h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Don't! I tried the basic version of this game years ago - it drove me totally potty! It's MUCH harder than you'd think to build up the numbers sequentially - it took me months to get to about 180 then I bailed out. At the time I was driving quite a lot, and expected to make quick progess - it doesn't happen like that, and it's quite distracting. I once drove to London for a weekend, (not for the game - I wasn't that sad) I was stuck on some specific number and in over 500 miles of motoring including loads of heavy traffic I didn't spot it.

A load of my friends tried this, only one was stubborn enough to see it through and it took him over 2 years. This is somebody who has visited all 92 football league grounds for a competitive game, so what does that tell you?

Play at your own risk...

I started this game on a ten hour car journey with two bored children. I think we reached four or five by the end of the trip, and they promptly forgot all about it.

I, however, having an obsessive/compulsive aspect to my personality, was obsessed/compelled to continue. I managed 1-999 within five years.

It is easier to play this game if you are not the driver, for obvious reasons. Driving is much safer if you are paying attention to all that is happening around you and not fixating on whether the car approaching has 320 on the plate.

The other, less obvious, legacy is that years later, my eyes are still drawn to check the number plate of any vehicle, ...


... just in case...