Ever since I watched KING OF KONG I've been searching the Documentary world for more Videogame related flicks. While I've come across a couple, it's this new Documentary project about the Culture of Arcades in Japan that has REALLY got my interest. Using the number one Street Fighter IV player in the world, Diago Umehara, as their focal point and star of the Doc, these filmmakers want to take you into the world of Japanese arcades like never before - treating all of us old school gamers with a world I'm pretty sure most of us retro geeks would do anything to see again in the Western world(I miss the smelly, smokey, dark arcade rooms).

Here is a bit of info on the project:

Following gamers such as DAIGO UMEHARA (arguably the world's best STREET FIGHTER player) and speaking with gaming aficionado BRIAN ASHCRAFT (chief Japanese editor for Kotaku.com) we will explore the world of Japanese Arcades from a North-American perspective and compare/contrast the current trends of East and West gaming cultures.



Other experts include: Satoshi Numata, a professor of video games at the Osaka Electronic University; Ryan "Gootecks" Guitierrez another professional gamer from the Street Fighter scene; Bear Trickey, a game designer for Q-Games based out of Japan; and of course, we will be speaking to as many Japanese people as possible!



The overall arc of the story is as follows: The History of Japanese Arcades: 1978 saw a shortage of 100 Yen coins caused by the game Space Invaders. It is from this tidbit that we derived the name of this documentary.



Who is the arcade: The people who make up the clientele of the arcades in Japan; Daigo Umehara's rise to fame and other stories that emerge along the way.



The Future: How are arcades evolving and changing to keep up with the new technology and how are they able to compete with home consoles. What is the corporate perspective on arcades in Japan?

Check out the trailer below and get more info on this interesting Videogame Documentary.

100 YEN: The Japanese Arcade Experience









