Gesture Art & Design is a new Southern California arcade developer led by Tawei (David) Lin and Ben Sherman. Lin comes from a finance background, while Sherman has experience in game design and production.
Although neither founder previously worked professionally in the arcade industry, the pair has taken a research-led approach. They attended Amusement Expo 2023 in Las Vegas, spoke with distributors and operators about their priorities, and spent time observing how visitors play at venues including Dave & Busters.
The result is Food Flight, a motion-capture redemption game intended to deliver an experience that is difficult to replicate on a home console or smartphone. The company’s broader aim is to create accessible, physical games that encourage players to move and have fun together.
Food Flight brings full-body play to the arcade
Food Flight was scheduled to debut at booth #3582 during IAAPA 2023 in Orlando, held from 14–18 November. The game’s official website also launched with information for operators and players.
Designed first as a video redemption, or “videmption”, title, the game uses motion capture as its primary control method. Similar systems have appeared in arcades before, sometimes alongside technologies such as virtual reality. The concept may remind players of Microsoft Kinect, but the newer motion-capture implementation has evolved considerably from that earlier technology.
Gesture Art & Design’s official company website provides further background on the studio and its work.
The production cabinet has a more pronounced slope across its front than early images suggest. The developers have also shared video material covering the game and its development process.
The team behind the game
Lin and Sherman have been friends for more than a decade and were both best men at a close friend’s wedding. They lead a small team supported by business partners and a group of friends with backgrounds in art and entertainment.
Their arcade memories include playing Time Crisis and Crazy Taxi. They describe arcades as places where people of all kinds can simply enjoy themselves, and they see that social, physical setting as an important opportunity for new games.
From concept to cabinet
The founders say their wider experience includes more than ten years in gesture recognition, interactive entertainment, location-based entertainment and human-computer interaction. The specific idea for Food Flight took shape after their visit to Amusement Expo 2023.
Nintendo has been a major creative influence. In particular, the team admires the company’s willingness to explore unfamiliar ideas, accept commercial risk and demonstrate that sophisticated graphics are not essential to creating enjoyable games.
The biggest development challenge was learning the operational realities of the arcade business. While the team understood game design and interactive experiences, it had to undertake substantial research into the needs and commercial dynamics of arcade operators.
A platform for future motion games
Gesture Art & Design says it is open to partnerships and collaborations, and has established a strong relationship with its manufacturing partner. The company has not limited itself to a particular major manufacturer.
The developers hope Food Flight will appeal to players of different ages while earning its place on operators’ floors. The motion-capture cabinet was designed as a platform for a larger library of games, with future updates intended to involve a new vinyl kit and the installation of a USB key or SSD drive.
For operators assessing a new arcade machine investment, that upgrade path could be an important part of the platform’s long-term proposition. The company also intends to offer the game directly through its website and work with industry distributors.
Gesture Art & Design invited operators interested in a location test to contact [email protected]. Its message to cautious operators is straightforward: give the new studio an opportunity to earn their trust.
That appeal recognises the risks involved in buying an unproven arcade title, particularly for operators dealing with high equipment costs, maintenance issues and games that fail to generate sufficient returns. The studio believes Food Flight can provide a distinctive physical experience at a compelling value.
What this means for arcade operators
Motion-controlled games occupy a useful space between traditional button-and-joystick cabinets and more specialised attractions. For venues considering new arcade machines, Food Flight represents an attempt to make the player’s body part of the input while retaining a redemption-game format.
Its launch also highlights the value of developer research. Gesture Art & Design spent time with operators, distributors and arcade customers before bringing its first cabinet to market—an approach that may help the team refine its platform over time.
For Australian venues and collectors following emerging arcade hardware, the project is worth tracking through the RETROCADE arcade blog. Operators planning a broader venue refresh can also compare it with upright arcade cabinets and other specialist formats.
Disclosure: The writer received a consultancy fee and covered travel expenses in connection with developing this story.
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