HoshiChiri Posted December 18, 2015 Share Posted December 18, 2015 For the record, the piss jugs were quite humorous and everyone in the line laughed about it because piss jugs are a popular joke in a Canadian TV show called Trailer Park Boys. Everyone was laughing. The night before the PS3 had bad shit go down at the same store I went to, so I was expecting the worst. While I am quite sure the jugs were funny, as a female I do prefer access to a proper bathroom. I read one guy's story on another site years ago that he got followed by 4 guys after picking up his system. When he and his buddy got to the next store (game-hunting), he made a bit of a show about passing his hunting knife to his friend, who was staying in the car with the PS3. Apparently, as soon as the knife came out, the car with the 4 guys drove off. Chalk that up to another reason I don't intend to system-camp, I guess. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skippy B. Coyote Posted December 18, 2015 Share Posted December 18, 2015 (edited) For those of you who don't get why anyone would camp out for a console release, I'd like to try a little thought experiment. Think back to when you were a kid around this time of year, on the eve of Christmas, Hanukkah, or whatever seasonal holiday your family celebrated. Now, imagine that your parents told you that you could either open your presents tomorrow morning, or you could wait a few more months to open them and get extra presents and some money too. Which would the kid version of you choose? That, in a nutshell, is why people camp out for console releases. It's that feeling of being so excited to get something new and so totally cool that you just have to have it as soon as you can get your hands on it. I think as adults and as retro gamers we far too often lose that zeal and overwhelming excitement that we used to feel as kids when new games and systems came out, because we're pretty used to the things we want having been out for a long time already, being able to pay lower prices for them, and getting to check out the full game library for a system before we think about buying it. Which is nice and practical and all that, but every now and then I think it's a good thing to completely throw practicality and long term planning out the window for the sake of just letting yourself feel like a kid on Christmas morning again. There are some experiences you really can't put a price tag on. Edited December 18, 2015 by Jin 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HoshiChiri Posted December 19, 2015 Share Posted December 19, 2015 For those of you who don't get why anyone would camp out for a console release, I'd like to try a little thought experiment. Think back to when you were a kid around this time of year, on the eve of Christmas, Hanukkah, or whatever seasonal holiday your family celebrated. Now, imagine that your parents told you that you could either open your presents tomorrow morning, or you could wait a few more months to open them and get extra presents and some money too. Which would the kid version of you choose? Honest answer? Kid me would have tried to bargain to get 1 or 2 presents now, and wait on the rest. Like, I only get half the money later if I open one now. (Kid me had a beach-vacation related epiphany on delayed gratification, so I wasn't too bad at waiting.) I've never questioned the 'why' of the lineup though... some of my best con memories come from sitting in line for hours waiting on a panel or the dealer's hall to open. Being able to get hyped for something you love with like-minded individuals is a great thing. For me personally, though, console camping has too much chance of getting stuck in line with grumpy resellers for too little return (a console that, normally, has no games I want to play at launch and therefore wouldn't even get used anyway.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest LiqMat Posted December 19, 2015 Share Posted December 19, 2015 Why yes... yes I have. For the release of the Xbox 360 back in 2005 and I peed into a 32oz Mountain Dew bottle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CatPix Posted December 19, 2015 Share Posted December 19, 2015 I think as adults and as retro gamers we far too often lose that zeal and overwhelming excitement that we used to feel as kids when new games and systems came out, because we're pretty used to the things we want having been out for a long time already, being able to pay lower prices for them, and getting to check out the full game library for a system before we think about buying it. Which is nice and practical and all that, but every now and then I think it's a good thing to completely throw practicality and long term planning out the window for the sake of just letting yourself feel like a kid on Christmas morning again. There are some experiences you really can't put a price tag on. I agree, tho... We aren't kids begginf for a 45$ game cart. We're talking about 400 to 600$ toys here. I can allow myself to beg and get in line for a game, sure. Or even two or three. But half of my monthly income? That sucks, but that's being adult. And mind, you, but I felt exactly hthe same receiving my PS2 New for Xmas 2001, than I felt like I received a package from the USA, containing a Magnavox Odyssey. THe one. Oh yeah. I was jumping around the room. For a 43 years old console. So yeah I can feel that magic. I just can choose when I wanna feel it, and not just when society and big companies tells me to feel it. I don't care if Bally had been out of the business for 20 years when I received my Bally Professionnal Arcade console. I had it. In fact, I can even enjoy it more as an adult. After all, when you're a kid, all you have to do is to sob and whine until your parents give up and buy you the console. Here, it's your very own money that you worked to earn it, and you can add the thrill of searching it, for the right price, the most complete one, or the cheapest working, or anything that define your wish. And you got it. You're rewarding yourself, because you worked to get it. It's a very satistying and fullfilling feeling, too. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BydoEmpire Posted December 19, 2015 Share Posted December 19, 2015 Camped out for a Wii - it was a lot of fun but that was the first and last time. Someone brought a TV so we watched some movies. Nobody was a jerk. Target was pretty well organized when it was time to go in and there were no hassles. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
82-T/A Posted December 19, 2015 Share Posted December 19, 2015 Haha... no I have not, but I do remember that when I worked for CompUSA in Vienna, Virginia back in the mid 90s... there were a TON of people camped out for the midnight release of Windows 95. We apparently were giving away monitors and laptops for the first dozen people who showed up. The first people to show up got like an NEC 17" MultiSync flat-screen tube monitor. Back then, there was nothing out there like those monitors. They were crystal clear... like .23 pitch or something really low. Anti-glare, just amazing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cybercylon Posted December 19, 2015 Share Posted December 19, 2015 I have showed up at midnight a few times to pick up a pre-order, but that does't really count as camping out. I am too old for it now, and never saw the big deal when I was younger. I do remember the craziness with the PS2 release. I had preordered mine months in advance, and it was a good thing I paid in full. There were a lot of disappointed people that were turned away even though they did a pre-order, but hadn't paid in full. I have expected someone to club me over the head and run off with mine as I was heading back to my car. The thing is... the games that initially came out were not very good. I had preordered Summoner with mine. Terrible game with a lot of lag and a very short drawing distance. I could have put up with that, but the inventory system (or lack of one) made me wonder why I did get one at launch. For the first 6 months, I played PS One games since my PS One had died. Of course, the PS 2 library became amazing, but that took time. So even though that still wasn't camping out, it was the last time I ever bought a system at launch. The chances of getting buggy games these days are pretty high as are the hardware failures. Generally, I wait about 2 years at least. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest LiqMat Posted December 19, 2015 Share Posted December 19, 2015 (edited) Haha... no I have not, but I do remember that when I worked for CompUSA in Vienna, Virginia back in the mid 90s... there were a TON of people camped out for the midnight release of Windows 95. We apparently were giving away monitors and laptops for the first dozen people who showed up. The first people to show up got like an NEC 17" MultiSync flat-screen tube monitor. Back then, there was nothing out there like those monitors. They were crystal clear... like .23 pitch or something really low. Anti-glare, just amazing. Oh man, I remember those NEC monsters. Everyone wanted their 21" behemoth. Super expensive and it took two people to lift one... well almost. Edited December 19, 2015 by LiqMat Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
R.Bear Posted December 19, 2015 Share Posted December 19, 2015 Nah, I normally get the consoles that I'm interested in a few days or weeks after launch. Never camped out for one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keatah Posted December 19, 2015 Share Posted December 19, 2015 Never camped out. Never will. But oftentimes we'd celebrate and make a big stink when a new console or cartridge came out. Parents would let us know days in advance and we'd pour over catalogs and reviews in EGM. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhoenixMoonPatrol Posted December 19, 2015 Share Posted December 19, 2015 (edited) Not camped out a whole night and day but something like that,yes. Back in 2005 I preordered an XBox 360 very early but there were shortages so GameStop wasn't able to deliver mine on launch day. So I lined up at a Best Buy about 7 in the evening. Was rainy,foggy,just piss cold. had fun talking to hardcore gamers,old school XBox fans mostly. Was fun but in the end we were turned away,something like the 5 people infront of us was where they had run out of supply. So we went to Target no luck there either. Did manage to get one a few days after Christmas,GameStop called and I picked up mine. Will never camp out ever again though. I'm abit too old and a little more wiser for that sort now. 10 years ago sure,now,not really. And no day one console purchases for my anymore either. Modern gaming has soured me allot now - too many politics with patches,dlc, and the bias media that want to try to sell you on the next best thing. Like PlayStation Virtual Reality,how the media can try and sell that thing to people is a scam and I hate seeing the industry be led like sheep thanks to media who care more about clicks than integrity. From here on out I'll just wait about a year or two after the next wave of consoles are out to enjoy wait they offer. Edited December 19, 2015 by PhoenixMoonPatrol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jinks Posted December 19, 2015 Share Posted December 19, 2015 No why?? They are mass produced. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jess Ragan Posted December 20, 2015 Share Posted December 20, 2015 Oddly, that's how I got my Wii. I spent a lot of cash at this one GameStop, and so one of the employees there struck a deal with me... if I came to the store just before it opened, he'd sell me one from the stock room. This was January 2007, when they were still extremely hard to get, so I jumped at the opportunity. It was pretty cold that day and I had college classes on top of that, but hey, people have done dumber things to get their hands on a Wii. Eight years later, I found a dirty old Wii at a yard sale for ten dollars. The game console that was at the top of everyone's shopping lists in 2007 is the one they're desperately trying to get rid of now. Funny how things work out sometimes. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CatPix Posted December 20, 2015 Share Posted December 20, 2015 That's how that cookie crumble... At any point, consoles were sold for cheap. I recall boying a NES for 50 FF (about 12$), SNES for about the same, with some games. PS1? I found 3 of them in a bin (not at the same time, but still). I got a PS2 with a helload of games and the HDD Network adapter for 25E this summer. In 10 years from now I'll look back and will think about how everything for the PS1 and PS2 was cheap back then. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SSG Posted December 20, 2015 Share Posted December 20, 2015 Nope, I am not that crazy to do that. I can wait till the next day to pick up a pre-ordered console. Plus, I never have bought a console at release. I probably never will. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jbone09 Posted December 28, 2015 Share Posted December 28, 2015 Sure did, for the ps2. Local news was there and everything. I waited all night outside CompUSA; remember those? Only 15 consoles were available. They handed out 15 vouchers at 6:30 AM, so you could come back at a later time, when they were open (to prevent being jumped). Some guy offered me a couple-thousand for my voucher, which I politely declined. In hindsight, I should have probably taken the money. I remember hearing about a lady being attacked by someone, with a baseball bat. Crazy stuff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bretthorror Posted December 28, 2015 Author Share Posted December 28, 2015 Sure did, for the ps2. Local news was there and everything. I waited all night outside CompUSA; remember those? Only 15 consoles were available. They handed out 15 vouchers at 6:30 AM, so you could come back at a later time, when they were open (to prevent being jumped). Some guy offered me a couple-thousand for my voucher, which I politely declined. In hindsight, I should have probably taken the money. I remember hearing about a lady being attacked by someone, with a baseball bat. Crazy stuff. Yeah. bro. When I bought my Wii at camp-out, I was poor as hell and could have made nearly a month wages from it just for that one night, but I just couldn't do it either. For once, I had complete faith in the Wii (and still love it just as much). I truly believed when I camped out that the Wii was the next NES. And I believe it lived up to it. Wii Sports is equal to Mario/Duck Hunt. Fun is fun. If you hate Wii Sports, you probably aren't much fun to be around. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CGQuarterly Posted January 2, 2016 Share Posted January 2, 2016 I didn't literally "camp out" but I stood outside in line basically all night to get my Playstation 2 on launch day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Algus Posted January 2, 2016 Share Posted January 2, 2016 I got in line for the Wii preorder. Honestly it was a blast. Me and like 20 other Nintendo diehards all gossiping about the new console. Had a lot of fun. Wait wasn't to bad. Think I got in line at 6 (store opened at 10) and was like 3 or 4 in line. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cybercylon Posted January 2, 2016 Share Posted January 2, 2016 I didn't literally "camp out" but I stood outside in line basically all night to get my Playstation 2 on launch day. Do you still have that PS2 and does it still work. I still have mine launch one in working condition. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CGQuarterly Posted January 2, 2016 Share Posted January 2, 2016 Do you still have that PS2 and does it still work. I still have mine launch one in working condition. Oh gosh, no. That one died after a bit of time, got a replacement from Sony. When the slim came out, EB had some kind of crazy trade in deal where I traded my fat PS2 and 6 shitty sports games straight up for a NIB slim. That one I still have. Kinda miss that fatty PS2 though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thadsilverfox Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 I don't camp out or stand in long lines to buy the latest anything. Ditto...If the company can't order enough to meet demand it's their loss and not mine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Like us on Facebook
Follow us on Twitter
AtariAge on Instagram
Watch us on YouTube
Chat on Discord
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.