The materials for this project are largely the same as the last one:
1 computer
1 exitzer0
1 large pizza
1 2 liter of Mt. Dew
1 Adobe Photoshop
1 Internet
1 skillfully crafted portrait
1 scanner
1 X-Acto knife
1 ruler
1 FedEx Kinko’s
5 empty GameCube cases
5 mini CDRs
1 post office
I had this idea a while ago, shortly after the failure of my last project, but didn’t want to sacrifice the cases of games like Bad Boys Miami Takedown or Blowout because then they’d be sitting around my house naked… Gross. So the project was temporarily put on hold until I discovered that Nintendo sells replacement cases for GameCube games through their online store for about $1 each (plus shipping), and they conveniently came in packs of 1, 5, or 10.
If you were unaware there are actually CDRs made that are the same size as the GameCube discs, so they fit perfectly into these cases. While I was at my local Big Lots of all places, I found that they had a five-pack of the mini-CDRs for $2.49. Since I knew it was kismet, I went ahead and snatched up a couple of the packs, just in case my writer decided that I needed more coasters.
After I had the requisite materials, I called upon local Photoshop Kung-Fu artist, exitzer0. After toiling tirelessly throughout the evening, fueled only by pizza and Mt. Dew, and directed by the fevered, disjointed ravings of a madman, a layout was born.
Once we were satisfied that the layout would meet all expectations, I again made my way to my local FedEx Kinko’s, and had them utilize their printers to marry pixel and paper. I’m sure that at this point the employees there think I’m some sort of lunatic, but they wouldn’t be the first to make that assumption. The printing was done on some of the most expensive paper I’ve ever encountered. At $3.00 each, I fully expected each of the glossy two-dimensional renderings to hop in my car and drive me to whatever destination they chose.
Eventually I was able to wrest my gaze from the terrible beauty that became known as the Printed Works and began to prepare them for the journey that lay ahead. By utilizing both the X-Acto knife and the ruler in tandem, I was able to ensure that my cuts were straight and true. Upon completion I carefully placed each jacket into its proper position, taking extra care to ensure that all things lined up appropriately, then set back and was overtaken by wonder at the Things I had created.
By sheer force of Will, I was able to momentarily turn my attention to the creation of the Disc. My hope was that the materials contained on it would exemplify the wide range of talents that I posess, as well as any appropriate contact information. I certainly wanted the people who looked at these gems of creativity to be able to contact me since they would no doubt be compelled to by the sheer majesty of it all. Ultimately, I decided to include a writing sample consisting of my acclaimed Summer Vacation article and the Director’s Cut of my nearly-famous Video Game Movie. These things, when packaged with the Box itself, would create something heretofore unseen by mortals.
And so they are completed. Each one destined to an entity that (it is my presumption) would appreciate all that is the Game Box 2. One by one they leave the nest, and only after I am sure that they have vanished from the face of the planet will I reveal their destinations, lest someone else try to grab a piece of my thunder.