Video Game Soda Machine Project Started

On the 11th of August, twitter user and amateur game developer decafjedi asked one very important question; “Why isn’t there a Tumblr consisting entirely of screenshots of soda machines from video games?”  Only seven days later with the help of others’ submissions on twitter, The Video Game Soda Machine Project on storify has surpassed 150 entries– that’s a lot of soda machines.  Along with having created Late Last Night and homage to Sierra Entertainment’s King’s Quest series titled Stair Quest, Jedi can add a remarkably lengthy list of video game soda machines to the list of his greatest accomplishments.

Why isn’t there a Tumblr consisting entirely of screenshots of soda machines from video games? pic.twitter.com/9PnbhYEzgI

— Decaffeinated Jedi (@decafjedi) August 11, 2016

There are so many props that are needed to make up believable game worlds, from chairs, to end tables, to ceiling lamps to microwaves and beyond, they just sort of blend in and become almost forgettable, being just part of more scenery to pass by. Yet without things like, say, soda machines, their absence is something we’d probably notice.

Jedi’s project draws attention to one particular type of object, the soda dispensing machine, then spans across not just over a hundred games, but games throughout the ages.  From obvious places like Pepsiman on Playstation to less expected games like Breakdown on the original Xbox and Game Dev Tycoon on PC; once you start looking for something in particular, you realize just how abundant they really are.  Perhaps this could be the beginning of appreciating the work put in to make our favorite games feel more lived-in, where every seemingly insignificant object was deliberately made by someone for the purpose of making any scene believable.

It gave us a good laugh, but it also made us think a bit too. You can check out the extensive and ever-expanding list here.