Wii Dedication: 13 Hours in Line

One of our intrepid correspondents braves the elements through the night to grab a Wii at a local Target. Game on!

An edgy crowd gathered outside of a local Target on Saturday, muttering about the harrowing tales of shootings, muggings, and eBay fraud surrounding the PS3 launch last week. Questions were being asked almost as much as Rockstars were being consumed. Would there be more Wiis in stock across the country than PS3s?

Yes.

Were the stores better prepared for hordes of people, having gone through trial-by-fire less than 72 hours before?

Definitely.

Would total pandemonium break loose and a Lord of the Flies mentality rule the moment Target opened its doors at 8 AM the following morning?

Maybe a little...

And so people lined up, anxious and unknowing but utterly thrilled to await the Wii.

In the Trenches

8 PM, Saturday (12 hours to go)

After calling ahead to confirm with store managers that this Target would be getting 120 units to be sold when the store opened at 8 AM Sunday morning, we gather some supplies and pack the car. On arrival, we count 45 people ahead of us in line, bundled in sleeping bags and lounging in folding chairs. We set up our blankets, buy some beef jerky from Target and settle in for the long night.

10 PM, Saturday (10 hours to go)

The store closes for the evening, shutting off all the lights around the building, save for one blaring white street light positioned directly above our camp. This doesn't stop the game of kickball raging on in the shopping cart lot, or deter the skateboard gang from practicing a few half-pipes. Games of Uno, Life, and Scrabble have been set up among massive LAN parties, between Nintendo DS networks. A single PSP player hunches down against a wall, alone and forlorn.

40-some-odd people have joined the line behind us, bringing the count close to 100.

We interviewed the party at the front of the line who had been on the scene since 8 AM Saturday morning. Glen Schwartz and his son Andrew were sticking it out with friends Will Blumhardt, Benn Smith, Sam Fruchtman, and Conner Swann. The party was well-prepared with a radio, a tent, a DVD player, multiple camp chairs, an inflatable mattress, and an endless supply of pizza and chicken. Boredom kicked in after the first four hours, when their DS batteries died. Luckily, Will was able to secure a car charger.

The party was interested in Super Monkey Ball: Banana Blitz, being too young to recall the Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. We forgave them.

Comments [0]

post a comment

Post a Comment