At Liehuo #Arcade in central #Shanghai, avid arcade #gamers converge to play their favorite games. Stepping out of the elevator, visitors to the arcade are bombarded by the whizzes and bells from classic arcade games like Dance Dance Revolution, King of Fighters and Time Crisis. Regarded as a Mecca of arcading for anyone in Shanghai (and more broadly, #China), Liehuo is a haven for folks like our interviewees Xu Xuelai (35) and Yang Dong’er (29).

Xu talks to us about his process and the game that he plays, EZ2DJ, which is kind of like Guitar Hero but with DJing as the focus. Yang, on the other hand, plays Taiko, another music game, which uses Taiko drums. Both games require supreme levels of focus and hand-eye co-ordination, and both Xu and Yang are masters of their craft. They speak to us about how the arcade gaming community, despite diminishing interest from young gamers, continues to survive and thrive.

Videographer: Thanakrit Gu + Miranda Wang

Editor: Miranda Wang + Danzhe Chen

Translation & Subtitling: Danzhe Chen

RADII SCOPE snaps a single issue into focus through candid responses from young Chinese subjects, highlighting the lives behind macro trends. RADII shares stories from the center of Chinese youth culture.

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