How badly do you hate stickers and marker all over your used video games?  Does it burn your ass when some moron writes on the end of your N64 carts with magic marker without applying a protective layer of space age super wonder masking tape?  Me too.  One of the worst offenders are those silver stickers on former rental copies that always leave behind that magical silver goop when you peel the sticker off of the cart. 

There is one exception though.  Name labels!  I have a copy of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles for the NES that has a sticker with the name James written on it, a copy of Defender with the name Nicole, Kid Icarus former property of Keith M, The Legend of Kage once owned by S&J and most recently I bought a copy of Ghost House for the Sega Master System  once owned by Jeff W.  The difference with this game though is that it's a Sega Master System card game and on the back has an area for you to write your name down.  Sega once again being innovators in the industry helping to make sure kids don't lose games and helping to shut down bully game stealing rings.

In the instruction manual for Ghost House there's a score book where you can write the name, date and score.  The first few spots are filled out on 12/12/89.  On the back of the instruction manual he also wrote in another score board for the game Hang On for 12/13/89.  I started thinking.  Maybe this was an early Christmas present for Jeff way back in 1989.  Whenever I see these old games with names written on them I always wonder where the hell these people have ended up and why they sold their games.  Were they hard up for cash?  Just watned to get another game?  Did their mothers just sell everything in the basement?  How many other people have owned these games?

I was looking at that Master System game and thinking about tracking down Jeff W. and a quick google and facebook search didn't really yield any immediate results.  There were a lot of people named Jeff W**** and none of them really struck me as one time owners of a Sega Master System.  Oh well Jeff W**** I hope whereever you are you're happy and don't miss your Sega Master System to much.

Have you ever bought a used game with a name written on it and wondered about the previous owners?   Leave me some comments!