The video games industry has evolved dramatically since its inception. In the span of a few decades, the visual fidelity, magnitude of releases, consumer interest, and inspiring potential of the medium have increased almost exponentially. If you’ve been along for even a fraction of this thrilling ride, chances are you’ve experienced your own habits and fundamental desires surrounding virtual entertainment transform as well.  

As a child of the 90s, I grew up enchanted by the blocky wonder of cartridge-based video games. Nothing outshined the sensation of cracking open a sealed Super Nintendo package and savoring that new-game smell. While Nintendo cartridges were infamously expensive, especially being part of a lower-income family, the flashy box art, near-indestructible casing, and robust instruction manuals supplied a satisfying sense of ownership.