THE EVOLUTION OF MY GAMING ADDICTION

Okay. I'm a Minnesota Mom. I may not be as addicted to video games as some. I can call it quits. I don't game at work. EVER. I don't even game before supper. I game right when I go to bed...for about 20 minutes. Just what all the experts tell you NOT to do. How did this addiction start? And is it MY gaming that led my kids to be the pro gamers they are?

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Getty Images
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THANK YOU ATARI SPACE INVADERS

I believe my little brother Dennis Jr. got an Atari for Christmas one year. Of course, he was the gaming professional. I wanted to prove that I could play just as good as him. I think when I finally figured out how to rule Space Invaders, I played for a solid 4 hours one day on Christmas vacation. That was it. Only one other time did I game for hours and that was sometime in my past when I was introduced to Mario Brothers. Beating that darn Bowser in that clown spaceship was just about the death of me.

 

Photo By AAron Ontiveroz/The Denver Post via Getty Images
Photo By AAron Ontiveroz/The Denver Post via Getty Images
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I OWNED GALAGA

My boyfriend Joe in High School used to take me to The Pizza Barn in Princeton. The Pizza Barn was not only THE place to take your date; it also had a game room in the back. Joe showed me how to play Galaga. We would throw quarters in that thing for a good couple hours. Even after we broke up, I'd still go back by myself and play Galaga.

Then...YEARS LATER...Galaga came out for about $20. You could play it at home. I had to get it! I showed the boys that Mom was a gamer after all. I think they were pretty impressed. As long as I'm in the two dimensional world, I can play. If you start throwing the 3 D games at me, I'm done. It makes me dizzy. So I'm stuck in the era of 2 dimensional games like Galaga. And...I'm fine with that.

MY NEW ADDICTION

Yes. I'm still addicted to shooting space aliens. I've searched apps high and low for Galaga..which has led me to Alien Shooter. I play Alien Shooter just about every night. I take a few months off here and there, but right now...I'm killing space bugs every night. Is it still an addiction if you only play before you go to bed? I think maybe not. I know where to put my addiction to gaming...right behind food.

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