Buzz up! April 6 5:52 P.M.
One of gaming's oldest records was just blown up. And it wasn't an easy shot.
After a grueling 58 hours of continuous play, John McAllister of Seattle, Washington officially became the best Asteroids player on the planet by scoring an unthinkable 41,338,740 points in the classic 1979 coin-op arcade game. The previous mark of 41,336,440 was set by Scott Safran back in 1982 -- the longest standing record in gaming -- and was considered virtually unbreakable.
"It's basically considered a Holy Grail," he told Portland TV station KGW. "It was a title that a lot of people would want, and I wanted it."
McAllister also holds the world record for the lesser known sequel Asteroids Deluxe, a mark he set in 2009. Before he's inducted into the record books, however, his efforts will have to pass the strict submission guidelines of official game scorekeepers, Twin Galaxies.
It's been a rough year for video game records. In March, a plastic surgeon toppled the all-time Donkey Kong mark, while back in January, a Connecticut man hopped his way to the new high score in Frogger.
One of gaming's oldest records was just blown up. And it wasn't an easy shot.
After a grueling 58 hours of continuous play, John McAllister of Seattle, Washington officially became the best Asteroids player on the planet by scoring an unthinkable 41,338,740 points in the classic 1979 coin-op arcade game. The previous mark of 41,336,440 was set by Scott Safran back in 1982 -- the longest standing record in gaming -- and was considered virtually unbreakable.
"It's basically considered a Holy Grail," he told Portland TV station KGW. "It was a title that a lot of people would want, and I wanted it."
McAllister also holds the world record for the lesser known sequel Asteroids Deluxe, a mark he set in 2009. Before he's inducted into the record books, however, his efforts will have to pass the strict submission guidelines of official game scorekeepers, Twin Galaxies.
It's been a rough year for video game records. In March, a plastic surgeon toppled the all-time Donkey Kong mark, while back in January, a Connecticut man hopped his way to the new high score in Frogger.
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