StingingVelvet: Not sure I would say intellectual types, but something like that. Funny part is everyone back then was wishing more people liked our hobby and now we see the result of that, which arguably isn't what anyone wanted (but should have expected).
The internet giveth and taketh away, however, and it giveth us Kickstarter and indies which hopefully make up for all it takes away.
At least the people back then had some motivation to learn to be able to run the games that they wanted to play. That sort of intellectual curiosity is the crucible on which intellectualism rests. But it's more than just the operation of the PC and the ability to get games to run. It's the intellectual depth of PC games from the early to late 90's; when you actually were expected to read the manual to be able to operate the game, when there were no tutorials spoon-feeding you, when you were actually expected to use your brain and
think in order to be successful at the games. That sort of intellectual bent I see
far more rarely than the golden-age era I mention; pre-broadband internet.
This somewhat exemplifies my point, at least partially :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W1ZtBCpo0eU
