Man's video game concept more than monkey business

Imagine you're a monkey in an island maze, collecting valuable treasures that have spewed out of a nearby volcano. Racing through the course's twists and turns, you're tailed by monkey-hunting tiki monsters.Quick reflexes, a good sense of direction and a knowledge of the island will help you escape the maze unharmed.And, of course, nimble fingers for moving those controls."Monkeys from Mt. Doritos" is a video game concept developed by Juanito Lagasca III of Algonquin.One of five finalists in the Doritos: Unlock Xbox contest, Lagasca competed against 2,300 other entrants for the chance to have his game developed into an Xbox 360 video game.The 33-year-old freelance graphic artist, who spends his days as a caretaker for his nephew Chris, first heard about the contest from online gaming blogs."My responsibilities don't let me play video games as much as I used to, but I still try to keep up with the gaming world," he said.In July, Lagasca submitted a 500-word proposal for the game, along with character sketches he drew himself."The idea for the game really came from my nephew," Lagasca said, who was intent on creating a game that children could play. "He loves anything to do with monkeys."After learning he was a finalist, Lagasca has spent the past few weeks developing his game idea with Xbox video game developers."They gave me access to a site where they would develop the game and I could give them feedback during the process," he said.For instance, Lagasca thought some of the monkeys in the game looked a little too scary for children."I guess they wanted it to be (an edgy game)," he said. "But some of the monkeys looked like they were having 'roid rages. They should be happy when they're collecting prizes," he said.Lagasca worked with developers to give the game a sort of retro feel -- looking back to arcade games from the 1980s like Pac Man and Frogger.Jeremy Tucker, an associate brand developer for Doritos, said Lagasca's artistic talent made him stand out from the other entries."His sketches really made us visualize the idea's potential," Tucker said.While a number of entrants submitted "more intense, violent type game ideas," Lagasca's "concept of having monkeys run around made us laugh," he said.Gamers can check out the five betas -- playable demos -- from the finalists, and vote for their favorite at www.unlockxbox.com.A winner will be announced Nov. 19. If Lagasco wins, he will work with developers over the next 10 months to evolve "Monkeys from Mt. Doritos" into a full-scale Xbox LIVE Arcade game, expected to be released next summer.For now, the aspiring comic book artist is living large with the prizes he received as a finalist.The 42-inch plasma television, a home entertainment system and an Xbox 360 console might urge him to play video games a little more than he has been."It's been an incredible experience," Lagasca said.