Hardcore's Ode to Mother's Day

Where some Moms offer a stuffed animal or blankie to comfort their children, my Mom proffered an Atari 2600 Joystiq to settle me down. That sweet, dedicated woman saw clearly the light of interactive entertainment burning bright in my infant eye, and she nourished it to its fullest effect.

All thirty COG tags. Mom would be proud.

It was Mom that set my brothers to rights when they wouldn't give me a turn at the ColecoVision, and it was Mom that braved the lunch rush at the bank to score rolls of quarters for an arcade run. She even taught me how to slot a quarter at the bottom of an arcade screen to secure a spot in line, how to expertly tilt a pinball machine, and where the "safe spots" were in PAC-MAN.

Without her, and countless other like-minded mothers, a whole generation of hardcore gamers would never have been. And so I salute dear old Mom, and recall with fondness her greatest lessons during my formative gaming years.

She found the appropriate punishment in
demanding that I stumble downstairs at
five each morning to rustle up breakfast
for the entire Hardcore brood.

Level Defeat
Kind though she was, Mom had a vein of strictness. If I tossed a controller in frustration and disgust at not passing a level, she would march me right back into the living room, tears still streaming from my eyes, and thrust the controller back into my hand. No child of hers would start a level or mission and dare not finish.

The Konami Code Banned
The fabled button sequence "up-up-down-down-left-right-left-right-B-A-Select-Start" was handed down to me by a playground friend, and I rushed home to uncover its treasures. Upon seeing the trove of undeserved extra lives though, Mom denounced it utterly, calling it so much trash, and blatant cheating. After all, could I possibly proclaim with any legitimacy that I defeated Contra using anything but the three default lives? That's a rhetorical question by the way.

The Money Play Punishment
Efficiency has always been a sought after goal in my household. I remember a birthday card my Mom handed me along with my first copy of GoldenEye. It said, "If one to the head works just as well as five to the chest, why choose the latter?" Lesson learned. However, exploitation unintended by the developer was expressly forbidden.

If I used Vick every game, she would not be pleased.

I recall the split-end go route in Tecmo Bowl garnered me a nearly guaranteed six points on every possession, but when Mom saw the beating I was handing to my hapless friend, the jig was up. Ever the efficiency expert, she found the appropriate punishment in demanding that I stumble downstairs at five each morning to rustle up breakfast for the entire Hardcore brood. If fried potatoes and eggs Benedict are your speed, I've got you covered.

No Stone Unturned
The insatiable need to uncover and unlock all that a game has to offer was drilled into my formative mind at a tender age. There was a simple rule in the Hardcore household. We were allowed one game at a time, and until that game had been wholly mastered, its riches fully exposed, we could not hope for another. It's not enough to beat a game, you must make it your own.

A difficulty Mom would approve of.

With Mother's Day fast approaching, it is high time we stepped away from the console for a minute to appreciate all that we have gained from the loving hands and guidance of our mothers. We need to take more than just a few moments to not only recognize their wonder, but to celebrate with them.

Whether it's a phone call and flowers, booting up your Xbox 360™ to challenge Mom to a match of Tiger Woods PGA Tour® 07, or a trip to the family house with a trunk full of presents, even the hardcore gamer must power down their sessions of Annex multiplayer in Gears of War® and spend a little quality time with their Mom.

Article by Hardcore