This flyer is a great example of what made these posters so memorable and fun the image instantly communicates that playing this game will be scary, funny, and unforgettable, with a hint of something forbidden that we shouldn’t be interacting with (even though we can’t help but be drawn to it). In this flyer, the characters (or, well, in Kombat‘s spelling convention, “kharacters”) burst out of the screen and grab a couple of kids by the collar, shouting with rage as the kids cower in fear and amazement. Just take a look at the above flyer for Midway’s Mortal Kombat, a game that was beloved and controversial in equal measure for its hilariously cartoonish gore and ultra-violence. These kids get an extreme introduction to the kharacters of Mortal Kombat While that world may be gone, the dynamic, extreme style of ’90s arcade flyers allows us a window into what made this whole scene so compelling these flyers capture the period’s attitude, energy, and aesthetic obsessions, which tells us what got people excited and what inspired them to keep playing.
THE KING OF FIGHTERS 98 FLYER SERIES
Arcade culture no longer exists, at least not like it did in the ’90s, when legions of hopeful warriors lined up behind Street Fighter II Turbomachines, quarters clutched in moist palms it was an extremely specific cultural scene, bathed in neon tackiness and cigarette smoke, and permeated by a sweaty need to win against every single challenger or, at the very least, to exceed your limits and improve your skills (it’s a setting that was eulogized in the manga/anime series High Score Girl). They are striking pieces of commercial art, with a brilliant approach to color, design, and layout – just looking at these things is almost as exciting as playing the games that they advertise.īut beyond just looking cool, arcade flyers are time capsules that preserve a lost world. I think it’s a shame that more people don’t know about these arcade flyers, because they are so damn cool. Secondly, a bunch of the flyers were only intended for the eyes of arcade owners, detailing how such and such new game would make tons of money for the arcade owner’s business. First of all, while the ’90s saw a wildly creative boom in arcade games, it was increasingly common for players to play the bulk of their games at home (especially with the rise of inexpensive, CD-based games for PlayStation), and so they may not have hung around arcades long enough to ever see these flyers. There are a few reasons why these flyers may not be discussed today. But while classic video game cover art has received a lot of attention, there hasn’t been very much said about arcade flyers, which are promotional posters handed out to arcade owners in order to create hype for upcoming arcade releases.
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