The Oak Harbor Cinema is swapping movie night for a head-to-head gaming showdown featuring everyone’s favorite Italian-American plumbers: Mario and Luigi.
The cinema is inviting players to participate in its very first “Gaming for Good” tournament fundraiser, starting from 5 to 6 p.m. on Aug. 25 at the Oak Harbor Cinema.
Mario Kart World on Nintendo Switch 2 will be split into two divisions, “Toadstool,” for ages 12 and under and “Turbo,” for ages 13 and above. Tickets are $10 for the younger division and $25 for the older division.
There will be space for spectators to watch and support players free of charge.
“It’s a family-friendly game that’s great for all ages,” said Bryan Stucky, the owner of the cinema. “My son enjoys Mario Kart, he’s nine. I love Mario Kart, I’m 39.”
The event will give kids, teens and adults the opportunity to play the newly released game on a big screen. With four controllers for each of the three theaters, players will race and compete for the trophy, with the winner from each round advancing to the next.
Stucky said watching kids play games in the cinema is like watching them at Disneyland. But it isn’t just for kids; many adults have already RSVP’d to test their gaming expertise.
“I mean, you could play Mario Kart at home on a 70-inch TV, and that’s cool, but playing Mario Kart on a TV the size of a room, I mean, that’s even cooler, with the surround sound and everything,” Stucky said.
Stucky, who is also on the city council, enjoys using his business to benefit other organizations in the community, he said. All profits from the event will go towards the Oak Harbor Boys and Girls Club.
According to its website, the Oak Harbor Boys and Girls Club, established in 2011, offers child care, summer camps, a tech lab and a teen center. The club offers before- and after-school child care programs at Broadview Elementary, Crescent Harbor Elementary, Oak Harbor Elementary and more. These programs are structured to reduce learning loss while developing healthy habits, it says.
“It seemed kind of natural to help an organization that helps children, with a video game tournament,” Stucky said.
The format of the tournament will be flexible to ensure that everyone who shows up to play will be able to participate. Robert Sanders, the unit director of the Oak Harbor Boys and Girls Club, will also be playing, Stucky said. Along with the trophy for the tournament winners, top players will receive prizes, including gift cards.
The Oak Harbor Cinemas are available for private movie screenings or video game party rentals.
Space for the Gaming for Good tournament is limited. RSVP at facebook.com/oakharborcinema.
(Photo provided) Bryan Stucky plays Mario Kart on the big screen with his son, Ben Stucky.
(Photo provided) Bryan Stucky plays Mario Kart on the big screen with his son, Ben Stucky.
