Flack
03-12-2004, 11:26 PM
From where I was standing, all I could see were the backs of four or five kids' heads under a neon sign that read "Nintendo 64". Moments later an adult yelled "let's go!" from the front of the store. By the tone of her voice I got the impression it wasn't the first time she had yelled it. The group of kids slowly and reluctantly walked away from the display unit, leaving me standing alone in front of a Nintendo 64 for the first time.
I grew up with an Atari 2600 joystick in my lap, and used the same stick on my Commodore 64 for almost another decade. For almost 20 years I was able to get by with a one-button joystick. No wonder the N64 controller looked for foreign to me; it looked like some sort of Star Trek weapon with Skittles glued to it. I grabbed both sides like a steering wheel, only to discover the Z button that I could not reach. I then put both hands in the middle, grabbing the controller like a lightsaber, only to realize that pressing any buttons with this method would most likely involve bending my thumbs completely backwards. I finally ended up with my left hand through the controller and my right hand on the outside; it wasn't comfortable, but at least I could touch all the buttons.
I pressed the start button and watched a cute little 3D rendered introduction to Mario's new world. And then, Mario was standing there in front of me, beckoning me to control him. It wasn't like any other game I'd ever played in my life. The goal was no longer "get from the left hand side of the level to the right." All of a sudden, I was IN Mario's world. It was like watching, no, CONTROLLING a cartoon. In real time.
While I remember thinking that all the buttons on the controller were overwhelming, I found the analog stick particularly fascinating. Barely push it, and Mario would walk. Push it hard and he would run. As I ran around in circles, I realized that there could possibly be "camera issues". I soon found the C buttons, and I became fascinated with them as well. No matter which direction I pushed the analog stick or which button I pressed, Mario smoothly performed my requests.
Soon a crowd of kids much younger than I had formed around me. My wife had long since bought and paid for whatever it was we had come for, and soon she was standing at the front of the store yelling "let's go!" By the tone in her voice I got I got the impression it wasn't the first time she had yelled it that night. I slowly and reluctantly began to step away from the machine. The controller gradually slipped away from my fingers, only to be immediately grabbed at by the mob of kids who had gathered around, hoping for their chance to try this new system before someone told them it was time to go as well.
In the car ride home, my wife asked me what I had been doing in the store. "It's a new videogame, it's ... it's like virtual reality Mario," was the best way I could describe it. I hadn't heard the term "3d platformer" before, so I had a hard time explaining the game. "It's not like you're playing it a game, it's like you're IN the world, it's, I don't know, it's weird, it's uh ..." I paused.
"It's the future of gaming," I finally said.
I grew up with an Atari 2600 joystick in my lap, and used the same stick on my Commodore 64 for almost another decade. For almost 20 years I was able to get by with a one-button joystick. No wonder the N64 controller looked for foreign to me; it looked like some sort of Star Trek weapon with Skittles glued to it. I grabbed both sides like a steering wheel, only to discover the Z button that I could not reach. I then put both hands in the middle, grabbing the controller like a lightsaber, only to realize that pressing any buttons with this method would most likely involve bending my thumbs completely backwards. I finally ended up with my left hand through the controller and my right hand on the outside; it wasn't comfortable, but at least I could touch all the buttons.
I pressed the start button and watched a cute little 3D rendered introduction to Mario's new world. And then, Mario was standing there in front of me, beckoning me to control him. It wasn't like any other game I'd ever played in my life. The goal was no longer "get from the left hand side of the level to the right." All of a sudden, I was IN Mario's world. It was like watching, no, CONTROLLING a cartoon. In real time.
While I remember thinking that all the buttons on the controller were overwhelming, I found the analog stick particularly fascinating. Barely push it, and Mario would walk. Push it hard and he would run. As I ran around in circles, I realized that there could possibly be "camera issues". I soon found the C buttons, and I became fascinated with them as well. No matter which direction I pushed the analog stick or which button I pressed, Mario smoothly performed my requests.
Soon a crowd of kids much younger than I had formed around me. My wife had long since bought and paid for whatever it was we had come for, and soon she was standing at the front of the store yelling "let's go!" By the tone in her voice I got I got the impression it wasn't the first time she had yelled it that night. I slowly and reluctantly began to step away from the machine. The controller gradually slipped away from my fingers, only to be immediately grabbed at by the mob of kids who had gathered around, hoping for their chance to try this new system before someone told them it was time to go as well.
In the car ride home, my wife asked me what I had been doing in the store. "It's a new videogame, it's ... it's like virtual reality Mario," was the best way I could describe it. I hadn't heard the term "3d platformer" before, so I had a hard time explaining the game. "It's not like you're playing it a game, it's like you're IN the world, it's, I don't know, it's weird, it's uh ..." I paused.
"It's the future of gaming," I finally said.