“Scrapyard Challenge: Classic Arcade Game Controller Redesign Workshop” by Brucker-Cohen and Bidegain
Conference:
Experience Type(s):
Labs Type(s):
Title:
- Scrapyard Challenge: Classic Arcade Game Controller Redesign Workshop
Organizer(s)/Presenter(s):
Description:
The Scrapyard Challenge is an interactive workshop where participants create unique arcade and console gaming controllers from found materials for classic games like Street Fighter, Pac-Man, Donkey Kong, Mario Kart, and more.
There will be a stash of objects to use but we are encouraging attendees to bring an “object” with them to hack! Examples of good objects are: cast-off plastic toys (squirters, cars/trucks, gear toys, dollhouses), stuffed animals, old / outdated electronics with moving parts, turntable, old furniture, etc.
References:
[1] Katherine Moriwaki, and Jonah Brucker-Cohen, 2006. “Lessons From The Scrapyard: Creative Uses of Found Materials Within a Workshop Setting”, AI & Society, Springer, Mar 2006, Pages 1-20.
[2] Katherine Moriwaki, and Jonah Brucker-Cohen, 2007. “MIDI Scrapyard Challenge Workshops”, Published in the Proceedings of New Interfaces for Musical Expression.
[3] Raspberry Pi, 2025. https://www.raspberrypi.com.
[4] Reginald Revans, 1983. “ABC of Action Learning”, Bromley-Chartwell-Bratt.
[5] Retropie, 2025. https://retropie.org.uk.
