Retro Mall Video - Mall Arcade '84

"Arcade '84"

Any '80s mallrat worth his or her salt, should certainly remember the groovy video game arcades found in many shopping malls around the country "back in the day". Some are still out there, sure, but it isn't quite the same vibe now.

A while back, on YouTube, I found this truly transcendent video homage to the '80s mall arcades that just knocked my socks off. If you were there, if you remember... then this digital animation rendering by Dave Dries, should bring back some fun times for you. It really captures the whole trip pretty well! Here's a snippet of the description I found on the video's website:

"They don't make 'em like this anymore.

Almost all shopping malls had them. Usually hidden away from the heavy traffic areas where all the electronic bleeps and screaming adolescents couldn't disturb the regular shoppers. Walk down the long hallway passed the J.C. Penney's, the Hickory Farms, and even the Sunglass Hut. There was the arcade. A small room bursting with the sights, sounds and even smells of technology, innovation and entertainment. A social atmosphere where a generation of kids who grew up in the late 70's/early 80's spent their time, allowances, and hard-earned fast food paychecks.

Arcade '84 is my attempt at recreating the atmosphere of the classic arcades. It's a 3-minute+ trip through an imaginary arcade circa 1984 entirely rendered in 3D computer graphics."