Hi everyone,
I've been overwhelmed by the outpouring of support in my Twitch channel, social media, and the classic gaming community.
When I scored the 1,122,000 on Christmas Day and it felt akin to running boards, that's when I knew if I could muster enough concentrated effort this week I'd have a shot.
Two days after that score I reached 950k on 1.18m pace. Again two days after that I reached 990k on 1.19m pace. Then the monitor in my machine failed and I thought I was finished, but a few very kind people in the community helped me muster up the courage to repair the CRT. Their help and guidance put me back in the ring.
After I broke the record, I couldn't handle the adrenaline and pressure, so I took a sleeping pill and dozed off. I woke up this morning to a surprise voicemail from Billy Mitchell:
Absolutely congratulations. Your hard work is incredible, it truly is. I see you do what you do, I see Robbie do what he does. It's a true example of hard work and dedication … and it's something you both should be so proud of, the amount of hard work it takes and the amount of character it shows to continue to try forward, it should benefit you in every aspect of your life.
Donkey Kong messes with your mind. It's the only game I've ever played that does. Every player, the 1.2m, the 1.1m, the 1m, the 900k, the first-time kill screener, all the way down to even the player who clears their first 3rd elevator, deserves a tremendous amount of praise and respect for their hard work and dedication. It's one of the few games I've played that truly feels like psychological warfare, and requires a unique blend of dedication, imagination, and strong spirit to survive, improve, and progress.
Robbie, like Dean, Hank, Steve, Billy, Ben Jos, and Tim, wouldn't have achieved what he did without a tremendous show of endurance, perseverance, and character. Robbie has indicated he wants to step away from the game for a little while, but I know in my heart that whatever he pursues in his life, he'll apply the same dedication to it as he did to the world record chase. I know he will be successful.
While I said last night I thought I was finished, I've decided to continue pursuing 1.2m. I don't know how long it will take, but the journey will be an exciting one.
