10 Feb 2014

The Blockbuster World Championship and the Importance of a Plan B

by | posted in: Uncategorized | 9
There I am, right in the middle
There I am, right in the middle

I am taking you down a trip on memory lane – let’s go all the way back to the Summer of 1994.

At this time Blockbuster Video was still and actual store where you could rent movies (on VHS) and video games (on a physical cartage).

Do you remember the movie The Wizard? The one where Fred Savage competes in a video game competition and Super Mario Bros 3 was unveiled? Well, the Blockbuster World Championship was pretty much the same thing…

Well, minus the Power Glove.

it really is bad
it really is bad

Anyways, the tournament was split into Sega Genesis or Super Nintendo, and you were given a certain amount of time to achieve the highest score possible on three games. The highest scoring individual from each store moved on to the Finals held in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida.

I managed to win the SNES division for my local store, and I even had my picture in the local newspaper, and received a handful of giveaways including a metal Pin, a T Shirt, and a Hat all with the logo on them.

I did not win the coveted grand prize of free Blockbuster rentals for a whole year (I think there was a cash prize too?) but I had a great time and made a friend out of the experience.
He was the Super Nintendo Champion from another store (no way I would be friends with the Sega Genesis guy, what are you thinking??).

I’ve since overcome my Sega prejudice, in case you are wondering.
Once we arrived at the competition, I was given the chance to compete in a head-to-head match on the SNES port of NBA Jam.

Naturally, the Chicago Bulls was my preferred team (I think they the advantage against every other team). My opponent had the same first choice of team. When they gave the other kid the chance to select his team first, I did not insist that I wanted the same team, so I think I just selected a random team.

This threw off my game so much, I didn’t know who my back up team was, I was totally unprepared.

The whole situation caught me so off guard that I ended up not really playing my best.

I ended up losing by 4 points.

I was so disappointed.

This is why we all need to have a back up plan.

If I had prepared better, and asked myself the question “If the other guy wins the selection choice, which is my next choice?”

plan A NBA JAM Classically Trained

 

I would have been better equipped to make a good choice, and I would not have been so emotionally shaken up. This was a high pressure situation where you are

competing on a stage up in front of an audience, and this was not really something that I was used to.

The pressure was on and I choked.

So how does this relate to your life? In work or school, you may have a Plan A or a preferred choice, but what if it doesn’t happen the way you want?

How will you handle it?

Do you have a Plan B, C, or even a Plan D?

And, if you are faced with this situation, how will it affect you?

Take it to the Next Level

Take some time to consider the 3 most important situations facing you in either your work or life, and write out your Plan A and your Plan B.

 

How has gaming helped you be more prepared at work or in life? 

9 Responses

  1. Matthew R.
    |

    From Link, Solid Snake, Tidus and others I learned to be over-prepared for battle. When I go to a meeting I make sure to have plenty of data and work samples in my inventory.

    • Jon D Harrison
      |

      lesson well learned – it is always better to be over prepared than to be put on the spot and then struggle. Thanks for that thought!

  2. Who is Your Player 2? Part 1 - Fellow Traveler ClassicallyTrained.net
    |

    […] Social gaming is a great way to have fun, get to know others, build real life skills, and stay out of trouble (for the most part). In fact, I was able to make some great friends, thanks to our common interest in video games (read about the friend I met while participating in the Blockbuster Video World Game Championship). […]

  3. Jordan Madama
    |

    I actually participated at my Blockbuster in NJ in 1994 and won. The thing is, I never got an invitation to participate in the finals in Ft. Lauderdale so as far as I knew, all I got was free rentals for a year (which was, oh wow, one rental a month for 12 months).

  6. BSG4000
    |

    Thank you for sharing your story. I am running a recreation of the Blockbuster Championship next month in Columbus, Ohio. Do you happen to remember how the scoring worked for NBA Jam at the store level? From my research, players got to play two quarters. But I cannot find out what formula was used to determine the store winner. Any insight would be greatly appreciated! https://www.facebook.com/columbusretroleague/photos/pb.553215358110162.-2207520000.1429221933./717392158359147/?type=3&theater

    • Jon
      |

      wow – I wish I could say that I remember that specifically. I think I recall that the three games each had an assigned point value and those three score were blended to achieve one total score that was posted in the store during the contest. There must have been some weighted averaging to balance everything out…I wonder if there is a Blockbuster employee out there who remembers?