Payphone Jackpot

Nostalgia can invoke strong emotional feelings, and the basis of my research lies in trying to exploit these.  However, it's also a very personal thing.

In my research, therefore, I've sought to find common experiences which are likely to resonate with a large number of people, in order to maximise the chance of a "hit".

I've already found it useful to "band" triggers into time periods, corresponding to the common experiences of different generations.  As noted in the old-fashioned sweets post, childhood plays a strong part in this, because it often evokes the strongest memories.  (The controversial "primal scream" psychotherapy of Arthur Janov was based somewhat on this premise, albeit misguidedly.)  As a child, some objects fascinated us more than others, due to their novelty.

Payphones

Back in mid-September, while reorganising lists of mechanical nostalgia triggers, I found a old note I'd made about the rotary dial mechanism on old phones.

This seed stayed at the back of my mind, gestating and becoming the "gift that just keeps giving".  I realised that payphones encompass several very strong nostalgia triggers, valid across a wide age range.

GPO/British Telecom payphone dating from the early 1970s to mid-1980s.
(Photo from telephonesuk.co.uk, taken from an exhibition at the National Telephone Kiosk Collection) 

A particularly strong one for me was the physical pressure that needed to be applied to force a coin into the 1970s models.  That's a very unusual mechanic, and one which would be highly evocative to particular age groups.  A nightmare to put into a video game, though!

Styles, fashions & functionality have changed, but each generation of payphone has had its own distinguishing -- and, most importantly, unique -- characteristics.

Prior to 1964, "A" & "B" button payphones were common.
("A" was used to commit to the call; "B" to return money.)

Are you old enough to remember hanging telephone directories?
The lists of numbers on the wall?  The cramped space?  

For decades, callers lived in fear of the "pips", which would require them to deposit more coins.

Phonecard payphone, introduced in the 1980s.

A British Telecom phonecard, with distinctive metallic detailing and round indent at the right-hand side.

Is it possible to put this stuff into a game?  Yes, I believe that it is.  It'd probably work best in a first-person game, where a task requires someone to make a call to retrieve information.  Look up the phone number in the directory; rotary-dial the number; deposit coins.  Make the message just long enough to trigger pips, and require second deposit of coins.  (Even better if you need to scan around, looking through the gaps in telephone kiosk windows, watching for potential attackers!  Imagine the tension as you wait for the dial to rotate back to position between digits, worried that you're a sitting target!)

Telephones

Basic telephones encompass several very strong nostalgia triggers, valid across a wide age range.  There's the shape of the handset itself; the dialling or push-button mechanism; and especially the sounds heard on the line, such as engaged tones or recorded "please replace the handset and try again" messages.

The distinctive Trimphone (1970s), popularised on TV shows like Swap Shop, as phone-ins became commonplace.  

Telephony represents a treasure trove of nostalgia triggers, mostly because a sizeable chunk of the population shared common experiences which have now disappeared as technology has moved on.

This phone number is permanently emblazoned in the minds of a generation.

Certainly, in my planning and compilation of potential items for use in games, phones have come up again and again.  Whether it's just the physical appearance of a handset, or a deliberate subversion of the user interface -- such as making the user enter a number using a rotary dial -- they offer an excellent opportunity to demonstrate the core principal of my research: that nostalgia can add value to video games.