One of the coolest things I discovered during my freshman orientation week before the beginning of the proper school year was my campus' arcade. Granted, it wasn't big, but it was well-stocked. During the early weeks of the fall, "Pit Fighter" was one of my favorites. The most popular game, of course, was "Mortal Kombat II." The campus actually boasted owning two MKII machines. (I guess I should tell you this was in 1994.)

I played MKII a lot, too much, of course, but to little avail. I just didn't have the coordination or memory to be a successful player. Even worse, I discovered my favorite character, Reptile, was consistently voted upon as being the weakest character in the game.

The following year saw the advent of "Mortal Kombat 3." In addition to four punching and kicking buttons, a blocking button, and a joystick, I now to deal with had a run button which I could never reach. And forget about memorizing the maneuvers of even more characters and game features. It was apparent my prime gaming days were over.

I mean, well, there were a few newer games out there I loved. "Virtua Fighter" wasn't as complex as the MK series, and was still fun. "Lethal Enforcers" always challenged me. "Revolution X," starring Aerosmith, beckoned me almost every Saturday afternoon. I still boast that, other than my old friend Kenny, no one has ever surpassed me at that game, and he only beat me by a few points.

Now we fast forward a few years. I'm a senior at college, home for a weekend. The video arcade on campus is gone. The arcade at the mall is also gone. My friends back home are hanging out at a new games pit. They're blasting away at everything in sight. They're current on all the gaming gossip. Ancient Greece, the early American government, newspaper editing, and classical music have occupied 90 percent of my mental facilities.

I don't even know these titles anymore. When did "Ultimate MK 3" supersede plain old "MK3?" Who's Ermac? Noob Saibot? Wasn't he an X-Wing pilot in "Return of the Jedi?" How many "Street Fighters" and "Tekkens" are there?
I'd gone from being the over-the-hill athlete playing on the field to a former stand-out asked to stand and wave to the crowd in between halftime acts.

I walked among the kids, almost invisible. One eyed me with suspicion. Probably thought I was an undercover cop, looking to catch someone dealing pot in the potty. I couldn't help but wax nostalgic for the good old days. They were days when you just played

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