PSN Community Spotlight

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PSN Community Spotlight

Why hello there! Is it time to eat turkey yet? No? Well, at the very least it’s time for the PSN Community Spotlight. For the unfamiliar, this is where PlayStation gamers tell their unique stories/experiences/thoughts, as submitted to this section in the PlayStation Community Forums. Those that make it all the way to the PlayStation Blog will receive a $50 PlayStation Store voucher.

PSN Community Spotlight: texas_ride

Last week we asked for your PlayStation stories, and gamer texas_ride wrote in to tell us about his experiences with the PlayStation 2 & PlayStation 3 launches.

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Growing up, my brothers and I never had our own gaming systems. As kids we always played at cousins and friends houses. But after years of putting up with requests to bring gaming into the house, my parents finally gave in and got us a PlayStation. We quickly engaged in games like Syphon Filter, Madden, Resident Evil, and (my favorite) Sid Meier’s Civilization 2.

When I saw the PlayStation 2 was coming, I put down a reserve on it. I had been saving money from my first job as a dishwasher to get one, but wasn’t able to get it until 45 days after release. To my surprise they kept the system and honored my reserve despite the delay. At the time I had no idea that the systems were in short supply and were selling like hotcakes online. Regardless, I had mine and that’s what mattered. My years with the PS2 were mostly spent playing Madden and then later NCAA Football titles, with an occasional shooter, racer, or fighter thrown in to mix things up.

I played video games often at that point, but at 23 my love for the PlayStation brand would take a deeper and more meaningful turn. In November 2006 I had been working in my new job as a newspaper reporter for three months. I knew the PlayStation 3 release was near, and I remembered the shortage of PS2s. When it became clear the PS3 would be hard to get, I started to plan how I could get my own.

The day before release I approached my editor with a crazy idea: I would spend that day trying to be first in line for a PS3, and would report my experiences in the chase. Much to my surprise, he agreed that it would be a fun way to report a significant event. So I began my chase for the new system hopping from retailer to retailer trying to find a line that hadn’t started. My brother was lucky enough to be first in line at a 24-hour retailer that day that waited until 5 p.m. to officially start a line. Unfortunately my store hopping did not pay off.

Midnight came and I was without a PS3. I hadn’t given up though, and heard that one store had “guaranteed” a shipment for two weeks later, but only had two vouchers for that shipment. With five other people chasing the electronics manager, I somehow got to her first and got my voucher filled out. It wasn’t day-one, but I had my PS3 in December 2006.

Now it is nearing six years since I got that system, and it still sits proudly in my living room. I started out with Madden in 2006, but now my games collection is vast and my love for PS3 is deep. With the depth of the Uncharted games, the creativity in Little Big Planet, the fun of a SingStar party, or (with that original backwards compatibility) the nostalgia of Civ 2, the PS3 has given me a gaming moment for all of my moods and all of my gaming desires. We gave up regular TV in favor of PS3’s streaming services. I upgraded my HDD with the coming of Plus to hold all the games presented. The system holds my music collection and our digital photos (slideshows are great at family parties). Rarely a day passes that the PS3 stays off. That’s six strong years with no end in sight.

Thanks for writing in texas_ride!

Next week we want to hear more general stories about the PlayStation brand. Click here to check out more info on this call to action.

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