Tim Hunkin, right, at work creating new ideas for alternative machines

AN inventor of a handmade amusement arcade says it is a shame more people are not intrigued by what makes technology tick.

Tim Hunkin is the man behind Novelty Automation in Princeton Street, Holborn – a den of “satirical” coin-op machines you are unlikely to see the like of on Brighton Pier.

His machines, which demand players press buttons and pull levers, are very different to what Mr Hunkin calls the “black boxes” to which many modern tech users have grown accustomed.

“Machines have become increasingly ‘black boxes’ with so much concealed in chips and software,” he said. “And [people are put off by] notices like ‘breaking the seal invalidates your warranty’.

“More generally, electricity is amazing and fascinating. It’s sad that people aren’t more curious about it.”

You won’t find these machines on the end of a pier

In Mr Hunkin’s arcade, players on the machines can attempt to fulfil an order in a distribution warehouse without letting the poor working conditions slow them down; produce electricity with a “personal nuclear reactor”; or dodge the “i-Zombies” glued to their phones.

In the game Money Laundering, players pick up cash from the gutter with a magnet and attempt to deposit it in the city without the regulators spotting them.

But the regulators have a very limited field of vision, and even if you end up being noticed, you shouldn’t worry – there are no lasting penalties and you can just have another go.

A woman is ‘auto frisked’ at Novelty Automation

“First the machines have to be entertaining. The social commentary is the sort of thing friends and I talk about in the pub but it obviously connects to our visitors,” Mr Hunkin said.

The games often skewer the workings of multinational corporations, but Mr Hunkin isn’t worried about getting sued.

“Large companies have to be careful not to offend anyone to avoid being sued but it’s not such a problem for small businesses with no assets,” he said. “I don’t think satire changes much directly but it’s still important for ‘little people’ to laugh at the great and the good and their sense of privilege.”

In a virtual age of mass-produced machines, Mr Hunkin’s homemade machines have become a novelty.

“The most satisfying thing to me is that the place attracts such a huge range of ages and class, not just the normal arty set,” he said of his arcade.

“I used to hope it would inspire people to go home and make their own arcade machines, but that was too ambitious. One thing I particularly like is that engineers, particularly IT workers, often get the importance of working and thinking with your hands – something they miss in their own work.”