Virtual athletes battle for bragging rights

Author: Bobby Joe Smith

Sunday, Jan. 22, was a thrilling night in the world of competitive sports. The Steelers and the Seahawks both won conference championships and a place in Superbowl XL, and offensive juggernaut Kobe Bryant dropped 81 points against the Toronto Raptors, setting three new NBA records in scoring. But on the small campus of Middlebury College, at a locale known simply as "The Grille," the competition was just beginning to heat up.

The annual Middlebury College Video Game Tournament was about to begin - the best of the Middlebury gaming community were set to face off in an epic controller-to-controller battle royale for prizes, a year's worth of bragging rights and the coveted status of "gaming legend." The big screen T.V. was wheeled on stage, controllers were unwound and a set of cushioned swivel chairs were meticulously positioned in order to provide the maximum in gaming and viewing entertainment for the cyber-athletes and the throng of cyber-fans that were sure to appear. Who could blame them?

It was hard not to get sucked into the spin-tingling buzz sparked by the mere thought of motherboards and high-speed processing chips, not to mention a gaming inventory riddled with classic titles such as Tekken 4, Gran Turismo, NCAA Football, Burnout 3, Topspin Tennis, Fifa Soccer and - of course - the piece de resistance, Halo 2. Clearly it was going to be a night that would go down in history, sure to feature heroic last second touchdowns and gladiatorial bloodbaths that can come only from the glorious unbridled unity of man and machine.

Finally, the clock struck 11 P.M., and from the dark recesses of the cyber-café emerged the steely eyed warrio - all three of them. Nick Immonje '08, Andrew Einstein '07 and Aaron Strumwasser '06 gathered hesitantly around the X-Box, a look of utter confusion illuminating their faces from the glimmer of the big screen. Grille Committee Member Patch Culbertson '08 popped up to greet us from the tangled web of electrical wires spilling out the back end of the glowing box.

The night included only one legitimate tournament among its competitors. However, neither Culbertson nor the Grille Committee seemed to mind, since according to them the event was about meeting people and having fun, two things that the competitor accomplished that night.

The idea for the tournament originated from the "Sierra Club," a group of Middlebury students who like to play games competitively online and use the College's LAN system at Sunderland. "We just decided to replicate the same fun competitive nature at the Grille, which we felt was a far less sketchy venue. That was originally what the cyber-café was used for back when this tournament was run by a few die-hard gamers here on campus," explained Culbertson. Unfortunately, all of them are no longer enrolled here, "likely because of all the hours they spent playing video games instead of working or sleeping," he postulated. This year the Grille Committee decided to take matters into its own hands "and just kind of throw this event out there and see what would happen."

For those who participated, it wasn't bad. "The conditions for this tournament were excellent!" exclaimed Strumwasser. "There were only a handful of competitors, and the activities required absolutely no legitimate skill to succeed." Despite the tournament's low number of participants, it was hard not to walk away with a sense of optimism.

Who knows what the future holds for this tournament? It's entirely up to the student body. This campus has the resources to accommodate multiple large gaming arenas. Can you imagine playing Halo 2 or Madden on the giant screens in John M. McCardell, Jr. Bicentennial Hall or at The Grille? The Grille Committee is willing to put forth the funds for better prizes, food and the latest games and game consoles if it is something students demonstrated a legitimate interest. There are plenty of kids who play video games on campus, and many claim to be the best. What could be a better way to prove it then in tournaments such as this?