You’d expect a media-trained K-pop star to be impossible to surprise, but when Matthew Kim, aka Big Matthew, aka BM from KARD, walks into a retro game store in New York City, he’s suddenly six years old again. Such is the power of the Super Nintendo Entertainment System.
“That’s my dad’s console,” he says, under his breath, like he unlocked a hidden level in his own memory. “He taught me how to play my first game. So all the times that he wanted me off the games, essentially it was his fault.”
The latest episode of Polygon’s Shelf Quest arrives at a fascinating moment for Kim. Between world tours, music releases, and his role in the new season of Netflix’s Beef, our visit to Videogamesnewyork could be Yet Another Ride on the Promo Carousel. Instead, what unfolds while wandering aisles of PS2 games is a detour into the intimate: a conversation about how video games quietly bonded him to family, friends, and even two different cultures.
For Kim, gaming memories are inseparable from family memories. Madden matches with his younger brothers turned into screaming matches. Halo at the cousins’ houses became excuses for entire families to gather around different consoles.
What Kim’s family didn’t prepare him for were the true gamers. As he learned on the road, there’s a somewhat terrifying skill gap between American and Korean Call of Duty players. Kim, who splits his life between the United States and South Korea, describes Korean servers like an elite training facility for first-person shooters. Playing there is good “practice,” he explains, before admitting that American lobbies feel like “kind of a breeze” afterward.
It’s also one of those observations that only someone living between cultures can really articulate. Kim’s gaming life mirrors his career: American-born, Korean-based, constantly adapting to different audiences. Even in Warzone, he’s navigating two worlds. Luckily, almost anyone who plays games then or now can understand the thrill of Counter-Strike 1.6 PC café marathons and why Dance Dance Revolution may have improved his hand-eye coordination. And also why it all means so much looking back — and looking forward.
“I’m really thankful for gaming right now,” Kim says.
