Outrageous Arcade Prices

Darkside Hazuki

Darkside Hazuki

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Saw After Burner Climax at a local joint today. The game and the cabinet look FANTASTIC, but I'm not dropping $3 for a single credit of ANY game. $3 DAMN DOLLARS FOR ONE PLAY! Bad enough I sunk $1 into Alien Extermination. That game lasted all of two minutes.

Anyone seen a thriving arcade community that doesn't involve plenty of alcohol to numb the impact to your wallet (i.e. GameWorks, Dave & Busters, etc.) ?

Cheapy, you don't count, but perhaps you could share the average price of a credit in Japan.
 
I haven't been to an arcade since I played Caveman Crisis with this guy

JesusDino.jpg
 
The only arcades we have now are the ones in waiting lobbies of theaters or some restaurants.

There was a real arcade but that shut down a year or two ago. We used to have a nickel place (like $5 to get in, every game costs a nickel to play) but I don't know if that's still around.
 
We have Marvelous Marvins Mechanical Museum (love seeing the old Showbiz pizza guys hanging on the wall. Also, F-Zero cabnit), Luckys, and a bit farther out both a Dave and Busters and Gameworks. Oh, and Chuckie Cheese's (dont laugh, the one behind my work has a dual Mario Kart GP)

F-zero is a $1 to play, and I cant remember how many tokens Mario Kart uses...but everywhere else uses points cards now
 
There's an arcade in the mall here, but I'm too cheap to play. It does have Biohazard: Gun Survivor which is about the only thing I payed to play. That game is awesome.
 
I worked at an arcade back in college. I was always surprised how busy we would get. We used to call the Blitz (football) game "the firehazard" beacuse it always had people playing and about 10 others standing around watching. I believe that cost around $1 a quarter per person as I recall.

Then there were the kids who would come in and beat old games on one credit just to show that they could. That is, they would come in every day and do that, I didn't understand why.

Every once in a while when I see an arcade at a mall, I'll go in and think for old times sake I will play without worrying how much it will cost (as I could do when it was free at the arcade I worked at). I usually spend less then $3 before I am tired of the place.

T
 
There's a cool arcade about an hour from me in Reading, PA. It's called the Challenge Arcade and they have a bunch of classics, at classic credit prices too I should add. So Galaga costs $.25 like it damn well should. They even have a working Asteroids cabinet, smells a little funny though, like burning.
 
[quote name='RelentlessRolento']50 cents is the limit for me, but then again I mostly go to the arcade for fighters.[/QUOTE]

Same here, even then I feel that 50 cents is too much for a round of CVS 2 :)

I feel lucky that I still have a "real" arcade in my area. It's a place called Starbase and it has a good mix of 2-D fighters, old co-op faves and stuff you come to see now in other places like racing games and DDR.

I also find that minature golf/go-karts/arcade places do well when it comes to arcades. About 45 minutes from where I life there is a place called "Golf Land" in Milpitas, CA. It has 3 seperate small buildings devoted to all sorts of arcade games. They even have a section that is devoted strictly to fighting games. It has all the standard stuff like MVC2, CVS2, Tekken 5, SF Third Strike etc., but what really surprised me is that they have stuff like Rival Schools, Guilty Gear, Darkstalkers, Pocket Fighter and so on.

That place is also a hotbed for some of the Bay Area's best 2-D fighting game players.

The Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk, also has a really surprising arcade. They cater to mostly the summer crowd with In The Groove, DDR, and all those games that cost $1.00 or more to play. But what is really surprising is their inclusion of the new and old Tekken games, KOF Neowave, KOF XI (!!!!!), CVS 2, and so on. Great place to check out if you are in the area.

Though there is a Dave and Busters (a couple actually) in my area, they are usually more of a spectacle for people who haven't been, rather than actual fun.
 
The closest thing I even have to an arcade is the selection in the waiting area of my movie theater. They only have a couple games there... most are shitty and Time Crisis 2 costs like $1 per play. Now, that's enough for me to get through the entire game since I'm amazing at lightgun shooters, but that's still borderline ridiculous. We're in an age where nobody plays at arcades competitively (for the most part) and where console ports are often better than the arcade originals, so I have to wonder what the point of even bothering with arcades is now.
 
even tho it has its fair share of ups and downs,

southern california arcades NEVER DIE!!!

games have one quarter / token continues

so fighting games attract crowds
 
[quote name='asianxcore']Same here, even then I feel that 50 cents is too much for a round of CVS 2 :)

I feel lucky that I still have a "real" arcade in my area. It's a place called Starbase and it has a good mix of 2-D fighters, old co-op faves and stuff you come to see now in other places like racing games and DDR.

I also find that minature golf/go-karts/arcade places do well when it comes to arcades. About 45 minutes from where I life there is a place called "Golf Land" in Milpitas, CA. It has 3 seperate small buildings devoted to all sorts of arcade games. They even have a section that is devoted strictly to fighting games. It has all the standard stuff like MVC2, CVS2, Tekken 5, SF Third Strike etc., but what really surprised me is that they have stuff like Rival Schools, Guilty Gear, Darkstalkers, Pocket Fighter and so on.

That place is also a hotbed for some of the Bay Area's best 2-D fighting game players.

The Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk, also has a really surprising arcade. They cater to mostly the summer crowd with In The Groove, DDR, and all those games that cost $1.00 or more to play. But what is really surprising is their inclusion of the new and old Tekken games, KOF Neowave, KOF XI (!!!!!), CVS 2, and so on. Great place to check out if you are in the area.

Though there is a Dave and Busters (a couple actually) in my area, they are usually more of a spectacle for people who haven't been, rather than actual fun.[/QUOTE]
where is this "Starbase" place?
 
What really sucks is how they've started to retrofit arcade cabinets with consoles on timers. :drool:

$1 for 5 minutes of Halo 2 or some other Xbox game? Pass.
 
Last time I played in an "arcade" was at the Dayton Mall that was a few years ago. I walked in and it was .75 cents to play 1942. I walked around looked at the different games, and saw the cheapest game to play was... 1942 for .75 cents.

$3 is insane unless it lasts for an hour at least.
 
Dave and Busters is pretty awful. If you want to spend $25 for a soda, a slice of pizza and 3 plays on an arcade machine, It's the place to go.
 
[quote name='chemical']What really sucks is how they've started to retrofit arcade cabinets with consoles on timers. :drool:

$1 for 5 minutes of Halo 2 or some other Xbox game? Pass.[/QUOTE]

If you're tired of seeing those pass it off to the manufacturer. Many times it is illegal and im sure microsoft wouldn't mind whipping out a real nasty letter. I had a card shop/ rental place nearby that charged you to play n64 / ps1 games on a timer. Im speaking of the past for a reason, they got into trouble and went out of business.
 
I stopped doing the arcade thing when they:

1. Raised prices to $0.50+ on most games.
2. No more Ninja Turtles.
 
[quote name='SpecTrE3353']Dave and Busters is pretty awful. If you want to spend $25 for a soda, a slice of pizza and 3 plays on an arcade machine, It's the place to go.[/quote]
The D&Bs in the midwest (st louis/kc area) have a good deal where you buy a meal (I think about $12-13) and get a $10 game card free. The meals are big and good and if you want to play games it works out to be a fair deal for the combo.
 
The cheapest arcades in Japan are 50 yen(45 cents). Japan dosn't have a 25 yen coins just 1,10,50,100 and 500. Most games are 100 yen with some of the newer ones being 200-300 yen(I'm sure there are more expensive ones but I never saw any). There nice arcades with all the new stuff and high prices and there are dingy ones with some new stuff and lots of classics and 50 yen games.
 
There's a giant arcade called Pinball Pete's in Ann Arbor. Tons of pinball machines, arcade games, etc. Prices are still reasonable last time we were there.
 
The only arcade I go to is my university's (CSUF) because it's cheap and conveniantly located to kill time between classes.
 
[quote name='BULL_Ship']If you're tired of seeing those pass it off to the manufacturer. Many times it is illegal and im sure microsoft wouldn't mind whipping out a real nasty letter. I had a card shop/ rental place nearby that charged you to play n64 / ps1 games on a timer. Im speaking of the past for a reason, they got into trouble and went out of business.[/QUOTE]
It's a shitty deal but why is it illegal?
 
[quote name='rickonker']It's a shitty deal but why is it illegal?[/QUOTE]

You can't use personal copies for profit in such a manner.
 
These days I'm mostly interested in Pinball at an arcade. But it seems like out of the few arcades I come across many don't even have a single pinball machine. (I'm guessing because they are more expensive to maintain or less popular. Probably both.) And if they do it's sometimes $0.75 a play. Even $0.50 is pricey for me, but finding a $0.25 pinball machine is damn near impossible now.

Used to hang out a pool hall that had 2 or 3 25 cent pinball machines with fairly reasonable replay scores to boot. Often get 2 or even 3 plays out of one quarter. :)
 
[quote name='Kuros']You can't use personal copies for profit in such a manner.[/QUOTE]
That sucks, if you own it you should be able to do whatever you want with it
 
we had a cool arcade around here 10-12 years ago, but then when it became a hang out for gangs, and I think someone got shot, they shut it down :(
 
[quote name='rickonker']That sucks, if you own it you should be able to do whatever you want with it[/QUOTE]

While I tend to agree with this, if you look on the back of any newer game, you can see

"Unauthorized copying, reverse enginerring, transmission, public performance, rental, pay for play or circumvention of copy protection is strictly prohibited."
 
All I have to say is that not only did a new, independent arcade open up in the mall where I am in Indiana but it also has GOOD prices on games. House of the Dead 4 and the latest DDR and Pump it Up cabinets are $1 a pop but everything else is a reasonable 25 or 50 cents.

Also, much and total love to not only the well-maintained, beautiful cabinets and displays but many props to the fully-stocked Neo-Geo cabinets (Sam Shodown 2, Metal Slug, Bust-a-Move, some SHMUP). That and, well, having events out in the mall for charity (DDR/PIU competitions, etc.) and being run by gamers really makes a difference.

The biggest shock of all would be the redemption games that give you good stuff for LITTLE ticket costs. DAMN!
 
Blame redemption games and home consoles for the death of the Arcade in the United States. Arcade cabinets are extremely costly and have a slow turn around rate for profit. Redemption games are comparatively cheaper and have a much higher profit margain. Plus, now that Home Consoles have exceeded in power to the Arcades, no one is willing to go out and spend money to play games taht many consider to be inferior to the ones they have at home.
 
Gameworks in my area was the biggest ripoff. DDR was $3.75 for 3 songs, Daytona USA was over $3 a play. Even Top Skater was $2. Nothing was less than $1 to play. Thankfully they closed up.

I hate that Dave and Buster's is the only arcade left in the area and they are almost just as bad with pricing. I miss the local mall arcades.
 
[quote name='YoshiFan1']Gameworks in my area was the biggest ripoff. DDR was $3.75 for 3 songs, Daytona USA was over $3 a play. Even Top Skater was $2. Nothing was less than $1 to play. Thankfully they closed up.

I hate that Dave and Buster's is the only arcade left in the area and they are almost just as bad with pricing. I miss the local mall arcades.[/QUOTE]


which gameworks? The one I went to was in Miami, FL and that place was amazing. back then it was 20 bucks for unlimited play for 2 hrs.
 
I have not seen an arcade in almost 9 years except a few machines tossed about in random places. I kind of miss the arcade scene because it was a social venue and a gameplaying one as well. I just don't get the same satisfaction out of Xbox live as I did in the arcade.

I have not seen a pinball table in 13 years except for a beat one in a bar that was all busted up. Most of these are in peoples home as a novelty more than something to play. Do they even make pinball tables anymore?

The newer consoles are not really the downfall of the arcade it's people not willing to stand or go play in a mall. There are many arcade games that have never been translated to consoles in any form. I have never seen a neo geo hyper 64 machine in my life as an example.

The Xbox translations of most Neo Geo games have been pathetic like SVC Chaos and SSV compared to the Neo Geo hardware. I thought both games were an ugly mess on the xbox and should have been better.
 
The closest (only) arcade near me is the one in my mall, and all I pay is $1 for 3 songs of ddr, and 50 cents for a round of marvel vs. capcom 2.
 
[quote name='sendmesomegames']I have not seen an arcade in almost 9 years except a few machines tossed about in random places. I kind of miss the arcade scene because it was a social venue and a gameplaying one as well. I just don't get the same satisfaction out of Xbox live as I did in the arcade.

I have not seen a pinball table in 13 years except for a beat one in a bar that was all busted up. Most of these are in peoples home as a novelty more than something to play. Do they even make pinball tables anymore?

The newer consoles are not really the downfall of the arcade it's people not willing to stand or go play in a mall. There are many arcade games that have never been translated to consoles in any form. I have never seen a neo geo hyper 64 machine in my life as an example.

The Xbox translations of most Neo Geo games have been pathetic like SVC Chaos and SSV compared to the Neo Geo hardware. I thought both games were an ugly mess on the xbox and should have been better.[/quote]

Stern is the only company left still producing new Pinball machines, and they are for the most part, pretty awful.
 
There's a big stand-alone arcade in Koreatown, a few miles from my apartment. Never been in there, though.
There's one in Pasadena that's okay.
 
There's an arcade called Einstein's on campus here. I think the most expensive game is Ferrari F1 Challenge for a buck. Everything else is 50 cents or less. DDR, Soul Calibur, Virtua Cop 3, House of the Dead 4, Mario Kart GP, Outrun 2006, Time Crisis 3, Street Fighter 3, you name it, they might have it. ;) It's a tiny little hole in the wall, to boot.
 
www.ssbilliards.com

This place is within walking distance of me and typically has at least 15-20 pinball machines waiting to be played. There are a couple of video game sin there too, but in general its a great place for pinball and the operator is just out of this world to talk to.

Pinball rules.
 
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