My brother discovered the secret hack in Super Mario Brothers to get unlimited lives. I remember sitting in front of our big box tv, mesmerized by the ding of each added life as the Mario character repeatedly jumped on the shell of a Koopa Troopa.
The intentionally added cheat code by the programmers felt like the biggest win in the entire game. Unlimited lives meant we could guarantee a victory. I honestly don’t remember if we ever beat the game without utilizing the hack.
I’m not losing sleep over our childhood hack, but I have been thinking a lot lately about how the games we play are being destroyed by the loopholes people exploit.
Humans want to play games. We want to compete. We recognize the need for structure and rules as necessary parameters, yet we are simultaneously wired to cheat, to bend those same rules, and to open up gaps in flawed designs.
My sister traveled with my niece for a soccer tournament recently. The teams were from all over the country and success in the initial round of games determined tournament advancement. Those sorts of pressure-filled environments bring out the worst in people.
Their second opponent scored in the first fifteen minutes of the game. Sensing the game was going to be a hotly contested one, and because this particular team of 12-year-olds was well-programmed to stall instead of play, they proceeded to kick the ball out of bounds as far as they could any time they got it. The girls essentially stopped playing the game to exploit the loophole of a tournament-imposed running clock in order to win.
Loopholes tear at the integrity of sport. They are in violation of sportsmanship and are used to enhance a person or a team’s advantage. Kids are not savvy at finding and exploiting loopholes, but many adults around them are.
Here are a few of my least favorite loopholes:
Tournament/ Team
- Stalling for longer than the last five minutes of a game.
- Games are meant to be played.
- Tournament rules that reward the endless running up of the score.
- Demoralizing a team should not be rewarded.
Individual Athlete
- Reclassing in 8th or 9th grade.
- An overt effort to gain advantage.
- Transfer portal in college.
- A hot topic, I know, but I do think it has destroyed the integrity of college team sports.
What about you? What loopholes bug you? Or do you completely disagree with me and think the utilization of loopholes should be celebrated?
Meagan Frank 
Leave a comment