Custom PC - UK (2020-07)

Theprefacecontent,though,doesf
ratherthin.Theforewordis printedinlarge
type, and the concept art and screenshots
take up only the top half of each page – a
transparent attempt to make what would
otherwise have been a miserly 16 or so pages
into a still thin 32 pages.
The screenshots will be rather divisive
too. As usual for this type of publication,
they’re captured from an emulator, and each
screenshot has been passed through a filter
that adds scan lines in an effort to simulate
how it would have looked on the cathode-ray
tube (CRT) displays of the original cabinets.
The effect isn’t wholly successful, but arguably
better than the blocky pixel-perfect shots that
you’d otherwise see. Oddly, though, you get
these blocky pixel-perfect shots on the actual
cardboard models, with the scan lines nowhere
to be seen.
If you’rebuyingSEGAArcadeforthe

m

cabinets g

anexample– plusitsove

the size oftheCRTdisplay.

It would have been nice, perhaps, to see a

few more machines in the book. A particularly

noticeable absence is the R360, SEGA’s

attempt at taking simulator technology and

putting it into the arcade. Typically, although

not exclusively, used as a housing for aerial

combat game After Burner, the R360 was

unique in being able to turn through a full

360-degree sphere, turning the player upside

down whenever the in-game aircraft did a loop.

Those who remember it in the arcades (well,

the people who fancied handing over anything

up to £5 for a five-minute go, anyway), will

recall how challenging that feature made the

already-tricky aircraft carrier landing stage.

You can’t accuse SEGA Arcade of not

deliveringonitspromise,though.It claims

Treating the editorial section as a bonus, it’s

definitely hard to feel short-changed by the

£35 (VAT exempt) asking price.

However, if you’re in the mood for in-depth

analysis or an exhaustive history, you’re better

looking elsewhere and leaving SEGA Arcade to

those ofuswhoneverreally grew out of being

entrancedbypop-upbooks.SEGA

hdoesfeel finalcornerofeachoneyou’llevenfindthe

binet’s ight – 280kg s

lldimensio and

screenshotsorgamehistory,though,
you’recertainly inthe minority.The
keysellingpointis the cardboard
models,andthesearegenuinely
impressive.Eachoneisplaced
on a colouredbackdropwith
thegamename,genre,
responsible company
division,boardtype,
releaseyearandthe
mechanismemployed
for the movement. In the

toofferyousixim

papermodelso

arcadecabinet

exactlythat.

ns

yp p p

Arcadeisavailablenowfrom

readonlymemory.vgfor£3 5

(VAT exempt) plus postage.

of SEGATaikan

s, and it contain

Open‘Tendobrings

back NES hardware

A project to recreate the Nintendo

Entertainment System (NES) in modern

hardware has released a fully functional

board design, although it requires original

CPU and PPU chips for full functionality.

‘The design is as true to the original

board as possible,’ its pseudonymous

creator Redherring32 writes, ‘with subtle

changes where needed to compensate

for outdated/unsourcable parts, as well

as some improvements.’ Redherring32

adds that ‘I am not in any way affiliated

with Nintendo, I’m just doing this in my

free time as a stepping stone into further

Reverse Engineering work.’

N EWS I N BRI EF