Most of us grew up in the ’90s. Our childhood had many facets, but I believe the two most important parts of childhood were nourishment and entertainment.

A good day started with a good breakfast, and one incredible food from the ’90s was Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup Cereal. The popular tagline was something to the effect of “it’s like eating candy…FOR BREAKFAST!” Nutritious!

If you didn’t do the whole cereal thing, then it was Pop Tarts; shove ‘em in the toaster for a minute and they’re done. Then, once you got to school, there was always that competition for who had the best dessert in their brown paper bag.

Among the competitors were Gushers, Dunkeroos, Fruit by the Foot, Go-Gurt, Nutty Bars, and Swiss Cake Rolls.

The Nutri-Grain Bar was also introduced in the ’90s, but because it was somewhat healthy, it did not stand a chance next to Dunkeroos.

It seemed like it was all about sugar back then--soft drink companies coming out with sodas loaded with caffeine: Kick, Jolt, Josta, Surge, etc. Besides soft drinks, there were the fruit drinks: Mondo, Squeeze-Its, Kool-Aid Kool Bursts.

After getting your daily dose of liquid sugar, there was candy: Push Pops, Blow Pops, Ring Pops, Twizzler’s Pull n’ Peel, etc. A personal favorite was Warheads, a hard candy with a sour outer layer and a sweet liquid inside.

If you could bear the 30 seconds of bitterness, then you were “rewarded” with the sweet candy inside. Senior Tim Williamson said, “I was a Warheads junkie. I would see how many I could eat at once, and although it may have killed some major brain cells, that sweet center was worth it.” Rounding out the nourishment was the desserts. Snickers Ice Cream Bars and Flintstones Push-Up Pops dominated the adolescent dessert scene. That about does it for food, but once that sugar kicked in, entertainment was needed.

Toys provided hours of entertainment. The first toy worth mentioning, of course, is the Stretch Armstrong. Originally issued in 1976, Stretch Armstrong was re-issued in the ’90s, along with his companion, Fetch Armstrong. The fun of Stretch was not so much the look of the doll, but its purpose. This toy was not put to full use unless stretched until it tore open, revealing a mysterious syrup-like goop. Stretch was, by far, the hardest toy to break. Despite hours of incessant pulling and stretching, this toy held strong.

Some action figures got their start in television, such as Beast Wars Transformers (Optimus Primal, anyone?) and Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers. Who hasn’t watched the White Ranger summon the Megazord to dominate an opponent?!? However, some fads also became hugely popular. Pogs, Pokemon, Yo-Yo’s, Magic, Furbies, Tamagotchis, Nanopets, and Beany Babies…these trends were all the rage. Trends only last so long, but game systems have stood the test of time.

I still have the original NES, bestowed upon me by my much older siblings. Contra plus Duck Hunt plus Tecmo Bowl times Super Mario Brothers series equals the first eight years of my life. One common element to all cartridge game systems, such as NES and Super Nintendo, is the need to blow out the bottom of the game cartridge to make it work. Nintendo 64 was no exception, and will be addressed later.

Sega Genesis was a biggie, with classics such as the Golden Axe series and Road Rash. However, Sega would be nothing without the series that put a spiny mammal on the map: Sonic the Hedgehog. With the help of Tails and/or Knuckles, Sonic was made to collect rings, spin at high speeds, and defeat an obese physician with a red moustache and glasses, also known as Dr. Robotnik. No amount of Sega play could challenge the likes of the game system giants: Nintendo 64 and Sony PlayStation. Nintendo 64, also a cartridge game system, is famous for the likes of Super Mario 64, Mario Kart, Super Smash Bros., NFL Blitz, and Goldeneye 007. The N64’s four-player gaming paved the way for multiplayer games, and in the beginning, I thought that N64 would live on, beating out the PlayStation for the dominant gaming system. I was so wrong. In 2005, PlayStation reached the 100 million mark, making it the first game system to do so.

The following were some of the top PlayStation games: WWF Smackdown, Tony Hawk Pro Skater, Gran Turismo, Final Fantasy, Crash Bandicoot, and Twisted Metal.

Junior Tanner Hyland said, “Twisted Metal on PlayStation 1 is the best game ever. I liked the guy with the monster wheels for arms because he just ran right over top of people.” Tanner is, of course, referring to Axel.

Game systems have provided us great fun through the years, and I still play Mario Kart 64 today. So whenever you consider shelling out hundreds of dollars for a new PS3, just remember all those good times you had with that old game system, which is most likely selling for less than a hundred dollars. After all, no one will ever surpass the fun you had getting that mushroom, pouncing on that monster that resembles a chicken nugget, or jumping head-on into a block of bricks.