My Kids are Growing Up in the 90s
Posted by IdahoBookworm@reddit | retrobattlestations | View on Reddit | 62 comments
I want my kids to learn computers, but not to have internet access until they're older, so I fixed up a couple 1999 Macs for them. The PowerMac G3 on the left is playing Bugdom, and the iMac G3 on the right is playing Chrono Trigger, via the SNES9X emulator with an attached USB SNES-style controller.
Tribal-Lust@reddit
We all wish we can do this! Really appreciate what you have done man !
DrummerOk9910@reddit
Make sure they have bike ramps outside
FuckM0reFromR@reddit
"You had an LCD in the 90's?? $.$"
-my dumb ass
Cojaro@reddit
I'm about to do something similar with a Win98 build and a bunch of games from my childhood.
SanekiBeko@reddit
Dude I respect ya for not getting them hooked on ipads. I'll do the same whenever it's my turn to be a father.
Alert_Dingo_4504@reddit
My son just turned 1 and I swear on everything he won't be an iPad kid. Starts with me though, I've got to do a better job of limiting my own screen time. I try to actively not scroll my phone around him.
FTFreddyYT@reddit
We need more Parents like you man... Mad Respect.
SanekiBeko@reddit
That's actually smart. I forgot when I was a kid I wanted to get into every device my mom owned. Even bricked 2 of her work computers lol
Alert_Dingo_4504@reddit
Yeah it's kinda scary how drawn to touch screens babies are. When he sees me on it he instantly wants to grab it and swipe.
Royal-Lobster4296@reddit
HOLY SHIT BUGDOM
darthrevan22633@reddit
I do that same exact thing with my 7 year old. I retrofit everything to the 90s. Best upgrade I'll give her until she's a teen is windows xp
RandomRedditer31718@reddit
Nice!
Also, is that an HP vs15 or an HP vs17 that is connected to the PowerMac G3?
If it is the vs15, I actually currently own that monitor!
If it is the vs17, I used to use that monitor a lot when I used Windows Vista!
jangalangz_@reddit
Chrono trigger was so good!
Etchcetera@reddit
Bro get off your wife lol
_Nekolittle_@reddit
ive been thinking about doing the same when mine get a little older :D glad to see i'm not the only one!
LeaderIll9730@reddit
What bout board games ?
srhavio@reddit
There is no chance they are not playing board games.
tasulife@reddit
You can run a local LLM if you want them to get used to AI but still be offline . I was a nerd kid and that would have been invaluable to exploring STEM interests. It can teach them to program or other disciplines that you’d need online reference to figure out.
bookgeek210@reddit
Or better yet, get updated encyclopedias
Spinel_of_Lignano@reddit
I think I have that case on the left
soulever989@reddit
How old did your kids have to be before they got into gaming?
RichardBlastovic@reddit
Warn them about 9/11.
SonderEber@reddit
No internet as school either?
Th3_MCP@reddit
Setup another computer and introduce them to DOOM II deathmatch for the perfect 90's experience.
IdahoBookworm@reddit (OP)
They've been having Marathon deathmatches! There's a crossover cable connecting the two Macs.
tanaciousp@reddit
Hell ya, marathon kicks ass. Now if you want to feel fear, have them play Pathways into Darkness.
Th3_MCP@reddit
That’s gotta be the ultimate Mac vs. PC divide. Never played Marathon as a kid, my home PC and my school's PCs ran Windows (once they finally replaced all the Acorn Archimedes they invested in).
billybob128@reddit
Woah, that's literally my childhood. Also Bugdom was pretty cool.
samarijackfan@reddit
QuakeIII
Mr_Pockets-@reddit
This is such a great concept. I think I have an old PC somewhere I could setup for my daughter with some old titles, and different programs for her to just mess around in.
I remember when I was really young, my Dad let me play around on really old versions of cad software
jacoborobo@reddit
When I was little I was allowed to use the internet to watch youtube and stuff but it was supervised on the livingroom PC. Then in my room I had an offline PC and I had all sorts of fun playing CD-ROM games. I also really enjoyed exploring and building with Cube 2: Sauerbraten. This was around 2008 so I was basically playing creative mode before Minecraft was cool.
A_Harmless_Fly@reddit
You should get bugdom 2 too, it was pretty excellent.
_RexDart@reddit
I had never heard of Bugdom but it's cute as heck. Got any similar games to recommend? I have some modern PCs but I'm trying to load up this Quicksilver G4 with kid games.
IdahoBookworm@reddit (OP)
Check out the Macintosh Garden: there's a TON of old Mac games there. I loaded up a bunch of old "edutainment" titles. The kids love the Humongous Entertainment games: Spy Fox, Pajama Sam, Freddi Fish, and Putt-Putt (to be legit and legal I did buy the Steam package of their games, since they are still sold). They also love the Living Books games. And also The Manhole, from the company that made Myst: it's as if Myst were a quirky storybook world for kids. And the old MECC games like Oregon Trail II. For more action-oriented games, Nanosaur and Cro-Mag Rally from the same company that made Bugdom. And the Ambrosia Software games, like Bubble Trouble and Farazel's Wand.
_RexDart@reddit
Thank you! I have been grabbing all sorts of stuff from that site already; I just didn't know what to look for in terms of kids' games. I will check these out.
10v1@reddit
That's awesome. We grew up with those titles. Awesome to see the next generation picking them up thanks to people like you.
jgwong@reddit
Same, my kids have grown up playing mostly 16-bit era games; Super Nintendo, Genesis and the like, in an old, offline PC running Xubuntu 22 with RetroArch, still running like a champ.
We went to watch the first Sonic movie and, on the opening credits, my kids jumped out of their seats when they saw Sonic, Golden Axe, Streets of Rage and other games forming the SEGA logo, larger than life.
wavemelon@reddit
I spent a lovely hour yesterday playing lemmings and r-type with my son :)
Mysterious_Secret827@reddit
Awesome and cute photo. Also thanks for explaining the USB part of the controller, my 🧠 was trying to figure that out. 🤭🤦♂️
IdahoBookworm@reddit (OP)
I was amazed that the cheap, modern USB controller worked with Mac OS 9 right out of the box!
Mysterious_Secret827@reddit
Plug-and-plays are never a bad idea!
guywithblackcamera@reddit
My elementary school had the iMac G3's. Odell Down Under was what most of us played : )
IdahoBookworm@reddit (OP)
I played the demo of Odell Down Under to death back in the day, on my family's Performa 550. As the shark, of course.
MrSaucyAlfredo@reddit
You have a lot of kids lol
Mysterious_Secret827@reddit
Thanks for reading my mind. 🤭
IdahoBookworm@reddit (OP)
I've got a whole basketball team!
JasonMckin@reddit
Their hair is way too short and not flat topped
IdahoBookworm@reddit (OP)
Or parted in the middle 😂
IronColumn@reddit
yeah this is my plan for my daughter
keeplookingup22@reddit
You are giving them such a gift!! Love this sooo much! That’s parenting done right! 😂🎊
djneo@reddit
This is something I want to do for my child. But the Mac’s need to stay stable for another 8 years or so 😅
displacedbitminer@reddit
You haven't lived until a Trow kicks your Dwarf to death on the mountainside in Myth.
IdahoBookworm@reddit (OP)
They also do Myth deathmatches! And co-op.
Microboy42@reddit
It’ll be fun and games until they trade their Carrot for an Ethernet cable on the school bus
Efficient_Corner_892@reddit
So am I.
lavafish80@reddit
gonna do something similar when (or if) I ever have kids. Let them grow up with a similar timeline of technology that I did. start them off with an original Xbox, then a 360 with Minecraft legacy console edition, then a PS4
or I can just build an old PC for them. give them the GTX 1080TI build I never got to experience
The_Collector_Of_All@reddit
Kid on the right is the luckiest
Brilliant-County-762@reddit
BUGDOM
bigredsk10@reddit
Chrono Trigger is such an all time great game. I'm thinking about paying my kids some spending money if they can beat it, just to get them to give it a try.
Ledgo@reddit
One of my favorite memories from Elementary School was knowing which computers in lab had Bugdom because the IT guys forgot to remove it.
120dxt@reddit
I’m fighting this same battle. I want them to have access to some video games which I do through a Pi. But, it’s attached to the family TV. I’m going to attempt to stick to a “console” concept that video games aren’t mobile and only accessed in a “family” area. Both kids have to share etc. I love your set up, I have an old Mac Pro 5,1 that needs a job.
Content_Umpire_8167@reddit
This is parenting, done the right way.