Retro Space

In 1971 Nolan Bushnell created the first coin operated video arcade machine “Computer Space”. The striking yellow fiber-glass cabinet and the remarkable marketing flyer lead the way to almost 4 decades of video arcades. After this first video game machine, the cabinet design became less important than the games inside. The video game cabinet was mostly side art stickers on black melamine furniture ever since.

Today the video arcade, as an institution where we hung out, is dead. The few that are still open either struggle for life or generate income by other means. The home gaming console and its owner mr. couch potato have won the battle.

As a homage to the video arcade era, and especially to honour the design of the first ever arcade cabinet, I created “Retro Space”. The perfect machine to mark the end of this marvellous time in gaming history. Either as art or as the ultimate gaming gadget.

A machine that plays ALL the games us kids of the seventies, eighties and nineties have burned onto our retinas. Modern technique, modern style, retro gaming and retro style are all blended together in Retro Space...

© 2008 Martijn Koch