Donkey Kong Champ Reveals the Height of His Obsession
Posted by Damien McFerran
World record holder very nearly sacrificed his toilet to achieve his high score
Hank Chien may now sitting pretty at the top of the Donkey Kong high score tree but to get to that point he very nearly had to make a difficult lifestyle choice.
Speaking in a recent interview with Details Magazine, Chien revealed that due to a lack of space in his humble abode - which he shares with his brother - he almost had to get rid of one of three essential items in order to accommodate the Donkey Kong arcade cabinet.
Those items were the fridge, the sofa or the toilet. Tough choice.
Thankfully he was able to fit the arcade machine in front of his balcony and therefore spare himself (and his long-suffering brother) the indignity of not being able to take a poop.
Chien's impressive score of 1,061,700 grabbed the world record from previous holder Billy Mitchell, but in the interview he gives a rather worrying insight into the life of a high score chaser. He reveals that at one point he was "not eating and not doing laundry."
Chien also says that another former world champ, the legendary Steve Wiebe, has gone out of his way to congratulate him on his triumph but so far he has heard nothing from Mitchell.
While both Mitchell and Wiebe may be depressed about the sudden appearance of this new Donkey Kong champ, Chien insists that his score is perfectly beatable, explaining that "two of my deaths were completely stupid."
He adds that if no one rises to the challenge, he'll just have another pop at extending his score.
[via kotaku.com, details.com]
User Comments (18)
#1
Dazza said:
I thought this guy was a plastic surgeon! Now he sounds like a bit of a bum
Still this is the price you pay to be a record breaker. I wonder if Mitchell or Wiebe will manage to top this mighty score one day?
#2
VintageBoy said:
When you consider chasing a high score to be more important than basic human necessities, something somewhere has gone wrong.
#3
grenworthshero said:
what he said ^^
#4
ChunkyDroid said:
I love that caption! This guy sounds at least reasonably humble, and Steve's a great guy for going out of his way to congratulate him too
#5
Shiryu said:
I wanna see how Billy Mitchell will VHS his way out of this one.
#6
T_Neumann said:
^ That
#7
Ravage said:
Yeah...that is a little far, but lets hope that actually getting the high score will let him do some other things.
#8
dizzy_boy said:
^^ like using the toilet.
#9
Destroyer64 said:
You know, there would be something wrong with playing Donkey Kong in the bathroom.....
#10
donth8 said:
God bless him...in the toilet.
#11
shake_zula said:
Haha good image caption.
I love the Donkey Kong scene, it's so dramatic. It's like The Hills with geeks.
#12
Sylverstone said:
Wow, he's good.
Hail to the new champ.
#13
Birdman13 said:
Some people will go to ridiculous lengths for fame. Here is just one example.
#14
Stuffgamer1 said:
Chien also says that another former world champ, the legendary Steve Wiebe, has gone out of his way to congratulate him on his triumph but so far he has heard nothing from Mitchell.
Well, no surprise THERE.
This guy seriously needs to NOT try to beat his OWN record. Sounds like it would be bad for his health.
#15
Ski_Deuce said:
I'm surprised that some of the reaction to this story is kind of negative. If you're going to chase a high score on an arcade game, which can't be paused in the first place, you're going to have to sacrifice something. Steve Wiebe certainly had to give up stuff, and I don't think he'd be getting comments that would be leaning towards "get a life". He'd probably have people cheering him on.
Also, @ Birdman13
Becoming an arcade game champion doesn't exactly make you famous. Maybe in Japan it could though.
#16
Tsuchinoko said:
Hank is actually kinda cute~
#17
SmaMan said:
Someone needs to invent the TOILET KONG! A toilet with an original Donkey Kong arcade board mounted in with a fold out screen and controller. And when you flush it, you hear Mario's death sound effect... gweheheheee!
#18
R-L-A-George said:
I'm a high score chaser XD, but I've accepted the fact I can't beat all. LOL I'm a 3rd(4th?) gen gamer, in my family. I had only a NES and SNES until 2k1(?)