Arcade
Norbert Weisser is Albert in this 1993 movie that features Peter Billingsley (Christmas Story) and Megan Ward.
Norbert plays the role of a virtual reality video game programmer with just the perfect hint of mad scientist thrown in
to balance it all out.
Dante's is the local video game hang out that is featuring a new interactive game that all of the teenagers want to
check out after school. It is still so new it is still officially in beta-test mode. The game owner wants the kids to test his
new game called Arcade and even has portable versions for them to take home and try out.
When a bully harasses one of the teens and bad-mouths the game, it talks back to him because it felt insulted. The
game was programmed to respond like a human by learning and adapting every time someone plays it. One of the
teens, Nick, is the first to play the game since he is known as the best gamer among them. There is an escape button in
case the player gets in to deep, since each level of the game is more intense and dangerous. He backs out having failed
at an early level.
The last person to play the game disappears into it, but none of his friends know what has happened to him since they can't find him. They
leave and return home. When they play the game at home, they one by one disappear, except Alex -- the game has taken a certain dislike to
her and threatens her, forcing her to play. When she goes to turn off the game, it keeps coming back
on.
When the kids don't show up at school the next day, Alex and Nick head to the company that made the game. They meet up with
Albert where they ask for clues about the game without telling him what is really going on and revealing how frightened they are.
Albert explains that there are keys at every level and that the final key will unlock Arcade's heart. Then he explains about the donor --
the company actually used about 100,000 brain cells from a brain-dead donor to make the game more real. When Alex reveals what
is really going on with the game and that the "Escape" button no longer works, Albert admits that is a pretty big glitch.
Alex and Nick descend into the game to try to find their friends when the face of one of them appears on the screen. They go deeper
and deeper into danger. When it looks as if Alex and Nick are going to be killed, Albert appears and manually deactivates the game,
and destroys Arcade, freeing all of the teen players.
When things don't seem normal, they go to Albert who shows them clues and the schematics of the game, and
emphasizes the keys and the "Escape" button. Albert is more than a little alarmed when he is told the “Escape”
button does not work.
Albert goes to where Nick is playing the game in an attempt to
rescue Alex and the others who are trapped inside. He manually
overrides the "Escape" button which allows the kids to be saved.
Arcade is destroyed in the process.
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