Chill out @ PVCC’s Chill Out Arcade
Photography by Andrew Ferralli
Andrew Ferralli, staff writer
In the 1980s, it was common to see arcades and Pac-Man machines in convenience stores, but in 2018, this is no longer the case.
The Maker’s Club at PVCC has been working on a top secret project. Retro-style arcades are becoming a reality to new generations at PVCC. It is a 1000 in one arcade machine, designed and built by students. The Maker’s Club, also known as The Engineering Club, are the ones responsible for the arcade build.
“Now that we are The Maker’s Club, I am excited for the direction that we are headed in… I would love to benefit the college as well as raise money for The 44¢ Cure,” said club President Ivan Hernandez.
I am leading the project myself, and although I have helped make the project a reality, the real credit for the build goes to Ivan Hernandez and Jin Mo Yang. Hernandez, Yang, and myself have worked vigorously to make this project a reality.
There are many components that go into the arcade machines, more formally called arcade cabinets. This particular machine, The Chill Out Arcade, is a two-player horizontal screen orientation cabinet. The arcade features many of the arcade classics people know and love.
Hernandez and Yang both predict the Street Fighter series to be the most popular of the set. For less violent options, the cabinet also features Super Mario Bros and Pac-Man. The Makers Club has decided to make the arcade completely free to play.
Although the arcade games are free to play, the arcade machine has a built-in donation box to The 44¢ Cure. The charity goes into developing nations with medicine costing only forty-four cents to produce. The medication kills parasites which have the potential to kill sick children. The donation also goes towards creating fresh water sources with water filtration kits. The club decided to donate to The 44¢ Cure charity because it is a reputable source that costs less than two quarters to cure one child. Two quarters are a common price to run a typical arcade machine.
The machine will be in the Bolick Center of the main building. If you play, please be courteous of students working on assignments. Recognizing potential issues, The Maker’s Club has built the arcade to have low sound directed towards the players..
The Maker’s Club is planning on building a second arcade machine during the 2018 fall semester.
“I would recommend this club to anyone who not only likes to build machine, but to build relationships as well,” said Yang. If interested in joining the club, feel free to contact Ivan Hernandez at aih234@email.vccs.edu
