The SHÜM Arcade Cabinets are a set of Altered Items discovered by the Federal Bureau of Control on February 23, 1992, and now residing in a break room within the Investigations Sector of the Oldest House.

Summary

Items are a pair of arcade game cabinets, originally designed for the games "SHÜM" (AI40:A) and "SHÜM 2: Culgar's Revenge" (AI40:B). The games were manufactures by Bon-Co Entertainment, now out of business. Despite being a popular arcade game in Japan, during the late 80s/early 90s, no other SHÜM cabinets have been found by other FBC investigators. When touching one of the items while it stands within 10 feet of its counterpart, the user's mind is transported to a version of their subjective reality that resembles a video game in logic and function. Events from their everyday lives become game-like sequences in which speed and efficacy are paramount. The brain enters a stroke-like state (as proven by EEG studies on users) which only end after the user "finishes" their game, at which point they resume normal brain and motor function.

Both items were purchased from a closing arcade in Michigan as part of a program to improve employee wellbeing through recreation. The program was cancelled before any game machines were dispersed throughout the Oldest House, but not before these Altered Items were discovered. Teams in the Research Sector have voiced considerable interest in the items due to the fact that they only exhibit an altered effect when physically paired together, a codependent relationship previously unseen in Altered Items However, after proving the items' altered status, the Investigations staff insisted on keeping them, claiming that they are important for sector morale. To date, numerous petitions have been filed by Research Sector personnel to move the items there for more extensive analysis.

Containment Procedure

The following procedures for containment for the item in the Oldest House:

• A distance of 10 feet between the items suppresses their effect. Effect only triggers on physical contact.

Trivia

• They are most likely an homage to the internet urban legend Polybius, a "cursed" video game with psychoactive effects on players rumored to have been created by the U.S. government as a sinister experiment on unsuspecting civilians in Portland, Oregon during the early 1980s^[1].

FBC: Firebreak

• As of June 17, 2025, the Shum cabinets appear to be in the possession of the Firebreak initiative. Shum 2 can be seen in the background of their headquarters, behind Hank's containment tank; Shum 1 can can be found in various Safe Rooms, mostly in the Paper Chase job site.
• Hank remarks on seeing Jerry playing Shum 2 a lot during his mandated breaks; given that the other cabinet is somewhere in an abandoned area of the Executive Sector, it seems the 10-foot rule between the Altered Items is being maintained to prevent incidents.

See also

• Arcade Cabinets Procedures
• Arcade Cabinets Supplement

Gallery

Case file image

SHÜM Arcade Cabinets

SHÜM's loading screen

From The Art and Making of Control.

Shum 1 cabinet can be found in some Safe Rooms in FBC: Firebreak.