Blockcade 8 – Tempest in a tea cup

Atari’s 1981 classic is one of the most striking cabinet designs in the arcade, and we’ve had to make a few adjustments to get its stylish angular beauty into Lego form.

Okay, coffee mug rather than tea cup

We build this one in two parts – so we start with the screen and marquee

Which starts as a 1×3 plate

Add 3 1×2 flat plates (two for the screen, one for the marque)

Add a 1×1 block to the back

Put that to one side and start on the main cab with a 2×4 flat plate

Add a 2×3 angle plate to get the distinctive angled top of the cab

Add a 2×3 plate for the base of the cab

Attach a 1×1 block with one knob to the angle plate

Add a 1×2 block with four knobs for the centre of the cab

Complete the side of the cab with a 1×3 flat plate

And a 2×2 flat plate

Add a 1×2 block to complete the plinth

And a 1×2 plate at the bottom

Complete the other side in the same way and attach a mini-fig backpack holder to the centre block

Attach a 1×1 round flat piece for a spinner

Now, take the screen piece and attach it to that 1×1 block between the two sides. It doesn’t look like it fits here, but it will…

Marquee image – scale to 15mm x 7mm for the top block

A screen shot – scale to 15mm x 15mm and stick across the two bottom 1×2 flat plates

The side art is in three pieces per side, and the bottom piece will span multiple blocks. Not ideal, but it works. Reverse these images for the other side.

Part 1 scales to 10mm x 20mm and attaches to the 2×4 flat plate

Part two scales to 7mm x 12mm and attaches to the visible part of the 2×3 angle plate

And part three scales to 17mm x 20mm and attaches across the bottom three flat plates on the side.

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