A Sky News presenter has been heavily criticised online for her comments made about Willis Gibson, a 13-year old Tetris player who made history after he became the first person to ‘beat’ the classic NES game by reaching its true kill screen. The news outlet reported on the story, though the anchor made belittling remarks about Gibson’s accomplishment, telling him to “go outside.”
13-year old Willis Gibson managed to achieve what many thought was impossible (at least for a human) and became the first person to ever reach the original Tetris game’s kill screen, wherein the game crashes after reaching its highest possible level. At this point, the blocks are falling so incredibly fast that it requires absolutely perfect precision to place. Gibson’s achievement was commended online by the gaming community and industry, earning him a world record.
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“It’s never been done by a human before,” said Vince Clemente, the president of the Classic Tetris Championship. “It’s basically something that everyone thought was impossible until a couple of years ago.”
While Gibson’s record-breaking feat was applauded, an anchor at Sky News appeared to mock the player while reporting on the story. “As a mother, I would just say step away from the screen, go outside, get some fresh air. Beating Tetris is not a life goal,” said 51-year old Sky News journalist Jayne Secker, seemingly breaking from the script towards the end of the segment.
It is the Year of Our Lord 2024 and @SkyNews is still telling people who play video games to go outside and get some fresh air, notably on the same day they’re praising a 16-year-old darts player pic.twitter.com/QoPpWGQ0fr
— Chris Scullion (@scully1888) January 4, 2024
Secker’s commentary drew criticism online for being disrespectful to Gibson and his accomplishment. “There’s something so disappointingly smug about this,” wrote Twitter/X user Frankie Ward. “I bet that kid had so much boss battle style adrenaline from doing this – and it’s so cool to see a 13 year old playing a game that’s more than double the age he is.”
“‘Beating Tetris is not a life goal’, but neither is being a TV presenter,” wrote game developer Rami Ismail. “Your goals are your own, and you could do much much worse than being the first-ever human to ever achieve a feat of skill, dexterity and hand-eye coordination once thought humanly impossible.”
“As a Dad, I can safely tell you if Kit beat an unbeatable game and set a world record at 13 I’d be incredibly proud,” wrote Sumo Digital community manager Jimmy Bowers. “That comment was so outdated and in such poor taste to basically punch down on a child I’m almost lost for words. How is this reporting the news?”
The news clip is still gaining traction online with thousands expressing their disapproval of Secker’s comments.
Source: Chris Scullion
