Hey, what's 1up?

Its-a me, VIDEO GAMES. Was there ever a time where they didn't exist? Well yes, in the 60's, but that's beside the point. For as long as I've been around, video games have been around. I grew up with them. Me, my cousins, my friends, we all grew up with video games. I remember all of us being in the room passing the control around. I remember even more vividly the overwhelming feeling of LOSING. Video games is what me realize I am competitive person.

The emotions that would consume me whenever I lost to anyone. Let's just say, it led to some problems amongst ourselves. The funny thing is every time I would lose, I would defend myself and make up excuses as to why I lost. But do you think anyone listened to me? I was the best at video games and it frustrated me to not be able to execute it. Why would I lose so much? Why were they better than me? And why did it bother me so much that?

Super Mario Bros was my favorite. Honorable mentions include Donkey Kong and Kirby. Then one day, without even realizing it, I played them for the last time. Eventually, my cousins stopped coming over and started getting older and became interested in other things. One day, I threw all the games away not knowing I'd be yearning for them again in the far future. What would I have done differently if I'd known? Would I have played longer? Would I have tossed it to the side so easily as I did? Maybe kept it for the years to come? How I wish I would've known what I know now. Oh, how I wish I would've held on to it. But even if I had held on to it longer, would that of been enough to calm the eager feeling? Would it of been enough to keep the longing at bay? I could've kept playing for years and years and still, this day would've come. I would've still found myself in the exact same spot I am now; missing it.

Now, when I look online to try to recreate those memories, it would cost me a couple hundred dollars to do so. I don't want a playstation, I don't want an xbox, I don't want a wii, I don't want a nintendo ds, I want a SUPER NINTENDO. What does one have to do to get one? Pay 200 dollars? No, thank you. I mean if it REALLY wanted one, I would pay that much, right? But TWO HUNDRED DOLLARS!? That's so much money. I could buy so many iced coffee's and skincare with that.

Then again, can you put a price on that? Video games had such an influence on me. The sound, the sayings, the aesthetic. Even in this time, the games from 20 years is also an influence in todays society. The biggest influence I watched when The Super Mario Bros movie came out. I watched it with my family and it was so nostalgic. How nostalgic it was. For some reason when I heard all the familiar sounds in the movie, it gave me such an ethereal feeling. I couldn't believe I was watching the Super Mario Bros movie. I couldn't believe how far it had gotten. I would've never believed a movie would've come from it 20 years later. Yet here I was with my little sister, my mom, my dad, my brother, his wife and my nieces and nephew. That was probably the best thing that had come from all this. The fact that I was getting to experience it with my nieces and nephew: Emma, Xavier and Bri. Now, it was something we both shared. Something in my past being shared with someone in my present. They're my favorite little humans you know? How lucky I am to have them. Even more lucky how we now share the same experience; we all liked the Super Mario Bros movie. The funny thing is my brother's name is Mario. All while growing up, that what we would call my older brother; Super Mario. That's my dad's name too but we wouldn't call him that because we dubbed that name to my brother. It just felt right.

So now here I am all these years later STILL thinking about this game and the way it makes me feel. Just hearing the "It’s-a me, Mario" puts me in the best mood. I can't explain the way every atom inside of me lights up. You know what I mean? Do you have something that does that to you? I don't know, whenever I hear it, it feels like every single thing in life is right. Funny thing is that I see it everywhere. I see it on instagram, TikTok, Facebook, twitter so it would appear it's not only influenced me. It's great! I love seeing whenever I open my phone. It wasn't always like this which is even crazier. It wasn't until after the movie came out. Before the movie, I would see it occasionally, I would see it here and there. Before then, all the rage was Fortnight, or Call of Duty, Grand theft auto. People would actually record themselves playing these games and then stream it online for the whole world to see. Which evidently is a big thing, not to me, but to other people sure. Of course, I never watched it. I would just keep scrolling, not even taking a second look. And now. Now? They're streaming the Super Mario. They're playing the Super Mario bros and streaming it online and all these people watch them do it.. including me. Now I'm one of those people that will be scrolling through TikTok and when I see someone playing it, I stop. I stop and I watch them play and suddenly I'm 12 again. Suddenly, I'm in my room with cousins and family and the world doesn’t seem so bad. Suddenly, I feel infinite.