Beginning at some point in the mid-2000’s, there would being a five year period where I’d have the same exact birthday party year after year. Where I grew up, some kids would do rock climbing for their birthday, or maybe a pool party. But for me, every August, without question, I’d throw a Halo LAN party.
All these years later, it’s still probably the most fun, fulfilling events I ever organized. Kids would prepare for *weeks* for this. It was the talk of the town. We’d have a bracket system. We’d have a trophy. We’d be split between four rooms, upstairs and downstairs, 100ft ethernet cables spaghetting everywhere - using every TV in the house and then some. For four hours on a Friday during summer’s hottest days, right before we were about to head back to school, 20+ cookie-handed kids would be at my house doing nothing but playing Halo.