROM games like that that I miss now. My favorite was The Hobbit. I also really enjoyed reading web comics back in the day, just didn't find any of the ones you mentioned, and I think I was the one who dropped off instead of the creators. 😂
I was literally just thinking about Fry's yesterday! Going even further back, we had an Incredible Universe near where we lived, which was a super cool electronics store, but it got bought out by Fry's and converted to their more basic warehouse design. I also went to a Fry's around 2020/2021 and found their barren shelves super depressing. Somewhat fortunately, though, I have a Micro Center near where I live, which fills a similar role if you're looking for computer parts (I was actually there buying parts yesterday, hence why I thought of Fry's in the first place).
Wait wait wait you had an incredible universe?! So did we! Ours turned into frys. Incredible universe was even more exciting as a kid because they had a children’s center where your parents could drop you off for babysitting while they shopped. I LOVED that place. Got to sit on squishy chairs and play computer games
Wait wait was this common or did we grow up in the same area lol
@@Bookborn Haha, I'm not sure how widespread that store was. Mine was near Dallas.
@@micah4797I did some research lol. Turns out there were 17 Incredible Universes, and six of them got turned into Fry's. Mine was in Oregon haha
@@Bookborn Super interesting. I know there's a few TH-cam videos out there documenting the rise and fall of Fry's; I think I remember one mentioning the Incredible Universe buyout.
frys was part of the inspirations for NOPE
I quite like Super Paper Mario, though mainly for the writing; the gameplay I would describe as "present" and while I haven't played any of the others I've seen what they look like and can't help but find it lacking in that department.
I think I managed to only ever read one webcomic that ended without finishing, which was called Prague Race, though Stand Still Stay Silent's ending was pretty disappointing. Currently I'm keeping up with a few; I'd most readily recommend Wilde Life, Nix of Nothing and Daughter of the Lilies, though the latter is currently on hiatus.
My personal sad niche nerd thing I would say is Yuri Norstein's The Overcoat and its eternal in-progress-ness.
Webcomics! Yes! I still to this day have a bad habit of starting them from the first page and then never finishing - but just the other day discovered one is being published soon as a graphic novel (A Witch’s Guide to Burning by Aminder Dhaliwal). So there’s at least hope I’ll finish that one!
I'm so glad I'm not the only one that has tried to look for cluefinders! I would love to get my kids to play them.
Super Paper Mario was definitely different, but still generally well liked by most people. Sticker Star is the one that was “panned”.
Cluefinders was freaking awesome. Math Blaster as well
Wow, you really are a friggin nerd.
Good for you!
Or like, bad, for you, I guess, under the circumstances. =(
I think the niche nerd thing that depresses me is when you find a random piece of amazing artwork online and realize that the poster hasn't touched their profile in a whole year. Especially if nobody really engaged with it
I vaguely remember playing I think the 3rd grade Cluefinders! We played a lot of Pajama Sam 😂 core memories right there
Ugh, that unfinished webcomic one hurt my heart.
I hope you're enjoying the thousand year door switch remake
Super Paper Mario being bad was a hot take. It’s very different but the story is amazing. It was my first game in the series so I hold a lot more nostalgia for it, but from a gameplay perspective I understand it’s inferiority. You’re opinion of Super is a lot like the rest of the fandom’s opinion on Sticker Star the next one in the series
Yes I gave up after super lol but I heard sticker star was even worse. It does seem a lot of people have come around on super so I may have to give it a try again - I still own my og copy!
Omg I miss the Cluefinders and Laptrap
Mine is how bad the mainline pokemon games have gotten (I haven't played Arceus yet). But in my opinion, they peaked at Platinum. Platinum was genuinely hard. There are so many times in that game I go, oh I'm overleveled and then get wiped by a gym leader or when you stomp the elite 4 and get wiped by Cynthia. Pokemon now feels like it was made for 3 year olds. Its way too easy. Also Platinum had the perfect amount of pokemon at the right times. You could have different team comps that worked really well, but not like giving you OP pokemon off rip or just having a big area like Sword and Shield where you could catch whatever you wanted.
okay, so I:ve never been to a Fry;s Electronics but I do remember when Radio Shack left and that was a favorite store for me. Not a Mario fan tho i did love Donkey Kong, luckily Assassin's Creed is still around for me ... I'm a bit older so didn't really get into online comics but I have collected comics since the beginning of Marvel and there have been several titles that just disappeared with no closure ... sad, I love a good story!
Little ole Game Stop is still around, Radioshack is gone, CVS will no longer be in a sizable number of Target stores. There was Borders that is now a Gold's Gym, and Barnes & Noble is downsizing to copy smaller local bookstores. Bookstores are still mid to premium priced. Support you Friendly Local Comicbook Stores, FLGS's, and your local friendly used book stores and local libraries with donations. Some cool finds for $1-2 bucks. Oooh, webcomics taken over by digital Comixology? How about media content like Liquid TV and The Maxx (check it out!) from MTV back when they actually made music. What about last Blockbuster? Or other local franchise?
You are the coolest person I've never met. Apparently granular nerd complaints make me very happy.
Fry's was legendary in the nerd community but I was pretty poor until I got a job out of college, and by then they were on the way out