CHRISTMAS 1990 GAME MEMORIES! - Happy Console Gamer

[@Stormgazer]

Ed Semrad was actually a pen name Andrew Baran used to write reviews under for EGM. He passed away back in July of 2009 from cancer. I miss the magazines of those times and before.

[@islandisliving]

These are the best episodes! I was a child of the 90s and would love to sift through my EGM and GamePro magazines. I remember being especially hyped for promotion on metal gear, resident evil, devil may cry and the list goes on. and awesome Christmas tree!

[@hk47ray]

I still have that magazine too!! (I'm 39). I saved a lot of gaming magazines from that time...great memories!

[@DragoonLagi]

i really like these episodes. im still very into games as years ago. i was born in 1984, so happy to been born in the 80s. and have seen the 90s too.

[@dave4shmups]

Great episode!!!! I got Castlevania III and Super Mario III for Christmas that year! My older brother got Little Nemo: The Dream Master. All awesome games! In 1991, I got the Sega Genesis, with Sonic the Hedgehog packaged in. My older brother got Phantasy Star II. GREAT memories!

[@NatStarlight]

I have so much nostalgia for EGM; getting a new EGM in the mail was just as exciting as getting a new game back then.

[@bathcrone]

Johnny you've got the best Christmas episodes on KZbin

[@cobhcxiii]

YES !! Dude I remember I was around 9 or 10 and I has this EGM magazine that I packed around and I would ambush my mom while she was cooking dinner and kept showing her the pictures and world map screenshot of Super Mario World and telling her how awesome the graphics looked. The closer Christmas got the more I showed her hoping to embed it in her brain that Santa HAD to bring me a Super Nintendo. Those graphics were the be all end all, graphics would NEVER get any better than that I thought at the time. Needless to say I got the SNES that Christmas morning, I remember spotting that long rectangular box under the tree and went straight for it but my parents made me open all the other gifts first and I was forced to save the big box for last. I can still remember the sound that the styrofoam made as I slid the contents of the box out and smell of the plastic bags that held the SNES goodness. Holy Fuck, such great memories man. Thank you soooo much for this video giving me such an awesome trip down memory lane.

[@MidinVal]

I used to go to the library just to read magazines like that and Nintendo Power. Best part was that these mags were brand new. My library was awesome haha

[@isaacness2647]

I have a mag like that..., but for the year 2000, EGM'S buyer's guide, i still like to read it, it takes me back to a different era.

[@necrogenesis1981]

Apparently EGM is still around, I'm happy to hear that, it's one of the last remaining old school gaming magazines.

[@Domspun]

Wow, when you showed that magazine, it really flashed my memory!

[@Untouchaable]

This was really good , ate my breakfast while watching this. You should definitely make more Christmas videos.

[@Dead__Byte]

+Intimidation That's exactly what I did lol

[@Dead__Byte]

ShyBoy6ty9 Absolutely! I love eating and watching videos lol

[@HappyConsoleGamer]

+Intimidation what did you have for breakfast??!

[@Untouchaable]

Scrambled eggs with melted mozzarella cheese on Italian bread.

[@HappyConsoleGamer]

Intimidation Not bad!

[@neongreenninja5433]

I Love this episode man, Gold! ,and also that Christmas tree is badass

[@thehouseofhoops]

I remember drooling over the videogames in the JcPenny Christmas catalog. One year I begged the hell out of my parents for Sonic & Knuckles and got it!

[@zombiewarrior88]

I remember wanting a Sega genesis for Christmas which came with Sonic & Knuckles in the early 90's which I was ecstatic when I got both of them which I played religiously.

[@DRNicholasJones]

Loved this video, such a throwback to my childhood as well

[@blastedmcgraw152]

great video! I wish I still had my old gaming mags. Would love to thumb through them and reminisce..

[@shwink]

Miss EGM's yearly buyers guide. Hell EGM's issue dedicated to dreamcast made me want one the Christmas year it came out,which I did receive :)

[@HappyConsoleGamer]

hahah It was just cigs I smoked! Not pot! not there's anything wrong with that!

[@ultris07]

nice video, always love the bgm as well.

[@Chazza534]

+HappyConsoleGamer lol i've always suspected when you talk about your 'smoking' that you liked to dabble in a little greenery :P

[@ultris07]

Chazza534​ I don't see why its such a big deal honestly. Pot is a plant, and when lit on fire produces an effect that gets people high. That's the truth, and yet the government cracks down on it like a psychopath in a video game... Much like shrooms...

[@Chazza534]

+ultris07 haha i didn't say it was a problem at all, i actually smoke it myself from time to time :)

[@ultris07]

+Chazza534 XD I was just saying the US government is overreacting. personally, I don't smoke, and generally don't care if people do or do not partake in the smoking of green herbs.

[@GameSack]

I have that mag! Loved the game of the year awards. Glad they had a crap ton of different categories instead of just all-around Game of the Year. Fun to read.

[@duhmez]

Speaking of endings, I just did 100% of New SUper Luidi U, all big coins, and all it did was say "Congratulations you got al the big coins" and I am standing there.

[@spursdynasty7378]

😂

[@SuperHighTechGamer]

Great memories! That was back when EGM were kings and their opinion was the gospel as far as we were concerned. Oh, the heady days that would come from then on.! The 16-bit generation was so exciting. Great times:)

[@briansivley2001]

I have a good memory of my first time getting a video game system. It was 1994 Christmas me and my mom just moved back to Chicago from Cincinnati about a year or so before we were living in a residential hotel at the time just moved there from a shelter. That Christmas changed my life forever. I got a brand new Super Nintendo Entertainment System with Donkey Kong Country bundled with the system. That Christmas changed my life forever and I was introduced to video games. I still fondly remember that Christmas and I will love it but it wasn't the biggest Christmas I had. One Christmas a few years later I not only got a Nintendo 64 with Banjo and Kazooie and Diddy Kong Racing but I also got a brand new Nintendo Game Boy Pocket with Donkey Kong Land 3 and Ducktales 2. That is my favorite Christmas of all time.

[@markasscop]

damn, all that rareware goodness

[@briansivley2001]

+markasscop Arev Yeah that's my favorite memory of my Christmas during my childhood 😄.

[@just_a_saeu88]

wow thanks for sharing this memory :D In 1990, I was 3 years old hahaha

[@MatSpeedle]

I've been watching all the old GamesMaster episodes to get my nostalgia gaming fix lately. Watching the reviews and news really is awesome and give that reminder of how amazing new games coming out used to be back then. Can't beat a good nostalgia trip! :) Great to have magazines like this for a nice blast from the past.

[@FullmetalSonic260]

I love hearing about your nostalgia stories keep it up! I used to love reading video game magazines, I don't buy them anymore, but I kept most of the ones I bought and I'm getting that feeling to check them out.

[@TheCodexBoss]

I love these personal memory videos. They really set your channel out, a joy to watch as always!

[@SGG167]

it's my birthday today and your video just pop up in a nick of time and it is great video

[@TheBouncerBecks]

Happy birthday!

[@crogomu5858]

+ExperimentalPhantom Happy birthday!

[@SGG167]

Rebekkah Grant thank you :)

[@SGG167]

Crogomu thank you :)

[@HappyConsoleGamer]

+ExperimentalPhantom Happy Birthday!

[@googleboughtmee]

the 1992 and 1993 versions of that guide are scanned on retromags but I don't have the 1991!

[@MrNintendofanatico]

Great video, so nostalgic!

[@Schmidteren]

loved watching and reading about upcoming games in magazines. back then this was all we had before the days of the internet. :)

[@MrAtariable]

I love the way you talk about your memories. It's always great to hear someone passionate about old games.

[@enrikozartajuz9702]

I'd love to see more videos like this; looking back at the old game mags and buyer's guides. I think I still have one or two around from around '93-'94. It's fun to go back and see how different things were back then--seeing how we speculated about games and things that we thought would be awesome but are now almost forgotten.

[@BritishBeerDude]

90s FOR LIFE

[@ReconWo1f]

I loved the revenge of shinobi ending after all of the struggle of battling through the levels you finally get to save your girlfriend or have vengance right in front of you if didn't beat Neo Zeed in time it was an epic conclusion !

[@gruggapug1795]

Seeing a Christmas related video with you makes me excited to watch the special with you and Rob-man! Can't wait!

[@matthewreynolds3982]

Wow great video! You really had me glued to my screen the whole duration!

[@TheCompletionist]

Always love the video game stories. You know looking through magazines like that make me wish I could of held on to any of my old video game magazines that I bought at the drug store back in the day.

[@stucazzo2000]

Johnny! You should do a "12 Days of Christmas" (or something) and read the '91 EGM VGBG, then the other ones that followed. I know the 1990 was special to you, but I'm sure you can go back to the other years, or just read the other ones. :)

[@GrayWoIf]

I love when you talk about your 90's memories.

[@cravis123]

NostalgicConsoleGamer...

[@RetroGamePlayers]

I bet that EGM Magazine smells like Pert Plus and Cigarettes lol!! Great vid man, I love reading my old Game Fan mags.

[@MurkySchlaffler]

Aww man old vidja mags make so incredibly nostalgic. Mags these days are just reviews, previews, and interviews. Game mags used to be so much more, and they even had a good sense of humor. Good times.

[@frischma1]

Great episode. Totally made me remember how much I wanted a turbo cd and Ys 1 + 2 that Christmas.

[@turbografx7]

I love going back and looking at magazines!! My favorite one is the ducktales nintendo power issue. It was my first video game magazine! And the funny thing is I bought it at a garage sale for 10 cents like 6 months after it was released!

[@thecoastalinhabitant9552]

What a great video! Nothing better than Christmas memories..ahhh...

[@tupacamarushakur1496]

I love how cozy your videos are

[@vsuman66]

awesome video hcg loved watching that. makes me want to buy some old magazines to go through. u should do more videos like this.

[@fizalex6612]

man strider was my favorite genesis game, It was so freaking fun..I never did beat it tho Seeing that gorilla tech made me nostalgia jizz everywhere

[@sjmatiak]

I remember reading a 1991 Christmas Sears catalog and obsessing over pics of Super Mario World and Sonic The Hedgehog. The early days of the 16-bit wars. Great video, how the industry has changed.

[@rellik187redrum]

the hot steam from a shower works well to eliminate the smell of cigarettes ,i used to do it once and a while also .1991 was alot of fun, thanks for another great episode!!!

[@GamezOfWar]

This was a great video!! I loved the buyers guides

[@MysticGargoyle]

Love those magazines from late 80's early 90's, like C+VG,EGM,Game Pro, Mean Machines etc. So many memories from that time as a teenager :)

[@NocturnalToothbrush]

Loved this video. Great stuff man.

[@PicklerEntertainment]

Awesome trip down memory lane... Thanks!

[@MrSintastic]

I remember having this issue and being a huge sega fan boy, I remember bragging to all m friends the grades the Genesis got. I remember in and around that time getting Srider, Super Monaco GP and Thunder Force III.

[@NightSprinter]

To this day, I still go through WishBookWeb's Flickr archive of various scans of Christmas catalogs. Especially the Sears Wishbook and JC Penney ones. Still finding so many games I wish I had (on top of toys like those kickass slot racer tracks). These things were such a part of my childhood, and now I have friends asking me to find scans of various Toys-R-Us Christmas catalogs to relive their childhood memories of the Holidays. Sometimes nostalgia can be a wonderful thing.

[@IAmTurbogfx]

Great episode Johnny! Do make more of these!

[@coulthard1984]

hehe that was kinda funny man, had similar memories from when I was a kid. thx for sharing with us. videos like this are the reason your my fav gaming channel! you are authentic and passionate, not like some sell outs that are out there. keep it up!!

[@ZioBlader]

I got Ys Book I&II at Christmas too but the Wii's VC-version (2008, I was.. 15 years old I think). After all the new games I got that one retro-download was the most enchanting gaming experience of that whole year, it blew me away right from the start. 18 years after its release.

[@interghost]

Always great to look through these old mags for sure ;)

[@RetroPowerUp]

I've still got some gaming magazines for the 90s, I should dig those up again and flip through them!

[@phantomcreeps]

You. Are the best. You literally make my life better.

[@Sython6]

I spent a lot of time with my dad playing Super Monaco GP, good memories of that game.

[@ninman58]

It's weird looking at that stuff. I was 6 years old in 1990, so about 10 years younger than you. I had an NES, but the SNES came out when I was starting to get old enough to enjoy games. I didn't really get heavily into games, and buying magazines till I was in my teens, and by then it was N64. So much nostalgia.

[@shenron02]

I live in Winnipeg, we had "Consumer Distributors" also, it be cool if you showed off the old catalogs

[@fcfabro]

I got my NES on the 1990's Christmas. It was the best Christmas morning of my life. So I guess I know how you felt.

[@defdave]

You should make this a regular recurring video theme. Looking through old magazines like this is really fun.

[@SmoothEmJay]

First game to really grab my attention back in the day was "Moonwalker" on the Genesis/Mega Drive. No surprise I'm sure (hover my name) but the music and graphics back then amazed the shit out of me, around the same age as yourself Johnny.

[@nuketowncity]

I never had a game genie , I used to borrow one for weekends , great fucking weekends!!!

[@tchitchouan]

back in the day cheat software was very dominant

[@diceman1978]

I loved my Gameboy as a kid, but have to admit being blown away by a demo of Blue Lightning at my local video game store.

[@anthonychipmunk5184]

Its funny, i also did the "magazine cutout thing" too. lol Nice vid!

[@snuijt8815]

Love your stories dude! Keep it up.

[@thedrunkmonkshow]

Funny thing is that back then at that point I was 7 and still didn't have the NES. I was rocking that Master System baby!! I think I got the NES the following year Christmas of 1991.

[@TeamRocketHQR]

There's a beta Super Mario World screenshot in that magazine too. The giant bullet bill is a different sprite and doesn't have his mouth. They even still call it Super Mario Bros 4! I wish I had all my old EGM's/Gamepro's/Nintendo Powers/etc too. I still have some. And remember those old old Kodak/Game Players NES VHS tip videos?

[@brillopad6901]

The best games for me that came out in 1990 was Final Fantasy and Dragon Warrior II! Lol look at the low scores they gave the Gameboy! I'm not a handheld person so I agree with them but it went on to sell so many units. That's kind of funny. Christmas 1990 was awesome for me as well, it was my senior year in high school and it felt like the last one to really enjoy as still being a kid. I was looking forward to Dragon Warrior II and I got it, I was so stoked I played it for hours before the end of the year already. Lol I probably made it through half the game by the time it was time to go back to school. I can remember being excited back then as well for the SNES and all the things to look forward too the next year. 1991 was a great year in gaming too. If I had to pick my 5 favorite years in a row for gaming it would be 87-92. 1990 smack dab in the middle of those kick ass years. Loved em.

[@Applesgosh]

This is a great video.

[@freeagentxms]

Oh man, this episode brings back lots of memories for me as well! On another note, I'm surprised you haven't done a video on Xenoblade Chronicles X yet.

[@Riz2336]

Hell cool stuff. All these things are still cool now a days.

[@JazGalaxy]

"ed" was Ed Semrad. EIC of EGM for a very long time. Big guy in the world of video games journalism. A pioneer.

[@Bryan-lu4du]

I have that issue as well. I was wanting the Turbo Duo console with Y's 1&2 as a pack in game for my 8th grade graduation and had to beg my parents for one.

[@burningpapersun1]

I remember reading that magazine. But I was only like maybe 8 years old. Those were the days.

[@ROBinJVILLE]

I was 16 as well. We had some good games back then

[@ProteanSelf7]

cigarettes... right....lol great vid! Love how ur so candid!

[@therainmaker3537]

EGM always put this "Best of" issue at the end of each year. I was highly upset when they stopped publishing it since this was the most anticipated issue of the year. It was a buyers guide/game award all in one....Wow you definitely brought back memories. I Remember the 1st time EGM did this, I believe it was 1987. Best graphics in a game was actually Phantasy Star in all its 4mb glory. Ironic isn't it lol.

[@TBustah]

I'm not surprised to see Natsume listed there. Nowadays, we mostly think of "Harvest Moon" (which they're only the publisher of in the west) when we think of them, but they had already made many great games for the NES and SNES by the time the first HM dropped on the tail end of 1996. We just don't think of them very much because many of their greatest titles (like "Shatterhand" and "Shadow of the Ninja") were published under other labels and others (like "Chojin Sentai Jetman", a game that uses the "Shatterhand" engine) were never released outside of Japan.

[@nissan300bhp]

two memories for me that stick out, are the year mega cd got released, and I had thunderhawk, road avenger, and I saved up for weeks to pay for fight fight cd, awesome. another time few years later I got illusion of gaia + breath of fire for Christmas, breath of fire was very very good, massive rpg.

[@pika62221]

TG-16 is so unappreciated today by so many. They don't realize while Nintendo and Sega were battling it out how great the games were on NEC's one and only system (Express was in essence a TG-16).

[@snowowl4506]

Everytime I hear someone even say the words "Splatterhouse" I feel so good. It's so underrated...

[@LaC64]

I'm pretty sure I read that issue every time I was on the toilet that year. You should do more episodes where you leaf through magazines.

[@BanjoKazooietheNintendofan]

I love those memories videos!

[@TheASMRGamer]

One of the few moments you wished you were born earlier so you could experience these great gaming moments :'( ;)

[@ostrichesandgin8570]

my favorite episode in recent memory

[@Feelin_DanDy]

Thumbs up if you played the hell out of Dragon Spirit on NES like me :D

[@fordxbgtfalcon]

+AllwaysRight1 Are you from earth?

[@paulnewhouse5126]

Woah Johny, i was born two months after your 1990 xmas :P

[@LunatiqHigh]

LOL> I had that same magazine. It's so weird how covers stick with you, I guess reading the same magazine like 50x over and over helps.

[@AlienExorcist]

While those of us who watched a lot of Hong Kong cinema knew Jackie Chan at that time, he wasn't a household name in North America until 1996 with the release of Rumble in the Bronx. He blew up everywhere after that!

[@ludwigburnside2273]

preserve your memories they are all that's left of you.

[@takigan]

I like how all the game reviewers refer to the CGI/Cutscenes from Y's as "Intermissions". I don't think that term is used to describe anything gaming-related anymore, yet every one of them uses that term. It's interesting the invented vocabulary we come up with sometimes to describe things that are unique and how the usage goes in and out of style.

[@SumDumGai5]

I agree.

[@nickolasecker9596]

I smoked a cigarette in the bathroom ONCE, and my mom grounded me for like a month. My parents are non smokers, assuming yours may have smoked in the house, mothers have too good of noses not to notice, and this was with the vent on and window open, and the shower running.