Blue Beetle may sport a highly-advanced suit of alien armor but several elements were inspired by a toy from the past: Nintendo‘s Power Glove.
Per Collider, director Angel Manuel Soto revealed where he got the idea to incorporate the device into the movie itself, sharing that the retro-futuristic design helped him visualize Blue Beetle’s armor.
“The nostalgia of all those things that we grew up being and using because I never had a Nintendo Glove like that,” Soto explained. “But I had friends that did, and every time I wore it, I felt powerful because you’re like, ‘Oh man. What if I can create anything?'”
While it’s currently unknown how the peripheral originally designed for the Nintendo Entertainment System factors into the narrative, Soto confirmed that Jaime Reyes uses the Power Glove as a means of self-defense.
“We’re here in the movie, and when we’re building this, I’m like, ‘Why not?’ Because it was written that there was something like a shield, and I’m like, ‘How does that shield exist? Where does it deploy?’ I’m like, ‘The Nintendo arm brace, the Glove, man. I have to do it,'” Soto stated.
Blue Beetle Powers Up
The Power Glove itself is revered as being one of the first devices to try to incorporate motion controls into video games but the product was largely considered to be a failure. Severe calibration errors, a hefty price tag, and rapidly aging hardware resulted in a commercial flop, though many still look back on the quirky controller with fondness.
Blue Beetle follows Jaime Reyes, played by Xolo Maridueña, as he’s thrown into a fight for his life when bonds with an alien weapon known only as The Scarab. Gaining a suit of armor that can shapeshift into different weapons and armor, he’s forced to take down Kord Industries, an insidious corporation set on using The Scarab for its own goals. Blue Beetle hits theaters on August 18.
