Retro Gaming Tattoos - Alana - AKA @retrogaminggirls

Its not every day that you get to quiz someone who loves retro gaming so much that they are willing to get someone to stab them with ink filled needles leaving a permanent reminder of their retro heroes! Luckily for all you lot we have managed just this! 


The person in question is Alana.. Retro gaming enthusiast with a love in particular for Mega Man. Very active in the twitter gaming community and an active gamer. (Not sure where you get the time!!)


We had a quick chat with her and got into some detail about her and her tattoos:

TGS: Hi Alana, Thanks for agreeing to a quick chat. Please can you tell us a little about yourself?

A: I was only 1 when the NES came out in ’85 so that makes me 28 now :p I’m married with a little 16 month old son named Tiger running around.  I can't wait until he gets old enough to play games with me!  Unfortunately I work full time days which cuts into my gaming and website time but I need to make money to fund my collecting.  I live in Saskatchewan, Canada and it’s pretty cool here, only real complaint is lack of retro gaming stores around me, though I shouldn't complain too much since we do have one really good one, and a little arcade too.



TGS: Let’s talk about your retro gaming tattoos. First up is a certain blue games character on your arm.  What's the story behind this? 

A: This one I got in November of last year. I’ve always been a huge Mega Man fan. When I was a kid we had Mega Man 1 and 4 and I spent a lot of time watching my dad play them. At the time they were pretty hard for me but as I got older my dad and I would sit together playing them.  I would play and he would keep track of which  weapons worked best, warn me when to use an Energy Tank and help watch for boss patterns.  At this point in time I’ve beaten all 8 of the originals and up to X6 in the X series.  Though I haven’t beaten 9 and 10 yet.  I’m at Wily’s Castle in both, just need to spend a full day playing to get through it. Mega Man taught me a lot, primarily patience and persistence.  To get through all those games you have to keep trying and not give up!  So it was great for a tattoo.   I also wanted to show my love of art and painting, especially game art so it made sense to have the paint brush.  The way Orrin designed it was perfect.





TGS: Where did you get it done?* 


A: Orrin at Black Sea Tattoo in Regina, Saskatchewan did it for me.




TGS: How long did it take? 


A: 5.5 hours. Orrin quoted 2.5 hours when I booked my appointment but he isn’t a gamer so he didn’t realise the crazy amount of straight lines that were involved until he drew the transfer up.  Luckily he didn’t charge me for the 5.5 hours since he quoted a lot less.




TGS: Did it hurt?


A: lol yup, but the part that was the most tender was close by my wrist, near the elbow and the part along the inner arm. Plus it didn’t help that after the black outline and shading it was a little sore already then putting the colour over it and wiping away the excess ink hurt.



TGS: Now moving onto Mario’s missus. Princess Peach! What's the story behind this?

A: My hubby and I were in Vancouver, BC for our honeymoon and I jokingly said we should get a tattoo to mark this occasion and he agreed :p  I decided to go for Princess Peach since she was the first girl I saw in a video game, and the first one you could play as (in SMB 2) plus my one friend drew a picture for our wedding with Mario and Princess Peach getting married so it seemed right.  I used Paper Mario Princess since she was the coolest looking one.




TGS: Where did you get it done?  


A: It was done at Sacred Heart Tattoos and Piercings (about 3 yrs ago).



TGS: How long did it take?  


A: Since it was pretty small it only took 45 minutes to do, which was long enough for me considering it was on my ribs.



TGS: Did it hurt?


A: Since it’s on my ribs definitely but luckily it was pretty small so it wasn’t too bad.



TGS: You must get loads of comments about your tattoos. Do you have any funny stories you would like to share?


A: Nothing too crazy, but when I was at Muay Thai class right after I got it I had tons of guys coming up to me saying “is that Mega Man!” “That’s so cool!” so it’s always awesome when people seem excited about it



TGS: Last question – Are you planning on getting any more???  


A: At this moment I don’t have the itch to get another one but I’m sure it will happen.  I’m not too sure what I would get though, so many game characters to choose from!




Thanks for chatting with us, its been very enlightening. 




Thanks for reading, we have another interview with Alana coming up very soon that is focused around her extensive gaming collection. Keep your eyes peeled for that!


If you have a retro gaming tattoo and want to share it with us then please email us on info@thegamesshed.co.uk or tweet us.


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