What Makes A Good Bad Game?

Nothing is more satisfying than seeing an audience burst into applause when a comic finally, finally, gets out of a pit in E.T. for the Atari 2600. That is, except for when that same audience screams with horror as the comedian drops him right back down. And, for the briefest of moments, an infamous flop that shattered the video game industry becomes comedy gold.
That’s what we do on my live comedy show, S--- Arcade: Comedians Play Bad Video Games. A title I somewhat regret, considering how many parents bring their kids to the show and now seeing it censored in this publication. But, you’ve got to admit, it’s catchy, right?

I started S--- Arcade a while back, more or less inspired by Mystery Science Theater 3000, a show that I was actually lucky enough to write on a few years later. Some of my earliest memories of laughing came from Joel, Crow, and Tom Servo riffing on films. Their jokes changed forgotten trash into absolute classics.