| Game Time | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Season 1, Episode 26b | |
Production Information | |
| Air Date | May 27, 2015 |
| Written by | Kevin Seccia Stephen Senders |
| Directed by | J.J. Johnson Craig David Wallace |
Episode Guide | |
| Previous | Next |
| Robert Plant (Episode) | The O Games |
Game Time is the B-plot of the 26th episode of Odd Squad.
Synopsis
When Otto gets trapped inside a video game, it's up to Olive to rescue him.
Learning Goal
Measurement: identifying the value of coins and combinations to make a dollar.
Plot (contains episode spoilers)
The episode opens with Olive and Otto about to be filled in on a case by Ms. O. The duo enter her office and she informs them that hundreds of futuristic robots have flooded the streets, destroying everything in their path. Both are shocked until their boss elaborates, stating that it’s all in a video game. Otto is elated when the pair is sent to the local arcade (Shmumbercade) to investigate. As the two head out on the case, Olive admits to Otto that video games aren’t really her thing. He freaks out and holds open his tube capsule, which causes the system to spark. O’Toole implores Otto to let go, and he concedes that they’ll talk more about Olive’s disinterest in gaming later.
They arrive on the scene and meet Karla- the woman who runs the arcade. She thanks them for their help, then says that it’ll cost a dollar to enter the building. Otto pays immediately, but Olive has to figure out how to make a dollar out of change. Karla helps, even giving her a card with a change guide on it (which costs $0.10). Olive finally enters the building and is briefed on the problem. One video game in particular ("Robo-Blast-Bots") has started acting strangely by sucking in anything placed on it. Karla points out that she roped off the machine after it “ate” her sandwich. As she finishes explaining the situation, they look up to see Otto playing the game, thinking that it’s roped off for V.I.P.'s. Olive shouts at Otto to get away from the game, but before she can tell him why, he gets sucked into the arcade cabinet. Karla retreats and Olive vows to get the now pixelated Otto out of the game.
Oscar joins the group to try to free Otto. The scientist sets up a device that will prevent anything else from being sucked into the machine, then assures the agents that if Otto can get to the end of level one that he can get him out. Otto finds that he can’t move without the assistance of the joystick. Oscar brags that he’s awesome at the game, and will have Otto out in a jiffy...as soon as he takes the Freeze-ray-inator gadget out of his pocket. He fumbles and drops the object on the floor, accidentally setting it off, and gets trapped in a large block of ice that goes up to his shoulders, leaving Olive up for the task. She steps up to the machine and takes a whack at the game, but “dies” within a few seconds. The “Continue” option flashes on screen with a prompt for another token. Oscar informs the duo that if a “Game Over” happens that Otto will be trapped inside forever; the only way to save him is to keep playing and make sure the continue timer doesn’t run out. Olive dashes off to get another token.
Just in the nick of time, Olive manages to put the coin in the machine. She blasts through a few stages and admits that the game is pretty fun. Unfortunately, Otto loses another life and Olive runs to retrieve a third token. She manages to get Otto to the boss at the end of level one, but loses another life. She scrambles to find enough change for another credit, but discovers that if she loses again that she won’t have enough money to keep playing. After a short pep talk from Otto, Olive successfully defeats the boss and finishes the level. Otto enters a fortress and is teleported back out into the real world. Otto suggests that they bring the machine back to Headquarters with them, but Olive says that they might as well just stay out for a while and play at the arcade. They run off and leave Oscar alone in the ice block. He mutters about his situation and Karla scoots up, informing the scientist that she could get him out; he tells her that would be great and she sticks out her hand. “That’ll be one dollar.”
Trivia
- The design on the side of the Robo-Blastbots arcade cabinet is a homage to the original Donkey Kong game.
- One of the games being played in the background is the Namco game “Tekken 2”. The name banner on the cabinet is covered, however.
- One of the games in the background shows a start screen that says “Free Play”, meaning that it doesn’t require tokens to be played. Assumedly, all of the games on the set were in free play mode for the filming of the episode.
- Olive uses the pattern “Up-up-down-down-left-right-left-right-B-A” to unlock the finishing move in Robo-Blast-Bots. This is known as the “Konami Code”, and is often used as a cheat code to unlock power-ups in various real-world games.
Gallery
Video
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