Future of the hobby

I really don't believe that arcade games will become like jukeboxes for a very long time. Videogaming as a whole is still a huge and growing industry and probably will be for a long time. As long as there are people and pop culture, there will be people interested in this and even diving deep into it.
I will respectfully disagree with this when it comes to arcade games.

Video gaming is still huge for sure - but only on a mobile/console level. As a Dad (and I know you are too) of 17 and 16 year olds who constantly have friends over, I can tell you none of the kids these days give two shits about the games in the garage. They will play games on their phones, and on the XBOXs/PS all day long. We were just at a pizza parlor last night, and there was a row of old arcade games, and there were redemption games, and every kid there (and it was packed) were playing the redemption games.

Arcade games these days have a small group of us who still care about them. The younger kids don't, and the older dudes are dying off.

This hobby is cooked.

At least we all have eachother here.
 
I've been collecting Games for over 10 years and I think there are more replacement parts and support available for restoring games than there ever has been. This same question gets asked all the time. Usually by people newer to the hobby. I dont think arcade games are going anywhere. The comparison to jukeboxes isn't all that accurate if you ask me, classic games are timeless and original is always the best way to enjoy them. You can listen to music on anything and the experience is pretty much the same.
Thats my .25 cents.
 
I recently picked up a jukebox, then designed a modern replacement controller for it. I followed that with a custom amplifier and will be selling both soon. There seem to be quite a few collectors in some big groups on Facebook.​

I am interested in your custom controller if it can be ported to a Rowe CD100.
 
Video gaming is still huge for sure - but only on a mobile/console level.

Arcade games these days have a small group of us who still care about them. The younger kids don't, and the older dudes are dying off.

This hobby is cooked.

At least we all have eachother here.
Sadly this has been my experience as well…Neither of our sons care about the games or gameroom I've dedicated myself to, unless their friends express interest, which is rare and momentary if it occurs.

I've accepted the home arcade is for me and friends with similar interests only.
 
It is interesting. Prices are high these days for Arcade and Pinball stuff. Parts are more and more expensive, due to scarcity I suppose. I've always been a project cab buyer and those are harder and harder to find, especially now that coin-op warehouse moved from MD to OH :(.

regarding the younger generation, I just had my sons 7th birthday party last weekend, 11 kids around the same age. Fired up the arcade and the only thing that was consistently played were my Pinball machines by one of the kids Grandpa.

My son shows interest from time to time and other times him and his friends will beat TMNT and TIT, but outside of that, it's just Switch for him.

I'm hoping as he gets older I can teach him how to solder and fix stuff. He's very interested in how things work, so I might get lucky.
 

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It's a small group of us who love these things and know how to fix them for sure. But the nostalgia and coolness factor never wears of with family and friends. I laugh at people who collect cabs and never really do anything to them then expect top dollar when selling them. I guess it comes down to Original VS Restoration but that's for another topic.

Arcade cabinets are like houses. They only time you care about the price is when you are buying or selling them. And the current price is depending on current market conditions which are usually out of our control. So instead just enjoy the games you have and just appreciate the hobby for what it is.
 
Sadly this has been my experience as well…Neither of our sons care about the games or gameroom I've dedicated myself to, unless their friends express interest, which is rare and momentary if it occurs.

I've accepted the home arcade is for me and friends with similar interests only.


Kids don't give a shit about anything until they are older.

When you die, they'll give a shit.
 
Did you know that banning had kids that came over to give a hand repairing video and pinball machines? I am still in contact with the kids who volunteered on the video arcade side. They can sling a soldering iron better than a few techs I know. They work ethics They have and the skills they have will.do them well in thier lives..
 
I disagree.

Far too often I see us spend so much time working on our arcades and not including the family in our repairs or play time with these machines. My family and kids enjoy the garagecade. I'm not saying I've done it perfectly. But its not that they (kids or wife) don't give a shit about our arcade games it's that they resent the time we spend with the cabinets vs them. So flip the script and include them as much as possible. I have my kids read off the cap list after I've done a re cap of any monitor chassis so I can double check my work. I call it my QC check. I have my kids help with the restoration process so they feel a sense of accomplishment when the cab is completed as well. Anybody can use sandpaper and help out. Dialing in a monitor with your TPG? Use a kid or wifey to help with it instead of a mirror. Sure it's can be more time consuming but it helps to keep them invested in your hobby as well. Everyone sitting on the couch bored and watching IG vids on their phones. Grab them all and play the arcade games for 30mins. Highest score gets to pick what we have for dinner. It takes effort but we can't complain about the lack of interest and never put forth the effort to include them in the hobby. Open your arcade so others can experience the fun of playing an original arcade machine. Whenever I open up my garage door the kids in the neighborhood start running over asking to play the games. Gotta make the effort guys if we want this hobby to be viewed as fun and cool to be a part of.
Kids don't give a shit about anything until they are older.

When you die, they'll give a shit.
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I helped run a pop up arcade in Rutland VT in 2019. Kids to young to drive were lined up waiting for the doors to open 3 nights a week. They parked their bikes on the sidewalk. If it were motor cycles it would have looked like the outside of a biker bar. It was such a hit with the youth in the area that the city mayor was receiving emails, phone calls and letters to keep the place open. What was supposed to be a 6 week donation to the community from a few local collectors ended up staying open for 9 months as it was granted several extensions by the mayor who even paid the landlord and local power company. In the end we had 20 classic vids, a pin or two, ping pong, music and were serving free pizza and pop corn to patrons.
 
Love these last two posts. Pop up or temporary is the way to go. Makes a nice surprise for the community and they value it more knowing it's temporary. Also less stress on the machines than something more ambitious. If you can make it work, by all means do it.
 
I disagree.

Far too often I see us spend so much time working on our arcades and not including the family in our repairs or play time with these machines. My family and kids enjoy the garagecade.
Dan, I love when you visit you almost always have your son in tow and it's great he enjoys arcade machines… I believe your entire family joined us for arcade party once, if I recall correctly.

I wish either of my sons enjoyed the hobby but alas so far no luck sigh 😔
 
Thanks buddy. We always enjoy coming to your arcade. Such a great set up

I think a lot of it is our kids don't know what they have at their finger tips. I'm sure if we'd had a full size arcade machine sitting in our basement or living room back in the day we'd possibly have the same "meh" attitude as some of our kids. It's just human nature not to appreciate whats been given to you for free.
Dan, I love when you visit you almost always have your son in tow and it's great he enjoys arcade machines… I believe your entire family joined us for arcade party once, if I recall correctly.

I wish either of my sons enjoyed the hobby but alas so far no luck sigh 😔
 
I'm sure if we'd had a full size arcade machine sitting in our basement or living room back in the day we'd possibly have the same "meh" attitude as some of our kids.
Nah, because those were all the rage back then. Kids have consoles sitting in their basements, bedrooms and living rooms these days and they play them all day long, ya know?

A friend of mine had some arcade games in this house BITD and we'd always be there playing them (he had a 1942, a Ms Pac, and a bubble hockey). It was amazing! It was RARE to see that. We had a Pop A Shot in our garage growing up and EVERYONE wanted to play it.

You're lucky in that you have a situation where a neighborhood full of kids are all about your games. My son had the entire varsity baseball team over last season for an end of year hang out. They were in the garage all of 30 mins (enough to smash all the pizza) then all piled upstairs into the boys rooms where the PS and XBOX was. I wish your situation was the norm!
 
It's different times for sure. My boys play NBA 2K for hours. Doesn't mean they dislike the arcade it just they way more options for entertainment than we had. Plus add the cell phone distraction and it's a lost cause some times. Lol
Nah, because those were all the rage back then. Kids have consoles sitting in their basements, bedrooms and living rooms these days and they play them all day long, ya know?

A friend of mine had some arcade games in this house BITD and we'd always be there playing them (he had a 1942, a Ms Pac, and a bubble hockey). It was amazing! It was RARE to see that. We had a Pop A Shot in our garage growing up and EVERYONE wanted to play it.

You're lucky in that you have a situation where a neighborhood full of kids are all about your games. My son had the entire varsity baseball team over last season for an end of year hang out. They were in the garage all of 30 mins (enough to smash all the pizza) then all piled upstairs into the boys rooms where the PS and XBOX was. I wish your situation was the norm!
 
It's not entirely a lost cause, doom and gloomers. One of my daughters loves my arcade games and she introduced her boyfriend to them and now he loves them. The other daughter's boyfriend has been hooked for a long time and plays them every time he's over here.

Like Mr. Boom ^ mentioned, there are a ton of things now for them to spend their time on, and some of them will choose this.

My concern isn't that 40 years from now the kids won't like these; I'm WAY more concerned for the hobby due to the EOL of many of the electronic components that we use to repair these games. That's starting to impact the hobby now and it will get way worse in the next 5 years.

If APAR wasn't already sticking their finger in the dike, we'd already be seeing critical shortages of a number of these components.
 
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