I was 12 years old. It was a Monday morning. I had been reading about Pokemon in Nintendo Power for months now. My mom let me go to school late and took me to Wal-Mart right when they opened to get Pokemon on Game Boy. The only other people outside waiting for the doors to open were another mom and son. We both went right back to the video game section. I don't know what he got, but for some reason I picked Pokemon Blue. I think my best friend at the time said he was going to get Red so we could trade.

What followed was weeks of playing it non-stop: in the car, under the covers with a flashlight, in school when I could get away with it. I picked Bulbasaur as my starter and never looked back.

Amazing game, truly a revolution at the time. If you're reading this and have never played Pokemon before, just play it. Stop reading this! Go now!