Slightly OT: This is why the Amusement Industry Is Slowly Fading Away.

coinopdirect

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Slightly OT: This is why the Amusement Industry Is Slowly Fading Away.

Lack of innovation has been one of the largest reasons the industry has faltered for years.

Then when a new and innovative product shows finally shows up it has either been over engineered (Sega is famous for this in the video sector) causing high maintenance costs or the the manufacturer prices the product to the extreme resulting in a very few operators purchasing new that it causes the product to simply fade away.

Here is an example:

A great idea that will not go anywhere simply due to pricing:

http://www.beam-me-up-crane-retrofit.com/home.html

Priced at $777.00
 
An old arcade route operator I worked for years ago (no longer with us - RIP) was convinced the home systems would be the death of the business as he knew it (this was the late 1980's to early 1990's). He got out in time by selling to someone. I think he was quite right.
 
He was right with regard to video games and very smart to sell off.

The industry made a switch to Cranes, Redemption, Kiddie rides and a new focus on Bulk for street locations and it is the only thing that saved the business (my opinion).

My experience with the OP I worked for when we made the switch in the 90's brought us to stability and we grew and profited.



An old arcade route operator I worked for years ago (no longer with us - RIP) was convinced the home systems would be the death of the business as he knew it (this was the late 1980's to early 1990's). He got out in time by selling to someone. I think he was quite right.
 
Video games in laundromats or movie theaters can still do okay.

The guys I know who are still doing this are not making what they used to, but if you have 250 pieces and they each net you $30 a month on average, that's not too bad.

Used machines are selling for very cheap prices these days so an operator can buy a game and have it paid off within a very short time.
 
Companies could make a lot of money by selling Home Use Only version of their newer titles for people with gamerooms. They would be modified in a way that they cannot accept tokens (hardware ANd software sides). But nooo, they decide to stay in that 1989 mentality.

I'd love to own that awesome alien gun game, or the rambo one. Or what about that new sega remix of Daytona Usa?

But no, they want 10k+ for that Alien game. I dont even want to imagine how much is that Daytona Usa remix.
 
Lack of innovation has been one of the largest reasons the industry has faltered for years.

Then when a new and innovative product shows finally shows up it has either been over engineered (Sega is famous for this in the video sector) causing high maintenance costs or the the manufacturer prices the product to the extreme resulting in a very few operators purchasing new that it causes the product to simply fade away.

Here is an example:

A great idea that will not go anywhere simply due to pricing:

http://www.beam-me-up-crane-retrofit.com/home.html

Priced at $777.00

1) Its pretty well agreed upon that home arcade games and the cocooning that occured in the early 90's killed the industry.

2) $700 doesnt seem so bad to me for that retrofit?
 
Lack of innovation has been one of the largest reasons the industry has faltered for years.

Then when a new and innovative product shows finally shows up it has either been over engineered (Sega is famous for this in the video sector) causing high maintenance costs or the the manufacturer prices the product to the extreme resulting in a very few operators purchasing new that it causes the product to simply fade away.

Here is an example:

A great idea that will not go anywhere simply due to pricing:

http://www.beam-me-up-crane-retrofit.com/home.html

Priced at $777.00

Sadly, I'm afraid you're probably right - it won't get the play it deserves. With a used crane being as cheap as it is, another $777 for a hook doesn't necessarily play.

The problem is that given the amount of engineering required, and the eventual small quantities (honestly - even if they sell well, that's still only a few thousand units total EVER) means that they have to charge pretty high per unit if they want to make what they spent.

Oh well.
 
One problem I see with the retrofit is the customer will expect it to pick up whatever they set it down on.

Even though the tension is set so low on claws that they fail, the impression of them grabbing and then dropping tends to attract the "one more try" kind of mentality.

Line up that suction cup device and you expect it to work every time. If it drops the prize, then the perception is that the machine isn't working properly.

I still get your point about upgrades and retrofits though.
 
One problem I see with the retrofit is the customer will expect it to pick up whatever they set it down on.

Even though the tension is set so low on claws that they fail, the impression of them grabbing and then dropping tends to attract the "one more try" kind of mentality.

Line up that suction cup device and you expect it to work every time. If it drops the prize, then the perception is that the machine isn't working properly.

I still get your point about upgrades and retrofits though.

The second operator I worked for (not the older operator I mentioned) had lots of plush toy cranes. Regular and jumbo cranes. They made good money but we serviced most of them daily to add more plush. They dispensed plush and this kept the customers playing them. The location split on the gross was 70/30 (operator/location). 40% was allocated for the cost of the plush toys.

I would like to see the suction retrofit in action. Anyone ever seen one in the wild?
 
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