A journey through time, at the wheel of an arcade machine or a vintage controller, is offered to visitors by theReplay Museum Associationat Cap Science, in Bordeaux, until 13 November. About twenty gaming stations have been carefully installed by the association, some offering consoles dating back to the 1970s. Each time, explanatory panels serve as a guide to start playing. “The rules of these car games have the advantage of being simple, you don’t need to worry too much”, underlines Olivier Boisseau, the founder of Musée Replay, who knows the machines by heart and guides with delight visitors. “There have always been car games, on all consoles,” he says. In its cave of Ali Baba, the association had the embarrassment of the choice to prepare the exhibition.
Get caught up in the game, at any age
On the screen of the Vectrex console, all in height, we discover some vanishing lines and luminous points for only decoration. “At the time (it was released in 1982), we discovered rotations, zooms and new possible movements, deciphers Olivier Boisseau. Sold with an integrated screen and a handle, it also allowed you to take it to your bedroom. “A huge advantage not to depend on the family TV screen.
An arcade terminal, with two steering wheels, sits at the entrance to the exhibition. It has been completely restored by the association. “We dismantled a TV to restore the terminal, 3D print elements and we also recovered slightly more modern components”, describes the founder of Musée Replay. It also highlights Autorace, the first portable electronic game. “In the years 1975, it was incredible,” he enthuses. A red LED moves on three lines and must avoid the other red dots, which symbolize cars.
Among the families who come to discover the exhibition, we often hear: “Come, I’ll show you what I used to play when I was little! The advantage is that at any age – even the youngest, who have only known the Switch or the PS4 – visitors easily get caught up in the game.
The most connoisseurs will appreciate the work of young Russian enthusiasts, known as Zosya, who had fun developing, today, a game compatible with old consoles, with very little memory and power. “The interest is the technical challenge, we know how to program, but we try to do great things, with a lot of constraints”, explains Olivier Boisseau.
From next summer, the Musée Replay equipment will once again be highlighted during a major exhibition at Cap Sciences.