Steve Wiebe

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From time to time throughout history there have been great rivalries. Cain vs. Abel, Coke vs. Pepsi, Yankees vs. Red Socks, Fox News vs. CNN, Peter vs. Homer, Jen vs. Angelina, Jesus vs. Nuclear Vampire Zombies, East vs. West Coast, and Steve Wiebe vs. Billy Mitchell. Yeah wh-huh? Back up. No, I’m not talking about two school yard kids that slapped each other senseless after Elementary school. No, I’m talking about one of the greatest rivalries in Geek History. It started in 2005 when Mitchell obtained the highest score on the Donkey Kong arcade game. Then Wiebe, an engineer recently laid off at Boeing, said fuck that score of 874,300, and filmed himself obtaining a high score of 1,006,600. From there it was—as we say in video game talk—ON!

Once Wiebe’s tape began circulating and generating buzz it didn’t take long for Twin Galaxies, the self proclaimed authority on arcade game’s high scores, to take notice and weigh in. While Twin Galaxies looked over the tape, Mitchell sent his protégé, Brian Kuh, to investigate like some sort of evil King would send a hunchbacked minion. Kuh finds that Wiebe’s arcade game was made by another rival of Mitchell’s, which meant that, in the eyes of Twin Galaxies, Wiebe’s score didn’t count under suspicion of tampering. But Wiebe, the ever vigilant underdog, competed for a high score live in front of Walter Day, founder of Twin Galaxies. The rivalry at that time reached such a height that a documentary film crew follows Wiebe. The film of Wiebe’s journey became the film King of the Kong: A Fistful of Quarters. Wiebe did not succeed in surpassing a million points, but Kuh revealed a tape of Mitchell reaching 1,047,200, which Day accepted as the new high score record.

The film crew does document Wiebe reaching a score of 1,049,100, but Mitchell performs a live high score achievement of 1,050,200. Of course this only fuels Wiebe’s fire to keep going. He trains his mind, his hands, and his stomach. The sources are thin, but some say he lived on only bananas for over a year. Now, on June 2, Live on the G4 stage at 2009’s Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3), Wiebe will once again grab Donkey Kong by his joystick and go for the high score. Twin Galaxies will also once again be on hand to referee the event and make sure the challenge is legitimate and holds to all of the required standards. Since the documentary was released in 2007, Wiebe has attempted and failed to break Mitchell’s record four other times.

The event is already receiving a great deal of buzz and there is no doubt that it will be one of E3’s biggest events. The dreaded Kill Screen probably won’t make an appearance but one can never be sure. No word on whether or not Mitchell will appear to try and hold off Wiebe in a head to head match. But based on Mitchell’s no-show track record when called out, it isn’t very likely he’ll be on hand. It is however a safe bet Kuh will appear out of the shadows or swinging from a bell tower…ya know…if E3 had a bell tower (and they should). Even if Wiebe does beat Mitchell’s record don’t expect the rivalry to dry up anytime soon. Mitchell doesn’t seem to be the kind of cat to just let sleeping dogs lie. No, this seems like the kind of rivalry that will keep going until someone dies. Take that, Jen and Angelina!