As we look to the recovery of our hospitality and tourism economy in Cardiff, the addition of a new all-day destination in the heart of the Castle Quarter will be a huge asset for the city,” he said. But before you do that, you should be aware of two limited editions, signed by Tomohiro Nishikado. 78 original cabinet replicas and 79 Part II cabinet replicas have been signed by the gaming legend. These boast: On freeing the cab from its box, a wave of nostalgia washed over me. It looked the part, with the original – and still gorgeous – cabinet artwork beautifully recreated. The dinky controls were present and correct, alongside instructions rendered in tiny text I was happy to discover I could read. (Take that, optician!) That was all nice. This would look great on a shelf. But everything changed when I turned the Quarter Arcade on. We are arcade history students, trying our best to capture the original machine’s soul in our products,” says New Wave Toys founder Shilo Prychak. New Wave’s RepliCade products follow a similar approach to Numskull’s, but at an even tinier 1:6 scale.

Size Brand: The Quarter Arcade is an official, fully playable quarter scale replica arcade cabinet that maintains all of the features of the original arcade cabinet from the glory days of gaming. Everything has been lovingly replicated down to the smallest detail, from the artwork to the buttons and even the tiny screws. Realistic replica – everything from the artwork, shape, wooden shell, buttons, and more are precise replicas So how do you – and why would you – squash a classic arcade game down into pint-sized form? Stuff spoke to Numskull Designs co-founder Matt Precious, to find out. sees the 45th anniversary of Space Invaders, the seminal arcade game that sent video gaming mainstream. To celebrate this, Numskull Designs has announced two new quarter scale cabinets, carrying Space Invaders and Space Invaders Part II. Bigger than the replicas you’ll find in a local branch of Game, these cabinets are highly detailed replicas.

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Many people think we came up with the name and made machines to fit, but that’s not the case. Our goal was to make machines that played as well as full-size ones, but that were small enough to fit in your home and let you build a collection. Whilst we will do everything we can to meet the delivery times above, there may be factors outside of our control and we cannot guarantee delivery within this time frame.

We are absolutely supportive of this development and completely aligned with the landlord’s amazing vision and sensitive and cultured approach. This project represents a tremendous opportunity for Cardiff to step up to the next level with depth and refinement, for the people of Wales and all who visit our capital city,” he said. All of which probably explains why this cabinet sat in production hell for many months. You can imagine how things started at Numskull HQ: how difficult could it be to make a quarter-sized arcade cab based on a title from 1979? Get a cheap board. Add an emulator. Measure the original cab. Grab a calculator and use the ÷ and 4 keys until your thumb hurts. Bit of wood for the cabinet itself. Make sure nothing explodes. Job done! These fully-playable, highly detailed arcade cabs are identical to the original in every aspect, the only difference is they will easily fit into your home or office! Authenticity is our first priority and we achieve this by capturing as many layers of detail from the original machines as possible,” Prychak adds. He’s not kidding — the most recent RepliCade, Dragon’s Lair, is based on the iconic 1983 LaserDisc game, which featured Disney-style animation in place of raster or vector graphics. Suitably, it not only includes the original game’s cabinet art, control layout and secondary scoreboards, but also a replica LaserDisc player within a rear storage drawer, a replica LaserDisc to put inside it and an impossibly small replica remote.The Victorian and Edwardian shopping arcades and their independent businesses offer a unique leisure experience for residents and visitors. It’s exciting to see that offer being enhanced with this new development. We look forward to seeing what new business opportunities the Castle Quarter Courtyard will bring to our city, as it seeks to grow and develop after this difficult year.” We went into this project with our hearts, not our heads. After all, how hard could it be to recreate a 1978 arcade machine? In the event, it was the biggest challenge we’d faced in making any Quarter Arcade.

Today’s gaming feels sterile in comparison. So I wanted to capture that golden age for fans who were there –and anyone who sadly didn’t get to experience it. The main reason is the original cabinet uses the Pepper’s ghost effecttechnique. The game is reflected from a screen at the bottom on to a mirror, making the invaders look like they’re floating in front of a giant glowing moon.

Such a development will enhance our reputation for a great food offering and play a role in ensuring that Cardiff’s Purple Flag accreditation, which requires a need to demonstrate we have a vibrant, quality offering in the evening and night time economy, is met,” he said. The Castle Quarter Courtyard will create four new spaces designed for independent bars and restaurants around a central, open courtyard. Original features which are currently hidden will be exposed and a new large balcony running around the first floor has been incorporated into the design as part of the plans to enhance the features of the Grade II listed Arcade buildings. Matt:Growing up in the 1980s, I spent considerable time in arcades. It was about more than the games – it was the whole atmosphere those giant machines created. Their flashing lights, incredible bright artwork and symphonies of sounds all fought for my attention – and coins. My experience has shown that with sympathetic development, the historic arcades off High Street are perfect locations for some of the city’s most exceptional hospitality. We continue to stream huge investments into the area and are always looking to expand here. With substantial skin in the game already, that’s testament to our faith in the continued evolution of this historic part of the city.

Official Bandai Namco Entertainment product – 1/4 scale playable replica of the original 1980s Dig Dug arcade cabinetPlay your own way – internal dip switch settings let you play however you want, with various modes available Bonus Gift: Your PAC-MAN cabinet comes in a pristine collector’s box, complete with official PAC-MAN artwork and display window. Also included is a certificate of authenticity matching your personal unit number, and an exclusive collector’s metal coin in its own display box. Artwork is redrawn by hand, based on the original cab art, and the machines are then 3D modelled in-house by our incredible design team. It’s a long process, but worth it when we end up with the most accurate replica arcade machines you can buy. Portable and displayable – rechargeable internal battery lets you take it on the go, or display at home in attract mode