U is for up, up, down, down, left, right, left, right, B, A, select, start

Posted on April 21, 2013July 28, 2017 by Matt Todd

The Konami Code (up, up, down, down, left, right, left, right, B, A, select, start – to get a ton of lives for two players) was our best friend when Kevin and I would play Contra.* I finally got to the point where I could beat the game without my brother’s help. I have this feeling that we also came pretty close to beating the game without using the secret code. But don’t quote me on that. I could be dreaming things again.

I also had to use the cheat code (007 373 5963) to get to Mike Tyson on Mike Tyson’s Punch Out! because, for some strange reason, I could never beat Super Macho Man. I knew the tricks. I just couldn’t beat him. I could, however, beat Mike. And I was much more effective at it than Mr. Fresh Prince.

I guess you could say I was a bit of a gamer before I realized there ever was such a thing. Things are a little bit different now. And I’m not entirely sure if it’s by choice.

I remember challenging my uncle to a game of Biplanes on our Intellivision console. Yes. We had an Intellevision instead of an Atari. And it was awesome. I felt kind of bad for him because I flew circles around him. Seriously. Circles. All the time. It was a dogfight, after all. Don’t get me wrong. I didn’t feel bad enough to let him win. I just felt bad for him.

I couldn’t really understand why someone couldn’t “get” a game like this. I mean, the premise is very straightforward: shoot down the other plane before you get shot down. Doesn’t get more simple than that. Right?

It’s funny how things change. It’s funny how the tables have turned. I definitely know what it was like to be my uncle now. Because Aiden regularly trounces me in Madden and NBA 2K12 and any other sports-related game on the wii. But that’s OK. I’m sure I could’ve totally wiped him out in biplanes.

But since I don’t think I’ll have access to an Intellivision console any time soon, I’ll just keep looking for a Konami Code for dads to beat their kids in video games.

*I just discovered this site. This is not good. And fabulous. All at the same time.

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Matt Todd

Howdy. I'm Matt. My wife, Christy, and I have four kids and two dogs, I'm passionate about orphan care. I'm a die-hard fan of the Evansville Aces, the Indiana Hoosiers, and Star Wars. I'm trying to live life by the Todd family motto: "It behooves us to live!"