NYC Media Lab: PrintCade: Invaders

PrintCade is an interactive installation that allows the public to interact with the piece using arcade joysticks and buttons from the 80s to control old printers and generate sound as if playing a physical version of the classic 1980s arcade game, “Space Invaders”.

When the button is pressed on the joystick the installation illuminates and “fires” virtual shots to an array of aliens on the wall above the piece. It also makes sounds and when the joystick is moved, the printer head moves back and forth mimicking the 1980s arcade aesthetic.