The next time you take a trip to one of our national parks or volcanoes; do not be surprised if you see a group of young men and women hunched over portable gaming systems, engaged in furious button-mashing with incredible thumb dexterity.  They are members of the growing Nintendo StreetPass 3DS community in Costa Rica, video game enthusiasts who break the tired stereotype of the lone gamer sitting in a darkened bedroom surrounded by junk food wrappers.

StreetPass is a networking protocol created by Nintendo and installed into the 3DS portable gaming system.  It allows players to connect with each other, exchange information, and engage in social interaction.  StreetPass is enabled by Mii Plaza, an application that comes with two mini-games to entice players to test the system and find other like-minded 3DS users.   StreetPass supports multiplayer sessions wirelessly or via an Internet connection.  When the 3DS is in sleep mode, StreetPass scans for open signals, exchanges information, and downloads content automatically.

Ever since its debut, StreetPass has managed to break the mold of reclusive hardcore gamers with its social features.  StreetPass groups in Costa Rica and other nations are growing their ranks, and gamers are loving the social interaction and the meetings that often take place in the outdoors.

There are quite a few games that take advantage of the StreetPass protocol, including special versions of classic franchises such as Street Fighter, Mario Kart, Super Mario, and Lego Star Wars.  Kid Icarus and Mario Kart seem to be the favorite among Tico gamers who are members of the StreetPass CR community.

Video game culture in Costa Rica is growing at a healthy pace, as evidenced by the StreetPass community and the Boom Con celebration of popular culture that took place in San Jose earlier this year.  While Boom Con was mostly focused on comic book lore and underground comix; video games, anime and cosplay also had a strong presence at the event.  This past Sunday at the National Center of Culture (CENAC), fans of Japanese animation, manga, and cosplay gathered for Chibi Fest 2012 –and the StreetPass CR community was present.

There is an additional advantage to StreetPass: it drains the battery of the Nintendo 3DS faster, which has prompted Tico members of the StreetPass community to put away their portable gaming systems and engage in other activities, such as hikes, picnic lunches and even mejengas (impromptu football matches).