The TRON arcade cabinet has humbled countless gamers since 1982, but David Cruz isn’t one of them. In July 2011, the Brandon, Florida native achieved the seemingly impossible—a jaw-dropping 14,007,645 points that would cement his name in Twin Galaxies record books forever. In this 2012 interview, Cruz opens up about the grueling journey to mastery, the strategies that separated him from the competition, and what it truly means to conquer one of gaming’s most unforgiving challenges. With TRON: Ares now lighting up theaters, this conversation reminds us why the franchise’s arcade roots continue to captivate both veteran players and newcomers to the Grid.
