Let’s wrap up the winners of our I ‘Heart’ Capcom competition. We were giving away SFIV – the game, the comic and the figurines. So who won…?
Charlie! Probably the best entry across all three sections of the competition, Charlie’s nostalgic tale of childhood triumph (and cheap Blanka spamming) will surely strike a chord with every gamer. Here’s his entry in full:
It was the afternoon of another summer school holiday down in sleepy Hobart, and looking to fill the day, my older brother and I took the bus into town to go to the movies. My brother was 16 at the time, and was very much a father figure for me.
When we arrived at the movie theatre, we saw a large group of kids huddled around a new arcade machine that had been put in. That machine was Street Fighter II.
We peered over shoulders, trying to catch a glimpse of the action, delighting in the intro music, jeering as someone got whooped, gasping as we saw a new special move. It was a sight to behold, the group of kids so excited and enraptured by the pace of the action, the opportunity to face an unknown opponent, to be king of the kids.
My brother put some coins down for us, and we waited for our turn. Eventually my brother got his turn to play and I watched with pride as he used Ken to take out the previous winner in a tight three round game. This brought me to the machine.
I looked at the rows of buttons and asked what they did: “I don’t know” said my brother. “Some are punches some are kicks.”
I was in a daze. The onlooking group of kids, facing my older brother in a fight to the death, an unfamiliar game… The pressure was immense.
Looking over the characters I selected the one I liked the look of most: Blanka.
Now this may seem strange, but I quickly realised a few seconds into the first round that I didn’t know how to jump. I just remember trying all the buttons, and none of them made Blanka jump. My brother kept jumping in with a heavy kick, smacking me right in the head. I was being dominated.
Things quickly changed when I found the heavy punch button and realised I could use it to knock Ken out of the air when he was flying in at me. I used it again and again, taking him out cleanly each time. I won the first round.
I looked up and saw my brother was furious! He’d lost to his little brother in front of a group of his peers! I asked him how to jump. He was so incensed he wouldn’t even tell me.
The second round started and I found Blanka’s electricity move. I made short work of Ken.
When the din died, I was king of the kids. My brother had been defeated. I had beaten the person I aspired most to be, and it changed our relationship for ever. From that day forward I beat my brother at every computer game we played. Even now I have the wood on him on anything we pick up. And it all started with Street Fighter II. It turned me into a man, a champion amongst the throng, it lifted me up and carried me away.
Thank you to everyone who entered and congratulations to the three winners. We’ll be in touch shortly to arrange delivery of your prizes.
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