New Arrival

Holidays are always a bit of a mixed blessing if you ask me. Just two weeks ago I was enjoying blazing sunshine, tropical beaches, eating out every day (and the odd few mosquito bites!), but you always have to return to reality (unless you're really rich or something), and thus, I've now been back in the cold, rainy UK for over a week, with much of that time spent at work. However, as mentioned in my previous holiday-related post, I did receive a gaming-related gift immediately prior to embarking on this memorable trip which I had been waiting to try out.

Not called the 'Emerald Xbox' after all, but it should be...

Some of you may remember the most recent 'Top Five' list here at Red Parsley which featured the gaming systems I most want to own. Splendidly, it seems that one of the handful of people who saw this post was my lovely wife who had apparently decided I had been good enough over the past year to deserve one of the featured systems. The logistics involved in obtaining an FM Towns or X68000 meant they were never a realistic option but, to be honest, I think she made the right choice anyway, the result of which was presented to me on Christmas morning after seemingly having been hidden in our spare bedroom for weeks without my knowledge! And lo, it came to pass that on the morning of our holiest day I received the mighty gift of not just an Xbox but the extra special green Xbox that I had so desired for many years of men. I was surprised to find that it weighed more then ten neutron stars but it sure was a nice looking piece of kit. Now I just needed something to play on it!

There were quite a few games I've had in mind to buy for this weighty device should I ever possess one, but such titles are not easy to come by these days, away from the vastness of the internet. Nonetheless, I actually bought my 'test' game the very next day. On the way to the airport I stopped at my local second-hand game store only to find a severely depleted stock of Xbox games, but there was one was that took my fancy, which was available for a mere £1 no less! More on this bargain title in another post but, suffice to say, my splendid green slab worked perfectly.

I shall of course cover this console in more detail with an 'Exploring...' feature once I've acquired a few more games for it - a process that's currently underway, but for now I'm content simply that my Xbox adventures have belatedly begun...