Player 2

This weekend, we sat down during little bro’s nap to play the new Yoshi game for the Nintendo Switch, and while on occasion he fumbled with his player facing the wrong direction or with which button was jump, for the most part he kept up. We played two levels and beat the first boss, and he was so excited he gave whole play-by-play re-cap, wide-eyed and animated, nearly falling out of his seat.

Afterwards, I did a few chores and he disappeared into the playroom. He re-emerged and grabbed my hand, leading me back to show me the “level” he’d created. I opened the playroom door and the entire floor was covered in meticulously placed Duplo blocks, cars, toy dinosaurs and more. It started on a white board where he’d drawn the entrance and buttons. There were trains, obstacles, secret compartments and bad guys. He could barely catch his breath as he explained each and every task, the premise, and the rules of the game. We played the real life level until his brother woke up. Then, we tried teaching him to play but he was more interested in pushing the trains. Or, as Big Bro phrased it, “totally ruining the game.”

I know it’s only a matter of time until Baby Bro stops “totally ruining” games and instead becomes his player 2. Some of my best memories were sitting on the playroom floor with my brothers, working together or against one another in a virtual world. That is, after I was old enough to realize when my older brother handed me a controller that wasn’t even plugged in.

To this day, I choose Luigi over Mario in Nintendo games. Player 2 has always held a special place in my heart. My new player 2 definitely does.