Game Boys

Do you remember "The Wizard?" It was a terrible movie from the late '80's starring Fred Savage as a boy who's parents are splitting and who's mentally disturbed younger brother turns out to be a video game savant. They travel cross-country together so that little mute brother can compete in the world video game championships. Hillarity, hijinks, and heartwarming moments ensue.

Turns out they could have come to Korea. Every now and then when I'm watching television, I see what appears to be video games on the screen, usually some sort of space ship game. I didn't really know what to make of it--figured it was some commercial or something. Nope. Turns out that competative video game playing is a BIG deal in Korea. The top players--in the ultimate WATFO, almost always guys between 15 and 23--compete on television for valuable prizes. According to the lawyer who explained this to me, the game is a role-playing game (see previous sentence about top players) and if you understand what's going on, can actually make for pretty compelling television.

Now where's Winnie Cooper?