Guinness Got Game
Used to be, when I answered my phone at work, I didn’t know what to expect. A college frat boy wanting to build the world’s largest beer bong. Ashrita Furman, a guy from Brooklyn planning to break the marathon unicycle-riding record for the greater glory of his spiritual leader, Sri Chinmoy. A woman who had toilet-trained her chameleon. I was the associate American editor for the Guinness Book of World Records, and point man in the U.S. for would-be record-breakers.
So, two decades of gaming coverage later, you can imagine my excitement when I heard that Guinness was publishing the inaugural volume of Guinness World Records: Gamer’s Edition. This is a substantial tome, a large-format, full-color, heavily illustrated 256-page bible of electronically powered amusement. If you care about gaming, something here is going to fascinate you.
Know who developed the first rumble-equipped controller, or wireless controller? Nintendo (N64, 1996) and Nintendo (GameCube, 2001). The first fighting game to use combos (moves requiring several buttons hit in sequence)? Street Fighter II, from Capcom. The biggest LAN party ever? It was held in Jönköping, Sweden, in November 2004, when 9,184 people on 8,521 machines tackled Counter-Strike simultaneously. What’s the best-selling game of all time? Super Mario Bros., with more than 40 million sold (it was bundled with the NES in 1985, which boosted the game’s total). The longest of Metal Gear’s interminable cut scenes? The 15-minute, 17-second sequence in Metal Gear Solid when Snake destroys Metal Gear Rex.
The first game that used motion capture to create accurate movement? Prince of Persia (1989): designer/programmer Jordan Mechner filmed his brother performing acrobatic moves and then traced over each frame. Which console is the most energy-efficient? It’s the Wii, hands down (18.4 watts versus 186.5 for Xbox 360 and 199.7 for PS3). Sonic the Hedgehog’s original name? Mr. Needlemouse. The first in-game pizza-delivery system? That honor goes to EverQuest II (2005), which let you connect to the Pizza Hut online ordering system by typing “/pizza.”
Tags: brooklyn, half, marathon
Saturday 03 May 2008 | Donna | Uncategorized
It has also been on in the UK.
I liked the sample of the guy yelling about beersicles. Real classy.
I feel like that game is Cleveland in a nutshell.
The title led me to expect something cold and frothy.
I can’t believe this guy counts “edited in England” as a flaw. What a ***** arsehole.
I want the record for the highest score in “Dig Dugg”