Griffin
Well-known member
Trying to get some creative ideas for seating, if you put comfy seating in your arcade show us what you did and why you went that route.
Show us your seating area in your arcade
- Thread starter Griffin
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Phetishboy
Well-known member
We have a bar that seats about eight or nine people, but my wife wanted more seating in the arcade and wanted something a little bit more comfortable than barstools so I set out looking for a diner booth. I didn't find exactly what I wanted, but I found the bare bones of a homemade booth that I was able to customize into what I wanted. We use it for pizza, board games, dice, cards, and it's a nice spot to sit and watch the football game that's usually playing up at the bar. I engineered the back of the booth to be the perfect place to put eight cabaret machines. It worked out great because I didn't know what I was gonna do with all the games that were sitting where I ended up building the booth. I didn't wanna have to get rid of them, but I didn't want the space to seem cluttered either. I think I achieved what I set out to do.
OP
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Griffin
Well-known member
That works really well, definitely got that Friday night pizza joint feel to it. awesome!
We used to have 2 islands of games in the middle of this room around the support posts. It fit more games but it had a more closed off feel. We moved the air hockey table from upstairs and put these 2 couches next to it with a coffee table and a megatouch. Much more open and social. They were our old couches with worn out fabric so we just got covers for them. One was a full couch so I cut the frame and removed the center section to make them the same size.
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Griffin
Well-known member
Yeah I'm also avoiding putting games in the middle of the room moving forward for the same reason. I think keeping everything below 'bar height' (42") is the way to go. Also accepting that you may have to sacrifice a few game slots to make the whole place more inviting is important.
One of the benches from the museum of pinball. It was a gift from the owner.
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Griffin
Well-known member
I'm definitely leaning into the 'Retro Diner meets arcade' kind of feel. The drop ceiling is most likely going to be black and white checkered 2'x2' tiles with a little embossed depth to them. I'm thinking red vinyl, white piping and some splashes of chrome would work well for the furniture.
But then of course I'd need one of these too...
But then of course I'd need one of these too...
Phetishboy
Well-known member
That's what's crazy about my set up, I put the booth in the middle of the room, but I was still able to keep the games in the middle of the room as well. They're mostly all cabarets so nice and short so it doesn't block the room off. Then I can have the full size uprights around the outside of the room. Without those games in the center, this wouldn't really feel like an arcade and more like a few games against the wall. I like having rows of machines facing each other. The booth is like a nice transition between the bar and the arcade.
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Griffin
Well-known member
It's the way to go, looks great, I love the extra touch of the phone sign, it's the little details that can make all the difference.
Phetishboy
Well-known member
Yeah, I've had that sign placed in different spots around the Arcade, but it never really felt right. When I installed the booth, I also installed a floating shelf with a USB charging outlet above it for the kids phones. So now where I put the sign actually makes sense.
Seating? In the arcade? 
If you want to sit down around here you go outside. We can't even access most of the games it's so jam packed.
If you want to sit down around here you go outside. We can't even access most of the games it's so jam packed.
I only have tall stools in the Arcade. Games and stools. Best use of limited space. Prioritize the square area for what matters - the games. IMHO
Want to relax, go upstairs to the living room.
Want to relax, go upstairs to the living room.
Those chairs are amazing
OP
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Griffin
Well-known member
Yeah those barrel chairs are peak awesome.
I think Alan put two of those together and slept on them one night!
4 of them makes a great bed.. laughs
For those who don't know.
We had the great muesum of pinball sleep over. People got to sleep next to thier favorite arcade machines..
We had killer BBQs thanks to coindork who bought the muesum a few bbqs..
I miss those days..fun times
Phetishboy
Well-known member
Oh, and just so you guys know, rearranging your Arcade periodically is one of the cheapest and best ways to breathe new life into your space. Whether your rearranging games to add seating or a booth like I did or just rearranging games to opposite sides of the room or in different configurations, it is just nice to change things up in an arcade that feels stagnant after several years of the same layout. This is how the space looked before the booth install, but once it was in place, I was able to move and fit those games behind and across from the booth. So I got my seating, and I still got to keep my games. Plus, now that they're in different spots, it feels like a new arcade. This is what that space looked like before:
And after:
And here's a pic from behind the bar toward the area the booth is in.
Before:
After:
And here's the area behind and across from the booth where those displaced games ended up:
And after:
And here's a pic from behind the bar toward the area the booth is in.
Before:
After:
And here's the area behind and across from the booth where those displaced games ended up:
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