SoulBlazer
03-24-2005, 02:04 AM
This thread is not to bash arcades as they currently exist. It's not to compare anything. It's just some thoughts and comments I shared with a friend recently.
Arcades are fun from dead. Look at how popular the ones that are in Dave and Busters and other 'dedicated' places are. But they have to a draw these days, something else to bring people in there besides playing video games. And the games themselves have to be special -- either games that can not be done justice in a home game version or games that are too new to be out there. Stand alone arcades are a thing of the past (as evidenced by two closing in my area in the last two years).
I enjoy going to my local Dave and Busters in Providence Place Mall. I go normaly about once a month, sometimes alone and sometimes with a friend. When I go to the mall, though, I don't go JUST for D&B. I go also to shop, to eat, to look around. I pay for parking anyway so I want to make sure I have a good time. That ties into the notes I made above.
And I don't just go into D&B to play games. I usually eat at the restraunt there, which has really good food. It's not that expensive and the portions are quite large, even if the menu is kind of limited. Sometimes I go in to play pool. Othertimes to watch a game at the bar and have a drink.
The arcade itself is kind of small but a lot is packed in there. There's some really fun games there that I just can't get for home. There's a boxing and a firefighting game, a paddling game that you play with a friend, a couple of DDR games, a virtual bowling game, Ski Ball, a airplane simulator, and several 'classic' games like Space Invaders and Missle Command.
One personal favorite of mine is Derby Owner's Club World Edition by Sega. Man, I can't believe how addicting this game is. ;) You start by breeding a racehorse and then you train it and race it in a race. Then you feed it and praise it and move on to the next race. Your stats are saved on a card that you put into the machine each time you play. The games are kinda pricy -- about 2.50 a pop -- but they last about 10 minutes or so and it's run developing your horse and playing aganist others.
Another great game also by Sega is Star Wars Triliogy Arcade. And yet another one is a bubble shaped device with several games to pick from. You sit down in the bubble and use a joystick to play your game and it moves around with you.
Not many companies are left in the arcade field. There are four big makers of games these days that account for almost every game in the D&B:
Sega
Konami
Namco
Electronic Arts
There's a few games left from Atari/Midway, Capcom, and SNK, but nothing made since 2000 for those companies.
A good selection of ticket games also, such as Ski Ball which I mentioned above. I still love playing that, and I save my tickets for something really nice down the road. ;)
It's defentily a family place where kids can come in and have a good time. At the same time, it caters to adults with waitresses who serve you drinks while you play, the pool tables, and the bar (even one in the arcade). And it's nice to see that under the right conditions that arcades can still do well. Not to mention it's a lot easier just to put money on a card and swipe that at machines to play then messing with coins. ;) Some times of the week are even cheaper to play -- come on a less crowed night and make your money go further.
Anyone else been to a modern arcade recently?
Arcades are fun from dead. Look at how popular the ones that are in Dave and Busters and other 'dedicated' places are. But they have to a draw these days, something else to bring people in there besides playing video games. And the games themselves have to be special -- either games that can not be done justice in a home game version or games that are too new to be out there. Stand alone arcades are a thing of the past (as evidenced by two closing in my area in the last two years).
I enjoy going to my local Dave and Busters in Providence Place Mall. I go normaly about once a month, sometimes alone and sometimes with a friend. When I go to the mall, though, I don't go JUST for D&B. I go also to shop, to eat, to look around. I pay for parking anyway so I want to make sure I have a good time. That ties into the notes I made above.
And I don't just go into D&B to play games. I usually eat at the restraunt there, which has really good food. It's not that expensive and the portions are quite large, even if the menu is kind of limited. Sometimes I go in to play pool. Othertimes to watch a game at the bar and have a drink.
The arcade itself is kind of small but a lot is packed in there. There's some really fun games there that I just can't get for home. There's a boxing and a firefighting game, a paddling game that you play with a friend, a couple of DDR games, a virtual bowling game, Ski Ball, a airplane simulator, and several 'classic' games like Space Invaders and Missle Command.
One personal favorite of mine is Derby Owner's Club World Edition by Sega. Man, I can't believe how addicting this game is. ;) You start by breeding a racehorse and then you train it and race it in a race. Then you feed it and praise it and move on to the next race. Your stats are saved on a card that you put into the machine each time you play. The games are kinda pricy -- about 2.50 a pop -- but they last about 10 minutes or so and it's run developing your horse and playing aganist others.
Another great game also by Sega is Star Wars Triliogy Arcade. And yet another one is a bubble shaped device with several games to pick from. You sit down in the bubble and use a joystick to play your game and it moves around with you.
Not many companies are left in the arcade field. There are four big makers of games these days that account for almost every game in the D&B:
Sega
Konami
Namco
Electronic Arts
There's a few games left from Atari/Midway, Capcom, and SNK, but nothing made since 2000 for those companies.
A good selection of ticket games also, such as Ski Ball which I mentioned above. I still love playing that, and I save my tickets for something really nice down the road. ;)
It's defentily a family place where kids can come in and have a good time. At the same time, it caters to adults with waitresses who serve you drinks while you play, the pool tables, and the bar (even one in the arcade). And it's nice to see that under the right conditions that arcades can still do well. Not to mention it's a lot easier just to put money on a card and swipe that at machines to play then messing with coins. ;) Some times of the week are even cheaper to play -- come on a less crowed night and make your money go further.
Anyone else been to a modern arcade recently?