By Kevin Green–
It’s that time of year again; time to batten down the hatches and get ready for old Jack Frost to come a-dancing.
Many of you are from Iowa and live in the dorms at Morningside. So you know all too well that even jaunting out for a bite to eat is soon going to be a struggle. Consequently, you may find yourself spending more and more time around your neighbor’s game console.
Luckily for you, several dorm rooms have a PS3, Xbox, or maybe even a Wii. With online play and dorm-room showdowns to determine who is “top dog,” the question becomes who is the top gamer in Roadman and Dimmitt Halls respectively? Is there a consensus among you on the freshman floor as to who reigns supreme? Is anyone strolling one of wellness hallways with his or her chest out a little further than the rest? Not to be outdone, who runs the “Plex” in video game domination? Surely someone on the football team could win a campus Madden challenge right?
Whether it’s Angry Birds, Cityville, or something else, chances are some of you right now are making a case why you are number one and in what game you rule. You may even be asking if gambling or online poker is illegal in the residence halls here at Morningside? Chances are your RA knows the answer to that one.
A July 6th article on MSN.com found “that 70 percent of college students play video games at least once in a while.” Article author Jane Weaver also noted, “Video games aren’t just for kids. For American college students, games are as much a part of life as studying and partying.”
Early studies suggest video games lower your GPA, while others link an association to video games with “undesirable behaviors” such as drinking and drug usage. To the contrary, author Tara Kuther, PhD, suggests, “Unlike prior generations, video gaming is not displacing other activities. They’ve all grow up with video games so have incorporated them into their lives since childhood. As a result, video games aren’t as disruptive to today’s college students.”
Call of Duty: Black Ops is one of the more popular “console” games available today. Morningside freshman Dominic Means admitted, “My roommates play Call of Duty all the time.” Means, a member of this year’s track team says he doesn’t often participate because “it makes you sick.” This in reference to the camera motion sickness a gamer sometimes feels, especially when playing first person shooter games.
Area 12-year-old Kelby Regennitter, the self-proclaimed “Black Ops King,” disagrees. With 123,367 kills (40 percent by knife and a single game beat-down of 132 kills to only 13 for one unlucky opponent) he aims his gold/camouflage G11, AK-47, or FN FAL to destroy anyone wanting to waste his time.
Should Morningside have a Call of Duty king crowned? Could each residence hall hold a tournament of champions to decide the winner? Would it be Call of Duty or another game and does young Mr. Regennitter play too often?
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