Christina Warren and Casey Liss join Moisés to relive their mutual past in video game retail. Back in the days of VMUs, GD-ROMs, Product Protection Plans, and pre-internet consoles, it was the Wild West. Part 1 of 2

Pictured: FuncoLand #23 in Mesquite, TX.

"The Society of the Shrinked Wrap" will return in Part 2, "The Key Holder" (Thank You For Calling! #10).

An "extended cut" combination of both episodes will appear in the Master Feed (iTunes) as "Trouble in Pikachu City". Let us know if you like that sort of thing.

SPONSORS

• Hover: get 10% your purchase when signing up at Hover.com using offer code GLENGARRY
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• Igloo: an intranet you'll actually like and use. Visit the link to learn more and support the show. It's free for up to 10 users!

PANELISTS

• Christina Warren is the Senior Tech Analyst at Mashable. She's also a big-time film nerd. Big. Time.
• Casey Liss writes software and is one-third of Accidental Tech Podcast (ATP if you're nasty).

SHOW NOTES

• Moisés sings an acapella, truncated version of his new take on a Bionic theme song at the end of Bionic 94.
• Even for novelty value, the Virtual Boy, CD-i, and Jaguar aren't worth it. Well, maybe the Jaguar edition of Aliens vs. Predator.
• Babbage's, Electronics Boutique, and FuncoLand used to exist, I swear. Now there is only Zuul (Gamestop).
• Charles Babbage
• Babbage's has no Wikipedia page, so here's a great Ars Technica piece about the chain.
• Want to know FuncoLand? Learn the G.A.M.E.S. process before proceeding (part 1 and part 2). Moisés remembers this hilarious ripoff of Tron or Captain N: The Game Master or (probably) both vivdly...from his nightmares.
• This guy is an example of the sort of EB employee Moisés used to hate and still does. The Christina-type were always awesome. ThisGuy-type were the worst, even though he points out some of the FuncoLand-patented sales tactics and procedures.
• The Funcoland uniform was those green polo shirts and khakis you see in the video. If you came to work in jeans three times, you could actually be fired.
• This is "FuncoLand #23", where Moisés worked for most of his high school years. It has since become "GameStop #543".
• If you didn't experience the Dreamcast, you haven't lived. It won't die.
• The Neo Geo Pocket Color was a great idea, horrendously mis-marketed and had very little worthwhile software.
• Fingerboards were the bomb diggity, bro! Check these STUNTZ MOVEZ. and practice your movez anywhere!
• Seriously, Power Stone (and Power Stone 2) and Ecco: Tides of Time and Chu Chu Rocket and Crazy Taxi and Shenmue and...lots of Dreamcast games are really great, but forgotten.
• A fun story about Dreamcast launch, which involves a creepy guy in a van.
• Final Fantasy VIII had a Collectible Card Game (CCG) called Triple Triad built into the game, and yes, they actually made physical cards. There is a Flash adaptation of the game!
• Superman 64 was bad. Very, very bad.
• Star Wars: Episode One RACER was an awful game.