#4 of 4 in my series of chalk pastel art for an upcoming local art show.

GOOD SAMUS HUNTING

Samus from Metroid (1986)
Dog and Duck from Duck Hunt (1984)

Originally, I was going to do a character more modern, such as Halo’s Master Chief, shooting down the Duck Hunt duck. However, chalk pastels don’t lend themselves well to details, and the only thing distinctive about Master Chief is his helmet. In the end, Samus had a better silhouette, and it was more appropriate to use her anyway, since the ducks are used to being shot with a “light gun”, and it doesn’t get much better than Samus’ laser.

(Fun Fact: Duck Hunt and Metroid were both produced by the same man – toymaker and game developer Gunpei Yokoi. Yokoi was instrumental in Nintendo’s success as a game company, and was responsible for other classic games such as Kid Icarus. He also created many gaming innovations, such as the D-pad, standard on nearly every video game controller since the mid-’80s, and the original Gameboy and Gameboy Micro.)

#3 of 4 in my series of chalk pastel art for an upcoming local art show.

CREEPER GOT LOST

Q*bert from Q*bert (1982)
Creeper from Minecraft (2009)

Q*bert and Creeper both come from very cube-based universes, so it seems only natural that they would meet someday. However, true to form, Q*bert is running away from everything that might hurt him, and Creeper wants nothing more than to make new friends shortly before blowing them up.

(Fun Fact: Q*bert really did say that string of nonsensical characters in the game if it got hit by an enemy. It was briefly considered that the game be named “@!#?@!”, but marketers were concerned that no one would be able to tell their friends about the game if they couldn’t pronounce the name.)

#2 of 4 in my series of chalk pastel art for an upcoming local art show.

ANGЯY BIЯDS

Red from Angry Birds (2009)
Various blocks from Tetris (1984)

Twenty-five years after the first iteration of Tetris for the Electronica 60, Angry Birds was hatched, and mobile phone gaming was changed forever. Both games have become cultural phenomena, embraced by gamers of all kinds.

(Fun Fact: The Я in this piece’s name is a reference to the Nintendo Gameboy version of Tetris, which had the letter R reversed in the word “TETRIS”. The Я is a Cyrillic letter, and sounds nothing like our R, but it made Tetris look more “Russian” to North American audiences.)

In January, there is a local art show entitled “Pixel Culture”. It will be showcasing art inspired by video games both past and present (but mostly past). I’ve had the good fortune to be able to have a space in the show, and so I’ve decided to make four pieces of art for the show. Each one combines two well-known video game characters that normally wouldn’t meet each other, and you guys get a sneak peek of what I’ve created!

THE WRONG GHOST

Ms. Pacman from Ms. Pacman (1982)
Boo from Super Mario Bros. 3 (1988)

While Pacman is more famous for chasing and eating ghosts, Ms. Pacman was actually the more successful arcade game, with over 115,000 arcade cabinets produced. Boo, the ghost who would only chase you if you were looking away, has appeared in nearly every major Super Mario title since 1988.

(Fun Fact: Ms. Pacman and Boo have actually been in the same video game together. Mario Kart Arcade GP was an arcade version of Mario Kart, Ms. Pacman was a playable character, and Boo was an item that could be used in the game.)

The medium for all four images is chalk pastel. I’ll be showing the other three sketches over the next two weeks.