grandiose fantasy

Current Mood: hungry
Current Music: "Love is a Long Road" by Tom Petty

[[Editor's Note: this short story made it into the Literary Edition on the 4th page]]

Here is my winter submission to the Exponent. I think I will find out tomorrow morning if it is printed. Last time I made the front page!

Dr. Mario: Tetris Clone or Social Commentary?

By Ryan Garwood

In a day and age where society looks for a quick fix to problems, illness and health hold no exception. Medicine and pharmacology struggle to invent new cures to old problems, and are fighting a losing battle. Nowhere is this struggle more evident than in the 1990 Game Boy puzzle game Dr. Mario. In this deceptively simple game, everybody's favorite plumber takes on the role of a trusted physician and health care expert, dispensing an endless supply of "Megavitamins" to solve the rampant outbreak on his hands.

The problem seems simple: a giant bottle filled to the brim with squirming, malicious, anthropomorphic viruses. This is a thinly veiled model of society today, struggling to eliminate the rampant disease. The player assumes the form of one of society's most revered and respected professions, and proceeds to assault the on-screen infection with pills, a seemingly blank-check style prescription pad. The germs dance in the corner under the microscope, sentient and quite aware that their very existence is to cause Mario headaches (or worse).

A statistical analysis of the game mechanics reveals that there is a slight bias towards the "red-yellow" pill combination (this is not unlike the bias of the t-shaped block of Tetris fame, a well-documented phenomenon), which clearly represents Penicillin. This drug, one of the cornerstone inventions of the 20th century, is most often used today to treat a wide variety of diseases. Unfortunately, in our haste to eliminate the problems, use of this medicine skyrocketed. Because of problems such as incomplete diagnoses and unfinished prescriptions, drug-resistant bacteria took a Darwinian turn for the worse. Strains developed over the years that could fight back against the red-yellow combination. This is evident in the game itself- stacking four halves of the appropriate pill color on top of the germs and you see them under the microscope, squirming for a short amount of time. Eventually they stop and resume their dance- this is the drug resistance taking place before the player's eyes.

Worse yet, the game speeds up and introduces more germs at each new level, prompting more pills. The next most frequent color is "blue-red", which represents Amoxicillin, a more potent antibacterial medicine. This is a moderate spectrum level prescription which is used to deal with stronger infections. The "blue-yellow" pills represent last resort drugs or other radical treatments, such as chemotherapy. As for the germs themselves, they clearly represent "The Big Three" diseases: Pneumonia, Influenza, and Tuberculosis. Each one carries a personality that belies their deadly nature.

The addictive music distracts most players from realizing the symbolism at work. Players only earn points for viruses eliminated- leaving half the screen covered in extra pills clears the level, but gives no incentive for more efficient use of the Megavitamins. This is a graphic representation of literally throwing pills at the problem, instead of attempting to cure the underlying condition.


All research and clinical material provided by the author is for comedic and satirical purposes only. Readers are encouraged to confirm the information contained herein with other sources. Patients and consumers should review the information carefully with their professional health care provider. The information is not intended to replace medical advice offered by physicians. The author will not be liable for any direct, indirect, consequential, special, exemplary, or other damages arising there from.