Arcade Lounge

We got a bunch of friends round over the weekend and took a whole load of photos for surface tension‘s forthcoming ‘Dual’ arcade table which will be available in early September. Partying around a coffee table under bright lights is definitely the way to spend a Saturday!

I didn’t get much time to play it myself, but it was hard getting certain people off it! Either that or they loved having their photo taken!

This is the new two-player head-to-head model sporting 60 classic arcade games.

You can find a few more photos on our facebook page and get in touch with us there. Or you can drop us a message via the website.

I don’t think I ever had an old favourite, but if I did, this is the new one. As soon as I’ve raided my Mother’s loft for my old lego, I’m going to be on this.

There’s got to be a more elegant way that picture hooks and cable ties, but it’s essentially getting a lego block onto your keyring.

Then all you need to do is get a lego field/sheet/grass whatever you call it and get it up on your wall, ideally right by your door so you don’t have the opportunity to put your keys elsewhere and thus lose track of them.

Via :: Gizmodo

This literally is the coolest chess set ever made. Pop these unique chess game ice trays in the freezer while you consider your opening move.

Play a Winner Eat All game with frozen juice pieces and an aggressive strategy or use colored water and see how many games you can play before your pawns melt. Or just have chess piece ice for that Kasparov martini recipe you’ve been saving. Your move.

Comes with TWO molds, enough to make two sets of chess pieces. You can create two different colors of chess pieces by using juice instead of water. A great way to speed up those chess games that could go on for hours. Ice your competition before your king melts.
via: Craziest Gadgets

Space Invaders fans; what do you do when your spaceship breaks down? You need a tool. But not just any tool – you need this Invaders-inspired multi-tool.

This handy little extra-terrestrial interloper attaches easily to your keys with its own keyring. Made from stainless steel the multi-tool will probably be most used as a bottle opener, always handy for parties, BBQs, picnics and trips to the park. Of course although it is a good start you aren’t going to achieve galactic domination with just a bottle opener at your disposal. This is why the Space Invader Multi-Tool also comes equipped with those most useful of implements: screwdrivers! At the end of each of the little guys diminutive arms sit both a standard flat head, and phillips head screwdrivers.

Not yet available in the UK, at least I couldn’t find it anywhere. The Space Invader Multi-Tool can be purchased from Art Supply Warehouse for $15.39 plus of course p&p.

After many murmurings on the web over the past few weeks, Sonos have now officially launched the PLAY:3, or S3 as it’s being called by many to fall in line with the existing S5.

The S3 is the younger brother of the S5, containing 2 mid-range and one tweeter. Each independently driven. Plus a ‘bass radiator’ which “…is tuned to use the energized air volume inside of PLAY:3 to provide deep, clean and surprisingly powerful bass from such a small package”. If it’s anything like the S5, it’s going to sound great.

Priced at £260/$300 it’s a great addition to your Sonos network.

Like the S5, it can be used in conjunction with another unit to create a stero pair. It also has that very handy ethernet port on the back for a robust Internet connection. However, it is missing the 3.5 jack for line-in, which on the S5 has become so much more useful since the firmware update enabling it to be used solely as an amp/speaker set.

Available in black and white.

Sonos PLAY:3

Why are we blogging about this? Because we install Sonos ZP90 into our Arcane arcade table and we love Sonos.

Now I must admit to considering myself a bit of a coaster afficienado and was thrilled when I stumbled across these funky creations made by Melissa Giese at 8bitclassics

This PAC-MAN coasters set contains 8 coasters in total based on the iconic characters in the retro arcade game, including Mrs. PAC-MAN, PAC-MAN, PAC-MAN Jr, Blinky, Pinky, Inky, Clyde and even a frightened dark blue ghost. Each coaster has a pixel styled pattern originated from the arcade game.

The PAC-MAN themed coasters are made from perler beads, and measure 3.5 x 3.5 inches, apparently they can fit all kinds of mugs, of course, a PAC-MAN inspired mug would be perfect. What better way to keep your surface tension arcade coffee table protected than with one of these funky coasters.

Available from Etsy for approx: £8.91

DNA – The building blocks of life, and pretty much everything as we know it. In some ways DNA can be compared to pixels on a screen, the tiny squares on their own not meaning very much, but a few of them together can create amazing things. So to celebrate these stupendously important little squares we’ve found the 8-Bit Pixel Cube.

This nifty collection of 64 multicoloured bricks lets you build any 2D or 3D artwork in retro pixellated style. Each pixel is made from silicone, and has a magnet inside, making it easy to fit bricks together securely, whilst ensuring that any creations can be disassembled again when you want to create a new design. Just think of all those gaming characters you could release from their 2d prisons.

Available in the UK from Firebox at £18.99. 8 Bit Pixel Cube also has a Facebook page.

We’ve already plugged the Weather coat rack, the Heartbeat coat rack and of course the Arcade coat hooks.

On a similar gaming tip, this one’s for the football fans. Produced by TodoCecilia at her Etsy shop, these are handpainted and also customisable.

I was never any good at table football, so maybe the wall is the best place for them.

Sports Rack by TodoCecilia

Swiss watchmaker Romain Jerome has teamed up with Taito to create these amazing Space Invaders watches that go a little above and beyond your average video game merchandising deal.

Two versions of the watch are available, one in black and white the other in colour.

If you can’t resist purchasing one of these fantastic Space Invader Watches you might need to hurry as each style is limited to just 78 pieces, in reference to the year the game was launched. Unfortunately no information on pricing has been released as yet, however with the steel casing of the watches “coalesced with fragments from the Apollo 11 capsule” and each invader on every watch hand-machined I’m guessing they’re not going to be cheap!

Show your allegiance to Hyrule with a set of Triforce coasters. Produced by 1337motif at the Etsy shop, these are hand made from solid Walnut and Maple to an amazing finish.

6 of these coasters will cost you $50 plus shipping and will put you in the Princess’ good books for eternity.

He’s also got got an amazing Triforce chopping board which I’d be more than happy to butter my toast on!
Triforce coasters via Geeky Gadgets