The air is thick with tension as Matt Lavides maneuvers his Super Smash Brothers Brawl character, Ike, around his enemy. He’s had a rough round thus far, and is down to his last life, while his opponent still boasts a full three. No one speaks a word, and though the room is bustling with activity, it seems eerily quiet to those tuned in to the match.
He managed to land a good hit, sending his enemy flying across the map. After narrowly avoiding a few strikes, he then lands a few other minor hits. An unexpected blow strikes him, and he finds himself hurtling towards the edge of the screen, the end of the match, and the removal of Matt from the tournament. A desperate recovery, and he finds himself face to face once more with his challenger. ‘Shoulda played Sonic,’ he mutters, and rushes forward in what could be his final assault.
No one dares to blink as he jumps and raises his sword on high. Already, Matt’s opponent is charging up a devastating blow to finish him off. Before anyone has the chance to take another breath, Matt lands a blow, and knocks his opponent right off the screen.
Matt ended up losing the match, but he was unperturbed by the experience. He shakes hands with his adversary, and when asked about the experience, nonchalantly states, ‘Hey, at least I got him out once, right?’ He passes by the Rock Band area, where a crowd laughs at Jesse Bernandez’s singing interpretation of Painkiller, and proceeds to play Halo.
Matt, and many others, are attending Video Game Night, hosted by the Philippine United Student Organization (or PUSO, meaning ‘heart’ in Filipino). Students were allowed to play their favorite video games, old and new, for free one night in SAC Ballroom A in early November.’ PUSO first held it last year, and intends to hold it annually.
There were five separate televisions, provided by the university, playing Halo 3, Super Smash Brothers Brawl and Melee, Mario Kart for the Nintendo 64, and Street Fighter. Some students played Starcraft on their own laptops with each other at tables set up in the center of the room. Rock Band was played on the ballroom’s enormous projection screen. Video game consoles, controllers, and games were brought by members of PUSO.
Some students, like Matt Lavides, came with a certain game in mind. Others, like Sebastiano Perrone, just came to have a good time and see what games were being played.
