One of many activities that game hardware modders like to engage in is re-creating classic arcade machines, but making them pint-sized? One can find plenty of examples all over in the internet, and while the "Star Wars Micro" might not be the absolute smallest, it's easily the most impressive.
It's the creation of someone who goes by Le Chuck, which Kotaku recently highlighted, and is a 1/6 scale replica of the "Star Wars" arcade game that Atari produced in 1983. According to the creator, over 80 hours were spent shrinking the classic into a 12-inch tall package:
Again, there are countless similar efforts, but what makes this one such a stand out is the controls. Generally you'll find shrunk down version of "Space Invaders," "Pac Man," "Donkey Kong," and the like, which all utilize the same basic inputs: a joystick and some buttons.
But the original "Star Wars" arcade machine had a yoke (which is an interface for piloting aircraft) controller that has been created with stunning accuracy. It, like much of the package itself, was hand crafted out of aluminum.
Matthew Hawkins is an NYC-based game journalist who has also written for EGM, GameSetWatch, Gamasutra, Giant Robot and numerous others. He also self-publishes his own game culture zine, is part of Attract Mode, and co-hosts The Fangamer Podcast. You can keep tabs on him via Twitter, or his personal home-base, FORT90.com.