Of Super Marios and Zeldas

One crazy theorist once suggested that video games are a Communist plot to distract our young people from their studies so that the United States would lose its competitive edge.

The idea was a backlash of the Atari and Intellivision craze, which before dying a couple of years ago, engulfed now-college students to the point where talk of "Adventure" and "Breakout" was a more dominant subject of conversation than anything else.

Well, just when everyone thought our youth were saved from becoming vidiots, a new threat has been unleashed--and its name is Nintendo.

"It's bigger than any other video game I've ever known," Toys-R-Us salesperson Joan Hinze says. "Kids are crazy about it, and it's very addicting."

Cheap

The Japanese-made home entertainment system in its basic form costs around $80, with an option to buy extra features, such as a turbo joystick, phaser gun for shooting games, and get this, a "power pad"--a device which players stand upon and simulate running for track and field games.

"The turbo joystick is absolutely indispensable," says junior Ted Brown, who has the system in his Currier House suite. "Once we got it, we started kicking ass."

Game cartridges range from $20-50, but can be rented from many video stores for a few dollars for several nights.

Now I don't know about communists, but it does seem that Nintendo is a major distraction in today's livelihood. Talking to 12-year-olds is a scary prospect these days. Easy E and New Kids on the Block aside, it seems like all they talk about is the latest Nintendo cartridge.

And the craze isn't limited to junior highschoolers. Harvard students have found that the game is an escape from the toils of college life, and an additional source of procrastination to avoid laborious schoolwork.

"It's mainly an escape," Brown says. "It's a lot more interesting than a lot of the readings for school."

While "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" is the "in" game right now among young people, the games of choice among Crimsonites are mainly sports games. Visit the suite of Harvard hockey goalie Chuck Hughes and you can bet on watching "Tecmo Football," a game which pits real NFL teams against each other.

Yo, Mario

In addition to "Super Mario Brothers," which comes with the system, the hockey game "Blades of Steel" is particularly popular. Players must control skating moves, shots and can even fight in this almost realistic game.

According to Mark Lovering of Toys-R-Us, Nintendo's popularity stems from its wide range of cartridges, many of which are reproductions of popular arcade games. In addition, because the system has become so popular, additional consumers of all ages are jumping on the Nintendo bandwagon.

"Mothers are buying it for their children, and adults are buying it for themselves," Lovering says.

The realism of the Nintendo game also contributes to its wide appeal, separating it from the rest of its competition.

"The graphics are very interesting with simulated 3-D effects which make it very fascinating and lifelike," says Eric Oehler, who provides people walking by Cabot House with a showcaseof Nintendo on his room's big screen TV.

But while Harvard students are showing signs ofaddiction to the game, they are diligent enough tonot let it interfere with their studies.

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