This Was The Worst Game When I Was Kid, But It's Still Sold

This topic comes up from time to time, usually over beers, when waxing nostalgic about our childhoods, and about how our kids don't have it as good, what with all the hi-def video games. I'm not going to to try and tell you, the current EA this or NFL2021 are not better, because who are we kidding, they are.

But movie critic Richard Roeper, who writes about other stuff, did a long story today about old-school games from our youth.

And it got me digging into my box of stuff and then remembering those games I played as a pre-teen with my friends, Rom, Jack and Tony.

(Photo: Dave Benson, TSM)

Let's start with electric football. OhDearGod, ask anyone who had it if they had fun. It was one long act of frustration.

You put all these plastic figurines on top of a plastic base that had four little strip of plastic and then you turn on the power. And you got this vibrating sound and the players went every which way but what you wanted. (In all fairness, I've tried to play football and hockey video games with my sons, and I had about the same level of skill and frustration.)

the player base to a Tudor electric football game player. (Photo: Dave Benson, TSM)

But the whole mess was the worst. You had to attach a tiny felt football and then, I guess, sling shot it a some player. I guess I should re-read the instructions, but it was just a mess.

This was the quarterback in the Tudor game. (Photo: Dave Benson, TSM)

But in this video, some guy bought the company, got a rights deal with the NFL, and changed the power source to battery. And people still play it. Go figure.

(Decades TV Network via YouTube)

I'm going to write a companion piece about two games from my youth that were the best. Read it here.