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How much did original arcade machines cost?
WhereEaglesDare:
--- Quote from: jimmy2x2x on August 24, 2010, 05:22:56 pm ---Im pretty sure I read that defender cost £1600 (uk) on release.
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$2500 bucks... a new 1980 Camaro was $7500...
a 2010 Camaro is $24,000 so if you can compare the two then Defender today would be $8,000
The Online Inflation Calculator says "What cost $2500 in 1980 would cost $6424.94 in 2009."
idsane:
Wow that is amazing. I would never have guessed they could be that much in the 80s. 10,000 plays to get your $2500 back. I wonder how much capital it took to open something like a ChuckECheese or Alladin's Castle back then with their extensive arcades. So I guess expensive retro games that go for a couple of thousand are still less than what they originally went for, and none are very good for collectors that were holding on to them to turn a profit.
Ginsu Victim:
--- Quote from: idsane on August 24, 2010, 05:47:26 pm ---Wow that is amazing. I would never have guessed they could be that much in the 80s. 10,000 plays to get your $2500 back.
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Back then, it wasn't that hard. Check the coin counters on some older cabs sometime. My Track and Field had 53,000.
RayB:
I think I read somewhere that a machine had to make about $150 per week to be considered a success. If you think about it, and consider that earnings lower as a game gets old, the machine paid itself in about 6 months or so...
Some actual production numbers, earnings (during tests) etc available here:
http://www.atarigames.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=category&id=5%3Aatari-inter-office-memos&Itemid=5&layout=default&limitstart=60
runninblue:
About 14-15 years ago out of curiosity I rang up a distributor to get a quote on a 2nd hand Daytona machine (double) and he quoted me $25,000 Australian dollars...15 years ago...2nd hand. I nearly cried.