Space Invaders, the arcade game designed by Tomohiro Nishikado in 1978, is the undisputed forerunner of modern video gaming. In short, it is the daddy. In fact, the ‘space invader’ sprites themselves, whilst simplistic in today’s world of Grand Theft Autos et al, have become iconic in their own right – with a quick Google search returning everything from Space Invader t-shirts to belt buckles.
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In October 2005, Nishikado commented during an interview with the England-based videogames magazine, Edge, that the look of the ‘space invaders’ had been based on the description of the alien invaders detailed by H.G. Wells in the (reputedly) classic science fiction story The War of the Worlds. Whilst it would, at first read, be fair to conclude that in 1978 Nishikado was in possession of not only the best crack cocaine that money could buy but also the largest crack pipe, his reasoning behind the designs actually makes sense:
In the story, the alien looked like an octopus. I drew a bitmap image
based on the idea. Then I created several other aliens that look like sea
creatures such as a squid or crab.
useless fact #2:
So, there you have it. Not only did Tomohiro Nishikado create one of the most addictive videogames on the face of the planet – next to Pacman, Pong and Bomberman – he was also a diamond geezer to boot.
What the hell?!
Now, at this point, you would be well within your rights to ask, ‘So what the bally hell does this have to do with graffiti?!’ Well… Space Invaders, as well as bankrupting teenage arcade goers since 1978, also served as the inspiration for a largely anonymous French artist, who is known only by the nom de plume ‘Space Invader’. Clever, huh?
(Camden, London, April 2007 and Near Victoria Station, Manchester, May 2007)
Whilst this ‘Space Invader’ character appears to have the same supplier and crack pipe as Mr. Nishikado (choice quote from his website: “Some people call me a polluter, others say I’m an artists. I prefer to think of myself as an invader!”), I just happen to think that he is a genius.Using ceramic tiles, Space Invader cements together mosaic images inspired by traditional Space Invaders aliens, bonus spaceships and variations of these themes. Most of the mosaic tiles are small (10” x 10”, at a guess) and others are absolutely enormous (a lot bigger than 10” x 10”, I can tell you). Whilst being extremely practical, the use of mosaics also enables Space Invader to keep the ultra-pixelated appearance of each ‘Invader’. The said mosaics are cemented onto building walls, lamp post bases and pretty much anything that cement will stick to.
Take me to your leader (or dealer, as the case may be)
In Space Invader’s own words, the idea is to ‘invade’ cities all over the world ‘with characters inspired by first-generation arcade games, and especially the now classic Space Invaders’. This he does solely by himself and over the course of the last eight years he has travelled to thirty-five cities, spanning all of the continents. Some of the thousands of individual ‘Invaders’ have been documented with photographs on Space Invader’s website.
(Canal Street, Manchester, May 2007 and somewhere in the East End, London, April 2007)
Space Invader’s mosaics do not have a deep political message as such (‘The act in itself is political, as 99% of the time I don’t have authorization’) and he instead emphasises the ‘gaming’ aspect of his actions: ‘I’ve spent the past eight years travelling from city to city with the sole objective of getting a maximum score’. Space Invader then ranks his compositions as being worth between ten and fifty ‘points’, depending on its size, composition and location. From here, each invaded city gives a final ‘score’ that is added to his previous scores.
O.C.D. ahoy!
How does Space Invader know his ‘high score’? Simple. Because each mosaic is different, they are all numbered and indexed. Then selected information is given in the ‘invasion maps’, that Space Invader produces to not only help addicts such as myself retrace the history of a particular invasion, but also to make some pocket money as well.
(Whitworth Street, Manchester, June 2007 and The South Bank, London, April 2007)
It is at this point that it becomes evident that mosaics and cement are not as cheap as crack cocaine in La République Française. At the present date, Space Invader has produced fifteen of these maps, out of a possible thirty-five invaded cities, and they are available to purchase here.
“Plagiarists at least have the quality of preservation”
Whilst Herman Melville banged on about it being ‘better to fail in originality than to succeed in imitation’, Space Invader seems to agree with Benjamin Disraeli’s sentiments, commenting that when he is sent pictures of Space Invaders in towns that he has never set foot in, he sees it as a positive thing (a ‘kind of tribute’). Also, whilst he does not ‘encourage this kind of copying’, he does not ‘especially condemn it either’.
Which is a good job really, seeing as lesser attempts at replicating Mr. Invader’s signature style range can range from average at best to darn godawful. Whilst I do not profess to be able to tell the difference on every occasion, a good yardstick to use is: if it looks like it was designed by an autistic amputee and then cemented onto the wall by a blind epileptic, then it is probably the work of a drunk student, ‘inspired’ at quarter-to-five in the morning after a binge at the local discotheque.
What lies above and below
Aside from the fact that the simplistic genius of Space Invader’s designs habitually succeeds in making me draw for my camera at speeds that would put Wild Bill Hickok to shame, the true pleasure in finding a Space Invader design is just that. Finding it. The designs can be half way up buildings, down alleyways, next to ground-level street signs – the list goes on and on. So, personally, I feel slightly proud when I spot one. Sad, I know, but I do not own a metal detector. Nor can I read archaic maps. Such little discoveries are my little pieces of modern treasure and they never fail to brighten up an otherwise dull day.
Next time you are in a big city, look up, look down and prepare to be invaded.
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(Er... Canal Street, Manchester, May 2007)
posted by Si at 11:40
