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A look inside what it was like being a Nintendo Powerline counselor

by rawmeatcowboy
21 November 2015
GN Version 5.0

Gather around, boys and girls. Let me tell you of a time when personal computers were too expensive for most and the internet wasn't even a thing. Back in those days, when you got stuck in a video game, you didn't have too many options. You could go out and buy the official guide, you could hope Nintendo Power covered it or you could call up the Nintendo Powerline. This was a hotline you could call up to get tips and helpful info on games available on Nintendo platforms. It wasn't free either! You had to pony up cash to get your hints...or better yet, it was your parents doing the paying.

Just what was it like working as a Nintendo Powerline counselor? A.V. Club rounded up a bunch of former counselors to see what their job was like. Below, you can read a first-hand account of all the 'fun' from former Powerline staffer, Caesar Filori.

The first [phone] shift they put me on was the dreaded 10-hour Saturday. [I only knew] a small handful of games, and I had no idea really what I was doing. And back then, there was no computers. We didn’t have our database called the ELMO, which was our crappy 1990 database thing that would have answers to a ton of questions. We had these manuals that were mostly incomplete, so you had all your own notes you were like rifling through to get the answers. And when you’re early on, you don’t know what all the answers are. Eventually, you realize you get all the same questions. There were only 50 or 60 games.

My first day on the phone was just terrifying—just call after call after call. I had no idea what these people were talking about. They were playing The Goonies II, which was one of the most dreaded calls you could possibly get—that and Legacy Of The Wizard.

Full interview here