Billy Mitchell is Banned

[Recycled]

Already know who to be for Halloween this year:

 

[Silverfleet]

Man, what a phallus.

 

Here's my take on this:

 

As an old-school gamer, I like playing older arcade-style games to try to compete for high scores. When I play, I play against myself or maybe friends, but I know there's NO WAY I could ever smash a real record. For instance, every time I go to Funspot in NH, I immediately go to Gyruss first. I always try to set the high score for the day, which means I usually have to get between 160,000 and 200,000 unless there's a real Gyruss ninja in the building. I think my personal record is around 210,000. The world record is something insanely high that I'll never get, and I don't care! For me, it's still fun. Sometimes, I'll practice at home with MAME and an arcade stick before going to Funspot, but it's just not the same experience as playing Gyruss in the real cabinet.

 

I also appreciate that there's people that are so good at the game that they can set those high scores. It's like playing football with your buddies VS watching an NFL game; the pros are incredible. I've been to Funspot while people were taping and going for high scores. It's pretty cool to watch how intense some players get in mastering the game they are playing, and almost makes me want to do better as a result.

 

Then there's Billy Mitchell. He is the equivalent of a pro athlete that was doping illegally, has been doing it for years, and has been caught red handed.

 

I've read that his "performance" in King of Kong was "an act for the camera" and he was a nice guy. I've also heard that he's a mega douche in real life. Seems like the only acting for the camera that he did was trying to fool Twin Galaxies that his MAME setup was a real arcade game. There seemed to be some shady stuff going on between him and Twin Galaxies, so I'm glad that's over with now.

 

The real question: are they taking down that giant poster of him at Funspot that I have to stare at every time I go to the top floor? It gives me douche chills every time I see it.

[+save2600]

Do revelations like this, Todd's, etc. mean our old Twin Galaxies books will be worth something now? The false scores keep adding up... history in the making with revisions galore.

[Flojomojo]

Were they ever worth anything?

[Eltigro]

Maybe they will release a patch for the books with the next DLC...

[deepthaw]

Maybe they will release a patch for the books with the next DLC...

 

They'll send out an errata sheet which consists of nothing but stickers with asterisks on them.

[Dr Manhattan]

I've heard people in this thread and elsewhere say that Billy's character in King of Kong was staged. That he was playing a role. I spent a few days observing him and Steve Wiebe at a pathetically under attended video game convention back in 2008. It seems that Billy is exactly the character you see in that movie, a total arrogant prick and an obvious villain looking to sabotage the efforts of those who compete against him. At the same time he is both gracious, polite, and very appreciative of his fame. I'd also say that Steve Wiebe is not as sympathetic as a character as he seems in the movie, but that's a subject for a different topic.

 

With that said, it seems his Pac-Man achievements are very legitimate. TG should have allowed them to stand. As for his Donkey Kong records, his actions are disgraceful and inexcusable. Someone fresh was about to beat his score and his ego just couldn't let it go. He had spun a career out of his small fame, and now it's all in the toilet.

 

The worst part is that Twin Galaxies has taken a real credibility hit. This is the only site that I know of that keeps records of this kind. I'm not a competitive or even greatly skilled gamer, but I enjoy this kind of thing and I don't want to see it go away.

 

 

EDIT: You know what? We're all being worked. Variety just posted an article where Steve Wiebe comments on recent events. It seems someone is thinking about a new movie or a TV series. Now I'm not certain this all isn't just a giant publicity stunt.

 

http://variety.com/2018/gaming/news/steve-wiebe-interview-1202752495/

[Flojomojo]

EDIT: You know what? We're all being worked. Variety just posted an article where Steve Wiebe comments on recent events. It seems someone is thinking about a new movie or a TV series. Now I'm not certain this all isn't just a giant publicity stunt.

 

You may be right. One thing for sure: these jokers only have as much power and attention as we choose to give to them.

[HatefulGravey]

If Billy was playing a character in KoK, he plays it every time the camera is on him. Over the years we've seen him in all kinds of videos and he is always the same douche.

 

I'm sure they are looking to cash in on all this, so a show wouldn't shock me. Maybe they'll get Roy Shildt in on this one. I bet that dude is having one hell of a good time with all this stuff.

[enoofu]

 

The real problem stems from taking advantage of rewards that aren't earned. The guy benefited financially from his grift. This could go for anything. How would you feel if someone at your job gained an unfair advantage at a position or opportunities you were working towards through lies or other means of deceit? You miss out. How would you then feel if others said "who cares, it's not like that job saves lives or anything"? It would still be important to you, despite the indifference of others, right?

 

You may consider playing games to be solely for fun, but there's folks out there making a living at it. Surely, somebody else who actually put in the time practicing for hours on end getting real scores could have received some of the benefits Billy didn't deserve. Even if it was something small like a request to be featured at a gaming expo.

 

The issue is that Twin Galaxies made it easy to cheat especially in the past, and I doubt anything short of limiting scores to One machine in a public event, watched around the clock will ever resolve these issues.

 

 

 

How would you feel if someone at your job gained an unfair advantage at a position or opportunities you were working towards through lies or other means of deceit

Don't like it but it does happen, always got to prepared to handled someone who doesn't play by the rule's

Edited April 14, 2018 by enoofu

[keepdreamin]

 

The issue is that Twin Galaxies made it easy to cheat especially in the past, and I doubt anything short of limiting scores to One machine in a public event, watched around the clock will ever resolve these issues.

 

Don't like it but it does happen, always got to prepared to handled someone who doesn't play by the rule's

 

 

The fact that unscrupulous behavior was easy to do, doesn't excuse said behavior.

 

I'm also curious how far you'd stick with your "who cares, it's just video games". Like if someone broke into your home and made off with valuable and hard to find items/consoles from your collection, would you even bother reporting that to the police? Who cares, they're just video games. You wouldn't tie up public servants and tax payer money with that, right? If you saw the items listed on craigslist, you'd just let it go. No reason to get law enforcement involved over such silly items just meant for fun.

Edited April 14, 2018 by keepdreamin

[Jim Pez]

I thought if you got a high score on mame it was supposed to be the same as getting the score on an actual arcade.

[keepdreamin]

I thought if you got a high score on mame it was supposed to be the same as getting the score on an actual arcade.

 

No. There's differences between real hardware and emulation. Also, you can't use save states with real hardware. Twin Galaxies maintains separate categories for both. Billy submitted his scores as being done on real hardware. The video submissions show it was clearly footage of an emulator.

[Skippy B. Coyote]

But...didn't he do the perfect Pac Man live? If so, or if the video he used showed that he used an actual cabinet, then why remove that score? This isn't the Olympics. And TG is pretty clear, they're not calling him a cheater, they're saying his scores were illegal (due to use of an emulator, most likely MAME). He obviously has skills, no question. Or had.

 

I actually commend TG for doing this, with Todd and Mitchell. Cheaters, gone. I assume Day has nothing to do with TG now? For all intents and purposes, they are still the only known group that a) keeps these records and b) is still an obscure niche. Still, the truth is important and I commend them for making these moves. And there are tons of better players out there now anyway.

 

 

Yup, Billy Mitchell has played a perfect Pac-Man in front of live audiences many times. In fact, he just did it a couple months ago at the Mall of America not far from where I live. Like him or not there's no denying he is pretty much a living legend of the golden age of gaming, and though I don't have much sympathy for anyone who cheats (I've quit a few different high score competitions due to not wanting to play against people who I knew had cheated in the past) I can certainly understand why Billy Mitchell might have cheated.

 

The thing is, for him video games and high score competitions weren't just a hobby and a way to pass the time like they are for me and many others; they were his livelihood. Outside of his little hot sauce company his entire income and ability to pay the bills came from being the best at a couple different classic games, Donkey Kong and Pac-Man specifically. If he suddenly stopped being the best then event organizers would stop paying him to come to their venues, and no money means no more food and no more house. Keeping a roof over your head and food in your stomach is about the best reason there is to cheat, so yeah… I get why he did it. It was still the wrong thing to do, but I can understand the motivation behind it.

[mr_me]

Was he making much money from this before King of Kong (Or even after)? It could be just his ego, he just couldn't lose the Donkey Kong title and did whatever necessary to keep it.

[Flojomojo]

RE: losing his livelihood

 

Oh, boo hoo, cry me a river. Most people don't get to play video games for a living in the first place. He can do something else, just like the rest of the world. Maybe something that contributes to society, and hopefully in a more honest and honorable way.

[moff000]

Don't mess with Billy our Phil Mitchell will sort ya out. Geezer!

[Dr Manhattan]

I gotta wonder if Billy is ever going to speak out on this matter.

[Reaperman]

So, was King of Kong really a documentary(ish), or was there a bad-guy character he was playing up--like wrestling?

 

Cheater or not, I don't care for the Twin Galaxy weirdos. The way they play, and the required bragging and swagger, isn't really compatible with how I want to spend my time. I'm not in 3rd grade anymore, and I just don't want to hear about how awesome somebody is. The same can be said about a lot of other recreations people can become overly interested in, but my hobbies put me in contact them with them more than, say, high-level hardanger enthusiasts.

 

Just like they probably don't want to listen my 'this the full list of stuff I own,' because I'm a retrogame collectard weirdo.

Edited April 14, 2018 by Reaperman

[HatefulGravey]

I thought if you got a high score on mame it was supposed to be the same as getting the score on an actual arcade.

 

The biggest difference is how you submit the score. When you submit a MAME score they have extra steps to help ensure you aren't cheating. When you play on the arcade you only have to record the screen. It would be really easy to make the game play itself perfectly, for example, and then record the screen playing it. This would produce a result that would look like you played the perfect game on an arcade cab. When you submit from MAME they require a locked file type that excludes the ability to save scum or something like that.

[rasch_C]

I've said it before, I don't hold TG in much high regard at all. I think it's just been a corrupt boys club for years. You're either one of them or your not.

 

I truly believe that they are reluctantly acknowledging and removing these records for to being called out and high-peofile attention they have been recurving. Especially, all the attention that has finally been focused onto Billy Mitchell after the Todd Rodgers incident.

 

I don't have a high opinion of Billy either. I've never met him personally. But, every time I see him in anything, he comes off as a totally self-absorbed ass.

 

Yes, it's good to finally have all these unqualified scores brought to Justice. But, what is it going to really change and affect in all honesty? If there is going to be an overseeing, record-keeping organisation for game scores I think a new outfit needs to emerge. TG is just trying to save face at this point as they are all being called out.

 

-Allen

[schuwalker]

I've said it before, I don't hold TG in much high regard at all. I think it's just been a corrupt boys club for years. You're either one of them or your not.

 

I truly believe that they are reluctantly acknowledging and removing these records for to being called out and high-peofile attention they have been recurving. Especially, all the attention that has finally been focused onto Billy Mitchell after the Todd Rodgers incident.

 

-Allen

 

 

I'm not really familiar w/ the console side of T.G... more knowledgeable on the arcade scene.

 

Prior to the '90s, I really believe a lot of the scores need to be thoroughly looked over. Case in point... this topic was discussed on KLOV. We had a former TG member chime in on a few queries about T.G. and their score practices. If you look on T.G's score board, you will notice a "referee verified" clause added as a footnote. Again, we a discussing scores prior to the '90s. I always raised a eyebrow when I saw this - does these arcades have *official* TG refs in Illinois, California, Florida, et.al? Well, this exact same question was posed to the Klov poster. His response in a nutshell... it could've been *any* arcade attendant or *any* adult supervisor acquiring a score - even by word of mouth. So that "referee verified" don't mean squat. Seems shady.

 

I'm hoping in the near future, Aurcade slowly starts to overtake TG and render it useless.

[Rev]

Didn't I see this guy in the movie "Pixels"...?

I think the pixels midget guy was based on billy mitchel. They both used cheat codes for donkey Kong, and have mullets! Hahaha

[digdugnate]

I guess no one will want to stroke the beard of Garrett Bobby Ferguson anymore...

Came for this reference, left satisfied

[leods]

OMG! the 20th highest Donkey Kong score is a fraud! NOOOO!

 

Seriously. The guy has been irrelevant on the competitive scene for over a decade. If people actually cared about competitive gaming they'd be discussing the actual new records, and the players relevant today. But youtubers will just to what they have to do to get some views, and people just jump on the bandwagon for whatever reason.

 

 

And Mitchel has a 930k score that was valid, but his 1m score was proven to be made on MAME. The guy obviously could play videogames, but also was only ever famous because he was good at self promotion, and not because he was the best. But people talking about him and ignoring everyone else doesn't help that case at all does it?

 

http://donkeykongforum.com/index.php?topic=366.0