Speaking the language of cosplay to tell the story of the Atari women, we created the superhero 8-bit Atari women outfit. The base of the piece is a standard pair of black work coveralls, altered so that they have a crew neck collar and an opening in the back. The front is wired with 24 color changing NeoPixels embedded in the fabric, to create a blinking rainbow in the shape of the original Atari logo. The rainbow symbolizes the gender diversity advocated by Atari Women, and is also a reference to some of the original animations of the logo. On the shoulders of the outfit, there are eight boxes wired with super bright LEDs, drawing from 8-bit pixelated retro game design. On each of the white boxes–which are made of fabric, plastic rods, and 3D printed joints–we added stickers of symbols representing the 8 individual Atari women.
The design of the outfit is meant to be one-size-fits-all as we did not want to stereotype these women to wear a certain form of outfit. Instead, the design holds various body shapes and personal styles to fit. It was essential that, when people are looking at someone wearing the costume, that the outfit does not objectify the wearer’s body. Instead, the outfit conveys the legacy and important historical archives women’s contribution to gaming.
Concept, art, and manufacturing: Kellie Dunn, Carina Dempsey, Melody Xu
