Coral Springs-raised Mike Drucker is a parent’s worst nightmare: From a young age he exiled himself indoors in a world of video games, hours of Duck Hunt and Super Mario Bros. turning into days, weeks, months, years of The Sims, Final Fantasy VII, StarCraft and Dance Dance Revolution.
Going outside to play? Pass, said young Mike.
Emerging into young adulthood, the inevitable damage from this obsession became obvious: Class valedictorian at Dillard High School in Fort Lauderdale. New York University graduate. Intern at “Saturday Night Live” (where he taught the cast to play Nintendo Wii). Emmy-nominated comedy writer, with stints on “Full Frontal with Samantha Bee” and “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” (where he bonded with the host while playing Madden and FIFA).
Drucker has intertwined his experience with the rise of electronic entertainment, witty storytelling and brushes with celebrity into a nostalgic, heartfelt and engaging new memoir, “Good Game, No Rematch: A Life Made of Video Games” (Hanover Square Press; $28).
“There was something in my mind about writing a book where, like, you can grow up an awkward kid who is obsessed with video games, where they’re your whole life, and still do super-exciting and super-fun things with that. In fact, it can enhance your life, where you are having these amazing experiences because of it, rather than despite of it,” Drucker says. “It’s like I’m getting revenge on myself in a weird way.”
The Brooklyn resident, currently freelancing and working on a couple of TV shows and games, all in development, is expected to return to his hometown for a reading and book signing at the Barnes & Noble in Coral Springs at 6 p.m. Friday, April 18.
One of the many rewards of “Good Game, No Rematch” is that, even if video games are an alien universe, you will follow along because Drucker is such an amiable, self-deprecating guide, using a voice that is accessible, wry and entertaining. And as a former writer for Nintendo and the video-game website IGN, he can also get down and nerdy.
“I wanted this book to work for high-end super fans, but also work for people who maybe played games in their youth and don’t play them as much anymore,” Drucker says. “I wanted something that celebrated games and talked about how they influenced the way we see the world. Sometimes the gaming community can be toxic, and I really wanted something joyful about this medium that I love.”
In advance of his return to South Florida, Drucker, 41, answered a few questions about his life playing video games, some for the novice and some for the hardcore fans. The conversation has been edited for brevity and clarity.
Q: Many parents believe video games are destructive. How were you damaged?
A: [Laughs] I was definitely financially damaged by this obsession. Any birthday or Christmas money went, like, straight back to the stuff, you know? My parents tried — they were, you know, “This should be for college.” And I was, like, “Ahhh, I’m going to buy some new games.” [Laughs] I definitely had no savings when I started college.
Q: Did your parents ever express concern about your video-game use?
A: They were more concerned about the fact that I didn’t like going outside than they were about the video-game playing. I don’t think they were ever really afraid of the content. My dad definitely took me to see “Terminator 2,” like, seven or eight times when I was a kid. And to my mom’s credit, she saw, especially in those early games before there was a lot of voice acting, how much reading there was. She was eventually, like, “You’re clearly reading a lot. You clearly need to solve puzzles. As long as you’re using your brain with this, I’m fine.”
Q: What other skills did you learn through video games?
A: It sounds a bit cliche, but it helped me learn to play well with others. It also taught me how to be, for lack of a better term, a better sportsman. It taught me that losing happens. It taught me that sometimes when I lose, I’m going to have to face the person I lost to and be cool about it. We take that for granted as adults, but as a kid it was an important lesson that I might not have received as early anywhere else.
Q: You were class valedictorian at Dillard. How did you manage school with playing video games?
A: At the time, they had new computers that could run really new video games. So, despite being a nerdy kid who was awkward and really just couldn’t even dress that well, high school was super-fun for me because of games. Even when bad things happened, even when there was a downside of things, games made high school fun, and I think that itself made it easier to study. And there was absolutely the social aspect. You could talk to people, you shared interests. Whether they were, you know, the nerdiest kid or a player on the football team, people were playing Smash Bros., people were playing Dance Dance Revolution. So it really did feel like it bridged all the gaps in my school.
“It’s a very interesting feeling when you’re 20 or 21 and some of the most famous people in comedy are eagerly watching you set up a video game.”
— Mike Drucker
Q: So video games have been a net positive for you?
A: Oh, absolutely a net positive. It is an art form that has comforted me. It’s an art form that’s helped me meet friends. It’s an art form that’s, you know, helped my career. I write in the book that when I was interviewing for a job with Jimmy Fallon, the fact that he likes video games was a giant foot in the door for me.
Q: Do you have a favorite video-game moment with a celebrity?
A: It’s sort of the story in my book about when I was an intern at “Saturday Night Live” and I was asked to set up and demonstrate the Nintendo Wii. It just came out, and everyone was losing their minds. There were all these writers and actors who are celebrities, but also people I really respect, paying attention to me as I was showing them something very cool, and they were excited about it. And it was an amazing era of “SNL.”
It was, you know, when Andy Samberg was there, Jason Sudeikis, Bill Hader, Kristen Wiig, Maya Rudolph, all these crazy talented people. It’s a very interesting feeling when you’re 20 or 21 and some of the most famous people in comedy are eagerly watching you set up a video game.
Q: Of all the celebrities you’ve worked with, who is the best video-game player?
A: It might actually be Jimmy Fallon. He is really very good. The only games that I played with him were, like, sports games. It would be a couple of producers in the room and they’re playing Madden or FIFA, and he’s actually really good at that. To the point that when I would be on his team, I’d feel bad, because I knew I was going to be a detriment. I’m not that good at sports games.
Q: At parties, you must be the coolest guy in the room.
A: It really depends on the party. When there’s a video-game party, I feel like I’m one of the coolest guys in the room. When there’s a TV party, I feel like I’m one of the least cool guys in the room.
Q: The book is written for the casual gamer, but you also get into the weeds, with footnotes on things like when the original version of Animal Crossing came out in the U.S. vs. Japan. Was that really necessary?
A: [Laughs] A tertiary goal I had while writing this book was not getting yelled at online. With Animal Crossing, it’s like, “Hey, guys, I know it’s not the original one. I want to assure you that even though I’m speaking in a casual voice, I understand how this all works.”
Q: Favorite video game of all time?
A: Probably a game called Planescape: Torment. I was maybe 15 or 16 when it came out, and at the time it was the weirdest game I’d ever played. It’s a role-playing game, the setting is incredible, and it had such a captivating story. It was one of the first games that I ever played that your choices really, really mattered. That’s a lot more common in games today, but at the time I don’t think I had played anything like that. It was one of the first times that I [thought] “Oh, this is a very good art form. … This can tell, like, story stories.”
Q: What game are you playing now?
A: Right now, I am playing a game called Two Point Museum, which is sort of like Sin City, except you’re building a museum. It can be an art museum. It could be, you know, fossils, it could even be like supernatural stuff. And I’m just someone who’s always, always loved museums, and I’ve always loved simulation games, so this is the best thing that could have happened to me.
IF YOU GO
WHAT: Mike Drucker book signing and reading
WHEN: 6-8 p.m. Friday, April 18
WHERE: Barnes & Noble, 2790 N. University Drive, Coral Springs
COST: Free
INFORMATION: barnesandnoble.com
Staff writer Ben Crandell can be reached at bcrandell@sunsentinel.com. Follow on Instagram @BenCrandell and X @BenCrandell.