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Culture

Now We Know Why the Mario Brothers Are Plumbers

Jesse Walker | 2.2.2007 5:01 PM

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If Grand Theft Auto encourages crime, what does this game do? From the practically prehistoric year of 1973:

If you prefer the presidential scandals of the '80s, you can trade arms to Iran for quarters and feed them into this.

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Jesse Walker is books editor at Reason and the author of Rebels on the Air and The United States of Paranoia.

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  1. Lamar   20 years ago

    Hey, that's my old company, Nutting Associates. I briefly worked for the Ram It Institute, and now I'm with the Boning Corporation.

  2. Smappy   20 years ago

    Ah, Contra. I spent many a happy hour playing that one.

    Never forget:

    Up, up, down, down, left, right, left, right, B, A, [select,] start.

    Can't beat the game without it!

  3. highnumber   20 years ago

    Would someone with too much time on their hands please track down a screen shot from the Watergate game? Real or a simulated shot from old ads maybe.
    Thank you.

  4. Aresen   20 years ago

    Great headline, Jesse!

  5. panurge   20 years ago

    Make sure you don't go down the wrong cabinet, or you might get sucked into a warp zone.

  6. Guy Montag   20 years ago

    Good thing that you guys were trashing GTA III rather than the one I am in.

    Otherwise a strongly worded telegram would be in your future. VERY STRONGLY WORDED!

  7. Dave   20 years ago

    Highnumber-

    I don't have a screenshot, but I think we can imagine:

    Navigate your yellow square (Gordon Liddy) through the maze and avoid being cornerd by the blue triangle (police). If the clock runs out, the white dot (John Dean) testifies and you lose. If you successfully run the maze in the alloted time, the words "You are not a crook!" flash on the screen.

  8. Dave   20 years ago

    Also, typing "Hot Coffee" will bring you to the Deep Throat level.

  9. isildur   20 years ago

    Lamar,

    http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2005/08/08

  10. Lamar   20 years ago

    Funny stuff. I mean, can Nutting Associates be real? Or is it a Testicorp?

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