Block Tests 01 from Dylan Hayes on Vimeo.
I remember playing terrible bootleg “conversions” of streetfighter II on the bootleg NES or “tv game” as it was affectionately called here. This blocky version of SFII looks like it would have been way more fun than those aweful bootlegs that jumped on the streetfighter bandwagon. Video by Dylan Hayes http://vimeo.com/dylanhayes
Finally finished a second stick (it also got stuck in the prototype phase of non stop SF4 playing) We had to import some buttons from Japan to solve a problem the local buttons were giving so this stick has a local joystick like you get in the arcades and corner shops coupled with the Sanwa buttons you get in the official Viewlix Street Fighter 4 arcade cabinet. We’ll be doing more of these so if you interested in one let us know and we’ll put you on the list.
Classic of the month is Wonder boy aka Islander on the bootleg NES aka Adventure Island depending on which region you were in but it was called Wonder boy in the arcades and corner shops here. I actually saw some kids playing it at a corner cafe’ a few months ago 23 years after its release date. Wonder Boy was one of those games that older kids made look so easy and when you tried it died immediately and would rather try again when nobody was around. This game has 36 stages or “areas” and to be honest I never got near or even saw the ending until I finally went on a valiant quest in Mame to get the screen shot after the jump.(spoiler warning)
2Bop draws inspiration primarily from games that were popular in South Africa at corner shops and arcades in the1980’s and early 1990’s when gameplay was key and graphics if they were good were an added bonus. Disadvantaged areas during apartheid South Africa had little to offer in terms of exposure to cutting edge international design or computer technology but the bootleg arcade games that used twenty cent pieces (a 2Bop) to play at the corner shop were a window into what was happening in the outside world. These games granted access to excellent electronic entertainment and exposed the 2Bop crew to intuitive and engaging interface design, game design, graphic and sound design primarily from Japan and North America. And so began a long fascination with the medium that shows no signs of stopping.