Holiday gift guide: NES
Posted by Huw,
This is our last holiday gift guide article. Thank you to everyone who contributed to the series over the last month. I hope you enjoyed reading them and perhaps took inspiration from them, too.
As promised, everyone who contributed has been entered into a prize draw to win a Brickset goodie bag and this morning I drew five names out of the hat. Find out who's won at the end of this article.
First though, Oregondete81 takes us back in time to Christmas 1986 in a heartwarming tale, parts of which I am sure will be familiar to many...
December 24th, 1986
You lay in bed starring at your A-team poster hoping that sleep will finally take you. You know sleep is the only thing that will save you from being trapped in time as the clock seems to barely move. But the excitement keeps you awake. Will you get the ECTO you asked for? Will you finally get to add Skeletor to your collection?
You hope and pray your mom didn’t fall for the Teddy Ruxpin ads. Finally, exhaustion overcomes you and without knowing it you slip into a deep sleep.
**Ckkk**?? Open your heart to me, baby. I hold the lock… ??
You slam your hand down on the analog AM/FM alarm clock blaring Madonna. Your heartbeat quickens and your body tenses as you realise its Christmas morning. You jump out of bed and run to the living room to see a tree packed with presents. But the boxes under the tree don’t grab your attention.
There’s one large wrapped box sitting off to the side, too big to fit under the tree. You see your name scrawled across the label….your heart beat quickens again. You’ve walked through the electronics section enough to know exactly what that box contains. Your parents tell you that you have to open it last.
Finally, your dad unwraps his last tie and your mom unwraps her last scented candle. They point to the box in the corner and give you permission to start unwrapping it. You sprint to the corner and furiously start unwrapping, you know exactly what it is as soon as the paper starts peeling, your new Nintendo Entertainment System!
After an hour of unpacking and your parents debating how to read the instructions, it’s plugged in and ready to go. You twist the dial to channel 3 and stare at the static. You carefully place your copy of Super Mario Brothers into the slot, push it down, and press that grey and red button in. The red light turns on, the music starts, and you know your day is booked. You are now officially the coolest kid on the block!
December 24th, 2020
You collapse on the couch in exhaustion as the kids finally go to bed. They’re wired like they’ve been mainlining Mountain Dew all evening, but the crash finally happens and you can finally hear silence. You bask in the glow of the Christmas lights and stare off out the window remembering what it was like to be a kid on Christmas Eve.
You and your spouse cuddle up on the couch and flip through the channels trying to decide what to watch. But every channel is half-way through A Christmas Story so you’re forced to watch Ralphie gag on some Lifebuoy soap as you reminisce on your Christmas memories.
Finally, it’s time for bed, so you shut off the TV, lock all the doors, turn off the lights, and crawl into bed. Exhaustion takes you.
Your kids, who can’t be dragged out of bed before 8AM on a normal day are jumping off the walls at 5:30AM. You pull the covers over your head begging for one more hour of sleep. But the kids bust into your room screaming and yelling to wake up. You take a deep breath and crawl out of bed as the kids lead you to the living room.
You notice a large box in the corner, too big to fit under the tree, but you didn’t put it there. You see your name scrawled across the label. You have no idea what it is, but you’re excited.
Once the kids have opened all their presents your spouse tells you it’s time to open the big one in the corner. You lift the box and it weighs a ton, but you hear the pieces move in the box and your heart quickens. You think you know what it is. You begin to carefully unwrap it and then you see it….your new LEGO Nintendo Entertainment System! You immediately clear the dining room table, lay out the bags, and open the instructions. Your day is booked and you are officially the coolest adult on the block.
If your spouse is a nostalgic retro-gamer fan….this is the gift they need for Christmas. Stop relegating parents to ties, candles, and fluffy socks. Let them relive the excitement and be the coolest on the block again!
Congratulations to PerSW, TeddyTheSpoon, Zander, Cocoa and Dangerplug_Mk2 who have each won a Brickset goodie bag!
I think Oregondete81 deserves one too for this awesome NES submission, don't you?
I'll be in touch for your addresses...
104 likes
21 comments on this article
Definitely one of the coolest reviews I’ve read on the blocks and a heartwarming story too.
Enjoyed the build of this set so much! This would be an amazing gift to a person who is a huge fan of Nintendo/NES.
Wonderful story!
Love it! Great to read your memories of Christmas day. I have lots of great memories of Christmas day, even now as an adult seeing my kids faces when they open their presents! Of course, I still get excited about receiving my Lego, even though I mostly know what I am getting.....Not the NES for me this year, but Diagon alley!
I love this, great work!
As cool as I think it is, I don't think I will get this set. It's beautifully designed and has many hidden details but at the end of the day you'll just have a Lego model of a console that you can't even play with. For the same money you can easily buy the real one and have money left for some games (or Lego! :) )
Simply fabulous. You captured the joy of childhood Christmas in a nostalgic way, while also highlighting a fabulous set. The build is so much fun!
I'll be honest I didn't read many of these articles but this one is nicely done! Love the style!
Well done to those that contributed and Congrats to those that got a lucky gift from Brickset!
for how much I would like this set, this Xmas I have to get more Nintendo Switch games.
Will certainly get this set at some point.
It would have been a 1st day buy if had been an Atari VCS though!
AFOLs are all about sentimental connections and time travel.
Yes, Oregondete81 definitely deserves a goodie bag! Loved the review!
Why does the 80's console come with a 70's looking TV? I want a black Trinitron!
@martiniman Because for many people, it was set up in the basement on the “old” tv...we had ours hooked up to a tv just like this.
I have to chuckle at these gift guides recommending products that are constantly out of stock at Lego.
Beautifully written @Oregondete81!
Pity they didn’t release an Amiga 500 Plus or a Spectrum 48k.
Thank you for all the kind comments. This was fun to write and I didnt think it would actually get picked so this really made for an awesome Monday. Glad so many of you enjoyed my review. Hope you all get some good sets under the tree this year.
WOW, I am not even a Nintendo fan but I have to say this is one of the most emotional reviews I have ever read! Beautifully done indeed!
Absolutely brilliant review/story, Mountain Dew comment nearly made me spit my breakfast out I was laughing so much, and captured the magic of Christmas and Lego perfectly!
As a child of the 80's, this is one of the best reviews ever. Bravo.