Turnarcades Arcade Machine Prize at Replay Expo 2011!

[Turnarcades]

Although the organisation and details of this year's eagerly anticipated Replay Expo in Blackpool are still yet to be finalised, you can be sure Turnarcades will once again be there with a bigger selection of demo machines to play including some prototype models not yet featured in our set range or built as projects for any customer!

As the attendance of this year's show is expected to more than double last year's total attendanceand be around the 5000 mark, there will be plenty of attractions to see, games to play and competitions to enter. The popularity of our machines last year was very high (which we are grateful for!) but unfortunately meant that some visitors did not get chance to play on our machines, particularly as one was tied up most of the time with competitors in our own 'King of Kong' competition. With higher attendance expected and more machines to supervise, running another competition this year would be difficult for us to manage with our number of staff.

So, as we again want to contribute something special to the show and show support for the official event charity, we have instead decided to build a full Turnarcades arcade machine which will be raffled and won by one lucky visitor! In the custom spirit of our business, we'd like YOU to decide which model we will be building for the grand prize! If you will be attending this year's Replay Expo in Blackpool, please take a look at our range on our website, our examples on our facebook page, and our youtube videos and please vote for the model you think would make a great prize or that you personally would like to own given a chance. Any model from our set range will be considered (except the 'Supreme' model) so this gives a grand prize value of between £500-£1000, all for the price of a raffle ticket! Tickets will likely be set at £1 per strip, with 50% of the takings going to the official charity of Replay 2011.

I will be posting this notice on many online forums and sources, so please cast your vote and comments in this thread, on our facebook page or anywhere else you see this posting. You can view our examples slideshow by clicking the cabinet picture below, which shows many examples of most of our range. The machine we build will be announced around the end of July, so until then we look forward to your suggestions and good luck to everyone in advance of the show...

[LeedsFan]

Cool idea!  I've not voted yet as I'm about to go watch Barca beat the Scum and I need time to look through your range. But I'm really looking forward to this years event and I reckon I'm gonna need to take more spending money this year.   

[Turnarcades]

Gotta check a few things with the organisers first but yeah there will be an arcade machine to win in some form or another. Sorry Dave no DK glory this time round, but then I'm sure you're more into the building side of this hobby anyways!

[Turnarcades]

So far the general consensus at other places is to create some kind of compact cabinet such as a Box Arcade or Bar-Top. The outcome of these polls will determine what we build, so if you're attending the show or even if you're not, please cast a vote as it will help us decide exactly what people want!

[LeedsFan]

Bumping this thread as there's only three weeks to go!!!

This is gonna be an awesome event and is set to be even bigger this year. I'm taking 4 home built machines with me this time. Really looking forward to this. 

[ark_ader]

Lets hope they sort out the attendance queuing system.

[Turnarcades]

Thanks for the bump Dave, but unfortunately we may not be running this promotion at all. Not only was it not well received by those involved in Replay organisation this year, but several other issues mean it is costing us many times what it cost last year to attend, and without promotional support via official channels we cannot support such a promotion this time round, and will not be contributing to the official charity giveaway either.

[ark_ader]

Why?  Is R3play getting too bossy?

Good idea Craig, hope you bring a slim mini to the show. 

[Turnarcades]

It basically comes down to the fact that the focus of the show is playing games, and they've never intended it as a trade event. The problem there is that without traders shows like this don't happen as someone has to fund the elements and exhibits that make up the show, particularly things like competitions, and in return promote their business. The major sponsors get promoted, but that alienates smaller traders if the cost of attending and contributing does not get a big enough return in trade. Our reasons for having to drop the offers are mainly for other reasons (ie. some personal issues caused a huge delay over Summer, additional security costs following an unsuccessful break in), but it's a fact we can't ignore and why some of our business acquaintances won't get involved.

Don't get me wrong, as enthusiasts we love the show and it's great for everyone to be able to turn up to a grand gaming day out featuring rarities, a massive range of platforms and gaming across the ages, but it remains that somebody has to pay for it as admission tickets aren't enough (and won't be sold if there's nothing to see) and traders will only continue to contribute and run promotions, if in fact they can adequately promote their business. It's not out of spite we won't be contributing to the cause or running a promotion, we just simply can't give things away for the sake of it (that is, put more money into an event than we stand to make out of it), regardless of how much we like to support this hobby and the show.

If the organising team want to keep it a non-trade event and keep the focus on the gaming then it's understandable, but the general feedback from last year's visitors was that they expect to see (and want to spend money on) gifts, souvenirs and products from a variety of traders at a show like this. Encouraging more general traders would satisfy this demand, improve the show content from vendors being more willing and able to contribute through promotions worth their while, and of course the money raised would better fund the show.

Think a UK Comic-Con with emphasis on retro-gaming, which this show could become as popular as if the right decisions are made.

Either way, we should have some nice machines to exhibit and of course will be offering our show discount. It will be a great show with plenty of other great competitions, and we'll enjoy it as much as everyone.