During late 2020 i was contacted by Ross Willett seeking some more info on the Blockbuster challenge. After learning he was an entrant in the 1993 Starwing Challenge i pounced on the opportunity to ask him a few questions about this 'barely documented' event held in the Uk by Nintendo.
Tell us about yourself and what got you into gaming.
My names Ross, I'm 37, and I live in Aberdeen. I've been gaming, ever since I was able to pick up a controller! In the 80s, I played on my sisters Atari 2600, on my brothers Master System and then I got my Nes for Christmas 1989.
How did you first hear about the Starwing challenge & at which store did you enter the event?
The Starwing Challenge, just came across by chance. It was just down to good timing! As, I had heard nothing about it, before the day. It was at the Virgin Megastore, in Aberdeen.
Did you just turn up, enter and play the game that same day?
Yes, not long after arriving in the shop, we entered (me and my brother Christopher) and played almost straight away. When we asked the woman if we could play she said "no, as you had to sign up beforehand but if the next person who is due to play in the next couple minutes, doesn't show, 1 of you can take his place" so I got his place and likewise, the next person also didn't show (This makes me think they were perhaps family members or friends, or it could have just been coincidence the next 2 didnt show).
Was it presented as a special event? (or was it just a case of the shop setting up a SNES in the corner?)
It was just a copy of the game, placed into a snes, which was inside a case (think of the consoles they had inside the shops, so you could try the games out) and a girl running the event.
As starwing was unreleased at that time, were you allowed any time to practice?
No, we weren't allowed any practice, and we were lucky to even get a chance to play. As, we were told you were suppose to sign up beforehand, and it was again just by chance, the next 2 people who were due to play, never showed so, me and my brother, got their places!
What were your first thoughts on the game?
I thought the game was phenomenal. I had read about it, and seen clips on tv video game shows, and I was waiting for it, to be officialy released. So, having the chance to play it, even if just for 5 minutes, before being released, felt amazing. Being 3D and using Super FX, I felt it was ahead of it's time.
Other than the certificate of entry, were you given anything else for taking part?
We were giving posters, which were sadly thrown out, long ago! I think we were also giving a leaflet, with details of when the game was being released.
Do you have any idea how many people took part at your local store?
Absolutely, no idea.
Were you able to compare your score that day with other entrants?
We arrived near the start of the event, so, only a handful of people, had played before us. We were allowed to see their scores, and my brother was in 1st place, by that point.
How confident were you about your score?
Haha, my score was rubbish. Out of the 2 of us, only my brother had a chance of winning (as he was 1st by that point)
Do you have any idea who won at your local store? or possibly what their score was?
Sadly, I have no idea who won (in the store), or what their score was. We went back into the store, the next couple of Saturdays, and the sales assistants said, they had no idea at all....
Do you ever remembering seeing or hearing anything about the event afterwards?
No, I don't remember hearing or seeing anything about it, afterwards. We used to buy all the gaming magazines as well, and, again, I don't remember seeing anything. It may well of just been, we missed 1 particular magazine, that it was featured in.
Have you entered into any other gaming tournaments since?
My Gaming Career: That was my 1st, and only event, till 2016 (I did apply for the Sky One tv show - Games World, but, was sent a polite rejection letter lol). Sadly, up here (Aberdeen), there just wasn't really any gaming tournaments. And, when the year 2000 came, I was by that point, just playing retro games. So, when I did see any national or local events, it was for modern games. Fast forward to 2016, and a few local groups here, started doing regular retro tournaments. I had actually stopped gaming for 9/10 years but, I thought why not. This is what I had always wanted (to play tournaments) and even though it took a long time, here was a chance to play in them! Unfortunately, the "retro" craze up here (Aberdeen), dried up a year or so later. But, there was a few of us, that didn't want to stop playing the retro tournaments. So, for us to continue doing them, I decided to set up my own group "Scottish Retro Tournaments" The 1st event was: 1st October 2017 - The Scottish Mega Drive Championships & we were even endorsed by Violet Berlin (I have enclosed the picture of her), and since then, I have hosted 79 events, comprising of 130 tournaments.
I've also been to (and won) retro tournaments, which are part of bigger gaming events, all around Scotland, such as Play Expo Glasow, during the past 4 years. Altogether, I have won 116 tournaments, playing 50+ different titles, across 10 platforms. And, I have been acknowledged, as the Scottish Retro Champion (and featured into a world trading card set) by Walter Day.
....
Many thanks to Ross for answering these questions, and i must admit i was'nt expecting his impressive carreer since. Being part of the Walter Day card set is certainly something to be proud of & id love to hear more of how that came to happen, so hopefully Ross will be happy to tell us about that sometime in the future. If you are interested in learning more about the tournaments held by Ross you can look them up over on facebook at Scottish Retro Tournaments.
If youd like to learn more about the Starwing Challenge then we will have an article coming shortly, but for an indepth look at the USA version of the competition you can research it at SNES Central . If you are reading this and were also an entrant in the 1993 Uk Starwing Challenge and would like to help document the event in more detail then please get in touch on Facebook or over on Twitter @RetroDetect. Were also seeking out the Teletext pages that held the event winners details, so if you have any old VHS tapes lying around, they may just contain what we need.
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