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Feasibility of opening an Arcade
Mattiekrome:
Perhaps an arcade route would be a better option? 10-20 games spread out over a city might fare better, than a full fledged arcade. I've heard you still have to pay for licenses, taxes, etc. for each machine, but then you get to skirt the cost of renting a building, employees, insurance, etc. Plus you have the option of rotating machines from place to place to keep them "fresh".
I dont have any firsthand experience with a route, but researched it at one time. Lots of good places to put games, laundromat, convienence stores, etc. And from what I've read, usually you can put a game in an establishment for a share of the profits. But I've also heard that usually the profits dont come anywhere near the amount of $ required to survive, so it might also be a "side hobby"
bluevolume:
--- Quote from: Mattiekrome on September 12, 2007, 01:58:33 pm ---Perhaps an arcade route would be a better option? 10-20 games spread out over a city might fare better, than a full fledged arcade. I've heard you still have to pay for licenses, taxes, etc. for each machine, but then you get to skirt the cost of renting a building, employees, insurance, etc. Plus you have the option of rotating machines from place to place to keep them "fresh".
I dont have any firsthand experience with a route, but researched it at one time. Lots of good places to put games, laundromat, convienence stores, etc. And from what I've read, usually you can put a game in an establishment for a share of the profits. But I've also heard that usually the profits dont come anywhere near the amount of $ required to survive, so it might also be a "side hobby"
--- End quote ---
There's plenty of people who are still making money doing this, but its not as lucrative as it used to be. The hard part is the investment in the games, especially in the bar/club arena. A new Golden Tee is going to hit you anywhere from $3000 - $6000, and you're of course going to need more than one. Then plan on hitting each machine once a month to clean the beer out of the trackball and buttons. And then one month you go to pick up your take, and you find that none of your Golden Tees are making any money. Why is that? Oh, well Golden Tee is "so over" now. Everyone is into bowling games and some new game where the character throws bean bags or something. Then while you're trying to figure out what you're going to do with all these 'Tees, you get a call that one of your Pirates Of The Carribean pins has had the glass smashed out and playfield all broken -- and not even Jodie Foster has any idea how it happened.
Of course, that's on a bad day. The good thing here is the modularity of a lot of the modern games, when one stops selling just grab a new PCB, control panel, and marquee and you're up and running with the next big thing. You can even get to a point where a cabinet more or less becomes a fixture at a location, and you're only carring around conversion kits rather than entire cabs. Its the specialized games that kill you on both ends (like that soccer ball monstrosity that was popular for like 5 seconds).
knave:
From what I see around my area the idea of an arcade would be a difficult road. I don't think it would be impossible though. Location and traffic is a huge consideration. Without pizza or some other type of reseraunt as a draw there won't get the type of traffic needed to turn a profit.
With the right location though:
There was a arcade/game store right across the street from my high school, it had pool, arcades and booths where you could rent time on the then current nintendo and sega consoles. (the city limited them to 8 cabs. They also did game sales and rentals. They made it for three years until one of the partners left and took the consoles with him.
Me, I'm a selfish bastard when it comes to my arcades. I don't want the public to touch them. My own kids are capable of enough damage as it is. My friends can just continue to drool. ;D
MAME nut:
--- Quote from: SavannahLion on September 12, 2007, 01:27:37 pm ---
--- Quote from: MAME nut on September 12, 2007, 01:10:41 pm ---Look at Dave & Busters...they combine an arcade with a bar atmosphere.....that's were the success is at. My idea.....a throw back sports bar called "Back to the 80's". (A rip off of the Back To the 50's Bars that found success in the 80's.) Give customers an arcade feel, but also include adult beverages and sports on TV!! ;D
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Any idea of the kind of abuse a drunk guy would inflict on a 20 year old cabinet?
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Not as much damage as 3 teenagers could do to a machine in an unsupervised corner of a 7-11!!! :P
RayB:
Hey Old Man,
You might want to read up on what and how "1984" are doing what they're doing (one of the owners posts on this forum!):
http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=42319.0
http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=38646.msg413081#msg413081
Here is a review :
http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=68068.0