World 0: The Schoolyard Menace (Prequel Chapter)
World 0-1: Terror of Orchard Dale Elementary
When I was three years of age, I attended preschool at the YMCA. I was accompanied by my maternal grandmother. She would often stay with me during the classes. I was already showing signs of an attention deficit. My preschool teacher, Mary Ray, seemed very concerned with my inability to remain still. She also raised concerns about my delayed motor skills. My grandmother also seemed worried. I would be entering elementary school at Orchard Dale soon enough. A possible recipe for disaster.
When thinking back upon Orchard Dale Elementary's computer lab, two words come to mind. Cold and sterile. It was devoid of the usual classroom writing utensils. Occupied instead by thinking machines. Machines that appeared to have one function only. The output of math equations to a monitor.
A few thoughts on my home life while attending Orchard Dale Elementary in 1989. I used to sit in my room listening to The Beach Boys and I would often compose my own music via a toy piano. One of the songs was entitled simply "Doors." It was just a rudimentary series of increasing and decreasing notes, but it was music to my ears at the time. The Atari 2600 Space Invaders portion of the chapter would be themed around Orson Welles' mischievous War of the Worlds radio play from 1938. I also used to play Dragster with my dad on the big oak television set in the living room. All I seem to remember of that game is burning out the race car over and over again.
My parents owned the original wood grain Atari 2600 game console, but when I was two or three years old, I disassembled it piece by piece. I was more than likely curious how the thing worked. Electronics were like magic to me back then. It was replaced by a second generation Atari 2600 in the years that followed. I still have that second generation console in storage to this day.
Atari 2600 Game Collection
World 0-2: From Rossier with Love
My time at Orchard Dale Elementary had come to an abrupt end. I was placed in a non-public school known as Rossier. It would be the first time in which I rode the little yellow school bus to school.
Rossier School is perhaps the only school I attended in which the class had a nap time. I have memories of laying down underneath the table for a period of time. This may have actually been called "quiet time." I don't seem to recall this activity taking place very often, however. It does eerily remind me of the lockdowns in later schools due to a disturbance on campus.
I remember stretching my arms backward while sitting at my desk one day, pencil in hand, when I managed to stab the teaching assistant. Until this very day, I feel as though it was an accident, but they took it very seriously.
During my return to class from a gathering in the gymnasium, I dropped the center piece of a class project I was asked to carry, and it scattered outward into the field. I quickly raced to retrieve the shattered pieces of the project before the wind carried them away. But it appeared to be a losing battle. I could not hold onto everything. As I entered the field, I was taken by surprise as a group of students jumped down from atop the playground equipment and proceeded to punch and kick me until I fell to the ground. I was unable to fight back. I instead curled desperately into a ball. Eventually, the students grew tired of their attack and dispersed. I mustered the strength to stand and then walked back to class, empty handed. I was very much confused by the incident.
My grandmother accompanied me to the Diagnostic School for a short-term assessment the week of June 24th-29th, 1990. We spent the better part of a week together in the dormitory while I was being evaluated by their staff. It was here in which I first discovered Nintendo. A little grey box that sat underneath a television in their recreation room. It was my saving grace. Through the exploration of worlds within that box, I would eventually overcome certain obstacles in my life.
In January of 1991, I began attending the Diagnostic School in Los Angeles, and thus, the Rossier School chapter came to a close. I still vaguely recall storming out of the principal's office when the final decision was made. I felt as if I had not done anything to deserve the transfer. I never took French in school, but this seems adequate: C'est la vie.
World 0: The Schoolyard Menace - OutlineWorld 1: Far From Home (Extended Cut)
[Passage 1: A reflection on preschool at the YMCA, my home life watching Mr. Rogers Neighborhood and Sesame Street (and Follow That Bird at the drive-in movie theater through the sunroof of our Chevrolet Monte Carlo), and my entrance into Orchard Dale Elementary for kindergarten]
[Passage 2: The story of Dragster for the Atari 2600, among other two player games that I played with dad on our big oak television set]
[Passage 3: My personal take on the events of first grade at Orchard Dale Elementary that ultimately led to my expulsion]
[Passage 4: A review of Space Invaders for the Atari 2600 in the style of a mischievous Orson Welles radio play]
[Passage 5: My arrival at Rossier School in the Fall of 1989, covering a few incidents in which I was on the receiving end of other students' behavior]
[Passage 6: My grandmother accompanied me to the Diagnostic Center for a week long short-term assessment. It was here that I was first introduced to Nintendo. More specifically, the NES]
[Passage 7: A review of Pac-Man for the Atari 2600. The Atari 2600's swan song]
[Passage 8: My time at Rossier School comes to an end. I was transferred to the Diagnostic Center in East Los Angeles]
[Various notes by Orchard Dale and Rossier staff goes here]
World 1-2: In My Own World
As I write my Nintendo tale woven around my place far from home in 1991, I realize I have them, and video games in general, to thank not only for helping me through times such as that, but for at times enlightening me more than any school ever could. There were a few great teachers along the way, but I never quite absorbed knowledge the same way as if I had embarked on my own personal quest outside the school system. I cannot recall all of that which was studied throughout the years, but I can recall memorable moments playing video games with friends and family, and to that end, the lessons learned in life itself.
Jackal was one of the earliest NES games I played. I have somewhat vivid memories of playing it away from home at The Diagnostic School. I would not say it is a bad game per se, but for the longest time, I thought the player drove a tank, not a jeep. A tank would have certainly been a more rad ride. I had so much fun rescuing, and sometimes abandoning, prisoners of war. Just for the record, however, they are all heroes in my eyes. What they must have endured in those prison camps is unthinkable.
The Diagnostic School had one neat little thing that made the experience slightly less terrible. Every week, if we were good, the staff offered one item to each child in a store room. I usually picked a soft drink because the cafeteria food lacked any real flavor. It was a can of Welch's Grape Soda. There were other things to pick from, too, of course.
I was attending the Diagnostic School during the 1991 total eclipse of the sun. I remember being escorted out to the blacktop to observe it through reflective water. If memory serves me correctly, it was a one-by-one kind of thing. When one student came back to the class, another was allowed to view the eclipse.
Those wretched few months seemed like an eternity, but the day came at long last to say farewell to The Diagnostic School. Of all their staff members, one stood out above the rest in my memory. Her name was Nina and I could talk to her about most anything. Beyond her, I made only one other real friend in my time there. A boy who slept in the bed nearest the hall. I would sometimes attempt to converse with him during the night, much to the dismay of the staff on duty. While I was certainly happy to see the last of that place, I did feel sad for the people I crossed paths with, never to see again. Ah, but this was not the time for reflection. Dad was waiting for me. It was time to go home.World 2: Back in the Cradle (Extended Cut)
World 2-1: Home Sweet Home
A few additional thoughts on Murphy Ranch Elementary that I am tinkering with for the opening passage of Chapter 2: My feelings about Murphy Ranch Elementary are difficult to explain. On one hand, it felt good to be rid of The Diagnostic School, but on the other hand, it felt somewhat eerie to be returning to a normal school again. I remember walking into the school from Janine Drive. My mom would drop me off there by car every morning. It was one of the few times I did not take a bus to school while growing up. From the moment I set foot on the campus, I had a sense of not belonging. But that was of course a feeling I initially had with every school that came before. I could only imagine what this chapter would hold in store for me.
Skate or Die 2: The Search for Double Trouble always amazed me as a kid. It was the first time I'd heard voiceovers in a game. It had a half-pipe you could practice on any time you wanted right from the start too. If you failed enough times, the skater would shout "No way, dude!"
I played Operation Wolf with the standard NES controller. I did just a bit of research on the subject, and it seems most people preferred that to the NES Zapper. Either way, this game stands out as a somewhat unique memory as I don't recall many other first person shooters on the NES. With the possible exception of Duck Hunt.
When I first played Dr. Mario as a kid, I often wondered how to unlock the platforming stages. It had to be Super Mario Bros. 4 in disguise!
With Super Mario Bros. 1, I liked to toy with the jump physics a lot. One Game Genie code enabled Mario to jump clear off the screen. I always wondered what, if anything, was beyond the flag pole/castle at the end of each level and with that code, I was able to find out. Not a whole lot, as it turns out. I would stick some of these memories into Nintendo Rhapsody, but I'm not even sure the Game Genie was officially approved by Nintendo.World 3: Genesis (Extended Cut)
World 3-1: I Know Those Letters
I would next attend Barbara Dawson Educational Center, where I would finally learn to read and write. I have Diane to thank for her encouragement, persistence and unique approach to instruction. I recall one book reading session in-particular for its use of non-linear progression. Diane would come to a key point in the book's story and I would be faced with two or sometimes even three choices. Each choice had a page number written beside it. Diane would then turn to the page of my choosing to continue with the story. A "choose your own adventure" story in a world filled with stories fixed in stone. My mind was suddenly set ablaze. It would be quite a number of years still before I could write well, but she laid the foundation. I gradually became more proficient with practice of my own. I missed out on so many funny mistranslated NES games, but I had a plethora of dialogue heavy games to look forward to on the SNES.
I recall one book, possibly a choose your own adventure book, about a boy that wakes up to find that the sky is green instead of blue. Perhaps a critical choice led him to awaken in another dimension/timeline.
I still vaguely remember waking up, going to the kitchen for a bowl of Cocoa Puffs and watching an episode of Fraggle Rock before school in 1991-1992. One of my favorite things about eating Cocoa Puffs was getting done with the cereal and then drinking the chocolate milk that was left behind.World 3-2: Somewhere in My Memory
A short story I wrote in a school journal back in November of 1992. It is about travelling to new places and meeting new people. There are at least a few grammar mistakes and the overall sentence structure is rough at best, but I felt it appropriate to leave the original writing more or less intact: "Once upon a time there was a space shuttle that flew through space. The space shuttle had wings and the space shuttle had missiles. The moon was a city. Pluto was a village. Jupiter was an ocean. The space shuttle landed on the moon. The people got out of the space shuttle and went to the aliens and visited. The people had fun with the aliens and decided to stay with the aliens so the people did. Then the aliens went and took the space shuttle and took off and the aliens went to Pluto and got out of the space shuttle and the aliens went to the village and visited the space people. The aliens decided to stay so the space people took the space shuttle and took off. The space people went to Jupiter and visited the ocean and so the fish and decided to stay so everybody went to a new place and liked it. The End."
I touched upon swingsets a few times throughout Nintendo Rhapsody's early chapters. Sitting alone - completely motionless - on a school swing in chapter two, and being pushed by my grandmother in a chapter three flashback. I don't think I ever talked about this little game I used to play, though. I would swing myself as far back as I could and then at the height of my swing forward, I would leap off the swingset in an attempt to cover as much distance in the air as possible. If I did that now, I would probably break a bone.World 4: Trial Separation (Extended Cut)
World 4-1: He's Got an Attitude
Mrs. Leary was my math teacher at Hillview Middle School, and due to my sometimes strange behavior, she was also my company for science, quest, art and keyboard class. While attending her math classes, I would often drift away from the problem at hand and begin writing down ideas for my own math system. I called this system Mothvision. In multiplication, one number is typically multiplied by another number. For example, two times two equals four. In Mothvision, those very same numbers would be doubled, resulting in this peculiar equation; 2m2=8. At least, that is how the system worked to the best of my memory. Needless to say, Mrs. Leary was not amused. I would still have to complete the original math problems as instructed.
My grandmother and aunt picked up my first computer from a business, to the best of my recollection, known as NET Computers. It was a custom IBM 486/66 with four megabytes of RAM. I knew next to nothing about computers in 1994. So little so that when I began playing SimCity 2000 and noticed the landscape had edges, I thought I needed more RAM to build bigger cities. I quickly upgraded to eight megabytes of RAM. SimCity 2000 remained, of course, unaffected. My aunt gave me a copy of the original SimCity and Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego. The computer itself came with Doom and Epic Pinball pre-installed in MS-DOS. Doom transported players to the one place nobody wants to go, but it was truly something else in 1994.World 4-2: Live and Learn
My counselor at Barbara Dawson Educational Center, Dana Minovitz, knew more about game design than anyone else I had the pleasure of meeting while growing up. She was engaged to a developer from Interplay Productions. A developer who would later work as a producer on the Fallout series. During one of our counseling sessions, Dana questioned my use of cheat codes in games - everything from "19, 65, 9, 17" to "IDDQD." She wondered just how the game could be engaging for me if I was always taking the easiest route. For the fun of a video game should be in overcoming certain challenges. That oh-so rewarding sensation one has once they finally succeed after sometimes hours of practice. In other words, there is nothing gained by cheating. We learn from our experiences, both good and bad, and to cheat would be to take nothing away from the lesson.
I went into some detail about my struggles with authority figures throughout Nintendo Rhapsody, but I think I omitted some of the scariest experiences due to other stories taking precedence. One particularly nasty example involves a chain smoking staff member at B.D.E.C. that would often shove students (myself included) up against a wall in his office. The scent of cigarettes was so strong, I can still smell it today. The Vice Principle of that school, the husband of the school's founder, was also a major dickhead with students. I have this one memory of being escorted to the office by a teacher's aide. The aide grabbed my hands behind my back in such a way that I accidentally kicked her from behind. The Vice Principle took this VERY seriously. I was pushed up against that very same wall while being yelled at. I tried to explain to him that it was an accident, but he wouldn't listen to reason. I certainly had some of the most unique experiences while growing up in non-public school, and they probably had an effect on the way I see the world today.
During my 1994-1995 school year at Barbara Dawson Educational Center, I was picked to be on the softball team. It was one of the highlights of my time at that school. We played a number of away games on other campuses, and at one point, I managed to hit a home run with a player on first and third. I remember how excited everyone was to hear about that. Especially Melissa.World 5: Nintendo Strikes Back (Extended Cut)
World 5-1: A Whole New World
Extended introduction for World 5: Nintendo Strikes Back: "A brand new chapter in my life was just beginning, but within my weakened psyche, I was still very much struggling to grasp the pain I felt in my heart. I experienced a whole slew of emotions previously unknown to me. I would eventually find a way to alleviate these troubling thoughts. In doing so, however, I shut out the possibility of another friend like Melissa. Another who could bring joy to my aching heart; who could bring butterflies to my stomach. It brought me great sorrow, but if there was one thing I did not want, it was to be hurt again." I ultimately decided to cut this part because I didn't want to linger on the events of World 4: Trial Separation. Still, the decision to discuss that particular life event placed the brakes on Nintendo Rhapsody for quite some time. When I finally returned to the project, I chose to ignore a few things in the forthcoming chapters that would have brought the subject back into the spotlight.
This one girl in art class kept telling everyone I had a crush on her. I always felt she was trying to make a fool of me. I eventually confronted her about it in front of other classmates, but I later felt pretty bad about doing so. I wondered if maybe it was just her way of telling me she liked me. And Ms. Tonkovich's art class was the same class where I was given the nickname 'Timmy the Toothman.' I didn't get to the bottom of that one until senior year. It seems everyone thought my name was Tim. It was also a reference to Home Improvement, no doubt.
The Controller Pak was an add-on that attached itself to the Nintendo 64 controller and allowed the player to save replay data in Mario Kart 64. Otherwise known as ghost data. This permitted the player to race against themselves in an effort to better their own times. The Controller Pak was also required for certain games to save game progress in general. I still remember going to Sears with my dad and brother to pick it up in the early spring of 1997. I was so excited while holding the box in my hands. The woman at the cash register just gave me a blind stare and said, "It's just a memory card." It was my first memory card.
I found and added a brief message from Michael Berry to the end of chapter five. The nickname I added is probably only going to make sense to anyone that knew him around campus. Michael Berry had an affection for cowboy hats and boots and he lived and breathed country music. "Have fun this summer. Cal Hi is all yours." -Michael Berry (Rhinestone Cowboy)World 5-2: The Man Behind the Curtain
After finishing Space Ruckus, I quickly began work on a second game. Space Ruckus II: Quest for Home was also made with Clickteam's Klik & Play. It was released a mere two weeks after the first game. It was at a time when I seemed to be pumping out content on a weekly basis. Space Ruckus III: In Search of Bill Grig had a slightly longer development period than the first two games. I had originally thought about making it into a comedy game. Sergeant Bill Grig would have flown his ship directly into the screen after a dramatic narration at the start of the game, causing a series of cracks to appear. At the time, I felt as though Bill Grig's story had concluded with Space Ruckus II: Quest for Home, therefore any further games would be of a more comical nature. I eventually decided it was best to do a time jump. The third game would now be set nearly twenty years in the future, and Bill Grig would take a backseat in favor of a new protagonist. Bill Grig's own son would be that protagonist. Space Ruckus IV: Dope Goomer's Revenge returned an aging Bill Grig to the starring role. When an old adversary returns from the dead, now Captain Bill Grig assembles a crew of his own to contend with him.
Near the end of junior year, Ms. Davis informed me that another student from Barbara Dawson Educational Center would be transferring over to California High School in the coming 1999-2000 school year. They would be enrolled in her first period English class. I initially wondered if, or perhaps hoped, this student might be Melissa. But as it would turn out, this student was Israel. A name unfamiliar to me at the time. I had the whole summer to think about what Israel and I would talk about. Surely, he must have a lot of interesting stories of his own from Barbara Dawson. Or as he himself would later call it, Hell.World 6: It's About Time
World 6-1: To Far Away Times
Every morning in Ms. Davis' English class, she would have a different journal assignment written on the chalkboard. It was most often in the form of a question. For example, "If you were Ms. Davis, what would you do?" The class would then be expected to write a short essay on the topic. I included an easter egg in Goalsoft's Pumpkin Seed Revenge and Pumpkin Seed Heist featuring her chalkboard and a few made up journal assignments. Ms. Davis always seemed to get a kick out of being in her own video game.
Hybrid Heaven for the Nintendo 64 was the very first RPG that I owned myself. Before I played Chrono Trigger in the early spring of 2000, I was not the biggest fan of the genre, but there was just something about Hybrid Heaven that drew me to it. Maybe it was the stealth mechanics, the alien invasion-type story or perhaps even the setting. It was set in and under the streets of New York City. Hybrid Heaven even featured a two player versus mode. The game was developed by Konami.World 6-2: Pomp and Circumstance
A brief report written by Ms. Davis on May 17th, 2000: "Michael has made some progress in the area of independent living skills, but is still apprehensive to attempt new tasks. He has independently made purchases at the grocery store, attended all field trips, worked in the cafeteria, been a teacher's assistant and made his own computer games."
I came into this life a destructive force of nature. I was, in my own way, ever curious about the world around me. I just failed to show it in an appropriate manner. Being the slow learner that I was, I would often paint my own version of reality based upon my then limited comprehension. Needless to say, I learned a lot from the school system, but much of it took place outside the classroom - on the playgrounds, in the lunch rooms, in the offices. It was the people, not the curriculum, that truly mattered. I came to the realization that I was not alone. There were students with far worse disabilities than my own, and there were staff members that legitimately cared for each and every one of them. It was a treasure trove of experiences, and at the end of the day, it matters not if they were good or bad ones. All that remains to be seen is whether or not something was learned from them. Life, itself, is an institution for learning. The ultimate school system. We pass on what we learn, and what we pass on gives others reason to learn. Graduation day looms for us all, but for now, we continue to experience, to learn and to live.World 7: The End of the Beginning (Extended Cut)
World 7-1: Uncharted Territory
GW-BASIC Program Addition to Nintendo Rhapsody World 7: Among other things, I was instructed to write a GW-BASIC program from scratch. It would prompt the user to enter a salesman's name, employee number and sales amount before printing their commission.
Two of the floppy disks I recovered data from contained schedule information and class projects for my college computer class with Mr. Davis. This particular document details the complete Fall of 2000 semester. The subject of the week and which chapters to read.
Questions like these on school tests always threw me off. It's actually two questions in one. "Within the 'My Computer' window, the letter 'C' indicates what piece of hardware; the letter 'A'?" The letter A, of course, used to indicate the presence of a 3½-inch floppy disk drive. Once we had successfully identified what the letters A and C indicated (i.e. the easy stuff), we moved on to more complex matters, like programming, "In the evaluation of computer languages, what is the low-level language, that reduces long binary numerals to shorter code, called?" I answered with "Machine Language." I think "Assembly Language" might have been a bit more accurate. This particular instructor never marked which answers were right and which were wrong, so it's hard to tell when and where I was docked points. He simply wrote "OK" at the bottom.
Someone sat in the row directly behind me in Mr. Davis' computer class who prided himself on creating domains with slightly different spellings. A popular search engine at the time, Scour, being one of them. He would thereby draw in people who misspelled a domain and use this to generate ad revenue. To this day, I cannot say whether that was evil or pure genius.
Near the start of my fall semester, I talked to a counselor about my plans for the future. It was decided that I would attend Cerritos College for two years and then transfer to a four year college.
I digitized another class schedule spreadsheet for my Fall 2000 college semester. This schedule focusing on my general routine from week to week. It seems that I spent quite a bit of time designing games for my Goalsoft web site over the three day weekends.
My introduction paper for the Math 20 instructor: "My name is Mike Haley. As a career, I want to design video games. I also want to run my own company in which I will design these video games from. At the moment, I already have a website devoted to some home made games I've done. The most popular is currently a game series called Space Ruckus. Most of these games are very amateur in looks. In the future, I want to design 3D based video and computer games. Even at the moment, I'm working on trying to make 3D games using a visual 3D graphics making program. My reason for taking math would be for me to be able to program my future games in specific computer languages since they all use mathematics. My website address is Goalsoft.cjb.net."World 7-2: Man in the Moon
I happened to come across the complete Fall 2000 semester schedule for my Math 20 class, as well as the name of the instructor (I had long since forgotten her name). I had to retype the schedule line by line since my scanner is having problems again. I will be adding this information to Nintendo Rhapsody's seventh chapter, The End of the Beginning.
I never felt as if I was truly connecting with the math teacher, Pilar Mata, during my Math 20 class sessions. Most of the classtime consisted of the teacher jotting math equations down on the chalkboard in a face forward position. I would then copy the equations onto ruled paper. I imagine this process is meant to help students retain knowledge, but it always made me feel uninspired by the work.
The week of September 26th, 2000, I was tasked with reading the sixth chapter, Storage, of Discovering Computers 2001 in the Shelly Cashman Series for Mr. Davis' computer class. I would then have to write down the definitions of various terms, such as access time, hard disk controller and data transfer rate, for my chapter six assignment due on October 2nd. Meanwhile, in my math class, I was about to embark on the fifth chapter of Essential Mathematics. A chapter dedicated to decimal numbers.
A public meeting for Goalsoft was held on September 30th, 2000 at Parnell Park. My high school friends and colleagues Marlon and Israel were both in attendance that day. We discussed, among other things, the state of Space Ruckus 6: Return of the Grigs, Quest for Zendar and my recent endeavors with RPG Maker 2000.
The group I was originally assigned to in my Career Guidance 200 course (business class) removed me for being the "weak link." They were likely afraid of not passing the course themselves. I never found another group to join and therefore could not complete the final presentations. It's not something I generally like to reminisce about for projects like Nintendo Rhapsody as it might appear as though I were blaming them for what happened next, so I don't know if it is something I should amend to the college chapter or not.
With my college class schedule extending to 4:00 PM on Tuesdays and Thursdays (Career Guidance 200 and Math 20), I would often stop at McDonald's on the way home for a burger, fries and a shake. Mathematics always seemed to give me the munchies.
I recreated a portion of my college campus in RPG Maker 2000 for an animated version of Nintendo Rhapsody's seventh chapter. The mathematics building, lecture hall and parking lot is included here. The computer science building is over to the left.
As much as I tried to stay focused on my homework assignments, I could not help but lose my train of thought on occasion. One might say that I sometimes had my head in the clouds. On this particular occasion, the train appeared to be bound for a depot in Sector 1. I was a member of an eco-warrior organization known as Avalanche and our target was the the mako reactor there. It was slowly killing the planet. My brother had a copy of Final Fantasy VII on his PlayStation. It was yet another JRPG that I had never played before. Unlike Chrono Trigger or Chrono Cross, the battles did not happen when you encountered an enemy on-screen. The battles occurred entirely at random. This was something that took me a long time to get used to. I played through the opening bombing mission of Final Fantasy VII the first time I tried the game, but would not finish it for many years to come. Indeed, it would be many years before I discovered the joys of The Gold Saucer, what was lurking in the depths of Gaia's ocean, and just how much of a prick Sephiroth was. "You gotta understand, there ain't no getting offa this train we on till we get to the end of the line." -Barret Wallace
I finally rediscovered the complete schedule for Romero's Career Guidance (C.G. 20) class. I found it among a stack of old stapled papers. This is the class I have sometimes referred to simply as business class. I now have all three classes from that Fall of 2000 semester documented and included with the seventh chapter of Nintendo Rhapsody.
As busy as I was with Goalsoft, I still found time to write into Nintendo Power for their September 2000 issue, and for the very first time, I was featured in their Player's Pulse.
Toward the end of my time at Cerritos College, I applied for additional academic help. I remember rather clearly some of the questions during the evaluation process. I was asked about the swinging apparatus inside of a grandfather clock. At the time, I knew very little about grandfather clocks. I did seem to recall one level in Super Mario 64 with such a thing. I muttered something like "Ock." The correct answer, of course, is a pendulum.
I scanned in my ID cards from Cerritos College for the fall semester and the spring sememster. I added them to chapter seven of Nintendo Rhapsody. The ID card for the spring semester is perhaps a bit of an oddity now. I had no classes that semester.
Here's a little something from my Career Guidance class from the week of September 26th, 2000. It's a Myers-Briggs Type Indicator. It deals with the way in which I used my perception and judgement, and how I gathered information and made decisions.World 8: Pros and Cons (Extended Cut)
Reported Type: INFJ (Introverted Intuition with Feeling)
Preference Scores:
Introversion - 15 (Moderate)
Intuition - 23 (Moderate-Clear)
Feeling - 9 (Slight-Moderate)
Judging - 3 (Slight)
World 8-1: Home Sweet Home Again
In the months following my exit from Cerritos College, TechTV became one of my primary sources for news from the technology sector. TechLive broadcasted throughout the day, and would often discuss computer and Internet related topics, as well as the state of the stock market. I found myself invested in stocks such as Microsoft, Apple, and of course, Nintendo. It was perhaps the only time in my life in which I took such an interest in the stock market.
It 'twas that most joyful time of the year again. A time of merry; a time of cheer. Dad had strung lights abound with great care, the stockings were nestled gently beside the tree rich with marvelous decorations, while simply enchanting melodies played on the disc player. One could only sit and wonder about that which lied beneath the tree. (Christmas 2001 and the four GameCube games that defined it: Luigi's Mansion, Super Smash Bros. Melee, Star Wars: Rogue Squadron II and Wave Race: Blue Storm)
I played through Luigi's Mansion twice because I wanted to get the perfect mansion. You have to collect EVERYTHING. Leave no stone unturned. "When the ghouls come out at night, and everyone is filled with fright, who are you gonna call? Why, Luigi of course."
My first thoughts on Super Mario Sunshine (as a title) were not so great. I thought "Sunshine" was a bit bizarre at the time, and couldn't quite picture myself walking into Toys"R"Us to ask for it. Obviously, I overcame that feeling.World 8-2: Lost at Sea
An introduction for Mark Gillie (meelWORM). An online colleague with whom I shared a number of antics and hijinx. From the moment he first entered into the agigames.com chat, I could tell that our brains operated on the same frequency. We shared the same spark of creativity, and more than that, a common interest in mischief. Our brains were so alike, we often finished each others' sentences. We were, in short, diabolical together.
The continuing adventures of Mark Gillie, and how for but a brief moment in time, we had the whole adventure game community turning heads with a persona named Conrad Sheldon. A grammar challenged character who, ironically, made me realize that my own grammar was in serious need of improvement.
Space Ruckus 6: Return of the Grigs proved to be more of a challenge than I first thought. I produced a number of 3D models and animations for the project, but it ultimately fell short of becoming an actual game. With the aim of creating a somewhat professional game all around, I began to wonder if it might just be better to reboot the whole series. I grew increasingly worried about players going back to Space Ruckus 1-5 after playing Space Ruckus 6. It would be an understatement to say they had not aged well. Thus, I shifted my time and resources over to Space Ruckus: The Great Invasion, a remake of the first game with the help of a few other up-and-coming developers.
Space Ruckus 6 ultimately never materialized, but a few assets from pre-production were shared on the Goalsoft site.
The story of Legend Fighter, a movie adapted from an unused game idea of mine that I worked on alongside Israel. Also, the story of Low Income, a series of low-budget mockumentary videos starring Israel. While dropping Israel off at his apartment complex after filming the first Low Income episode, he gave me a glimpse of the FMV sequences present in the Sony PlayStation version of Chrono Trigger. I would not come into possession of that version of the game for at least a few more years.
The story of Grand Theft Auto 3: I first played this on my brother's PlayStation 2 (which itself was a Christmas gift from the year earlier). It reminded me of high school friend Anthony. *nostalgic flashback plays here*
A passage about the PC versions of Grand Theft Auto 3, Vice City and San Andreas (possibly for World 9: Reboot).
Sword Quest 4: Resurrection, my fourth endeavor with RPG Maker 2000, deals with the recovery of the pieces of the Ienlander sword, which was destroyed at the end of Sword Quest 3: Dimensional Drift. Somehow, it came into the possession of a king travelling abroad, and while transporting it across the sea to his kingdom, his ship is ambushed by thieves. They murder the king and take the pieces of the sword into their possession and it is not long before the descendants of the chosen ones learn of this, putting a plan into action to recover the sword before it is reassembled and the world once again falls into ruin for another one thousand years.
The original Goalsoft Retrospective on the subject of high school friend and colleague Marlon Castillo: "Marlon Castillo, much like Mike Haley, had a dream about designing computer games. Regardless of where he went, he carried a binder full of notes. Tunchiza was his most cherished story. It featured a world in great turmoil. An evil wizard had formed an army of soldiers, who were bent on ravaging every last resource. Meanwhile, three heroic teenagers set out on a quest to find a mystical being known as Zendar, who could restore peace. In the spring of 1999, Marlon Castillo met up with Mike Haley, who loved the notes. Mike Haley invited him to join Goalsoft. He had one small suggestion about Tunchiza though; change the name to Quest for Zendar. Mike Haley began programming Quest for Zendar, while Marlon Castillo revised his notes. However, similar to the troubled world that they were creating, trouble was brewing for the project itself. Mike Haley had recently begun programming a Space Ruckus sequel. Thus, he could not dedicate enough time to Quest for Zendar. Marlon Castillo wasn't going to let his beloved story die, so he attempted to program the game himself. It wasn't long before he gave up. Sadly, Quest for Zendar was cancelled. In 2001, Marlon Castillo became the interviewer for the Goalsoft Magazine. He interviewed several Goalsoft developers, including Dave Smith and Jordan Calder. Marlon Castillo still looks back on Quest for Zendar, and hopes that it will come to light someday."
Marlon's thoughts on the one year anniversary of Goalsoft's rebuilt (2.0) web site: "We've been online awhile now, about four years. I remember when the web site looked really ugly and then Mike lost everything, so we decided to start all over again. Now look at us and what we have become."
A brief mention of Marlon's rebooted Quest for Zendar, which I worked on for a few weeks in the summer of 2003. It ultimately didn't get very far. I spent most of my time building a rather complex menu system. This section could actually serve as an emotional farewell to Marlon (as he departed Goalsoft shortly afterward). I never went into detail about the original Quest for Zendar project in Chapter 6, after all. It might also be a good idea to restore Marlon's original script and game title (Tunchiza). I changed the story so much over the years to suit game design needs that Marlon's original vision has become somewhat lost to time. "A hundred years ago in the Korak era there was a magician who believed that there was another dimension. This man is known as Enelsos. He wrote, that in order to find the other side of the world, you must find a man that is capable of such power. His name is Zendar." -Marlon Castillo - Tunchiza, Chapter 1
A few thoughts about the state of Goalsoft near the end of 2002: Goalsoft appeared to be in a period of hypernation for the time being. The last "game" to be released was Swashblood Isle II's demo in January of 2002 with no more releases that year. Web updates continued throughout the year, but they focused on lesser projects.
I am still trying to wrap my head around more ideas for Nintendo Rhapsody. Somehow, it's not easy finding the words for the introduction to the GameCube, Luigi's Mansion, etc. I still need to write up a nice passage about Space Ruckus colleague Mark/meelWORM for that very same chapter too. I've been wrestling with how to end that chapter. I thought about a flashback to how I first received the Nintendo Entertainment System, but I honestly don't remember the specifics, so it would feel a bit forced to be honest.
I prepared to set sail for a new adventure in computing. My first truly professional game project. Space Ruckus: The Great Invasion.
Reflecting on the Conrad Sheldon game that went into development shortly after the truth was revealed about the Chris Cromer's AGI Message Forum shenanigans. The Big Con was itself an AGI game, and it was being designed with AGI Studio. I used another AGI character as the base for Conrad Sheldon's AGI cells, and slowly filled in the changes. Conrad Sheldon was given a pair of broken glasses, a blue striped shirt and gray pants. The project struggled to keep momentum going, and I eventually shifted my focus over to Space Ruckus: The Great Invasion.
I am still searching for a suitable message from Chris Cromer to add to the end of the eighth chapter. I would honestly rather it be a message about his CBB message board system than Conrad Sheldon. I think he has had more than enough representation over the years. I went into this chapter looking to flesh out a few general thoughts about my prankster friend Mark (meelWORM) and my time moderating for Chris Cromer's AGI Message Forum. Both of which seem to be rarely documented. And Chris Cromer's AGI Web Site would appear to be lost to time now.World 9: Reboot
World 9-1: Little Boy Blue
Goalsoft had come a long way from its humble beginnings with Clickteam's Klik & Play. My initial goal of building a simple space shooter had evolved into so much more. Goalsoft had since undertaken everything from point and click adventures to turn-based RPGs. As the VP of Goalsoft and Chairman of RPGs, Marlon Castillo, wrote in his yearly press release for 2001, "We are expanding faster than ever before and have a vast community of visitors. In the future we will grow and grow and someday make professional games." That day would appear to have arrived. I had begun work on Space Ruckus: The Great Invasion, a modern 3D reboot of my very first computer game. It would be Goalsoft's ultimate test. Our first truly professional game. And it would be designed with a whole new group of developers. Mark, my fellow moderator and whimsical friend from Chris Cromer's AGI Message Forum, would serve as the game's assistant designer. Ass. designer for short. His expertise in the field of programming would almost certainly prove useful to the project. He had previously, and perhaps most notably, designed a series of desktop applications during his college years. A brand new chapter was just beginning, not unlike the school chapters that came before. Despite the ongoing pressures of game design, I would still find time for other things in my life. I continued to correspond with my middle school friend and pen pal, Melissa, through old fashioned letters of a handwritten nature. It was a joy to see something new in my mailbox every few weeks. We would come to find that we still had much in common. I also still found time to watch television on occasion. I had discovered a new program on the Discovery Channel that seemed to peak my interest. It was known as Mythbusters. Various myths and urban legends were put to the test by Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman. They were my new science teachers. My very explosive science teachers. And of course, I would still find time to play the Nintendo GameCube. Mario Party 5 and Mario Kart: Double Dash!! had just recently joined my collection, and they would soon be seeing quite a bit of playtime. Especially once my nephews and nieces arrived for the holidays. Let the games continue.
Space had fascinated me from the time of childhood. Every star offered a new possibility in a void that appeared to stretch onward into infinity. Throughout my childhood, my dad would bring home trinkets from his workplace at Rockwell International. Everything from display models of the space shuttle to buttons and pins. My dad always seemed so proud of them. After all, he did play an instrumental part in constructing the actual shuttles. He helped craft the sheet metal that would eventually be used on the outer shell of those space crafts. I may not have said it at the time, but I was quite proud of my dad and the work he did for Rockwell International. I could only imagine the amount of work that went into what he did. The capacity of my own abilities were of a far more limited scope by comparison. I had however begun to develop a talent for writing and storytelling. Naturally, one of the storytelling settings I was most fond of exploring was that of outer space. The sheer vastness of the cosmos filled my head with an abundance of ideas for stories. With my sights now set on rebooting Space Ruckus, I wasted no time drafting a treatment of the game's story. Bill Grig would soar through the stars once more. My boy would finally reach his full potential.
I'd like to begin the chapter with a fresh retrospective on my school years. Perhaps a bit of remorse for the way things ended at Cerritos College (a continuation of what I wrote at the start of Chapter 8). It would also touch on a few friends over the years and such.
As the name implies, the subject of World 9: Reboot is Space Ruckus: The Great Invasion, the reboot to my Space Ruckus series. It might be fun to begin the chapter with a retelling and expansion of the first chapter introduction to Nintendo Rhapsody. Similar to how World 3: Genesis began with "In the beginning, there was the Magnavox Odyssey." It was ultimately a chapter about Sega Genesis, but it had a bit of a twist.
Chapter 9: Reboot will more than likely cover another Nintendo GameCube game or two, as well as a few more non-Nintendo (Nontendo?) games. I might have a place for Psychonauts and Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. I had this one friend back then who basically told me to stop playing GTA games. I'll just say that they were very religious.
A brief inclusion for my nephews and nieces, who I would entertain on Christmas Eve with games like Mario Party 4 and 5 and Super Smash Bros. Melee.World 9-2: Palpitations
One of Goalsoft's slogans was "we make making games fun." Fun was something that I felt a good game company needed to thrive. Without it, work would just be work, and developers would never find that special spark of creativity. In the years that followed, I seemed to lose sight of that. Space Ruckus: The Great Invasion was lacking that "fun" factor. It felt more like a grind most of the time. We had milestones to reach and deadlines to meet. Sadly, it was never fulfilling in any truly meaningful way.
A section dedicated to my early experiences with the original Psychonauts in 2005. It may even be fun to write a passage set in my own mental realm. A realm that could consist of things from childhood school experiences. This section could possibly end with a Bill Hicks quote. "The world is like a ride at an amusement park, and when you choose to go on it, you think it's real, cause that's how powerful our minds are. And the ride goes up and down and round and round; it has thrills and chills and it's very brightly colored and it's very loud and it's fun... for a while."
While working on Space Ruckus: The Great Invasion, I would sometimes take a walk over to Starbucks for a cup of their venti, their largest coffee at the time. Dad would often accompany me on these walks. On one of those occasions, we stopped by the park playground on the way back. I was surprised by how agile he seemed that day. Moving around and navigating the equipment with ease. This was also about the time I began to experience my heart palpitations. It may have been a combination of the strong coffee, lack of exercise and anxiety.
Chapter 5: Nintendo Strikes Back closed with a flashforward to my time working on Space Ruckus: The Great Invasion. I will more than likely flesh out some of these details for Chapter 9: Reboot. "As I tugged and pulled on the Master Sword, something strange began to happen. A beam of energy surrounded me. It engulfed my very essence. A bearded sage appeared before me. He informed me that seven years had come to pass in the blink of an eye. He said that he would do everything in his power to help me, but that I needed to explain my condition in more detail. A less than stellar development period on Space Ruckus: The Great Invasion, a reboot of my first computer game, had led to an ever worsening habit of coffee drinking. One cup of the tallest Starbucks beverage had suddenly sent my heart racing. The year was 2005. The sage, who answered to dad, was with me while I underwent a few EKG tests at the hospital. I was given an X-Ray of my chest, a treadmill test and a prescription of Lorazepam, an anxiety-disorder medication. It would ultimately prove to be psychological in nature, but the tests gave me peace of mind."
World 9 Finale: Dad and I just happened to drive over to Best Buy on the morning of the Nintendo Wii's launch. There was a long line outside the store, and we decided to stand in it (not really knowing what it was for initially). A store clerk eventually came around and gave everyone a ticket. We were just a bit too far back in the line to receive one. When we finally entered the store, I got my first look at the Nintendo Wii and its peripherals as other customers were picking it up. I felt more than a bit disheartened. It was at that moment that I became determined to secure a console for myself. I didn't leave the store completely empty handed that day, however. I bought a new high definition TV to replace my old standard definition TV set. Dad was waiting for me. It was time to go home.World 10: The Telltale Heart
World 10-1: Rock, Paper, Scissors
I found my Nintendo Wii two days after launch. The lady at GameStop was glad I was the one who showed up in store and not this other potential buyer (he seemed a bit hostile over the phone).
Nintendo Wii and Dad's brief return to gaming with Wii Sports (Bowling) and Wii Sports Resort (Bowling).
This chapter will begin and end with Wii Sports Bowling (in November of 2006 with the original Wii Sports and in August of 2009 with Wii Sports Resort). A game that I played exclusively with my dad.
The Telltale Heart is going to be a bit packed, I think, because it is meant to explore Telltale Games, the conventions and the lingering Space Ruckus: The Great Invasion project, but I also need to talk about the three Paper Mario games released up to that point, as well as Super Mario Galaxy and Twilight Princess. Oh, and the Wii Virtual Console. "So long, Bowser. You're stardust."
Exploring Fry's Electronics and assembling my first custom built PC. Fry's was like a candy store for geeks. Every computer part you could possibly imagine was sold there.
Regarding Telltale: I, like many others, was regarded as a superfan of sorts. I was always trying to become involved in the projects being worked on at Telltale. Looking back, I think I was an overzealous fan; perhaps even rabid. But, more than anything else, I just wanted to be a part of something, and my heart was with Telltale.
A brief introduction to social media. The latest revolution sweeping the Internet at the time (2008). I started out on MySpace before also creating Facebook and Twitter accounts. The latter of which (Twitter) was due in large part to Telltale Games using Twitter that July to promote their Comic-Con events. I wanted to seem as cool as they were.
With the Super Mario RPG remake on its way to Switch, I should probably flesh out a section on the original game for Nintendo Rhapsody. I was reluctant to talk about it for the sixth chapter because the first time I played the game, it was via SNES emulation on a PC.
From a very young age, I remember crafting paper airplanes, and much to my elementary school teachers' dismay, tossing them freely around the classroom. My understanding of aerodynamics was virtually nonexistent, but the planes were still more than capable of putting someone's eye out. It would be many years before a video game captured the spirit of this prepubescent activity. That game was none other than Paper Mario.
A thought or two on those picture pop-up books from elementary school. The kind that pop up and outward as you fully open the page, revealing a three dimensional picture.
A section on Kita/Fawful/MC that begins with a poetic passage about art and how therapeutic it can be. "An artist's canvas is like a window into another world. A world free from the sorrow we often find in this one. Micheal would paint the world the way in which they wanted to see the world."World 10-2: Player Two
This would be an amazing find if I could verify that I wasn't just messing with the Nintendo Power staff for a spot in Player's Pulse. Also, my dad did not create the Virtual Boy. I dodged a Bullet Bill there. "I was playing Super Mario Galaxy when my Dad said to me, 'You know, Mario can't be going on adventures forever. He should settle down in Italy, marry a nice woman, and have some kids.' At first I dismissed it as a silly thought, but as he told me more, I started to agree! Could you pass this on to Miyamoto the next time you see him? Or possibly publish a line of Super Mario Super Romance novels? I guarantee that this would be a great business move, and when Super Mario's Island of Love is a bestseller, you'll have me to thank!" -Michael H. "By any chance, did you or your dad create the Virtual Boy?" -Nintendo Power Editor
I attended San Diego Comic-Con for the first time on July 26th, 2008. While I did not have a booth of my own, I brought my Space Ruckus: The Great Invasion materials with me to present to people at the convention. Naturally, I spent much of my time hanging around the Telltale Games booth, picking the minds of their developers. It was only a matter of time before the subject of Monkey Island came up. I asked about a possible sequel at both the Telltale Games booth and the LucasArts booth. It would be another year before Telltale Games' Tales of Monkey Island game was finally announced. I later attended their panel in Room 4. Sam & Max, Strong Bad, and the Secrets Behind Turning Comics into Games. Strong Bad's Cool Game for Attractive People, one of their newest games at the time, was a highlight of that panel. After the panel concluded, I caught up with Sam & Max creator, Steve Purcell, and walked with him back to the Telltale Games booth. He was scheduled to do a signing there. I had some of my own Sam & Max merchandise signed. Later that afternoon, I shared the same space with Peter Mayhew (Star Wars' Chewbacca) and a fairly lifelike Dalek from Doctor Who.
This section was difficult to write, seeing as this friend misunderstood things time and time again, eventually going so far as wishing karma and justice on me and my friends, but I thought I might at least give this a try without sinking to his level. He became so involved in my life that it is almost impossible to write around him: During a recent visit to my local park zoo, I happened to spot a bird that resembled Brady Culture from Sam & Max: Season One. I regretted not having my Sony Camcorder on hand that day and vowed to return to the park in an effort to prove its existence for the Telltale Games forum community. Sure enough, "Brady Featherly" showed up for the camera. I decided to take a few photographs of the other zoo animals while I was there. I managed to coerce the old pig to come out from his pen. This drew the attention of another parkgoer. He told me that he rarely saw the pig emerge from his slumber. He appeared to have a keen fondness for animals. We chatted for what seemed like an hour. When I was all set to walk home, he accompanied me down the block. We discussed a variety of subjects. He even felt comfortable enough in my company to open up about his life. I tried to share a few stories from my own troubled life, including my time spent at Barbara Dawson Educational Center. When we finally parted ways, it was well past dinnertime. Dad was beginning to wonder where I was. The pizza he had ordered was getting cold. I explained to him that I had lost track of time while chatting with someone I met at the park. His name was John and he had a rather vast set of interests. More than anything else, he loved fitness and nature and the chance to combine the two. He loved eighties new wave music. Tears for Fears being one of his favorite bands from that time period. He was particularly fond of their song Mad World. He was most partial to these lyrics, "Went to school and I was very nervous. No one knew me, no one knew me. Hello teacher, tell me what's my lesson. Look right through me, look right through me." It had something to do with his own school experiences. His most cherished television show was I Love Lucy. One of the very first television programs. He deeply related to Desi Arnaz's character, Ricky. John's first language was Spanish and Ricky often spoke it on the show. Buenos días, Señor Ricardo. John's favorite film franchise was Hellraiser. A fact that few would ever mistake. John often quoted the movies aloud. He would say ever so vibrantly in the voice of Pinhead, "We have such sights to show you," and "Feel free, explore!" John was a virtual stranger to the video game world. His family owned a ColecoVision and Nintendo Entertainment System when he was but a small boy. He once recounted a time in which he played the original Super Mario Bros. with his long lost brother, Louie. Louie identified with Luigi, having a very similar sounding name. He would therefore grant his little brother, Johnny, the use of Mario for their game sessions. Deep underneath it all, beneath the various interests and joyous memories, John harbored a pain I knew not how to heal. It often manifested in the form of resentment for his neighbors and those closest to him. He was hurting on the inside and he needed someone to be there for him through it all. It was sometimes best to just let him talk it out on our long nature walks. I always felt as though interrupting him would be a bad idea. There were a few times I did try to very delicately change the subject. Despite this challenge, our friendship would continue to grow over the years. I would like to think I learned something about patience from these experiences.
Space Ruckus: The Great Invasion had entered a rather dormant development period. I continued to update the web site and development center behind the scenes, but many of the game's developers had come and gone. It was not long before I began to fear for the future of the project. In the spring of 2009, I put a plan into motion to jumpstart development. It would ultimately be the project's Hail Mary pass. One last ditch effort to save Space Ruckus: The Great Invasion. I began work on a fresh outline for every scene in the game. Micheal Cross would then animate these outlines into a storyboard for use by the 3D modelers. Gordon Wallace had long since departed the project, and thus, a new 3D modeler was brought aboard to model these storyboards. His name was Joe Rugar. Nearing the summer of 2009, I made a plan to release a teaser trailer for the game in the coming months. I felt it would help renew interest in the project. Progress had slowed on the storyboard's production, so I asked Micheal Cross if they could produce a set of storyboards specifically for use in the teaser. Micheal Cross was my hero. They delivered the teaser trailer storyboards and I handed them off to our 3D modeler and music composer. Trevor Howard composed the perfect track for the trailer. It was positively eerie. It was the precise mood I was going for when writing the storyboard descriptions. Joe Rugar was slower in delivering the 3D models necessary for the teaser, but I was certain that he would come through in due time. This was, after all, the most progress the Space Ruckus: The Great Invasion project had experienced in a number of years. And for once, time appeared to be on our side. With the summer of 2009 in full swing, I thought it might be a good time to challenge my dad to another round of Wii Sports Bowling. Wii Sports Resort had just released for the Nintendo Wii. It featured a whole new set of sports, alongside the existing ones. Bowling was the only sport that dad and I would play together, however. He had not lost his magic touch in the three years since the original Wii Sports. Dad still possessed the upper hand when it came to the game's motion controls. As usual, he was a master bowler. As we finished our final round, I made him promise we would give this a try more often - but time, as it would seem, had other plans.
I had a dream shortly after my dad's passing in 2009 in which he suddenly stopped our car, walked around to the driver's side door, kneeled before me and said something to the effect of, "I can't drive anymore. You'll have to take over from here." I then tried to ask him where he was going, but I couldn't seem to get a straight answer from him. I thought this might work perfectly at the end of Chapter 10.
My new twenty-four speed bicycle was coming in handy for getting around town quickly. It was also a good source of exercise. Something I definitely needed more of at the time. I would often stop by a few local parks on these outings in an attempt to clear my head. I found myself thinking back on my troubled school years an awful lot. Contemplating different choices I could have made. The ongoing Space Ruckus: The Great Invasion project was also weighing heavily on my mind. It had been lingering in development for several years now. My dad had recently been feeling under the weather too. He seemed to have far less energy than usual and he said that food didn't taste quite right. I remembered telling him that I didn't think it tasted right either. I didn't want him to feel bad about it. I figured it was a stomach flu and that it would pass in a week or two. I enjoyed those brief moments of zen at the park so much that I felt almost saddened when it was finally time to ride home. I painfully collected my bicycle. Dad was waiting for me. It was time to go home. It was time to face the final chapter.World 11: Going Home
World 11: Going Home (Cover Art)
World 11-1: Bread and Butter
Diagnostic School Flashback: When I was eight years of age, I lived away from home five out of seven days a week for a period of six months in East Los Angeles at a facility known simply as The Diagnostic School. On Friday afternoons, I would be released to spend the weekends at home with family. Every Sunday at 5:00 PM, I would have to return to The Diagnostic School for the forthcoming week. Once there, I had to eat cafeteria food. I grew to loathe cafeteria food. On those particular nights, however, I would often choose a bag of Skittles. I hated Skittles. I greatly preferred M&Ms, but Skittles was all that they seemed to have. I would sit on the far corner of the cafeteria, my back to the window, eating my bag of Skittles. All the while, dreading the days and week ahead. I peered out into the darkness of the night every so often. Every night, I slept in a room with other children such as myself. It was arranged somewhat like a dormitory. When I was bored and could not sleep, I would make funny sounds to pass the time. This often garnered the attention of a staff member monitoring from just outside the room. I would then be asked to stand in the hallway with my face to the wall for a few minutes. A friend of mine slept in the bed nearest the hall, and I would sometimes attempt to talk with him during these periods of discipline. On a few rare occasions, the staff member on duty that night would forgo this penalty and instead drag me down to the padded room at the end of the hall. Once inside, the staff member would lock the door and turn out the light, leaving me in pitch blackness. It was a frightening experience unlike any other. Desperate to see light of any kind, I tried to peer through the small viewing window in the door. My friendly chaperone for the night became wise to this activity most of the time, and also shut out the light in the corridor just outside the darkened room. It was for my own good, I was told. If I learned to behave, I would be allowed to return to the bedroom. Each day, I attended classes per usual. These were one-on-one experiences. An assistant was always present during hours of study. There were no windows in this room. More than likely to prevent unnecessary distractions. A star system was used to reward students for hard work. I used these stars to purchase items from the school store. More often than not, I chose a can of Welch's Grape Soda. It was one of the few saving graces of The Diagnostic School. Soon, it would be time to eat from the cafeteria again. I braced myself for the sludge mine. I was escorted back to the bedroom to wash up before lunch. I was all set to head for the cafeteria when I was told that I had a visitor waiting for me out in the hall. I rarely received visitors in the middle of the week, so this came as a legitimate surprise. My eyes lit up wide when I realized who it was. On leave from a jury summons in Los Angeles, my dad had stopped by to surprise me. With a smile planted firmly across my face, I quickly rushed out to greet him. Dad had arranged to take me out to lunch that day. There would be no cafeteria food on this day. No, on this day, we were to eat like kings. We were going to McDonald's for a burger and fries. It was the sweetest burger and fries I ever ate in my life. And I am not just saying that because of the sludge I had to endure at The Diagnostic School. It was because I was spending time with my dad. It was truly one of those rare whisked away on a magic carpet ride moments. One which I will never forget. The only thing that made me feel sad was that it had to come to an end. I would have to return to The Diagnostic School at the end of our little field trip. And I could tell that my dad was as broken up about this as I was. We would have to part ways. It was almost too much for either of us to bear. "Bread and butter," my dad often said aloud when our locked hands met a pole. It meant I have to let go now, but it won't be forever. It won't be forever.
I came back from a bicycle trek one afternoon to find my two brothers conversing in the living room. I knew not about what at first.
Death; the proverbial reset button. My life counter read zero and those terrifying words appeared before me: Game Over. I had only just begun my adventure, but now, it looked as though it were at an end. Untimely as it may be. Peace would eventually come to the lands I fought for. Of that much I was certain. However, it would be without my guiding hand. Just as everything went dark, I knew the final hour had arrived. I pressed the reset button on the Nintendo Wii and congratulated dad on a good game of Super Smash Bros. Brawl. Next, I would challenge him to a round of bowling in my newly purchased Wii Sports Resort. He had not lost his magic touch in the three years since the original Wii Sports. Dad still possessed the upper hand when it came to the game's motion controls. As usual, dad was a master bowler. As we finished our final round, I made him promise we would give this a try more often - but time, as it would seem, had other plans.
Seeing as I never used the Counselor Dana memory in Nintendo Rhapsody proper (see "The Lost Archives"), I could possibly use it in World 11 (as a thought provoking flashback that seemingly ties into later events): "My counselor, Dana, was engaged to an employee from Interplay. I forget just who for the moment, but she knew a lot more about game design than anyone else I had the pleasure of meeting while growing up. She questioned my use of cheat codes, whether it be "19, 65, 9, 17" or "IDDQD." For the fun of a video game should be in the learning curve, not the easy route." In other words, there is nothing gained by cheating in life. We learn from our experiences, and to cheat would be to take nothing away from the lesson. Those lessons are sadly sometimes quite brutal, leaving us with a number of unanswered questions, but still we persevere. And in doing so, we grow stronger.World 11-2: I Love All Y'all
"Remember him how he was, not how he is." -Paul Haley
I don't know if I was ever very clear on just how tear-jerking the final chapter will be. I will use it as a means to reflect on the chapters that came before while talking to dad in his Hospice room. Therefore, it will include reflections on playing the original Super Mario Bros. on NES with dad, various SNES gaming memories, Wii Sports and others. I had to mentally prepare myself each and every time I was about to enter that Hospice room.
Life is the biggest adventure. Mine began most unusually. I glimpsed a wondrous light at the end of a tunnel, but could not follow as a result of my umbilical cord. It had become wrapped around my neck and the more I struggled to free myself, the tighter it became. My time in the womb flashed before my eyes. Soon, I began to lose consciousness. A strange tingling sensation was followed by a strong shift in vibration. I then felt myself go limp. I had died. My heart had stopped and my adventure had seemingly come to an end. Yet I could still hear the melody I enjoyed listening to in the womb. I may not have known what a boat was or just how to row it, but I could almost picture them in my mind. Just like that, I found myself in a majestic place. I was sitting beside a beautiful body of water. Numerous living organisms were rooted into the ground. They had bright colored tips growing from their arms. Some of the tips brushed away and fell into the water below. The water carried them to shore. It was simply astonishing. I was suddenly filled with overwhelming joy as a magnificent being appeared, as if from nowhere, and sat beside me. She asked in a loving voice, "Do you come here often?" I replied with a smile, "Actually, this is my first time." She smiled back and said, "You couldn't have picked a better time. The cherry blossoms are in full bloom." I looked her in the eyes and said, "It really is quite lovely. I wish it were like this every day." She glanced down at the palm of my hand and said, "Is that a fortune cookie?" I was, at first, hesitant to reveal its contents, but I finally budged and said, "Why, yes. I ate lunch over there and this was in my order. It reads: Today will be a very good day. Today you will find your destiny." She gave me a blind stare and said, "Well?" Confused, I replied, "Well... what?" She said with a smile across her face, "Did you find your destiny?" I replied with butterflies in my stomach, "I believe so, yes." With a certain gleam in her eyes, she said, "My name is Noemi. What's yours?" I said with a happy heart, "Aratana Hajimari, but you can call me Mike." Noemi smiled and said, "Well, it's nice to meet you, Mike." She stood up, and as magnificently as she appeared, was set to leave. I said in a frantic hurry, "Wait, will I ever see you again?" Noemi chuckled and said, "I come here every day at the same time, so there's a pretty good chance." It was a very good day. I found Noemi and was filled with indescribable feelings. It must have been like riding a bicycle. Once I learned, I never truly forgot. I had not died. I had merely graduated. No longer did I need Nintendo to soothe my aching heart. I could finally spread my wings and fly away. I was suddenly surrounded in light. I felt a great sense of joy and peace, but more than anything, an overwhelming sense of love. It was a state of being not unlike nirvana. I slowly began to regain consciousness and found myself to be in a room full of caring beings. They seemed very concerned with my condition. I was injected with a saline solution while my head was covered in a warm cap. One of the beings approached me and said while trying his best to contain a tear, "We thought we had lost you, Mikey!" He appeared to possess a brighter glow than the rest. I remained in intensive care for quite sometime thereafter, but I was eventually allowed to leave. Dad was waiting for me. It was time to go home. It was time to enter the third dimension.
It's not always about where we are. It's about who we are, and who we're with. (while thinking back upon experiences at such places as Barbara Dawson Educational Center)
World 11 Footnote Messages:World 12: Happier Trails
"I started reading Nintendo Rhapsody not too long ago. I'm on World Four. Very insightful and introspective writing. Well done!"
-Colin Fleming (High School Alumni)
"Finished your post. FYI, I left Calhi junior year. Calhi failed us on so many levels. But yes there are many things to be found of. I do enjoy your time capsule of work and writing. And Tonkovich was a diamond in the rough for sure! I graduated from Sierra Vista home schooling rather quickly after leaving and continuing work credits." -Roy Hemphill (High School Alumni)
World 12-1: Lean on Me
If I should ever write as far as the twelfth chapter of Nintendo Rhapsody, I imagine it will focus primarily on the Nintendo DS. I brought it with me on numerous nature treks and other outdoor adventures beginning in March of 2010. It was a difficult time not long after my dad passed away. I feel as though I was trying to find myself again.
The Nintendo DS feels just old enough now to be considered nostalgic. I picked up the XL in March of 2010, and for about a year or so, it was my primary camera. I brought it with me to the filming locations for Back to the Future, to Comic-Con and various bicycle treks along the San Gabriel River. For those longer treks along the San Gabriel, I loaded up the Nintendo DS with music converted into AAC format via my PC. Queen's Bicycle Race comes to mind. I think I had Creedence Clearwater Revival (CCR) albums on there too. I owned only a handful of games for the Nintendo DS. Those games being Chrono Trigger, Final Fantasy III, New Super Mario Bros. and Sonic Chronicles. Game & Watch Collection was a freebie via Club Nintendo. There were also two Brain Age Express games packed into the system, alongside Photo Clock. Photo Dojo was another Nintendo DS freebie I had fun with for awhile. It was not easy trying to coordinate friends to pose for the character movesets, but it certainly made for some laughs. I seem to have lost those pictures when everything transferred over to the Nintendo 3DS.Is this Tomodachi Life? Is this just Final Fantasy? Caught in a penguin's slide. No escape from virtual reality.
Nintendo Rhapsody Chapters
World 0: The Schoolyard Menace
World 1: Far From Home
World 2: Back in the Cradle
World 3: Genesis
World 4: Trial Separation
World 5: Nintendo Strikes Back
World 6: It's About Time
World 7: The End of the Beginning
World 8: Pros and Cons
World 9: Reboot
World 10: The Telltale Heart
World 11: Going Home
World 1: Far From Home Redux
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