Pixels 3D: A must watch for kids of the video-game era

In an era where mobile phones rule supreme, the charm of the good 'ol video game has diminished. Setting up the elaborate contraption and maneuvering your way on the console was one of the best ways to spend the long, summer afternoons. It is impossible to not get nostalgic when thinking about Video games. Pixels 3D, starring Adam Sandler, is every '80s kids' dream come true. Imagine inhabiting a world where video game characters would come to life! As kids in the '80s, Sam Brenner, Will Cooper, Ludlow Lamonsoff, and Eddie “The Fire Blaster” Plant saved the world thousands of times – at 25 cents a game in the video arcades. Now, they’re going to have to do it for real. In Pixels 3D, when intergalactic aliens discover video feeds of classic arcade games and misinterpret them as a declaration of war, they attack the Earth, using the video games as the models for their assaults. And now, US President, Cooper must call on his old-school arcade friends to save the world from being destroyed by Pacman, Donkey Kong, Galaga, Centipede, and Space Invaders. Joining them is Lt. Col. Violet Van Patten, a specialist supplying the arcaders with unique weapons to fight the aliens. But before you catch the game on-screen on July 31, when the film releases in India, let's take a look at the video games that are all set to floor you in the film...

Pacman: Pacman fans look for the triangular mouth every time they see a yellow dot. The little sunshine yellow blob isto be manueuvered around the maze using a joystick. Points are earned depending on the amount of pills that the dot is able to gobble up while running away from the monsters. Blinkey, Pinky, Inky and Clyde chase the dot, even as it continues on its pill-eating spree. If an enemy touches Pac-Man, a life is lost and the Pac-Man itself withers and dies. When all lives have been lost, the game ends. Pacman was so popular that it went on to become an icon of video game culture during the 1980s. A wide variety of Pacman merchandise was marketed with the character's image, from T-shirts and toys to hand-held video game imitations and even specially shaped pasta. A huge Pacman can be seen on the movie posters of Pixels 3D. It remains to be seen as to who will be the monsters in the film!

Arkanoid: The game begins with a rather ominous message that reads, "The time and era of this story is unknown. After the mothership "Arkanoid" was destroyed, a spacecraft "Vaus" scrambled away from it. But only to be trapped in space warped by someone." The player controls the Vaus, a space vessel that acts as the game's paddle which prevents a ball from falling from the playing field, attempting to bounce it against a number of bricks. The ball striking a brick causes the brick to disappear. When all the bricks are gone, the player goes to the next level, where another pattern of bricks appears. The game deals a googly every now and then with bricks that have to be hit multiple times, flying enemy ships, etc. and power-up capsules to enhance the Vaus. If you are getting too nostalgic about it, a mobile version of the game is also available. The Arkanoid appears in the Indian chapter of the film. The protagonists must save the Taj Mahal that is being attacked by the aliens using the Arkanoid paddles.

Centipede: The player is represented by a small, somewhat humanoid head at the bottom of the screen, later depicted as a caped, elvin character. The player moves the character about the bottom area of the screen with a trackball and fires laser shots at a centipede advancing from the top of the screen down through a field of mushrooms. Shooting any section of the centipede creates a mushroom; shooting one of the middle segments splits the centipede into two pieces at that point. Each piece then continues independently on its way down the board, with the first section of the rear piece becoming a new head. If the head is destroyed, the section behind it becomes the next head. The centipede in Pixels 3D attacks the city and chomps on the children before its head is blasted away by Brenner, Ludlow and the crew.

Donkey Kong: As the first platform game to feature jumping, Donkey Kong requires the player to jump between gaps and over obstacles or approaching enemies. With its four unique stages, Donkey Kong was the most complex arcade game at the time of its release. The game features the player as a character that resembles Mario of Mario Bros video game. So, the objective for Mario is to save Pauline, who is right on the top platform. However, he must first face the wrath of the chimpanzee, Donkey Kong, that has held Pauline captive. The game is divided into four different single-screen stages. Each represents 25 meters of the structure Donkey Kong has climbed, one stage being 25 meters higher than the previous. Removing the final rivet causes Donkey Kong to fall and the hero to be reunited with Pauline. These four stages combine to form a level. Wait, don't reach out for the console already. This game appears as the final challenge in the film.