In case you haven't noticed, it's summer, which means two things for video game enthusiasts: more screen glare and less new games to play. In lieu of any compelling new releases, we're taking a break from our usual Thursday Night Throwdown format this week to bring you the return of the Whiskey Media Scrub League. Last time, it was Mortal Kombat, but with last week's release of "Pac-Man Fever" on Rock Band Network, and the unbridled celebration of the classic arcade experience known as California Extreme happening next week, we've decided to take it back, all the way back to 1980, with one of the games that sparked this whole video craze, the original Pac-Man.
We've got 15 contestants from virtually all walks of life and every branch of the Whiskey Media family tree. You'll see familiar faces from Giant Bomb and Tested, as well as members of our video production, engineering, and business teams; hell, we're even giving a couple of the interns a crack at it. Since Pac-Man's not really a head-to-head competitive game, we'll be running a simple high-score contest: whoever can pop the most pellets and chomp the most ghosts with their allotted number of lives gets to walk away with the glorious title of Whiskey Media Pac-Man Scrub League Grand Champion.
Folks at home can get in on the action by registering over at Bet Win Place Show and betting on your favorite contestant in the Pac-Man Scrub League. (If you're already registered from our last Scrub League, there's no need to re-register.) You've only got one point to wager, but we'll be giving away prizes--including copies of Buckner & Garcia's magnum opus, Pac-Man Fever, complete with an autographed Pac-Man cheat sheet, courtesy of Ozone Entertainment--to select viewers who correctly pick the first, second, or third place contestants, so choose wisely. We'll also be chatting on the phone with a couple guys who know a thing or two about Pac-Man: Jerry Buckner and Gary Garcia. It's gonna be a straight-up Pac-Party, y'all!
It all starts today at 4PM PDT. Until then, I recommend getting amped up by alternating between Buckner & Garcia's "Pac-Man Fever" and this soothing, informative clip from Curtis Hoard's Conquer the Video Craze.