When my son was four, a friend of ours gave him an old NES console and a few games, Tetris, Dr. Mario and (here’s the clincher) the first two Super Mario Bros. games. It was our first introduction to the world of gaming. We both played, but I think I was better than him for maybe the first two days. It would take him a week to finish the first Mario game. Me, I couldn’t get past the flying fish level or whatever the heck they were. He was, of course, mesmerized and would play all day and all night if we let him. As a child with Aspergers, it was one of the few things to hold his interest.
We’ve had all the systems since then. I remember waiting overnight outside Best Buy in sub-zero temps to get the Wii when it first came out. He had just had surgery and we wanted to surprise him. *
It started out with me giving him advice and reading the screens for him on games like Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (remember he was only four), to him currently getting me through the games with his sage and time-tested advice.
Him: Dad, you need to reload.
Me: How do I do that?
Him: Press the B button.
Me: Which one’s the B button?
Him: Never mind. You just got decapitated.
Or
Him: You’re out of ammo. Switch weapons.
Me: How?
Him: The control pad.
Me: What?
Him: Forget it. They took you out with a grenade (as the screen turns bright red).
So it goes against zombies, minions, lackeys and assorted bosses.
As I’ve gotten older, I’ve looked at Wordsworth’s quote, “Child is the father to the man” - and title of a pretty good Blood, Sweat and Tears album – and I realize I’m taking the quote out of context plus twisting its original intent, but sometimes you can learn things both trivial (how to play video games) and vitally important from your children (how to be a better man).
What do you mean I just killed my fairy?
