On Saturday night, Twitch Plays Pokemon accomplished the near-impossible: the stream worked together long enough to catch a Zapdos.

The group’s reaction (and my own) was tremendous. People were celebrating and throwing out capital letters like there was no tomorrow. In the aftermath, I also saw a few people compare that moment to sports, which I thought was interesting.

One of the main reasons I like sports is the big moments. There’s something about that payoff when you’ve truly invested in a team. Some people have a hard time understanding this, but there’s a simple joy in the unexpected (even in times when your team loses). There are times when you root so hard for a team or individual to win that the reward is a feeling that’s difficult to describe. For example, listen to the crowd in these moments:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HqIBNX0CXDc

Anyway, the reason I make this comparison is the staggering odds against TPP being able to catch Zapdos. Consider:

• After beating Giovanni atop Silph Co. and then crushing Sabrina with the Pidgeot affectionately known as “Bird Jesus,” the collective receives the Master Ball. This is the source of a huge schism in the chat. Some want to go to Cinnabar to continue the game. Some want to use it on Mewtwo (a dumb move because that has to be post-Elite Four). Some want to throw it away because of its temptation. Hours are spent deciding what to do next.
• A trip to the Power Plant where Zapdos is requires another pass at THE LEDGE. The Ledge was a huge thorn in the side to TPP earlier in the run, when there was no choice but to tackle it. Seen below, it’s basically an innocuous-looking stretch where Red has to walk right for about 15 tiles. Unfortunately, this being TPP, any dumb person hitting left adds a step to the journey, and any asshole hitting down makes Red jump off the ledge and start all over again. This took 18 hours to complete the first time.

• As the stream enters hour 4 or so of Ledge 2: Electric Boogaloo, a remarkable thing happens: another user on Twitch (who is undeserving of any attention because he’s a jackass, so he won’t be named or linked here) decides to send his followers to sabotage the stream. Indeed, for a brief moment he succeeds at sending Red in the wrong direction. But as bickering unfolds, the anarchy/democracy sides unite against the new threat, and Red sneakily completes The Ledge before anyone has a chance to mess it up.
• The Power Plant is off the beaten path, and you might’ve missed it when you played this game as a kid. You basically have to surf way past a nearby Pokemon Center to an area down below that you can’t see without deciding to head that direction. Surfing is extremely difficult in TPP because it requires Red to go into the menu and select it from there, a six-step process of precise inputs. But after about 10 minutes of struggling, Lapras gives us a ride (and miraculously, Red avoids accdientally surfing right back onto the shore).
• Inside the Power Plant, two things have to happen: the group has to navigate a maze to get to Zapdos, and not use the Master Ball on the way. In one battle against an Electabuzz, the stream gets just one spot away from throwing it, causing everyone to have a heart attack.
• Finally, the room with Zapdos. I know this sounds simple because it’s the Master Ball, but hear me out. There are several traps in play here. One: The Power Plant exit directly the Zapdos’ left means starting the whole dungeon over. Two: Most of the party is weak to Zapdos’ attacks, so time is of the essence. Three: Selecting “Run” means Zapdos is gone forever, and TPP ends up choosing Run all the damn time. Four: The current lead Pokemon, Bird Jesus, knows Whirlwind, so accidentally selecting attack is another one in four chance of ruining everything. And five: the Master Ball is buried in the items menu and not near the top.

Still, in a moment of extreme and unlikely concentration, the collective manages to select Item early in the battle. That’s a start. Anyone hitting B will yank Red out of the menu, which happens a couple times. A handful of “Right” inputs pop up as well from people trying to sabotage the attempt by getting to Run, but they never connect properly. The group scrolls down the list at an excruciatingly slow pace, finally getting to the Master Ball…and going past it! (The 25- to 30-second input delay strikes again.)

And then…out of nowhere, an Up input and an A button, and Zapdos joined the team.

Even for the briefest moment in this clustermuck of a social experiment, everyone worked together for a common goal. Sure, Zapdos ended up nearly destroying the run afterward, as TPP spent about 12 hours trying to get him out of the PC and instead released almost half their Pokemon (although not Bird Jesus!).

But that’s not the point here. The biggest moments in sports and gaming alike, the ones you pull so hard for as a fan, transcend winning and losing sometimes. The biggest moments bring us all together.