"Second Wave" of Video Arcades

denny427

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I am posting an interesting article I found in Vending Times (professional magazine for full line vending and amusement businesses). Reflects some of the conversations on these pages, about the good old days, and about members here opening arcades.


"Fans, Not Traditional Operators, Power 'Second Wave' Of Video Arcades"

SAN FRANCISCO -- Capcom's director of online and community strategy Seth Killian said that the original generation of videogame fans from 30 and 40 years ago are powering what he termed a "second wave" of video arcades.

According to a copyrighted story in Wired magazine, these aging players are opening modern-day versions of the "hole in the wall" arcades that flourished in the 1970s and '80s, before being largely replaced by family entertainment centers. | SEE STORY

This second-wave arcade phenomenon has led to "gritty little storefront" arcades in San Francisco, New York, Austin and elsewhere, the publication reported.

The new breed of arcade owners includes people like Jared Rea, proprietor of the Game Center Arcade in San Francisco, and Arturo Angulo, Simong Truong and Cameron Berkenpas, co-owners of the nearby Southtown Arcade. Rea said he decided to open his site after traditional video-based arcades become "almost nonexistent."

Angulo complained that when the new breed of old-style videogame arcade owners attempt to purchase products directly from Japanese manufacturers, "they've been less than responsive to say the least." Small videogame arcades often "can't get the games" that players want because these products are largely confined to Japanese distribution channels, he said.

U.S. subsidiaries of such Japanese factories as Capcom and Namco have been far more helpful, Angulo said. But he lamented that the cost of coin-op product can run as high as $12,000 for an upgrade PCB. The new breed of arcade owners, much like traditional operators, find this pricing difficult to accept in an era of $50 home videogames.

Wired said that most U.S. players believe that videogame arcades are "completely dead and buried" and that the second wave of the old-fashioned, coin-operated videogame storefront operations remains "a well-kept secret" so far.

The full story can be found at WIRED: http://www.wired.com/gamelife/2012/02/southtown-arcade-game-center/

Denny
 
Very interesting. I read a book recently on Japan's arcade scene, which is still pretty big. I pretty much left the arcades when the fighting games came out. I could never master the moves until I had my own machines and even then I was only an average player at best.

I rarely see the Street Fighter IV arcade boards for sale. I think the last time I saw one was on Craigslist a few months ago and the seller wanted around $1000. Maybe that was a good deal, I don't really know.

Another genre that is still popular in Japan are the shoot em ups, called "shmups". Apparently Xevious was a gigantic hit in Japan back in the day.
 
Very interesting. I read a book recently on Japan's arcade scene, which is still pretty big. I pretty much left the arcades when the fighting games came out. I could never master the moves until I had my own machines and even then I was only an average player at best.

I rarely see the Street Fighter IV arcade boards for sale. I think the last time I saw one was on Craigslist a few months ago and the seller wanted around $1000. Maybe that was a good deal, I don't really know.

Another genre that is still popular in Japan are the shoot em ups, called "shmups". Apparently Xevious was a gigantic hit in Japan back in the day.

You're right. Japan arcades are still going strong, and I don't think they ever skipped a beat. The thing about arcades now is that everything seems to be going online in some sort of way or fashion. Shumps are very popular among many foreigners as well. I frequent many sites that have members drooling over these shooters.
Classics, shooters, fighters, and brawls. If it's good, I play them all.
 
In Japan arcades move more money than consoles and they are the backbone of many companies like Sega and Konami. I'm extremely interested in how they evolved but there's very little info on the topic.


I think that as long as they keep new blood coming, arcades with regulars will be profitable. Easier said than done, but most places don't try and that's why they are going to die sooner or later, they just rely on short-sighted income from redemption machines.


It's true that the high prices of many games is a huge roadblack to make arcades profitable, specially since in the US costumers still seem to think that they should pay a quarter. Street Fighter IV isn't going to be played enough to get your money back by the time the next version comes in and I can't see Time Crisis IV netting you it's price.
 
i wonder if money laundering has anything to do with their success in japan? maybe its my paranoid x files new world order mindset, maybe the yakuza is using the arcade industry to wash some yen??? roll up that change, boys...
 
i wonder if money laundering has anything to do with their success in japan? maybe its my paranoid x files new world order mindset, maybe the yakuza is using the arcade industry to wash some yen??? roll up that change, boys...
Don't think that's the case, the Yakuza use Pachinko not arcade games. Arcades in Japan are owned by game companies.
 
Don't think that's the case, the Yakuza use Pachinko not arcade games. Arcades in Japan are owned by game companies.

Pachinko games also house some games from North Korea I shit you not. I forget the whole BG story, and I can ask since I:m in the country.

@general norris Look this link up. It`s written by one of the writers over at kotaku.com (Brian Ashcraft) http://www.amazon.com/Arcade-Mania-Turbo-charged-Japans-Centers/dp/4770030789 It`s a real good in depth story of Japan`s arcade history. He also written a book about Japanese school girls.
 
@general norris Look this link up. It`s written by one of the writers over at kotaku.com (Brian Ashcraft) http://www.amazon.com/Arcade-Mania-Turbo-charged-Japans-Centers/dp/4770030789 It`s a real good in depth story of Japan`s arcade history. He also written a book about Japanese school girls.
Hehe, it's actually one of the books I'm considering to pick up. While I'm looking for something very in-depth and detailed about videogames and this one doesn't ring the bell, I heard very good things about it so I may get it.
 
An uncle and I toyed with the idea of opening a classic 80's arcade outside of Austin, Texas for a time. He having the property and the money, I a few of the needed machines and the interest. What killed it (in its infancy) was my not wanting a lot of grubby strangers' paws on my control panels! Spilling drinks and whatnot all over my machines...

I can see the idea seeming plausible at first, but one of the surest obstacles to its success is the 25 cent paradox. What 40-something among us would really flock to such a place if we were having to pay more than 25 cents per credit, and what collector here would let Fate's random peasants handle his machines for a mere 25 cents a dollop?
 
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