posted November 19, 2001 09:26 PM            

Game Hits: Well I was about 12 years old and Twisted Metal 2 had just come out for the Playstation. While playing with a few friends (Yes, I did have a friend back then, poor thing) the will to play Twisted Metal just started coming about. Suddenly I jump on my bike and start my way up to the small corner shop of Game Hits. Inside was basically what we all have nightmares of today. This was back in the Mitch era, way before Shawn took over. I happen to spy a copy of Twisted Metal and the person who rang me up was none other then Mitch himself! A side note Twisted Metal was the first PS game I ever bought, so it's a moment etched in history.....

Shawn: Good ol' Shawn. I remember meeting you. When I first meet Shawn I was the normal pop up customer, someone you wouldn't pay attention to. To Shawn I was a source of money, a net income really, still am to. Well Final Fantasy VIII had just recently been released and I was in the middle of playing the game, I think about disk 2. When at Game Hits I noticed they had, 3 count em' 3 FFVIII soundtracks! However, I had a lack of the money needed to get the soundtrack. So for about two weeks I would come back and look at the soundtrack hoping for the price to go down. Finally one day I graced 5 dollars short of the price. I went in and I started talking to Shawn. This was when Shawn had a lot of hair and was a really nice guy (take that Shawn) I then looked up and told him I really wanted that soundtrack but didn't have enough money. Shawn, being so nice gave me a nice discount on it and just took every cent of my money. Oh well I was happy. However it wasn't till the first Amored Core tournment when me and Shawn really started becoming good friends. Eventually the present time came up and now he owns my soul for all eturnity for the X-box debt I owe him. See, he still takes my money even to this day!

Russ: For once in my life I wish, and I WISH! I didn't meet someone. The first time I meet Russ was actually probably the best chance I had at winning my first TTT tournment. Game Hits had just got their new counter and Dayne and I were practicing for the Video Interactive TTT tournment. Suddenly Russ and a friend come in. This was before Russ was a employee. We started talking then I, I!!! suggested the idea he come to the TTT tournment! They followed me and Dayne and the tournment went underway. I had captured victory after victory, and was doing pretty damn good. However Russ was also doing pretty damn good. So we ended up facing each other in the finals. Me and him, one on one for the gold. Well to make a short story short Russ won and I got 2nd place. Russ took home a Ridge Racer 5 shirt and a gift certificate, while I got..... nothing. If I didn't invite him then I WOULD HAVE WON!! See,I hold this againest him, my first close victory, taken away by Russ. The horror, oh the horror.

Dayne: This guy I met through Shawn at the Armored Core Tournment. Dayne was a nice sweet little boy back then, inocent in almost everyway. No big event happened between us except every Sunday when he worked I just basically came down and played games againest him and thus started our bond.

Fat and Geeky: This was sort of funny when first thinking about it. The time was just when the Dreamcast was at a large point in its life and the Japanese version of Shenmue was released. One night late late into the evening I came into Game Hits to see what had came in. Shawn didn't know me then thus I was that stranger guy, the Adam Nevins of Game Hits. Heath and Nate, looking just like they do today come in with their normal big bag of stuff. They plug in Shenmue to that old, crappy, thing that we use now for a chair. Heath grabbed the nearest stool while Shawn rang up some customers. I started to watch on along with some other people. Nate was pacing back and forth talking to Shawn then I began to ask Heath some questions about the game. He did his normal "ha" thing and answered them in quick one word answers. Nate on the other hand started talking about it, praising it at that and explained it to me. It went on like that for about a hour. Then about 6 months later I started to get to know them better then it is what it is today. What's funny? The first time I spook to Fat was basically like he talks to me today, only back then he didn't cut down FFVII to much.

Matt Keast: The first time I met Matt was probably the best example of why Matt is employee of the month! Matt knows this story. One day I walked into Game Hits glancing over the game soundtracks, this was back when they updated them FREQUENTLY. Matt and Brad were back at the computer during the old set up of Game Hits. I started listening to some music Matt was showing off to Brad. It just so happen to be the Chrono Trigger soundtrack. I, with a nice smile asked him politly what game that was. Then Matt, with this evil "get the hell away" attitude said in this evil voice "Chrono Trigger" I got alittle scared and walked imediatly away after that. Thus the pain lives on.....

Pat: I met Pat one night at Game Hits and it was Dayne that introduced us. Unlike so many others Pat was very nice to me. Not much progressed on until about the PS2 launch when Pat started poking fun at MY PS2. Eventually he came everynight and just like so many others here at Game Hits the same story happened, I seen him so much we just became friends.

I'll take a moment and step aside to let others tell their story...... plus I need sleep.

posted November 19, 2001 10:27 PM            

I actually heard of Game Hits through the guys working at Game Nutz, a really horrible game store that used to be in the Lansing Mall but thankfully went under quickly. Anyway, I went in there one day to sell off my old Playstation because I had just bought a modified one for my job and no longer had any use for my original Funcoland refurbished model (which, as a testament to the high quality of Funco's refurbishing system, had never worked right and almost always skipped like Richard Simmons on his way to an N'Sync concert on FMV (I stole that joke from some comedian I saw on Conan...). So I took it into Game Nutz and they were foolish enough to pay me $70 for the thing, which seemed generous considering it was a POS and I had only paid $125 for the new modded unit. I asked the guy if they ever carried any imports and he said no, but there was a place nearby that did. I was new to the area, and hadn't ever ventured any further east on Saginaw than the Lansing Mall, but after driving past the store a few times I finally spotted it.

Imagine my surprise when I walked inside and saw Mitch - I had known his years before when he had a store in Grand Rapids called VGU... Mitch even sold some of my early fanzines at his stores, and I made soem of my greatest purchases ever from him - Bomberman '94 for the TG-16, Ganbare Goemon for the Super Famicom, and a couple of Ranma 1/2 Super Famicom games.

So I looked around, I was impressed - unlike the Game Hits of today, there was a fine selection of imports on the racks. I converetd the $70 from the sale of my Playstation into a copy of Bushido Blade 2, which at that time was still 6 months from a U.S. release. I went on to make some more great purchases from Mitch, including most of the later Capcom Saturn fighting games, Generations 4, D&D Collection... ah, the memories.

Well, Mitch sold the store to Shawn, and despite Shawn's much, much more conservative stance toward importing games, I ahve to say that the place has only improved under his leadership.

posted November 19, 2001 10:38 PM            

The first time I went to Game Hits was about 2 and a half years ago (maybe 3). I remember Matt K. telling me about this store on the West Saginaw plaza and that it was a pretty neat place. At the time, I remember that it used to be some kind of Sports card store or something and I thought it still was at the time. So one summer day, I had my mom drop me off there for a little bit while she had to do some errands. I thought it was kinda neat but I didn't go back for long time because everything was mostly imports and kind of expensive.

It wasn't until later when Matt told me Mitch had gotten in the import Final Fantasy 8 demo that came with Brave Fencer Musashi and so we went down there to play it. Soon, the two of us went down there more frequently but it wasn't until Matt had a falling out with Mitch over returning a purchase he made at the store that Mitch wouldn't allow. So we didn't go back for a few months. One day, during lunch of our high school senior year we decided to pop back in and we saw someone we've never seen before. Lo and behold, it was Shawn. We found out that he had just bought the store from Mitch and he chatted with us for a while in a friendly tone (unlike Mitch, who just kinda sat there and had that look on his face like he needed to eat more brains or something whenever we came around. Uh, no offense Mitch. ). So eventually, when we both got jobs and money, we came back to buy stuff and just to hang with Shawn and Brad.

Matt K.: Out of all of you, Matt was the first one I had met. I met him in 9th grade at Sexton High School in gym class. For me, it was a bad time in my life. I had just entered a new school and all of my old friends went to a different school since they lived in different areas of town so I really didn't know anyone. But then one day in gym class (I don't even remember how it came up), I started talking to Matt about Star Wars (because the Special Edition had just come out in theaters, you see). And well, that was that. We remained friends through out high school and he's the only person I still see on a regular basis after graduation.

Shawn: As mentioned above, I first met Shawn within a few weeks of him taking ownership of Game Hits. I remember back when the place was practically falling apart and stuff. My, what a difference a couple years can make.

Russ: I think the first time I met him was when Phantasy Star Online came out. Shawn had gotten a used copy in from someone (although you could tell they never used it) and so came in the next day to buy it. Then this strange new guy working there asked about the Sonic Adventure 2 demo in it. Since I had to go up to the ATM anyway and get more money, I was kinda like, "Uh, if you wanna play it, go ahead, I guess.". Well, since then (which was somewhere back in January, i think), I found out more about the guy and now consider him a good friend. I also have to give props to him introducing me to such people as Kevin, Jimmy Poma, and Phil.

Jake: I remember the first time meeting him was back in August of 2000 (I have a knack for remembering dates and times, but not much else ). Pat, Matt, Shawn, Jake, and I were the only ones in the store at the time and he hooked up his Saturn and Bomberman. Jake was playing as that guy from Adventure Island and upon killing me once, I yelled at him, "Damn you, Master Higgins!". And that, my friends, marked the first ever distasteful remark out of thousands thrown at Jake by my person.

Pat: The first ever time I remember meeting the Tips & Tricks editor was when Matt took me to Pat's game party back in March or April in 2000, where I was first introduced to the Bemani series with Guitar Freaks. So in essence, you can thank Pat for my current addiction to Dance Dance Revolution.

Fat and Geeky: Back in summer of 2000, I had just imported Jet Set Radio for my Dreamcast. I was stuck at a certain part of the game and pretty much couldn't get past it for the life of me. So one day, I came into Game Hits on a Saturday night and I saw two guys I had never seen before playing Jet Set Radio! Yay, I'm not the only one who plays it, I thought. So I asked Fat about the part i was stuck and he was able to help me through it. Then later, I remember Geeky bringing in the Japanese Shenmue and he would try and translate the Japanese in the game. At the time, i thought, "Whoa! This guy knows Japanese!!! That's so AWESOME!!!!!"

Rob: I first met him on New Year's Eve of 2000. He seemed like a cool guy and well, he is. I started going to his Fight Clubs back during the summer and got to know the guy better.

Chris Tucker: Back when he was a little known comedian, Mr. Tucker and I used to be very tight. But then ever since "Friday" came along... oh wait, wrong Chris Tucker! The "real" Chris I met standing line for Babbage's to get Chrono Cross. I never got his name and I didn't see him again for a while until he started showing up in Game Hits. Then he reminded me that we spoke a few months back in the line at Babbage's.

Taiyon: The earliest I can remember meeting him was back when Shawn used to do WWF No Mercy leagues. He was always the guy that picked Eddy Guerrero. Uh... yeah.

Matt C.: I think i first met him during one of the many Capcom vs. SNK tournaments. I sat down to play him and he was like, "Hey, do you visit the forum?" "Uh huh." "I'm Citan." "Oh, cool. What's up?". Yup, very eventful as you can see.

Dayne: I remember first playing against him and Shawn in WWF Wrestlemania 2000. I remember because he kept using the cheesy tactic of throwing us out of the ring over and over again. So began the legacy of the "Dayne cheese"...

Other Game Hits folk:

Allison Axe: Well, I started to really find out more about her whil playing Phantasy Star Online. Then during a game back in the Spring time, Russ, Ms. Axe, Todd (aka Lord Og), and myself were playing a game and then... Uh... Yeah. I'm, uh, moving on.

Magnus 9: Even though I'm not really sure if he counts since he is all the way out in Arizona, I consider him a pal. Back when I had started up a site in the MSN communities so did Magnus. Eventually we became members to many of the same communities and then we decided to help out each other with our sites. Even though we do kinda give each other a hard time soemtimes, it's all in good fun. It's a shame he can't make it up to Lansing, MI here because i think he'd fit in good with everyone else.

And for whatever reason, I can't seem to remember the first time meeting Jess. But don't think I forgot you, though!

And I think that about wraps it up, for now.

posted November 19, 2001 11:57 PM            

Rob:I've known him since middle school. I met him during the time we both went to Dwight Rich. He used to hang out with John and Bobby Shotwell and Joe Littleton and I used to hang out with 2 guys named Billy Benton and Larry Owens. For the most part we spoke and passed but I really didn't started talking to him untill high school. I never met Arlo untill his New Years Eve party last year.

Pat:I came into Game-Hits one day to buy some dreamcast games. Pretty soon everyone started hanging out and playing Guitar Freaks. (2 weeks before Thanksgiving.)

Matt K: I met him (or remember 1st meeting him) at Rob's New Year's Eve party.

Jess R: 1st time I met him is when Matt K had a party at his house when his folks were gone.

Chris Tucker: I think I 1st met him during the same party I met Jess only he was playing Last Blade 2 on the Neo-Geo.

Shawn: I came into Game-Hits one day and I think the 1st thing I asked was "who are you and where's Mitch"? Also that day I found out Game-Hits had a website. I didn't visit the website for a while due to the fact that the backgrounds for the articles hurt my eyes and were very hard to read. (3 words BROWSER SAFE COLORS!!)

Dayne:I never knew this guy even existed untill I seen him post on the forums. So I came in the store one day and asked who is Dayne and why does everyone pick on him. Someone pointed him out and overtime I figured out why everyone picks on Dayne.(cause it's just good, clean, American fun.)

Fat/Geeky:I've known of Geeky's existance since the early days of VGU's existance. (I think back when Bryce used to work there as well.) I used to skip class on occasion and hang out at the pizza place outside of LCC (now Gibson's book store.) I used to see him there and play against him in streetfighter 2 and (I think) Samurai Shodown. (was undefeated for 10 months straight on the 1st one) I didn't meet Fat until I started hanging out at Game-hits.

Russ: The 1st words to come to mind when I 1st met Russ was (and try not to get offended )cool guy for a homosexual. Then I started comming in the store more often and got to know him better and learned I shouldn't prejudge people as much.One day in March he showed me how to play DDR and the addiction hasn't stopped since. (Tho broken legs and/or thumbs are in his possible future if he doesn't pay me the 200 bucks he owes me.)

Jake:My 1st thoughts upon meeting Jake was "cool a unibrow. I never thought I'd acutally meet someone who has one of these." I think I met him on a Friday when everyone was getting together and just playing games. dont remember what game(s) tho.

Game-hits: I think I was about 11 years old and my brother told me about this game shop on Michigan Ave that sold new and used games. Well since my dad got sick and tired of me playing Conquest of Camelot on his 386, I decided I wanted to buy Willow for my NES. I've been shopping there ever since. Well one day I was watching TV and I noticed Mitch had changed the company name from VGU to Game-Hits. (something to this day I dont know why he did this.)

Kevin:The 1st time I met Mr "Psycho Crusher" is during the 1st DDR tournament. God I wish I could go back in time and use my current DDR skills on that tournament back then (I can't believe i screwed up Eat You Up on Trick when I can breeze thru the song on Maniac now) I would've won it hands down. (would've used Sexy Planet, Drop Out and Kick The Can all on Maniac and won it. ahh well.)

Carl: Yeah like He said during the No Mercy Leagues (firepro wrestling league now!!)

If memory serves (which it doesn't cause it's more unstable than my PC at a LAN ) I will post more stories.

posted November 20, 2001 12:14 AM            

I walked into the store and there it was, Xmen vs. SF on the Saturn. I remember going nuts when I seen you could own this game at home. I then found a way to get the money to buy the game, a Saturn, and the ST Key. This is a funny story, because I had to sell my PSX to get it all. At the time, I was dating Cori and she got all pi$$ed off (probally because I had a lot of money into it, I just asked her why she got mad and she said "probally for some stupid reason, I can't remember").

As for the crew, here goes all the people I met thru GH-

Mitch: Everyone may have really been like "this guy is totally ripping us off buying a game for X amount and selling it for Y", but the guy is a really good guy. I really respect the guy a lot. He gave up the store for his personal beliefs. I remember going to his place playing Neo-Geo games with Cori to help me decide what titles to pick up for the system. The guy even came to my wedding, what a guy .

Shawn: Yeah, Shawns cool too, it's always fun to talk to the guy and debate the worlds problems for long periods of time (such as firearm laws). Beyond that, he does a good job running the store. He may like to debate with us all and we may not agree with him most the time, but look at all the great things that have came out of this guy. Would I be holding Fight Clubs if GH was no longer around or Shawn didn't have a forum up? Would I be friends with a lot of you guys if it wasn't because of GH? Would I have enjoyed numerous LANs with Pat? Hmm...

Pat: I really didn't know what to think of Pat at first. I thought he was a pretty quite guy. Well, I guess I have to talk to someone also if I want to talk with them. I'm glad to say Pat is a friend of mine. Really good people.

Carl: Right off the bat this guy was a trip. Every time Carls around, I end up laughing my a$$ off. Good times.

Russ: Ok, aside from Cori thinking you were weird at first, your alright. Although you can have a pessimistic (sp?) view on things, your good people also. If it wasn't for this guy, I wouldn't own 2 Konami Dance pads, import PSX, and 5 DDR games. Kudos to Russ.

Chris Tucker: I remember meeting this guy when he came by for a Fight Club. A very good guy to play fighters against. I gotta give Chris his props though, he used to get really pi$$ed when we first started playing fighters, but he seems a little more relaxed now.

Matt Chapman: Another Fight Club participant. I enjoy playing fighters against him as well. It seems like everytime he comes by, he brings a different person with him. BTW, who's that guy with the goatee that is always with you at tournies but never plays, he does that when he comes by over here too? We don't bite...

Bryce: Cool guy as well. This was another instance where I though he was a real quite guy, but due to my lack of socialism, I didn't get to talk to the guy until recently. It was really fun playing against you (I know you read these forums) at GH. I should also mention whenever I have a get together, you are more than welcome to show. I admire this guys talent, from what I hear, he gets most his practice vs. the computer.

Matt K and Jake: I don't really hang out with you guys a whole lot, but you guys are good people also. I can't say anything bad about you guys even if you have a "Squaresoft" addiction.

Fat/Geeky: You guys fall in the mucho cool point section either. These guys rock. Fat is so blunt about things it's funny. I like Fat because he's not afraid to speak his mind. Geeky is a a hoot himself too. The guy has a good sense of humor.

Taiyon: I've known you since high school man, uhhh, go play some Red Faction

posted November 20, 2001 12:23 AM            

Kevin: At first, I thought Kevin was a beligerant a$$. I know different now. He's pretty funny as well and known for catch phrases such as "camel toe" and "psycho crusher!!!". He gets a little angry with defeat, but overall is a good guy.

posted November 20, 2001 01:06 AM            

It all started for me with just trying to help out Animosity.

Shawn : Person who I will probably be permanently in debt to (not morally, I owes him cash.) Basically met when I was doing some promotion for Animosity. I told him I'd drop off some flyers later after I got doe looking for a job, he offered one up and I've owed that man money ever since.

Pat: Shortly before I went about doing the flyer thing for Animosity, I started on GH's forums and just said "Bemani" and all was history after that point. A session of Guitar Freaks followed and then, that was that.

Matt K. : Not sure, but I think he was in store around the same time. Probably.

Dayne and Jake : Also tying in to this is Jake ad Dayne. While Jimmy P. and I were scouting the game busiesses in the area to get some exposure for the club, we decided to play one of VI's tournaments. Long story short, Jimmy cleaned house, I got a GF controller and that's that.

Carl: I haven't the slightest. It probably wasn't too long after being integrated ito the GH store. Which is odd, because I should remember but I don't. I'd guess he'd be with Keast at the time, but I'm probably wrong.

Fat and Geeky: Again, no clue. I'd assume it was some Saturday that they just both popped in and were shooting the breeze with Shawn. But no real recollection of when I met them. Still, if I was to reform the A-Team, these two would be on it. (To quote Kevin: Sucka!)

Rob: I was just working one day and him, I think Ron, Cory and Arlo came in to look aroud. Out of curiosity he asks if I am the Rev., I says I is and so ended the formal greeting.

Chris Tucker: He just showed up (o the forums and at the store) and played fighting games at the store or something. That's all I can remember.

Taiyon: All I can remember is that I think he sold something back to Shawn, Shawn said some stuff back and I asked who he was. Shawn told me and I was like, "Oh." And I went back to work.

Matt C: See Chris Tucker.

Jess: One of Pat's Parties. Much was spoke of the golden age of television/gaming/food and to this day remains an interesting character to talk to.

Kevin: Too long a story to tell, but the important thing is I must of told that man to shut up over 500 times over the 7 year span of our friendship. Goddamned big mouthed Kevin.

And that's all I can think of, if you're missed, there's a reason or I'm braindead 'cause it's 4 in the morning.

And now back to Unison.... Yokasu...Yosaku..

posted November 20, 2001 02:18 PM            

It was a blustery late-fall day back in 1991, I believe, when I first walked into a recently opened, rather nice looking independent gamestore on Larch street in Lansing, known back then as Pirate Arcade. Mitch was the store's proprieter, and he had pretty swank setup with nice lighting, comfortable furniture, big TVs and games galore, particularly the two (back then little-seen)Neo-Geo systems he had set up for play. My friend Steve and I quickly became store regulars and befriended Mitch, and soon after, I became one of the store's first employees. I met Bryce soon afterward, and with his gaming expertise, he became a store employee as well.

It wasn't very long after that when Mitch moved the store to a not-as-nice, but more accessible location in a house on Northeast Street. With the move came a name change: Video Game Underground (or VGU for short). This is where I first met Nate, A.K.A. Geeky, who I at first thought was a Geek (I now know that isn't the case: He ain't a geek, he's just Geeky). Bryce had recommended him to Mitch to work at the store as well, so he too joined the VGU "inner circle". I started writing the store's newsletter regularly, which was heavily praised with many accolades (in my dreams). It was at this time that Mitch wanted to branch out the store, opening short-lived new locations in Flint (I worked there 3 days a week for awhile, and actually slept there for 2 nights a week. Yecch.) and Grand Rapids (It took Mitch a lot of convincing to make Geeky drive all the way out there, especially since he used to live in Varmintville). It didn't take long for Mitch to find out he couldn't support all the stores at once.

Actually, Pat doesn't seem to remember this (shame on you, Pat), but I first met him in the second Grand Rapids VGU location in the early '90s. He was giving Mitch copies of his fanzine, then known as Fantazine, to sell at the various VGU locations. I read a few issues of it, and a few other fanzines as well. I saw him in the store once and showed him the store's newsletter, known as the Pipeline, which I wrote (I don't know if he ever read it, not many people wanted to pay 2 bucks for a photocopied rag like mine, which is what Mitch charged), and he suggested that I send a copy to VG&CE (Video Games and Computer Entertainment), for their fanzine review article. I never did do that, but perhaps I should have, as that probably helped Pat (and fellow fanzine author Ara) get into the mainstream mag biz,or maybe it would just be revealed that I suck.

The N.E. store stayed around for about 2 years before Mitch moved again. Near the end of that time I also first met Shawn in this location, as Mitch had hired him to work in the store as well. He was (and is) a friendly, unassuming guy, who had more of an interest in the business end of things than the games, though he was an absolute master at the CD-I version of Tetris (quite a feat considering that thing's controller).

In about '94 I believe, the store that is now known as GH moved to it's infamous location on MSU's Campus, in the Campus Town Mall across from Flat, Black & Circular. Along with it's move came another namechange: The rather redundant VGU Videogames, and a new newsletter with better graphics called "Video Game Uplink". The store stayed on Campus for a good while, but the parking was lousy, and the business was at the whim of the students who sold more than they bought. I produced about 5 issues of the Uplink before Mitch decided he couldn't afford it anymore (I always considered myself lucky to be paid to write it at all, as most fanzine writers paid out of their own pocket to publish their works).

Nate and I started hanging out regularly, and Mitch and I had a falling-out following the second E3 we went to, dealing with money matters (the last true contact I had with him were in the form of some unneccesarily rude e-mails, which I promptly blasted right back at him). I stopped going to the campus store, and Geeky did as well, eventually. A similar falling out happened to Bryce and Mitch, making me feel that perhaps this situation was not all that unusual. So, I wasn't really around when Mitch moved the store to it's current location on Saginaw, and gave it a final name change....Game Hits, which was blatantly taken from a now-defunct games newsletter that could be found in most video stores.

Then, sometime around late '99 I think, Nate paid the store a visit, only to be surprised by the information that Shawn had bought the Store from Mitch. It wasn't too long after that when Myself and Bryce started coming around regularly too. Nate and I started writing for the Website, though we don't do that too much anymore (thank you so much for pointing that out Pat, we REALLY didn't realize it )..but we still hang out.

As for when I met some of the other guys...let's see....

Dayne: Being Shawn's nephew and all, he was working the store with Shawn when I first started going there under the new management. His quick wit and amazing conversational skills made him stand out....no, wait....

Gamer Jake: Mmmm....All I remember is that he wore a hat when I first met him, and despite what he says, he was talkin' a lot about FF7...which leads me to my usual knee-jerk reactions whenever he brings up that mediocre game... Actually, Jake is a cool guy, and I hope he makes something of himself, unlike me and Geeky.

Matt K./Mattrix: I met Matt soon after Shawn hired him to work for the store for awhile. I was dropping something off, and he was showing a friend of his how awful the ECW game for the DC was. I'm not sure if he noticed, but I pretended to act offended that he could rip on such a "great game" . Matt has come into his own, recently. He likes Ico, and he doesn't give a crap what anybody else thinks. Good for him.

Sakon/Taiyon: I got to know him when he started hanging around Game Hits, though Nate knew him from the Campus store. He'd always be quoting some dumb Gamepro article about specs between the DC and the PS2, and how wrong they were...yeah, we know they were wrong...they were Gamepro! Anyways, he's a decent guy...but Sega didn't screw him dammit...

Carlman: Yep, his recollection is about right. He brought his import Jet Set Radio into the store, and I started playin' it...I had one of our "special" copies before, but playing the real thing prompted me to import the real one, and buy the US one as well. Carl's a good gamer and a nice guy, but not without his faults (Mortal Kombat 4? ECCH! )

Russ/Mofat: I met him the same night I met Carl, as he was showing off his impressive collection of Playstation music games and just plain "weird" games. A truly eccentric gamer is he, with knowledge beyond his years of gaming.

Kevin/Homeschooled Red-headed stepchild: I first gritted my teeth at the boisterous cries of "the Annoyance" at one of our earlier tournaments. When he doesn't forget to take his prozac, he's okay.

Matt C/Citan: I met him in the store as well. He was somewhat of a fan from when I "used to" write for the site. He is a good artist and a great 2D fighter player, but his VF play needs a bit of work .

Chris T/CTucker: He's another Tournament player I met. A bit over-competitive at times, but an alright guy.

Rob/Captain Capcom: I know he's been going to GH for awhile, but I started talking to him on the forum. Though Capcom games are his forte', he's an extensive player of all kinds of games.

posted November 20, 2001 03:52 PM            

Good subject Jake.

I guess I'll start at the beginning. I first heard about game hits through a friend of mine. I was looking for Shining Force for the Genesis. This was back in 1991. Ten years ago! Some of you were learning to walk back then or were just starting grade. I bought the game and asked Mitch if he was hiring. Sure enough if I was willing to make the drive to Grand Rapids I could work there. I was actually crazy enough to make the drive almost every day. As time went on Mitch eventually got tired of reimbursing me for the gas money and we found a local person to run the store. I eventually quit (I am one of the only people not to be fired by Mitch) and went back to work at 7-11. A few years later. (Six actually) I stopped by the current location to see if how things were going. Mitch asked if I needed part time work so I came back. Over the next year Mitch and I were working out details for me to open a franchise. After a while it looked as though one of the places I was looking at wasn't going to go through. Mitch said not to worry because there may be a better deal available. After a while I found out what he meant as he offered me the store. With a second mortgage and some money from my parents I was able to buy Game Hits.

Bryce: I met him back when I started. In fact other than Mitch I think he was the first person I met. I remember him answering the phone once. We had two lines so he knew it was someone calling from the Grand Rapids store. He picked it up and said in a deep intimidating voice.. "Don't call hear!" and then hung up. It was one of the funniest things I have ever witnessed. After I left I lost contact with him and it wasn't until I took over the store that Nate (Geeky) passed it along to him and he stopped by again.

Fat and Geeky: I am not sure when exactly I met them but it was right after I started as well. One memory that is still in my mind was when Heath (Fat) was making a display tape for Mitch, (Damn I wish he still did that ) he was playing Skitchen for the Genesis. (Ewww) I remember Nate and I working the Grand Rapids store together once. I drove and while he ran the store I was going down 28th street to pass out flyers (something I hated to do) I ended up getting in an accident. As bad as the car looked it still worked and got Nate and I back to Lansing safely. I also remember working a trade show with them both once. Then we all stopped by a video store afterwards and Nate picked up some..... uh... movies. Like Byrce I lost contact with both of them. It wasn't until right before I bought the store that Nate stopped by and we caught up. It was him how told Bryce and Heath about me.

I guess Dayne was the next person I knew. I knew him back when he was a short little kid and still a bit hyper. (Even more so than now) He would always talk to me about video games and his mom would always tell him not to bother me. While he did get on my nerves occasionally it didn't bother me as much as they seemed to think. Dayne has come a long way from the annoying little kid he once was.

Then there is Pat. I only knew him from when he came in with his fanzines. I don't think it was until the first armored core tournament that we got to know each other well. And even though we disagree on a lot of things I am glad we haven't let those differences get to us.

Then there is Rob. Rob was one of those people who used to always call for Mitch. When I was there he would ask when Mitch would be in next. I know it was because Mitch was the one who did all the ordering, and he knew more about the imports, but it still bothered me a little. I was afraid that after Mitch left he would be one of the customers I would loose. Then one day he stopped by and we talked. I let him know that even though I didn't know much about the imports. I would do everything I could to get what he needed. I guess the rest is history.

Carl and Matt: These two have been hanging out at Game Hits since I took over. They always came in together. Matt always seemed to know what he was talking about with video games, so I hired him. After spring I didn't need the help anymore so he went to Funco.

Jake: Despite what he thinks I didn't think of him as an annoyance. I didn't really get to know him until the Armored Core tournament as well. After knowing him for about a year he was here one time when I was really busy on a Saturday. He ended up helping out. After that I couldn't wait for him to turn 16 so I could hire him. He knows a great deal about games (and EVERYTHING about FF7 )

But before I could hire Jake I needed someone for the track season again and Jake wasn't 16 yet. Then just like the Rev told it. I hired him. His knowledge of games is great as well. After summer began the stores business didn't slow down nearly as much as the previous year. To make a long story short, what was suppose to be temp work for Russ has turned in to an ongoing debt pay off, that continues today.

Well those are the main ones. Kevin, Taiyon, Chris, and Matt C I met them all here over the last year. Nothing really particular sticks out in my mind when I met them. Sorry.

posted November 20, 2001 07:20 PM            

We were both doing our fanzines, his was called Project: Ignition back then and I was doing Fantazine. One night I had just gotten home with a bag of steaming hot Taco Hell foodstuff when the phone rang. I answered it, and much to my surprise, it was Jess, a man I'd never spoken to in person before! We talked for like 3 hours, about all manner of gaming related stuff, and when we were finished, my Taco Bell food had solidified into stone-cold unedible lumps. So, Jess, you owe me a meal from Taco Bell!

After that we made plans to meet; Jess was living near Coldwater on the Michigan/Indiana border at the time, so I drove down there, and visited him periodically, sometimes bringing Adrian, Pete or other friends along for the trip. The rest is history.

posted November 20, 2001 08:00 PM            

The Pipeline was quite tough to write as I recall, because I really got little feedback from it. If anyone did say anything about it, Mitch would occasionally mention it in passing. He never told me if the issues sold or anything, but like I said, I was grateful to be able to write it while he footed the bill.

I enjoyed writing the Uplink a bit more, as I thought it had a better layout, and at the birth of the PSX/Saturn era, it was an exciting time for gaming(much like now). I also got a bit more feedback (screams of agony ensued when I did a comparison article between Tekken and VF Remix...and I preferred VF Remix! Horrible!)

posted November 20, 2001 08:50 PM            

Carl: Same story, gym class in 9th grade is where I meet him.........We had(and still do) Have a greater love of Star Wars than Gym. After a while we stopped caring and read EGM and Wizard in class insead of bringing our Gym gear to class, lol! We also had a blast in Mr "Wilkenator" Wilkenson's 11 grade Journalism and English classes, hehehehehe.

Shawn: Same as Carls story, went in one day at GH and saw a new owner, cooler than Mitch, great guy Carl and I came in the store almost everyday at lunch during school and on weekends. In the past Ive always wanted to work at a Game store, It didnt matter to me. Babbages, Funcoland, Software Etc, even Gamehits. I leaned more toward Gamehits cause Shawn was and is a nice guy. Eventually we became good buddies and hung out at the store a lot. Id buy god knows how many VG soundtracks from him on a weekly basis, and I even got into Importing game systems and games from going there(My first was a Japanese PSX with Strider 2). When Mitch worked there I would aways ask if he was hiring or not every month or so.......but to no avail. A friend of his and his Niece or Daughter(I forget) worked there at the time, so there were no positions.

Well one day, I was with Carl at GH one day(I think after school or during Lunch....This was the Spring of 1999 I beleive.....)I went to pick up something, a soundtrack to FF6 I beleive, and then he poped the question...."Hey I was wondering if maybe you'd consider working here for a while, you seem to know your stuff, and I notice that you help people in the store with Questions about games, I could use you." Or something to that nature.

I was completely shocked! I didnt know what to say.......well yeah I knew......but it was incredible, I finally did it! A job at a Game Store!

Even though it was for only a short while, it was well worth it. It was the best job I ever had. After a while I got into Babbages and Funcoland........which were cool at first, but then started to suck...........lame hours, gay managers, it was crap! GH was way better.

I got in trouble for mentioning and recommending Gamehits a few times too, after a while it was time to quit..........take it from Brad and I........its not all what its cracked up to be.

Brad: I knew him from Software Etc, cool guy. I was quite surprised when I saw him working at GH, I was like " are you from Software Etc?" and the rest was history, he was cool to talk too and I worked with him at the store a few times as well. The last time I saw him was at E3 with Carl,Pat, and Ara

Pat: I meet Pat while working at GH, I think he can in to trade some games in to Shawn. I believe(help me out with this Pat)he brought in Guitar Freaks in to play. I had read about the game before, but didnt know too much about them, and thats how I got into music games. Fat and Geeky were there to, they were Hesitant to play the game.......not into music games, and still arent.

Which brings me to Fat and Geeky, I meet them during my "term" at Gamehits. I had heard about them through Shawn, about how they visited Mitch on a regular basis during his time at the store. They came in one day to give Shawn some ideas about how the website should look. Nice guys, very funny. I admired Heath for his strong opinions about games and that he never cared and never will care about what other people thought about him or the games he likes.......I sorta took from him and learned to think that way to...........for myself. Geeky was cool, he had a bunch of know-how and knowledge of games and systems.......he intrigued me. *Fart* oops(inside Joke)

Russ: I noticed that he was working at GH all of the sudden........didnt know why...so confusing.......but I got to know him. Done and Done!

Jake: I got to know him through the tournaments that Shawn started. And yes I remember the whole "Evil-Tone Store Clerk Matt, Chrono Trigger Soundtrack thing".......but he was a little kid back then.....and I hate kids......J/K Jake! lol, great guy, and the only guy I can talk to about FF anymore.

Dayne: through Shawn

Jess: Through Pats First Game Party

Rob: through GH when MvC2 first came out.

Tucker: at the Chrono Cross line with Carl at Babbages.

Taiyon: Tourneys

Other Regulars:
Ron(Ahkbar) Rob and I's friend, Ive known him forever, ever since middle school.

Lee: My first friend Ive ever had and best. Known him my whole life.......I beleive some of you know him...