The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters

When Mike Filsaime visited last week, he suggested that I get a the DVD documentary, \”The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters\”.

It is the story of a the men who are completely dedicated to owning the world record for the highest score in the videogame, Donkey Kong.

Yes, you heard me correctly. There are people who obsess about having the high score for a videogame. After all, there is an entry in the Guiness Book of World Records.

Being a fan of video games since Pong came out in the seventies, I definitely took an interest in this documentary.

When I put the DVD in, I can\’t say that my wife was thrilled.

But the film was so well done with engaging characters that I think even she would admit she enjoyed it.

The story follows Billy Mitchell, a hot-sauce tycoon who was responsible for holding the world record in many classic videogames, and Steve Wiebe, a 35 year-old middle school science teacher, the challenger to the Donkey Kong throne.

Starting with a brief history of videogames and the people who tracked high scores, we are introduced to Billy and Steve in a story that unfolds with much more drama than you would expect from a film about videogames!

In fact, the drama is STILL going on to this day at a site dedicated to the controversy that has surrounded the title of Donkey Kong world record holder.

It\’s funny. It\’s entertaining. It\’s packed with twists and turns to make it a drama as good as what you might expect to see in the theatre.

Having played Donkey Kong as a teenager, I can say firsthand that it was one of the most frustrating videogames of all time.

See for yourself. Go pick up a copy of The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters\”.