Arcades...any left?

[rkotm]

I know ive posted lots of topics recently, but ive been curious..any arcades around you? I dont have one for 40+ miles. They used to be everywhere, the roller skate rink, the local arcade(Great Games) and the malls. The malls had them at every one i went to. I know this is 2008, but well, it was a nice way to pass time while you were out. It was fun to challenge someone you just met in Samurai Shodown 2 or MK..then towards 2000 games were about $1.00. Are they still big in Japan? Consoles wiped them out i know, but are there any around you?

[nestlekwik]

We still have a good amount around here in Ohio, but quality ones are a different story. Every time I can, I suck it up and drive an hour to Pinball Pete's in Ann Arbor, MI. A good amount of pinball and classic games for me sink my teeth into. My friend also handles a number of routes in northwest Ohio and he has a good choice of classic fighting games to play.

[DigitalSpace]

Oh yeah. In the Portland area:

Ground Kontrol Classic Arcade (http://www.groundkontrol.com/) - Well worth a visit for any retrogamer who lives in or is visiting the Portland area.

After that, there's the ones with newer stuff:

Wunderland (http://www.wunderlandgames.com/) - Mostly ticket redemption stuff, and some newer racers, fighters, and light gun games. The Avalon Theatre location has a MAME cab.

Other than that, the Lloyd Center mall has a Tilt in the food court, and every multiplex in town has an arcade area.

[Jorpho]

Are they still big in Japan?

Staggeringly huge, I understand.

While there aren't any new arcades opening, the established ones I know of are still going for some reason.

There's still one arcade in downtown Montreal (http://www.citynoise.org/article/6444), and (though it's not local) it looks like there's still one Playdium (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Playdium) despite the closure of their other locations.

[Brian Deuel]

Chuck E Cheese is the only one left here after I closed mine.

[COUNT SMRIFNACK]

We have one about 4 miles from my house, in a skating rink.:rocker:

[j_factor]

The local Cyberstation (Namco-owned arcade chain) shut down circa 2002. There was also a nickel arcade nearby that closed around the same time. The only thing resembling an arcade near me is a local laser tag place, which has several arcade machines in it. It's okay, but dinky compared to the two real arcades we used to have. There are two miniature golf places with better arcades, but both of them are a good forty-minute drive away. If I go into the city (25-30 miles) there's a big arcade at the Metreon, but it's way overpriced.

[Sweater Fish Deluxe]

I used to live in Santa Cruz, CA and the Boardwalk there has a great arcade. Best I've ever seen actually, past or present. Probably close to 200 machines in there including two whole rows of pinball tables, a large section with maybe 50 or 60 classic machines with lots of greats and some rarities, plenty of deluxe sit-down and link-up cabs from all eras, a couple MAME machines, three Neo Geo machines with a good variety of games, etc, etc, etc. Really nice arcade and in the off season they always had a deal where you could get $20 worth of tokens for $10.

Like I said, I don't live there anymore, though. Now I live in Mendocino County and there's no arcades for at least 50 miles (and that's just assuming there's *SOMETHING* in Santa Rosa). Makes me really regret not hitting up the Boardwalk arcade more when I had the access to it.


...word is bondage...

[DreamTR]

rkotm: what city/state do you live in?

[Matt Antonellis]

There's a few "Gameworks" arcades around the country; there one up here in Seattle.
It's really a SEGA arcade that is owned by Paul Allen I think (correct me if I'm wrong, but the man owns everything up here).
They are, however, more geared towards the 21+ crowd since there is a bar & grill inside and after 9pm people under 18 aren't allowed in.
It can be a good thing.

One weird experience I had once with one of their repair guys was strange to say the least. He accused me of cheating for some reason (probably just had a long day), but the manager gave me a free 500 credits a week later so no hard feelings.

I can't really speak for any other arcades in the area because I think they all shut down.
However Ground Kontrol in Portland is amazing.

[MachineGex]

I am living in Colorado Springs and there is a great arcade in Manitou Springs (a few minutes away). This arcade is huge & have a lot of the games outside(covered roof only). They must have 200-300 machines. I love the fact they still have a huge area with the old arcade stuff like the old Baseball games. The one with the metal ball and ramps. They must have 4-5 different versions of this baseball game. I love going there. I take my 4 year old son and we stay as long as my wife will let us. Anyone who ever gets in this area needs to check it out. I am not sure about having the newest stuff(like this years stuff), but they might. I usually only play the older stuff. Luckily, they have an amazing stock of older games. The have a good size room filled with all the older mechanical stuff which I have a blast playing. Alright, I need to hit this place in the next two weeks.

[Nitrosport]

The only thing left around my area is boomers (used to be race o rama). It's an arcade/ go kart/ mini golf place. I don't go there anymore. It's just not like it used to be.

[Garry Silljo]

We have one about 4 miles from my house, in a skating rink.:rocker:

Anymore in my area skating rinks are even more rare than arcades.

[otaku]

Its not to bad around here. We have a boondocks which has some nice machines but not really alot (better for laser tag, bumper cars etc) then we have a place called game world which again has some nice machines but not really that many its small and very expensive (no quarters just these credit card things convenient but sorta weird) and then the movie theatres have a few machines each. Best place we have is pojos they have lots of games mostly older stuff but the nice thing is its cheap most games are a quarter and they have a nice nickle section to. Surprisingly these places stay pretty busy to. I actually know one of the two guys who sells and maintains the machines in idaho very cool guy he lets me drive his ferrari (and ride in it more often then drive it) he's having to sell one of the ferraris though which is surely a sign of the times...business isn't as good as it was in the 90s when he bought the ferraris (he has owned three currently has two one for sale)

[Nophix]

I'm working with a guy in Tomah WI that has a small arcade. It's closed temporarily while he moves to a new bulding, since the one he was renting had it's roof collapse. Luckily, no damage to his stuff, since it was mostly in the back room where it happened.

[rkotm]

rkotm: what city/state do you live in?

south of atlanta ga.come to think of it there is one 3 miles from me, at a bowling alley, mainly racing games and a few others..they have credit card/debit machines too.
DreamTR, you were on DCEmulation forums, no?

[Rogmeister]

The Ft. Steuben Mall in Steubenville, Ohio has one...it's not a great one but it's still there. It's not a major franchise and they have things other than video games like pool tables and air hockey tables and such. But they do have some arcade games, too. The games are fairly spread about...I think they could fit several more in there. I've only been by it a couple of times (in the daytime) and have never seen many people in it so I wonder how much longer it'll still be around.

[Volcanon]

Vancouver - 3 arcades in chinese-run shopping malls. They r great, and most games are .25 or .50 a play. There are also arcades in every movie theatre and as of last year a playdium or watever its called, which was rediculously overpriced.

Japan - arcades are everywhere, but they cost $1 a play, so I don't bother unless it's a cheap day or some game i've never tried out before. When console games are so cheap why waste $1/play at the arcade?

[DefaultGen]

.....

[Brian Deuel]

I take it back. There are a couple of others around. One in the local movie theater, a place called Craig's Cruisers, and a laser tag place called Zap Zone. This is in Grand Rapids Michigan and the surrounding suburbs.

Ann Arbor and East Lansing have Pinball Petes...

[Xian042]

Warwick Mall in Rhode Island has a respectable arcade. Aside from the ticket redemption they have current fighting games, DDR, and racing. Also a decent assortment of classics.

http://www.warwickmall.com/stores.php


we also have a Dave & Busters if you count that

[GaijinPunch]

Japan - arcades are everywhere, but they cost $1 a play, so I don't bother unless it's a cheap day or some game i've never tried out before. When console games are so cheap why waste $1/play at the arcade?

1: B/c in many cases (the reasons that would take you to the arcade) they can't be played properly on a console
2: Versus play... lots of it
3: It's on the way home
4: Show off your skills.

As for the "they're a dollar to play" comment... well, the handful of arcades left in the west don't charge a quarter anymore. Besides, you can't buy jack in Japan for a 100 yen anyway. It's all relative.

[Pantechnicon]

Nickel City (http://www.hinklefamilyfuncenter.com/Nickel%20City%20Arcade.htm) is a subset of Hinkle Family Fun Center in Albuquerque. Not a lot of people go down there but it is what it says: Two-fitty admission and a cup full of nickels will get you some nice arcade action. Galaga, Gauntlet, Donkey Kong, Jr, Dragons' Lair (which was on free play last time I looked), lots of others. There's even a sitdown cab for Steel Talons. Nice. And if you won't something a little newer, there's an 8-pod Battletech: Firestorm (http://www.hinklefamilyfuncenter.com/Battletech%20Firestorm%20Virtual%20Reality%20Pods. htm) VR system on the 1st floor.

So if you find yourself visiting ABQ give me or Ubikuberalles a pm and we'll take you gaming!

[Gapporin]

There's the 1984 Arcade in Springfield, MO which has all the classics -- Space Invaders, Sinistar, Joust, Robotron and more. Costs $5 to get in, but you can play as much as you want all day, and you definitely get your money's worth. Pics be here (http://www.digitpress.com/forum/showthread.php?p=1204056).

[MrSparkle]

im pretty much stuck with cyberstation in my local mall, its really gone downhill to a nearly 100% skill game (aka ticket game) type of arcade :(. Other than that dave and busters is an hour away which isnt TOO bad (TGI Friday quality food though :( ) A big plus on that one is the fact that it is indeed a bar!

[Richter Belmount]

The arcades arent doing so bad in south california , I have plenty of choices out where I live gameworks at the mall , local baseball park , arcade by a community college , boomers and a nickel arcade at the buena park mall.

[guitargary75]

There's the 1984 Arcade in Springfield, MO which has all the classics -- Space Invaders, Sinistar, Joust, Robotron and more. Costs $5 to get in, but you can play as much as you want all day, and you definitely get your money's worth. Pics be here (http://www.digitpress.com/forum/showthread.php?p=1204056).

It's only $5 a day to play. I'd be willing to pay $25 a day. People who live there are the luckiest on earth.:frustrated:

[guitargary75]

The arcades arent doing so bad in south california , I have plenty of choices out where I live gameworks at the mall , local baseball park , arcade by a community college , boomers and a nickel arcade at the buena park mall.

I hate your Obama ad. This is a video game site not a political forum. I mean I like Obama and everything, but that crap needs to go. I don't think any politcal candidate should get free exposure on here.

[Richter Belmount]

Hate is such a strong word, I guess to be passive and not let something bother you is a learned trait. If you have complaints against me direct yourself to the Ron Paul people on this forum.

[DreamTR]

I see people put much worse stuff in their signatures. I wonder what would happen if someone started quoting scripture from the bible?

[DreamTR]

south of atlanta ga.come to think of it there is one 3 miles from me, at a bowling alley, mainly racing games and a few others..they have credit card/debit machines too.
DreamTR, you were on DCEmulation forums, no?

Can't complain if Atlanta is close to you. There are some good arcades up there. Where I live, is a much different story, especially if you are looking for fighting game comp.

Nope, never been on that site.

[rpepper9]

Didn't the skating or "roller" rink also go away in the early 90's? That probably has more to do with the disappearance of the arcade, they both went hand in hand, a perfect pair. I have actually talked to people who have no idea what an arcade is, they think of arcade games as Golden Tee, which seems to be in every bar across America.

[nestlekwik]

Didn't the skating or "roller" rink also go away in the early 90's? That probably has more to do with the disappearance of the arcade, they both went hand in hand, a perfect pair. I have actually talked to people who have no idea what an arcade is, they think of arcade games as Golden Tee, which seems to be in every bar across America.

I think Golden Tee cabinet comes free with every liquor license dispersed in the United States. I'm led to believe the said license also gets bars and grills an additional hunting game at 50% off.

[j_factor]

I forgot about amusement parks. There's a Six Flags pretty near me, and last I went, it had a pretty good selection of arcade machines, albeit broken up into two small arcades. I have to agree with the mention of Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk; it's pretty far from me, but it is indeed awesome.


I see people put much worse stuff in their signatures. I wonder what would happen if someone started quoting scripture from the bible?

Depends on the passage. :p

[DigitalSpace]

After reading some previous posts in the thread, I figured I should mention that people with large collections do visit arcades every now and then. I go to Ground Kontrol and Wunderland with some friends every now and then, and on Valentine's Day last year, I took my date to Ground Kontrol since she said she hadn't been to an arcade in years, and we had a blast. Last week, I went to a Wunderland with my girlfriend after she told me she hadn't been there in a long time, and she wants to check out Ground Kontrol too.

Another reason I visit arcades is for the pinball. Ground Kontrol has a bunch of tables on their second floor.

[guitargary75]

Hate is such a strong word, I guess to be passive and not let something bother you is a learned trait. If you have complaints against me direct yourself to the Ron Paul people on this forum.

I don't think Ron Paul should get free time in here either, nor Clinton or McCain or anyone else. But, if you must show your support, go ahead.

[DigitalSpace]

Can we take the political discussion out of this thread, please? Thanks.

[Soviet Conscript]

Anymore in my area skating rinks are even more rare than arcades.

yes, it was a sad day indeed when the roll r rink was torn down. lots of good memories there...like when i broke my leg

all the arcades around where i live were in the malls and sadly there all gone now. Giggles was my favorite at Washington mall, i had my birthday there once. BEST BIRTHDAY EVER!

South Hills had Tilts and Franklin mall...er Crown Center used to have a small arcade..

[guitargary75]

Can we take the political discussion out of this thread, please? Thanks.

Exactly, I hear enough and see enough of this crap every where I go.

[ubersaurus]

There's Pinball Petes over in Ann Arbor, which is quite large, although the machine maintenance is lacking. And if I want to go like an hour north, there's a Gameworks, as well as Marvin's Marvelous Mechanical Museum, which has some arcade machines and a whole lot of mechanical machines. And there's the Butterfly: Also poor maintenance, but there's a lot of machines.

But around me, there isn't much. Wayne State has a small arcade in the student center, with the worst machine maintenance ever. It's so bad, students bring their own consoles and play on those. These days the rather expansive fighting game competition in the area gets together at people's houses to play, for lack of anywhere else.

[nestlekwik]

There's Pinball Petes over in Ann Arbor, which is quite large, although the machine maintenance is lacking. And if I want to go like an hour north, there's a Gameworks, as well as Marvin's Marvelous Mechanical Museum, which has some arcade machines and a whole lot of mechanical machines. And there's the Butterfly: Also poor maintenance, but there's a lot of machines.

I believe Pinball Pete's only does maintenance once a month. So, if a machine goes bad, they just slap an out of order sign on it and unplug it and hope they can somehow fix it during scheduled maintenance. I've heard directly they've pretty much given up on fixing the DrumMania machine because people just beat the living hell out of it and break it constantly.

If you don't mind me asking, what city is that GameWorks located in? I have family that lives pretty far north into Michigan. Sometimes I go as far as Frankenmuth to hit up the couple of decent arcades there.

[Garry Silljo]

yes, it was a sad day indeed when the roll r rink was torn down. lots of good memories there...like when i broke my leg

all the arcades around where i live were in the malls and sadly there all gone now. Giggles was my favorite at Washington mall, i had my birthday there once. BEST BIRTHDAY EVER!

South Hills had Tilts and Franklin mall...er Crown Center used to have a small arcade..

Crown Center still does, it's by Gander Mountain and that Hobby shop.

Edit: there's also one in the adjoined Movie Theater.

[Sweater Fish Deluxe]

Can we take the political discussion out of this thread, please? Thanks.Exactly, I hear enough and see enough of this crap every where I go.
Apparently you haven't heard or seen enough of it yet to grasp the concept of civil society. We'll never have a healthy society until political and ethical discussions are welcomed and encouraged everywhere.


...word is bondage...

[guitargary75]

Apparently you haven't heard or seen enough of it yet to grasp the concept of civil society. We'll never have a healthy society until political and ethical discussions are welcomed and encouraged everywhere.


...word is bondage...

Well I guess this is now the Classic Video Game Political Forum. Why do I hve to see who your gonna vote for president, on a game site. Keep that crap to yourself, or at least go to some political debate site. I'm sick of people shoving their political crap in my face.

[DarthKur]

Far as I know there is nothing in the Asheville area, or possibly the entire western section of North Carolina. I was told that Harrah's Casino in Cherokee had an arcade but when I finally got to check it out for myself I was gravely disappointed to find one or two modern machines and an assortment of gaming/gambling type games. I guess that shouldn't be surprising. Casino's never want your mind too far from the subject of throwing away money.
If someone does know of one that I'm unaware of around here please let me know.

[ubersaurus]

I believe Pinball Pete's only does maintenance once a month. So, if a machine goes bad, they just slap an out of order sign on it and unplug it and hope they can somehow fix it during scheduled maintenance. I've heard directly they've pretty much given up on fixing the DrumMania machine because people just beat the living hell out of it and break it constantly.

If you don't mind me asking, what city is that GameWorks located in? I have family that lives pretty far north into Michigan. Sometimes I go as far as Frankenmuth to hit up the couple of decent arcades there.

Auburn Hills, in the Great Lakes Crossing mall.

Oh yes, there's also the American Fun Center at the Oakland Mall off of 14 mile, and I guess they're doing good enough business that they're seeking to expand to another location.

Which is great and all, except I live in southern Wayne County, and haven't had a decent arcade in years nearby :P

[TNTPLUST]

The arcades arent doing so bad in south california , I have plenty of choices out where I live gameworks at the mall , local baseball park , arcade by a community college , boomers and a nickel arcade at the buena park mall.

Where is your Boomers? We are close if you are by the Buena Park Mall (I'm south in La Habra). Boomers in Anahiem got bulldozed and turned into a strip mall. Camelot Golf is still there and they have an ok arcade http://anaheim.golfland.com/ . There is a Dave and Busters and several Chuck E Cheeses near me but I'm a child of the 70's and 80's and while they entertain I can't call them arcades. I think there is a Nickel Nickel in Anahiem too.

[Sweater Fish Deluxe]

Well I guess this is now the Classic Video Game Political Forum. Why do I hve to see who your gonna vote for president, on a game site. Keep that crap to yourself, or at least go to some political debate site. I'm sick of people shoving their political crap in my face.
You totally fail to understand the concept of politics. Some discussions are too important to be limited to only certain places or times. Politics is not a hobby or entertainment like video games or movies or things like that which can justifiably be limited to certain forums and not discussed in others. Politics is a super-category that can and must be discussed anywhere that people interact with one another. "Keeping it to yourself" would not be politics at all and only discussing it on political discussion forums would be failing the society as a whole and so not truly politics, either. Open discussions of political issues are an integral part of civil society and they must be encouraged in every place and every person. People have to be engaged in politics at all levels of their lives if we will ever get anywhere as a group. You cannot hide from these discussions, you are a member of our society, it's your responsibility to engage in our society's politics.

Many powers do not want to see meaningful political discourse become widespread in society because they know that an active, informed and engaged population would mean the end of their power. So they use the media to discourage and sideline political discussion by making people think there's something wrong with it, that it's a waste of time or that it's something you can justifiably disregard. By buying into that propaganda, your negligence does harm to our entire society and so it does harm to me personally as a member of that society. That's why I "shove it in your face."


...word is bondage...

[Soviet Conscript]

Crown Center still does, it's by Gander Mountain and that Hobby shop.

Edit: there's also one in the adjoined Movie Theater.

decided to check out the one you talked about by Gander mt. today....

one of those mini game room setups. how depressing. first 60% of the games were those hunting games and of all the stuff there i think all but maybe 2 or 3 machines were broken in some shape or form.

the only thing that caught my eye was the centipede/missle command/millipede cabinet and upon putting in my quarter it promptly decided to break. just went to all garably characters on the screen and froze, so yhea...i accidently killed the only machine there worth playing.

then i tried time crisis 2 only to find the gun was hardly working at all. its a far far cry from some of the real arcades i remember being around. i was to young to really remember the golden age of arcades but i have alot of fond memories of the rebirth that took place in early and mid 90's. its just sad seeing whats left.

havn't been to kennywood park for awhile but they used to have a decent arcade. anyone know if thats still alive and kicking?