Games often talk about knowing their roots, referring to knowledge of retro games and its related culture. Remembering their experiences with old games and consoles lets them not only remember the joy of those seemingly simpler times, but to also see just how far the industry has gone. This Pong coffee table is a perfect way to show tribute to those older games.
Pong was not the first video game, as some would have you believe, but it was definitely one of the first and one of the most popular. It’s also a prime example of truly retro gaming because of how utterly simple the graphics and game-play are, especially by today’s standards. Not only does this custom-built table by bradsprojects let one enjoy a similar experience, but the actual creation of it involves the use of old Atari parts, thus further adding to the retro appeal: a classic game using classic console parts. He even provides detailed instructions if you would like to make one for yourself.
The actual playing field consists of 900 LEDs (30×30) which light up to represent both the paddles and the balls. The movement is controlled with Atari paddles which rotate clockwise or counter clockwise to move the object right or left, respectively. You can also see that some liberties are taken, especially since this is a four-player version of the game. Rather than one ball bouncing around, there appear to be five. Scoring is also changed with a point being given for every ball that is reflected and a point taken away for every ball that slips past.
The first to twenty points wins and is given a “You win” screen which faces that player. You can also see in the video that fewer players can enjoy the game too, with the paddles of any missing players being replaced with solid walls. Animations can also be played on the LED matrix, which could serve as a sort of attention-grabber when the table is powered on but not in use. For other retro game tributes, don’t miss our articles on the Space Invaders Clock and the Pac-Man Cocktail Arcade Table.
Via: SlashGear
