REVIEW : Arcade Paradise (PC)
Arcade Paradise is a video game that transforms a somewhat disused laundry room into a captivating and popular arcade, which should encourage many to give it a try because similar works with similar grounds are practically non-existent. Although there is a humorous component associated with the performance of daily routines, the core of the experience lies elsewhere, between noises, colours, and even parts of popular culture from the 1990s, according to the title of Nosebleed Interactive.
The magic behind the ordinary
Ashley is uninterested when her father Gerald (voiced by Geralt of Rivia) assigns her to run her laundromat.
It is a location that is not even decrepit, but anonymous, of individuals who squash creativity under a suffocating ordinariness built of bland tones and practically automatic procedures that may be performed without effort but equally fail to generate the slightest curiosity. Behind this mediocre altar, precisely behind because it is the room’s closet, is the spark that will change things: an arcade cabinet tossed there simply to occasionally entertain some clients while waiting for the end of the washing machine program.
Today, we may have a different and romanticised view of what were once arcades. However, the cabinet’s evocative power as an object and as a custodian of any videogame work was very potent, and it is precisely on this concept that Ashley wants to rely on to relaunch the business, if not to create a new one. Her father believes he is working to expand the laundry, although the young woman will go to any length to increase the space dedicated to the magical cabinets.
Managing the laundry entails collecting waste and disposing of it, unclogging the toilet when someone leaves us something particularly substantial, removing the tyres that the usual rude people leave everywhere, and, of course, putting the clothes in the washing machine, removing them, passing them to the dryer, collecting them, and finally placing them, all with the assistance of a practical plastic basket.
During the first few hours of the game, these actions are the only ones that generate cash, and thus they are necessary: only ten dollars are removed from the cabinet while maintaining the room tidy and clean and carrying out laundry jobs brings it up to a couple of hundred every day.
This first portion of the experience is short but not too short: in summary, it is well calibrated, perhaps a little unpleasant at times – given the managerial activities required – but always with that view towards a more colourful future provided by having earned the necessary money. to allow another cabinet access to the back room
Ashley’s revenues increase as the number of these gaming jewels increases, and the arcade expands: not just the rear room, but also the warehouse and other underused spaces, become a vital part of the business, which, nevertheless, begins to acquire a more captivating appearance. Net of cleaning, because you have to do it all the time, as the game develops, you find yourself working less and less in the laundry, allowing you to concentrate most of your time on managing the gaming area. In this regard, the cabinets should not only be accumulated but also properly tested in the first person. Each machine performs according to the time spent with his game and based on how many of the achievements he anticipates have been unlocked. In short, if you find yourself setting certain records in adventures from which you cannot escape, know that these will become golden egg-laying hens.
Make way for gaming
Not all of Arcade Paradise’s items are equally valued because they are not all created with the same attention. Fortunately, the number of successful ones much outnumbers the number of less brilliant. Know that the range of amusing doughs supplied is significant, including puzzle games, top-view shooters, combat, racing, and rhythm games, and it is impossible not to fall in love with some of these games.
The Space Race, for example, is an OutRun in classic sci-fi sauce, whereas Combat 2 will summon you to confront ravenous zombies in the company of a handful of trigger-happy soldiers, or even a friend (some cabinets include a multiplayer mode). Racer Chaser is an unusual combination of GTA and Pac-Man, while Knuckles and Knees is a colourful beat ’em up.
This amusing variety corresponds to a similar visual variety: vector graphics, 2D experiences, and 3D blocks almost always interchange convincingly. If Ashley’s world, completely encased in the King Wash laundry, is content with a simpler graphic profile, the cabin cruisers burst with colour and flair, a confident and believable throwback to the 1990s.
This type of period celebration also extends to other elements, such as the PC operating system used for orders and emails, the sound of the 56k connection while connecting to the internet, and even the features of the interfaces that accompany each action, such as putting clothes in the washing machine or throwing out the garbage. The true issue with Arcade Paradise is the disparity between its two spirits. Ashley’s virtual arcade will wear you out after a while because it can house over 30 distinct cabinets. However, the scenario is different when it comes to the management component, which is the game’s main shortcoming.
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