Recapturing The LAN Party Glory Days – words Alexa Wang
As it stands, the culture of gaming has evolved so much, when you look back at Space Invaders, via the retro gaming era of Mario and Sonic, on to Grand Theft Auto, and, not forgetting, that mainstay of the early 21st century, the LAN party.
Maybe you’re of the age where you can look back 10 years or so, and you had nothing to do but go over a friend’s house, get a bunch of pizzas, and play all day. A nice bit of nostalgia is good for all of us, so is it worth recapturing our LAN party glory days? Of course, it is!
Getting It Set Up
We all got lives to leave now, so plan it way in advance. Yes, you might have wives, girlfriends or kids, so set a date in the calendar 6 months from now, get a group going on social media, and nail it down. Maybe you’ll have your buddies come over your house, in which case, have you got sufficient bandwidth to cope with this epic gaming session? If not, you can very easily get a VPS set up, so you don’t have to worry about downtime during the big event. Get the discussion going as early as possible, so you can make the most of it. Because let’s face it, you’re not going to be doing another one for a good few years!
Recreating That Nostalgic Feel
What do you want to play? Do you want to go modern, or relive your glory days with the classics? Call Of Duty, Quake, or Warcraft are a few ideas that spring to mind, and let’s face it, if you are considering reliving your glory days, you are best to go for those games that transport you back to a simpler time. LAN parties, in many ways, are representative of the early 21st century. So, sticking to those specific games of the era, like the early Grand Theft Auto incarnations, for example, will be a good shout!
Setting The Scene
It’s funny what we have ingrained in our brains. You might find that, as soon as your old LAN buddies have sat down and set up, the old frustrations come flooding back! Setting the scene isn’t just about the choice of game and personnel, but the environment. Do you want to get on the phone to your old pizza place and get in the usual? Recapturing the glory days of your old LAN parties can be all about applying those little touchstones. Sometimes it’s a great reminder of the past, and sometimes these things can make you realize why you haven’t had one in so long!
It might be nice to set up a LAN party, just for a day, and it gives you the opportunity to relive your past. And while it was great at the time, you might find that, having sat down for the day doing this, you realize that the past is best left where it was. It’s funny, a LAN party is making a comeback in some areas, not to mention the numerous conventions that go on in the world, but if it’s a reminder of what you were like when you were younger, doing this now and again is a nice idea, but don’t make a habit of it.
