Fifth Avenue Frogger uses real NYC traffic in classic video game action

The classic video game Frogger is 30 years old, and some fans of the game think it deserves a place in the Smithsonian American Art Museum's The Art of Video Games exhibition. Frogger's age means that the public may have forgotten about the road-crossing amphibian, so Tyler DeAngelo, Renee Lee, and Ranjit Bhatnagar have pulled gameplay into the 21st century with a more immersive experience by tracking traffic along Manhattan's Fifth Avenue in New York City and using that data to generate the vehicles Frogger must dodge.

Passersby can try their luck avoiding the many taxicabs at the arcade cabinet the creators have parked on the sidewalk as a way to increase awareness of Frogger and boost their campaign to get the game into the Smithsonian. Rest assured, when real-life traffic makes the game all but impossible to play, there's a "classic" mode that still allows players to completely escape reality, just like the good old days. Check out the video by hitting the jump, and if you like what you see, you can lend your support here.