"So if it doesn't show up," Trevor asks quietly, as if afraid to jinx the arrival of Neverwinter Nights, "Should I get Sum of All Fears?" "I don't know. What about Warrior Kings?" "I thought you were going to get that one." "I'll get Warrior Kings if you'll get Sum of All Fears." "Should we get Legion?" he asks. "What about Heroes of Might & Magic IV?" "What about it?" "Should we get that instead of Legion?" "I thought you already had it," he said. "No, I decided I wasn't going to get it because I heard the AI didn't work." "But they fixed it?" "No, but if Neverwinter Nights doesn't show up, we have to get something, don't we?" "Yeah, I guess you're right." "So Sum of All Fears and Legion, Sum of All Fears and Warrior Kings, or Sum of All Fears and Heroes IV?" "What about Combat Medic?" "Sum of All Fears and Combat Medic?" "No, instead of Sum of All Fears." He picks up the box and we look at it. It only takes a second. "Oh," we both say and he puts it back. "Sum of All Fears it is," Trevor says, "What about Loco-Commotion?" "What about it?" "It's a puzzle game." "So." "Yeah, I guess you're right," he concedes. "What about Capitalism II?" I ask. "You're kidding, right?" "No. Capitalism II. Sum of All Fears and Capitalism II." "Are you crazy? It's an accounting game." "No, it's a strategy game," I explain, taking it from the shelf, where it's been shoved to one side, "It's a business sim kind of thing, like Railroad Tycoon, but without the trains. It's like Tycoon Tycoon." "Dude, that's for geeks. You might as well get Mall Tycoon, which is for chicks." "You were the one looking at Zoo Tycoon," I remind him. "Yeah, but it's the expansion pack with dinosaurs. That's different. Besides, check it out, this Capitalism thing isn't even in one of the small boxes. It must be like two years old or something." He puts it back and takes down Warrior Kings, Legion, and Heroes IV, holding them all together in a sort of line up. "You're sure you don't have more copies of Age of Wonders II?" Trevor asks Jake. "Yep, we sold the last one this morning. They only sent us four. I played it yesterday," Jake says, "It's okay, but it's not as good as EverQuest." Brian is perched on a stepladder, carefully hanging the new Evangelion figures on the wall. Trevor regards his line up. "I'm thinking Warrior Kings. In case Neverwinter Nights doesn't show up." "Yeah, I guess so. Hey, you know what we forgot?" "Bargain bin," he says. "Yeah. Let's go." The bargain bin is kind of sad. It always feels a little dirty going through all the rejected games with their sagging shrink-wrap and scratched out price tags. It's almost like pawing through used clothing at a Salvation Army. "All these big boxes," Trevor muses, "They look so, I don't know, clumsy now. So old fashioned, outdated. Like who would buy a game in a box this big anymore?" "Throne of Darkness," I note, "$12.99." "Is that what they pay you to take it? Call to Power II. $9.99. Call to crap." "C'mon, some people liked that game." "Yeah, and some people like line dancing, but that doesn't mean it's good." "Sim Theme Park," I say, "It's not even that old. $14.99." "Yeah, that's how much you cost when Roller Coaster Tycoon kicks your ass." "Comanche IV. Also $14.99." "Well, it's a flight sim. They can't very well charge full price for those anymore. Settlers III and Traffic Giant for $4.99." "What's Demonworld?" I ask, lifting it out. "Not worth the time, I'm guessing. Here's KISS Psycho Circus, the Collector's Edition, for $12.87. What's with the 87 cents?" "There's a Collector's Edition of KISS Psycho Circus?" "One, two, three, four -- five copies of Star Trek: New Worlds." "What's this? Machines? Acclaim." "What about this?," Trevor says, "Europa Universalis. It looks like an Italian game. Only $4.99. Man, it must be crappy. It's not even in English." "Now this breaks my heart." I lift out a copy of Sacrifice with a $1.99 price tag. "You're the only one who liked that game. Why don't you buy it and give it a home?" "I can't bear this any more. Let's get out of here." "Dude, Neverwinter Nights, remember?" "I have a feeling we're going to end up with Sum of All Fears." "Don't say that, it's bad luck." And then the UPS guy strolls in, resplendent in his brown shorts and short-sleeved dress shirt. He is a sign that we could be playing Neverwinter Nights within the hour, barring any DirectX or video card driver problems. He's carrying a single box. He tosses it lightly on the counter and Brian signs for it. "Do you think that box is big enough for all the copies of Neverwinter Nights they must have ordered?" Trevor asks, "Don't you think they'd need to bring them all in on a dolly or something?" Brian runs a box cutter across the top of the box and folds back the flap. "Yes!" Brian cries and Trevor does a weird little spasm in anticipation of getting Neverwinter Nights this very afternoon. Brian pulls out a bulky bubble package. "The new twelve inch Ash figure from Army of Darkness. All right!" he says triumphantly. "Is there anything in there besides dolls?" Trevor asks. "Uh, wait a minute..." Brian shuffles around some styrofoam peanuts, "Yep, let's see, what is this?" He pulls out the Ghost Recon Game of the Year Pack. "That it?" Trevor asks, crestfallen and pissed. "That's it." "A game of the year edition of Ghost Recon is it?" "And the new Ash figure." Trevor's whole body slumps. He is defeated. He furrows his brow and thinks for a moment. "Jesus, you mean to tell me someone picked Ghost Recon as game of the year?" "Yeah, that's a pretty weird choice," Jake says, "I
played it and all, but it wasn't anywhere near as fun as EverQuest." |
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