When I was a young lad, I had two next door neighbors that were brothers. They had those type of parents that bought/rented obscure NES games. I have always assumed it was because they were cheaper, but I don't remember how games were priced back then.

So, the older brother pops over at my house one weekend afternoon and has a wicked smile on his face. Right then and there I knew my destiny was going to change that day.

We quietly enter his parent's living room where the NES was set up, and he gracefully turns the power on. And there it was...staring fiercely into the very depths of my soul.



I shed a tear. The TV screen, looking like a beacon from God himself that afternoon, said Rad Racer. Rad Racer. This had to be a good game. It wasn't called "Mediocre Racer". The screen didn't say "Sad Racer", either. I was hooked. Yes, the title ALONE hooked me before my friend even pressed start.

Why? You clearly weren't a child of the 80's. You put surfer slang in ANYTHING, it was bound the be a success. Why do you think the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles got so popular? The show had the most ridiculous concept in the world: Four mutated turtles with a mutated Rat that knows Martial Arts must save New York City from a villain that named himself the Shredder that wore the fearsome color of purple. Don't forget the bizarre sexual tension from a human female news reporter that wore a yellow raincoat. You know why no kid decided this show was worthless? Because the god damned turtles were in your face screaming "Cowabunga", "Bodacious", "Tubular", "Radical", etc.

Anyway, my friend finally pressed start after what seemed like an eternity, and I was floored. The sense of speed was simply incredible. I would build a time machine just to relive that moment over and over again. I actually felt like I was driving the coolest car in the universe--while being rad. A Rad Racer. I felt the wind rush through my hair, I smelled burning rubber, I was deafened by the noise of loud engines. My friends...Rad Racer is the very definition of why I became a gamer.