There’s Actually A Fully-Functioning Blockbuster Video And A Man Went On A Nostalgic Time Warp Tour

Back before there was “Netflix and Chill,” there was “Blockbuster and Chill.” This is going to sound prehistoric to the younger readers, but there was a time when if you wanted to watch the latest movie release you had to leave your house (EGADS!), drive to the local Blockbuster (A chain of stores that offered movie and video game rentals, archaic I know, but there was no such thing as streaming video back in those primitive times), stroll through aisle after aisle of VHS cassette tapes and eventually DVDs, argue with your special lady in your life on whether to rent Dumb and Dumber or Sleepless in Seattle, only to later unanimously decide to watch Pulp Fiction, only to get to the register and have some shitty employee tell you that they are out of stock of copies of Pulp Fiction, so you just end up taking the craptastic 1990 volleyball movie Side Out because you don’t want to walk around for another 48 minutes. These were trying times on relationships, you kids don’t know how good you have it.

Blockbuster was so dominant that they had over 9,000 stores in 2004, but then Netflix and Redbox happened. On September 23, 2010, Blockbuster filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection and now there are only 51 stores open. One of which is in a quiet strip mall called Rochester Plaza in Indiana. Retro-loving YouTuber Chris Stuckmann went back in time to re-discover the Blockbuster Video experience.

“Oh my gosh! I feel like I’m in 1999!” Chris screams.

This location offers timeless classics like Mortal Kombat on Sega CD available to rent.

Be careful renting Varsity Blues Chris, those late fees could put you in the poor house.

[Uproxx]