My Nintendo Love Affair

Growing up my dad had one rule regarding cable television and videogames: Not allowed. My mom buckled when I was in eighth or ninth grade and not only did we upgrade to basic cable, but my brother got a Playstation (he was in college after all). However, since I can remember, both my brother and I watched a lot of TV and played a lot of video games growing up, thanks to all our friends who didn't have parents as strict as ours. (My dad even attempted to start a Dads Against Video Games group which I think had one other member, clearly a like-minded parent with a similarly suffering child.) I remember the original Nintendo, the first Gameboy, and of course the Nintendo 64. However, the first Nintendo that was ever in my possession (if only temporary because my brother let me borrow it for a few months), was the lovely but comparatively unpopular Game Cube.

I love the Nintendo Game Cube for two reasons, and two reasons only:

1) Mario Kart Double Dash
2) The Sonic Mega Collection

My senior year of college I spent the majority of Middlebury's winter term skiing, partying, and playing these two games on the Game Cube. (I also took a post-modern dance class. It was weird.) I drove my roommates crazy with my incessant howling at the TV or constantly spoken need to "re-beat Sonic 2 by February." Ultimately, the game cube was returned to its rightful owner (my brother), and I resumed my normal life (normal being a relative term), the few months of my Sonic obsession easily forgotten.

Last year when the Wii came out I was definitely interested in getting one. I logged a few hours in the Nintendo store in Rockefeller Center trying out the in-store demo of the new Zelda. FPS (first person shooter for non-gamers... gross, does this make me a gamer or can we just credit this to my wealth of knowledge?) games like Zelda were never my favorite, and I decided that the only thing that could drive me to purchasing a Wii (besides Wii Sports which is awesome) would be a new version of Mario Kart, at which I am phenomenal. Well, in late April Nintendo released Mario Kart Wii, and after spending the last half hour or so pouring over reviews, videos and user testimonials, I will admit it--I want a Wii.

I can never purchase a Wii. Nintendo, (Mario Kart and Sonic specifically,) holds a place in my life similar to that of certain television shows on DVD. I will obsessively devote unnecessary hours of time in front of the TV in what will ultimately be an unhealthy display of my strange love affair with specific video games. If I bought a Wii, not only could I pour my life into the new Mario Kart, but then I would play all the games I loved from my brother's Game Cube. No, I cannot buy a Wii, much like I cannot purchase the entire X-Files series on DVD, or upgrade my J. Crew card to "preferred member," or even even renew my college subscription to Us Weekly--it would suck my life away.

And thus I must suffer the consequences, getting by on fabulous reviews (like this one from IGN.com) and the occasional chance to play video games at someone else's house. I even gave away my old school Nintendo pack that my brother gave me last year to pass time after my jaw surgery--Duck Hunt, Super Mario, and everything.

The good thing about all this is I save a lot of money, and my nerd level decreases somewhat. I might love video games, but I don't actually own any. (Excluding the Sega Game Gear in my storage unit in Maine. I need to dig that thing up...)