"Security is mostly a superstition. It does not exist in nature, nor do the children of men as a whole experience it. Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. Life is either a daring adventure, or nothing. " -Helen Keller

Friday, October 07, 2011

The Icecapades: Video Game Version

Hey everyone! Due to an unfortunate chain of events, I'm hijacking the Lair today. We've had a nasty stomach bug swarm the house, with a second victim (Joey) down for the count today. Yesterday was Gabe's turn. For Kristin, this has meant a lot of night duty and midnight laundry (you know, the unexpected kind...) and has taken a toll on her. Since today is a half day at school, she's been banished to catch some Zzz's before the rambunctious 4 + Marty return home early this afternoon.

And so...On With The Show!

The musical Rock of Ages is running at a local venue.  It's a tribute type play to the metal-era of the 80s.  As a child/teen from this time, I'm not sure how I feel about this.  Most of me just wants to laugh.  Then again, I was also a child from the 70s whose parents owned every ABBA album ever made, and even though I found Mamma Mia to be ridiculous at its release, the creative team really pulled it off amazingly well. 

But anyway, it got me thinking.  What area of entertainment had yet to be exploited as some type of stage show?  Then it hit me:  Video Games on Ice.  Kids from a fairly wide age range would clamor to see it, brought by their nostalgic parents who remember begging their parents for an Atari system.  We controlled little 'paddles' to keep the digital 'ball' in play:  when it was vertical it was called 'Tennis', but horizontally it was PONG.

But anyway, the more I though about it seemed to work.  It has all of the elements of success:

Built in story with rivalry?  Check!  Flamboyant costumes?  Check!  Fantasy like scenery?  Check!  Action?  Check!  Iconic music?  Check!  Kid friendly?  Check!  Because let's face it, you can't get bloody on the ice unless it's a hockey game.  And it works with a large array of games to choose from...giving it many runs!  That's YEARS of entertainment!  It's like Disney on Ice...featuring each film at least once, or a bunch and all the princesses come out at the end for a royal medley.  Except in this version, it might look like Super Smash Brothers Brawl.

What video game would you like to see featured first?