Video Games Provide Human Connection

    Video games have been known for numerous things throughout society. From health positives and negatives, reckless behavior, and changes of thought processes.  One thing that they definitely provide however is human connection. The game I am using as an example is Super Smash Brothers Melee, released for the Nintendo GameCube console on December 3rd, 2001. 

 

    For people who don't know, Super Smash Brothers is a game that is a 2D fighting game where you play as your favorite Nintendo characters on battlefields or "stages" also from other Nintendo series trying to send your  opponents off screen and be the last being alive. From popular series like Mario to the lesser known series like F-Zero, Super Smash Brothers covers a whole lot of Nintendo series so there is a lot for everyone to enjoy. This game series has made people make friends worldwide. Competitive tournaments happen all over the world(mainly in the United States) for this series and players from around the globe travel to these tournaments and play. From Japan to Europe to Australia, there is a global hub for Smash Brothers. Through this passion in this game,they share something in common with other people worldwide and through that, they share a bond and a common hobby to talk about.

 

    This game has personally effected my life as well. In the beginning of this school year, I had New Media as a class. Some of my assignments were related to animation. Through this and a few computer programs, I was making Smash Bros. stages as my assignments and I had to bring a

Nintendo Wii, a copy of Super Smash Bros Brawl(Wii, 2008) and a nine inch television to test my assignments to make sure the stages worked. A few students noticed I brought a gaming console to school every day and gave me the idea to bring a few extra controllers for them to play at Lunch.
Through this chain of events, this became something more. At the end of the school year around the same time I wrote this blog, I also ran an "unofficial" Game Club at Flex and Lunch time and Super Smash Bros is the one game that everyone in the club played. Sometimes other games are brought and played and some people learn new games and some people just leave for the day, but the club is at its best when Smash Bros is brought in. One thing I never thought would happen that did happen
was certain students got into the competitive side of the game and one even went to a large tournament in Calgary and met one of the best "smashers" in the world. Although he lost very early in the tournament, the student still said he had fun and wishes to learn more about this game.
Without the Game Club, I wouldn't have as many friends as I do now. And the best part is is that we have something in common. The desire of "smashing". 
-Brendon Levandosky

A video example of this is the end of a nine part documentary on the history of the competitive Smash Bros. scene called "The Smash Brothers".  Although the documentary is based around the competitive history of Smash Brothers, this part shows more of the friendly side of this game and how it became a part of people's lives and gave them friends and such.

(Apologize in advance for some language.)
Smash Brothers - Episode 9 - Game!