The Second Half

Back in the late 80’s we had some good video games that effectively wrecked some of my bros’ GPA’s at NAU. Earl Weaver Baseball, Super Tecmo-Bowl, Real Sports Football with mock NFL names like “Steve Dakota” instead of Joe Montana, and “Bob Jackman” for Bo Jackson since they didn’t have licensing rights. Fortunately, I was able to manage the games and the grades, and the bro’s and the ho’s with the party balls and the pony kegs.

I’ve always remained a big fan of good arcade games, even though I quickly lose interest once the shimmer of the game wears off. Typical American, right….what’s next? Is there a better version?

Last Saturday, I bought Lyza a copy of the latest version of ‘Need for Speed’ on her X-Box 360 that I got her for Christmas because I wanted one. She was bitchin’ and moanin’ about it in the store because she wanted some other lame-ass game. I said “c’mon, I’ll buy it for you or you can buy that other game with your money”. She opted for the freebie. It was a used copy for $7.99 and she didn’t catch that part. As soon as she realized she could outrun cops, race souped up Mustangs through city neighborhoods, across golf courses, and barrel through toll booths at 180mph – well – it was like pulling the monkey off the crack pipe to get her to want to stop playing. Good times. I’ve been wanting to play that game all week, but a dump truck of work, exercise time, family time, trips to the body shop, and all that other shit and, well, the day ends and I can never fit it in.

Some of my nervous nellie parental friends get all grippy about how video games can teach bad lessons and encourage violence. Keep watching CNN, and live in fear, cause I'll be playing Madden 2010 with LB lookin' to jack the QB of the ball.

I’d agree with the violence part if you let your kid sit in a dark room and play alone, but I totally disagree if you are playing the games with your kid. We laugh our asses off when her front bumper clips a full shopping cart of groceries at 150mph and the produce goes freakin’ flyin’. We have to pause the game because we’re crying laughing when I bump into the back of a logging truck at 175mph and it releases a shit-ton of logs onto the freeway and crashes out the cops behind us. These games compared to the games we played back in the day? All I can say is WOW. But I can also say, enough – time to get outside and tear up the ice rink because my thumbs are WRECKED!

At the end of the day though, I don't know jack crap about the big time video gamers. Me and some old time frat bros were at a friend’s 40th B-Day two years ago, when one guy asks me in front of a table of 16 peeps “What’s your gamer ID”? I looked at him as if he were a Cantonese waiter asking for my order in his native language. I didn’t know what the fuck he was talking about. Come to find out, these hardcore gamers play online, wear headsets to communicate by voice, and play never ending games for hours on end. Not exactly like the Castle Wolfenstein games we played in Apple IIC’s in 1984.

Ahh well. After work today, it’s off on a run, grab some chow, read Cycle Sport America’s interview with Ivan Basso, catch up with D, and if I’m not asleep after that – a little Need for Speed!