Finding out that my all time FAVORITE piece of old 2000s computer game abandonware is considered lost media AND I ACTUALLY FUCKING OWN IT ON A BURNED CD was NOT on my 2025 bingo card... OR EVER.
Like, what do you mean I've had NO IDEA I own lost media, and said lost media just happensnto be of one of my favorite childhood games of all time?! How long has this game even been considered lost?! Hello?!
It's weirdly not the first time something like this has happened to me. I had NO IDEA the OG Diner Dash was considered lost media until it was found... AND I'VE I OWNED THAT THE WHOLE TIME, TOO.
I'm seriously starting to wonder if I just so happen to own other 2000s computer game abandonware that's considered lost media. Because this has happened TWICE now. With Diner Dash I had no idea until it was found, but THIS ONE is still considered lost.
I swear to god, when I get back to my parents house and get access to some old ass hardware, that old ass burned CD BETTER still fucking work!
Who knew my father burning the computer games I liked, that we rented from the local library between the years of 2006-2012, so I could keep playing them after we returned them, would long-term accidentally fucking perserve media that would end up being lost. Goes to show piracy is like, actually a good thing in most cases LOL
Honsetly, more than anything, I just wanna replay this goddamn game because I haven't played it in over a decade and it's lived rent free in my head for YEARS. Me doing research on how to play the full game without paying for the old ass company membership (since the company shut down obviously) was the fucking reason I even found out I own the only game in this series that's considered lost media, which mean no code exists for me to play the full entire game lmao. Probably the best luck ever and the worst luck.
Now, I'm not very savy to how the Lost Media community operates, so I have no idea how this works, I don't know who to contact, or how to upload and get this old abandonware perserved. I'm cool if anyone from this side of the Internet wants to contact me privately about this, BUT before anything, I have to make sure this old burned CD still runs, because obviously, I need to back up my claims on this, and since it is on a burned CD, obviously the photo of the disc alone isn't gonna be any legit proof. And I've been on the Internet long enough to know it's not smart of me to say what game this is until I can hopefully get it to run, and am able to prove it.
But even if I can't get it to run, me knowing that I still own my favorite childhood abandonware game, and it was also also lost media this whole time, is something I'll hold dear. At least it's still out there, and I do have it, even if the code is inaccessible and unreadable. If my disc doesn't end up running. Hopefully one day someone else comes to the same realization I did and theirs DOES work.
