Section 9: New Age Arcade
M.G. McIntosh
OPINION
10/27/2021
CONCEPT REPORT (EXT.)
INTRODUCTION
When I was young, I loved going to the arcade. It was a social experience more than anything. You met new people, joined games and found fun in playing video games with your new friends. That is an experience that I miss. Could we bring it back? What would it look like? I think I have a few ideas.
OLD SCHOOL ARCADE GAME (GAUNTLET)
DESIGN #1 – OLD SCHOOL ARCADE
I imagine a 32-inch TV, possibly inclined (as above) for easy viewing. In the center (the black semi-circle between the controllers) would be the Nintendo Switch. This would allow the players to easily use any touchscreen functions available. Each of the four joysticks would be replaced with a modern day version of the NES Advantage Controller (pictured below).
NES ADVANTAGE CONTROLLER
OTHER FEATURES
The arcade game could still work with coins – Mario Coins. This would simply mean creating coin dispensers (not pictured) like the ones at Chuck E. Cheese’s restaurant chain. The games could also be purchased by gift card (credit or debit too) by installing a card reader near the coin slots (I’m assuming a hybrid coin/card arcade). The games could give players rewards too. I would guess that most of them would be electronic (coins, trading cards, points etc for the theme park), but the games could dispense tickets too. The electronic rewards would be collected through an app, I presume. Most likely the same one used at the park. In addition, there could be tournaments, rankings and prizes for the winners. Last but not least, Arcade Mario Kart. Yes, I’m thinking about the full driver seat, pedals and gear shift setup commonly found in arcades of old see below). Cool way to play Mario Kart, right? The interactive experience I never got as a kid, brought to life. Nevermind. I just found it. See below.
WHAT JUST HAPPENED
Am I a little out of touch? Apparently. I just tried to find an image of an old school arcade game and look what I found. Mario Kart DX. Leave it to Nintendo to beat me to the punch. Why I love ‘em. This is the kind of ingenuity that captures a kid’s imagination. And makes me look stupid. For your viewing pleasure I have included an image of Mario Kart DX below. Go ahead and laugh. I caught myself with my pants down, if that’s even possible.
MARIO KART DX
DESIGN #2 -THE “HOME” SCHOOL ARCADE
Cue the mushroom furniture! You might remember it being mentioned in Section 8: Tabletop Games. Well, now it’s for your home too. Specially designed furniture can give you the feeling of the arcade. The stand-up style, old school arcade design is perfect in smaller spaces. A Mushroom table would allow you to sit while you game on back-to-back T.V.’s – with up to 8 friends! The Mushroom table would also have a place for the Nintendo Switch on each side (centered to each T.V. as described in the Old School Arcade Design above). The controllers would have slots to hold them at an incline and prevent them from moving while gaming. Of course stools are in order – or chairs. Your choice. I used to have an inflatable chair (for a pool) that was my favourite. It was pretty comfortable for gaming, believe it or not (lol). With the help of these specially made items, you can create an arcade of your very own!
GOAL
Hopefully, to avoid looking stupid in the future. In Mario’s case to keep being ‘too much fun’ and for both of us to always be innovative. I hope to inspire others in the same way Mario inspired me – to keep dreaming. I hope Nintendo continues to be the creative juggernaut that it is well into the future.
CONCLUSION
Okay, I think it’s time for me to sign off. As always, please like, share and subscribe to read my book “Into the Stars: Becominga Modern Day Free Thinker”.
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