How Arcades Are Reinventing Entertainment
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- Опубліковано 5 лют 2025
- Download the CFO's Guide for AI and Machine Learning for FREE at netsuite.com/Mo...
The 1980s was the golden age of arcades as games like Space Invaders and Pac-Man captured the attention of millions in the U.S. But since the 2000s, arcades have been disappearing across the U.S. Customers have shifted their spend to home and handheld consoles which outclass arcades in convenience, value, and entertainment.
Through the 90s, arcades were essential establishments for children and adults alike. Nowadays, the few still hanging on rely on alcohol and nostalgia to make ends meet. On paper, the broader physical entertainment industry seems doomed. Retail has been trending down since 2010 and the only sustainable businesses are big-name roller coasters and theme parks. But if we look beyond the numbers, arcades aren’t going extinct. Market transformation takes time and what’s happening now is a changing of the guard.
There’s a new generation of companies that have shed the opportunistic, turnkey economics of the past and are building original entertainment experiences not replicable by any console or PC. In this Modern MBA Original, we’re diving into the futuristic business of arcades from the macro-to-micro, starting with the biggest arcade chains in Chuck E. Cheese and Dave & Buster’s all the way to two innovative startups in New York City who have made very different bets on the future of physical and digital entertainment.
👾 OS NYC (Samer)
www.os-nyc.com/
/ os_newyorkcity
50 Bowery, New York, NY 10013
👾 1,000 BOXES (Gabe & Dave)
1000boxes.game
/ 1000boxes
248 W 37th St, New York, NY 10018
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Download the CFO's Guide for AI and Machine Learning for FREE at netsuite.com/ModernMBA
👾 OS NYC (Samer)
www.os-nyc.com/
instagram.com/os_newyorkcity
50 Bowery, New York, NY 10013
👾 1,000 BOXES (Gabe & Dave)
1000boxes.game
instagram.com/1000boxes
248 W 37th St, New York, NY 10018
🎬 Support Modern MBA: buymeacoffee.com/modernmba
☕ Support Modern MBA on Patreon: patreon.com/modernmba
💬 Join Modern MBA on Reddit: www.reddit.com/r/modernmba/
🌎 Follow Modern MBA on Facebook: facebook.com/profile.php?id=61570667949655
🕊 Follow Modern MBA on Twitter: x.com/modern_mba
Channels like yours are why cable TV is pointless in 2024. Full length documentaries on UA-cam are where its at! Been a fan for years.
And if anything the quality is higher, we can watch it whenever we want, we could set up specific lists that we want to watch, and at your own pace (tuneable speed)
The problem is if he doesn't start getting more views it will not be financially viable, so share. Its nice to gloat about how amazing it is, but it's being subsidized by the creator.
Absolutely love them so much!
Stupid comment of the day.
ModernMBA has def stepped up its game big time since beginning to interview these small businesses
Really liking the new upload schedule and diversity of topics. Keep it up, Modern MBA!
Agreed.
The problem is if he doesn't start getting more views it will not be financially viable, so share. Its nice to gloat about how amazing it is, but it's being subsidized by the creator.
I hope he is not over stretching his capacity ❤
42:45 I love that in this recent streak of interviews, you’re contrasting speakers of various skill levels, experience, and business angles. They nail the story, they stumble, but you can feel they’re all striving for success, and it’s this gritty lack of polish that makes these videos feel REAL. I also love that they let themselves be vulnerable to your analysis, so you get a better picture and it doesn’t become only an advertisement. This has been an education. Keep it going!
He puts a TON of work into scouting different cities to find business owners who would be willing to speak completely openly about the business, including opening the books and letting him see the numbers. It helps them out, too - he's heard back from owners that were featured in videos like the donut or taco shops that saw a bump in business after their videos came out.
OS sounds like the dopest place ever. It's so obvious when he laid it all out and yet no one else has made essentially a social club for gamers. Brilliant. Wish them the best and ideally for it to spread to other cities!
This!!
@@GyroCannon I looked into making a similar arcade and I don't know how they got Nintendo to approve their use.
There is a franchise is Europe doing exactly this called Friendly Fire!
Can confirm, I stop by every time in in the city. Brilliant concept, founder, venue.
There's a company doing exactly this in Australia called Fortress 🎮
Our man out here nobly redirecting any stress over the future of the free world into intense video production. Awesome stuff, thank you
The problem is if he doesn't start getting more views it will not be financially viable, so share. Its nice to gloat about how amazing it is, but it's being subsidized by the creator.
You’re right. I really appreciate and respect this work and always share it
Holy political brainrot
There are a TON of barcades here in the Dallas/Ft. Worth metroplex. In my experience, the ones that focus less on integrating consoles and more larger-than-life games, unique rhythm games like Sound Vortex and DDR/PPU and retro arcade games are the ones that get customers to come back frequently.
Yep. I’m in Dallas too - Cidercade gets tons of love because of DDR and Guitar Hero
@@Myulls I'm partial to Free Play myself, since I used to go to the Super Street Fighter 2 Turbo danisens there weekly.
I'm also excited to check out Time Rift Arcade, the one recently opened up by The 8-Bit Guy in Bedford. I can't think of any other barcade owned an operated by a UA-camr lol.
i frequent my local arcade more than weekly to visit their rhythm game. So yeah if you want customer retention you really have to have a unique product that people want to return to rather than a one-time gimmick imo.
Which has Sound Vortex?
Rhythm games (DDR really) are probably the only reason I go to my local Round1. Granted, it's a double edged sword to where it's really only a small handful of diehards playing every other day on machines that are expensive to maintain and unlike 2004, you rarely have a line of people waiting to stomp on a metal pad. I don't know about you, but there's relatively few people coming into the scene these days. And the charts and skill levels are so absurd that I can easily see someone getting discouraged quickly. I toughed it out this time around since I had the muscle memory and the desire to do cardio I can tolerate, but I probably wouldn't have bothered if I didn't have that earlier experience.
1000 Boxes should try to live stream the experience on Twitch. It would be a source of income. But, mainly it would be free marketing to demonstrate the platform, set itself up for expansion, and gain a large audience that even knows it exists.
There might be legal issues involved with livestreaming random people.
Have it in their terms of service and make people sign release forms understanding they will be twitch @@ΣτελιοςΠεππας
they want lots of money lol i doubt twitch would feed that hunger
@@admiralkaede greed
That 1000 Boxes concept would be amazing on cruise ships!
omg that is brilliant
main problem is cost they want 30k up front then another 15k per MONTH then a revenue share on top of that they need to get off that high horse like no WONDER it got rejected
@@admiralkaede that's what's i was thinking its only going to be a matter of time before someone comes up with a cheaper alterative that basically do the same thing
@@mk8_it a few tablets could tbh
I'm surprised there hasn't been more collaboration between them and smaller struggling movie theaters. I'm not seeing why a theater's projection screen can't be used in place of the LED screen.
If I were to bet which one of these businesses will still be around in 10 years, it would be OS. Community and emotional connection is a moat that is extremely difficult to create.
Agreed
Theres a board game cafe in my city that blew me away when i first got invited by a friend.
Now i find myself going there to work (if i start at home and not from work) and inviting friends if they want a place to hang and chill
Its basically my first option if i ever bring friends over cause the sense of community beats just stoning at a normal cafe or playing online from different cities
For me it is the opposite. It just seems like a place where an outsider would get dirty looks by the regulars because they see it as their territory.
@@88channel22 i dont believe its only regulars going to the events 😅 those events would be great places for the outsiders to get their foot in the door, and most of the time gamers arent that closed off tribal people...
Absolutely love OSNYC the video game jazz night they do is one of the best scenes in NYC. So glad they are doing incredible
I don’t know how you have the time to release videos with such high quality at such a fast pace. Your channel is fantastic, great work!
Round one moved in to my local mall me and my friends have been going there they have 1$ ice cream, japanese food, crane games,arcade games, karaoke, and bowling . I feel its a step up from daven busters. It also helps they have anime colabs. Sometimes, they did a hallowlive one a few weeks ago
Back in the late '90s/ early 2000s, I worked at Namco WonderPark at my local mega mall. That was definietly the heyday of arcades. To this day, that is still the best job I have ever had.
Unfortunately, that place shut down, as the dastardly rival, Dave & Buster's set up shop in the same mall.
However, I'm glad that Round One is now carrying on the legacy as the spiritual predecessor to WonderPark.
The actual games that get regular customers are Rhythm Games and Fighting Games, specially when you throw a online component with them. Its part of the reason on the success of Round 1.
I feel like a bigger part of Round1's success in the US is due to bringing more Japanese merch for crane machine prizes and redemption prizes.
Makes their prize selection more exotic and higher quality as a result
@@luigifan4585you're forgetting that Japanese arcade games just evolved to suit the taste of modern gamers while American arcades stagnated. Japanese arcade games now have log in bonuses and levels and unlockables that encourage you to come back often, they have seasonal updates with new content and they have gacha that you can do to improve your in game account, some of them even let you print cards of the characters that you get making it a Pokemon TCG esque experience. People won't drop $100 a session on bumper carts or bowling or throwing axes but they will gamble it on a waifu.
1000 boxes is an elevated, but overpriced jackbox experience. I dont know how they could change it, but i personally couldn't see myself going out of my way for it.
that's what I was thinking, it just looks like high tech trivia. You're better off buying a flat screen and playing mario party.
It might be fun once, but without an elevated prize at the end I wouldn't want to do it more than that. Pub Trivia is already a thing
@@colemc18 It's just techy TopGolf... designed to sell to the HR department, not to the actual people attending. We only ever attended because it was expected of us at the offsite... not because we actually wanted to be there.
I'm sorry but these 1000 boxes people are out of their mind. They do realize Jackbox exists and the comprehensive bundle is like 200 dollars right? They're trying to sell an awful copy of a similar experience for an $135k upfront fee and $15k monthly fee??? No business is gonna invest in this. As much as I appreciate the amount of craftsmanship that went into designing the hardware and software, along with the custom circuit boards, they're lunatics if they think this is gonna be a widespread entertainment opportunity. And then they have the gall to complain about how businesses are questioning them on how to make this profitable. Brother, you designed a grossly overpriced system and you're offended that people question why it's worth it for them?
You forgot that their system needs a live host to whip up the crowd. I'm guessing that's gonna be at least 20 bucks an hour in a lot of the US.
Its worse than that. Its literally just Bar Trivia which you can just buy a copy of Trivia Pursuit at Goodwill for $5 bucks to get your questions. But this version costs you $135,000 up front + 15k each month to run it.
Only idiot VC money will go for it.
yeah... I love their commitment and innovation, but sadly I don't think they're gonna make it with their prices for both the businesses and consumers. I can entertain myself most of the time for pennies or a few dollars on my computer. I know the IRL experience is different, but it would take a lot for me to feel the cost is justified
@@littlekirby6 THIS. Those guys have passion, and I give them massive cred for doing what they have done and seeing it through, but large scale adoption of venues is going to be a hard sell across the country in numbers that will net them what they think it could be. Also, what is the shelf life for something like this? Sort of like Karoke, it is big in certain circles, but its not like it is widely available or the "hip" thing.
@@littlekirby6
The Dave and Busters leadership that cancelled the 1000 boxes deal deserves a raise, I wonder how often these “innovative ideas” are greenlit but only get stopped once someone competent realizes how stupid it is.
I 100% doubt it was intentional. Usually when new leadership comes in they like to put a temporary pause on alot of things. Unfortunately that "temporary pause" tend to be more permanent just because getting the momentum they unpause it is hard.
yea i kinda agree like its cool but not nearly worth that SUPER EXPENSIVE single attraction that sinply put with ONGOING costs not gonna pay for itself
Im curious to see the longevity of 1000 boxes because to me it reads as expensive jackbox games
You could literally put BUZZ from PS2 on the mega screen and get the same experience
I imagine the strat is to build a smaller version for conventional arcade spaces and sizes. Maybe 4 players instead of the 12 or so they have now
yea its way too costly
Seems like a major miss to make zero mention of the Japanese giant, Round 1, which is the closest thing to the conventional arcade experience that's still reasonably active to date
Round1 pls come to Orlando because dave n busters is weak and arcade monsters is expensive
@@linklickzArcade Monsters just came to San Diego and here, it started off as $20 unlimited play. Now it's $25 which I still think is a great deal but I don't drink and the food is the subpar mass manufactured frozen stuff.
for real
He did flash it up as a conparator in some of the graphs but yeah would have been good to mention
The ones near me aren’t good to begin with. Stick with local whenever you can.
I love your videos! These deep dives are so fascinating, and your interviews with the small business owners made me realize how much thought these people have put into their businesses and products!
Modern MBA videos feature the best business-owner interviews.
round 1 is expanding in the US like crazy I'm surprised there's no mention
A couple of the "Arcades" near me do double duty. During the day they are retro video game stores with an arcade attached. At night they are a bar with an arcade attached. Seems like a smart business model to me, it breaks the problem of people only showing up for some sort of "event".
People don't go out anymore. I mean there are groups that are super hungry for certain genres of music and concerts / karaoke that pack places, but generally people forgot how to play.
16:12 just showing one of the greatest Japanese FGC players of all time hanging out in your venue 😂
Then again with Caba showing up at 16:23
I lost so many quarters to these things as a kid
Back in day, it was like gambling: for kids. That you just gave so much money, just to play a game.
However, arcade games were so much better than home consoles, at the time.
Today, people can enjoy great video games form the comfort of their own home.
Cidercade by my area is 12 dollars entry and everything is free..except for beer and food ofc
This shit needs a major follow-up video actually acknowledging Round1's growth in the US arcade industry
I live in Texas and unfortunately there are only 3 in the state. Arlington, Grapevine (Those two being relatively close less than 28 miles from me. DFW area.) And one in San Antonio.
Dave and Busters seems to be more prevalent here. With 15 stores state wide. (Most in DFW)
Nice featured business, really curious of what kind of businesses they're going to be in the future.
Maybe can make one special episode on revisiting some of your guests business. Not just from this episodes, but from others too.
I think that's going to be very insightful for many of your viewers 👍
I just bought an old Ms Pac-Man arcade cabinet that has been modified into a multi-game arcade cabinet. Pac-man, Galaga, Space Invaders, Frogger, 1942, Donkey Kong, Burger Time, and many other classic arcade games. Love it. I am an older Dad with a 9 & 7 year old and it gets used every single day. We love it. Brings me back to my childhood.
OS guy refusing to mention bowling alleys as a competitor
1000 Boxes seems like a fun, if wildly overpriced concept, but at the very least, the name has got to change. I have no idea what "1000 boxes" means about the product even after watching the whole doc. Even an abstract name that at least inspires curiosity from potential players would be superior, if a straight-shot descriptive name is not desirable.
I actually think the name is fine. It's kinda like Meow Wolf. It gets you to ask what it is
Plus, the name avoids the reality that it's just Trivia.
@got_lucky7683 meow wolfs name is better than their "experiences"
The guy from OS was a treat to learn from. What a knowledgable guy
I don't know if you see these, but I've really been enjoying your content. Would you guys do the economics of cable/internet providers? Or economics of small phone providers
Small phone provider?
@TheMysteryDriver I mean the ones that contract with the larger corporations using their towers for low cost offerings. Such as mint mobile. I believe I understand their aims but would make for an interesting video
@@TheMysteryDriverMint, Cricket, Metro PCS, Boost Mobile. Pay-as-you-go, no contract services
that man at 15:54 programming in neovim with the worst posture in the world on a lan center was epic
As someone who loves arcades in japan, I'll say that the environment there vs america for arcades are something thats been on my mind throughout this video.
Not done yet, but even today,, it continues to stay quite relevant
Economics of coffee shops would be cool
Especially Vietnamese bikini coffee shops.
I’m so excited for this video! Opening up a hybrid arcade bar/ entertainment center for adults is one of my goals in life so this is very insightful!
What did you learn?
@@timsamuel3244 I like Os' approach of creating a social space which is something I'm also very passionate about; creating a sense of community for the people that go to my venue.
You’ve gotta talk about Activate! Not really an arcade, but sounds similar to the kind of stuff Dave and busters wants to do in the future
Also the game show experiences as well!!
1,000 BOXES needs to move out of NYC in order to broaden the people who you pitch to. Go to some mid sized city in Jersey and set up an experience there (I know big ask) to show potential Jersey investors who would have a lot more space than in the city. Re tool it so the game works closer to a 16:9 ratio so people don't need an obnoxiously long wall to play, sell versions with LESS podiums for people (40 can be a lot especially when most places are probably not going to be able to fill that many spaces) or make it modular and the venue is able to buy 8 at a time. The product is amazing but your tech requirements are too high for mass adoption. Make Boxes able to scale to different sized screens other than a 30 foot LED wall that you do not provide (They already know this but that is a genuinely absurd ask that no one is really fitted for). This is coming from a person who runs an event space. Another place they can pitch it to are cruise ship companies, they already have tons of space and tons of rich customers to gouge money from already.
Just my two cents no one asked for
Make the 1000 boxes hardware for 4seat diner tables with each table a 30" screen instead of a screen that's higher than 99% of venues' ceilings.
1/2 of installation cost. 1/4 space required. Increased income since people then have place to put food and drinks. People can sit, increasing comfort and becoming friendly to disabled/elderly.
The concept then also becomes an option for a restaurant first experience where your game is the passtime while people wait for food at the table and not the main attraction.
Once your hardware is modular, convert your backend so games work from 1 table to 8. a) you don't want to have to fill all lanes before being able to bowl b) you don't always want to play against everyone in the whole hall but maybe only your friends in the lane next to you or even only the people in your lane.
Once you have done all that, obviously create a full quiz game without other minigames where the venue can setup custom questions. Also make a light version of 1000 boxes that doesn't need a dedicated host which costs a full time employee that also has to be trained and be able to control and entertain a full crowd.
If one person at the table can understand the game, he'll explain it to the rest. That's how Mario Party has worked for over 2 decades.
Also cut the shit with pricing it as upfront payment *and* SaaS *and* profit share.
You're too close to the product you created. It's not businesses their fault that they can't handle your product, it's your fault that your product doesn't fit them.
Make the product cheaper to get into. Make it scale. Give more diversity. Cheaper to operate. Stop being greedy. Ignore your ego.
You admit that you aren't able to operate your own project in one of the biggest cities in the world. Why are you surprised you can't find partners then.
Make adaptations so it can fit in any venue either as main or side attraction. In pubs it can rule quiz nights and in restaurants act as a minigame while the food is "loading".
You need to make a competitive product if you want to sell it.
Ok, like the idea but no. You want them to turn their concept into Applebees Trivia tablets? Horrible
@@Ram-zc4fi I don't want them to do anything.
They made a concept that's not attractive to implement and then complain nobody wants to buy it from them.
Don't complain too few people want your pizza with ansjovis and olives on top. Sell a pizza without the ansjovis and olives for everyone else. They make the product, they have the power to customise it for different customers.
Being near nyc and looking for something like this , this video actually made me plan to go OS nyc with a friend so pretty glad I found this vid 👍🏽
As someone in the entertainment industry. (Rage rooms, axe throwing, and paint splatter rooms). This was an amazing video. Different business model as arcades, but same consumer dollar were fighting for. From my experience you have to give customers something they can’t get at home. Our axe throwing is digital and high tech. Imagine a mix between top golf and axe throwing. Rage rooms aren’t easily replicated at home and typically would be more expensive anyway. And like OS, having a sense of community has been huge for us. Keep up the great content!
My favorite arcade was GameWorks. I miss it. They had lots of new stuff, deep cut classics, and strange japanese games. RIP
they replaced my game works with Dave and busters 😭
Still one open in Seattle.
I just want to say, keep up the good work. You're channel cover topics that's very unique and not your typical big corp business like other channel.
So cool to see business models like this working well that don't focus on alcohol.
this very clearly does focus on alcohol
@@gfuentes8449 I guess he means OUTRIGHT in alcohol. There are way more variables these days than wines and beers.
I'm surprised I've never heard of your channel before. This was a great documentary! You've got a new sub!
Very cool video but you missed a lot when you called Chuck E. Cheese a pizzeria that just so happened to have an arcade 😂😂😂. It was founded by the creator of Atari and Pong 😂😂😂 Nolan Bushnell
Great video! I love to see this view point on modern arcades. 100 boxes seems like a really cool idea. New York also has Wonderville which is an arcade that only has indie developed arcade games in their arcade. I think that's one space that isn't getting much attention. The indie arcade space is a lot like 100 boxes from the experience angle. Again great video, I really enjoyed it and will be checking out some of your other videos.
Next we need a video on the Business of Informative UA-cam Videos/Documentaries. Case studies Modern MBA, Asianometry, Patrick Boyle, Plain Bagel, Free Documentary, Veritasium and ArmChair Historian
I can’t express how much value this video is providing us. I will remember you all once we launch 😤😤
When I was a kid in the 80s, my mother was toying with the idea of opening a Arcade. At first I was thrilled, of course, but then she kept talking about how I would have to convince kids at my school to come there and play and thus the idea soured on me pretty quickly. I was glad when she eventually dropped it.
Really loved the OS CEO. Seems to be super knowledgeable of their industry and niche with a ton of passion behind what they’re providing.
The concept is intriguing on its own but works best as part of a broader range of entertainment activities. I’d definitely enjoy trying it with friends or family, but I wouldn’t travel-dirve specifically to play this game. The missing element here is the location, places like Dubai or Las Vegas would be ideal location for this type of experience, where people are willing to try-pay more
Man The owner in New York is really cool, I wish I lived in New York just so I can go check out his business/be a patron.
As a gen X'er I like the old school arcades with the early 80s video games and pinball machines.
You should consider buying a personal Arcade1-Up machine. Each one has plenty of games you can play. But they can cost as much as a new PS5 at release 700$ at most so spend if you feel you can get one.
that place in NYC is literally a discord server in real life! thats amazing, what a perfect business opportunity they hopped on
That sounds horrible.
I dont like that comparison
01:13 developer no longer need to design games to milk quarters out of players. . 😂😂😂😂, Now they milk much more
Sandbox VR is one of the coolest arcade experiences I've had.
I propose 1000 Boxes hires modern MBA as a consultant to analyze and package the concept and identify a partner.
GameCube mention for 2001, but not OG Xbox lol
Great video, thank you, Modern.
OS looks like such good vibes
I think banking on long-term profitability and building a culture and community are the key elements to these kinds of businesses.
Anyone can play games together via discord or steam but there will always be a need for a spot to come together and do things in person.
Really, I just wish for old school Halo LAN parties. That was peak couch gaming.
I remember loading up a cooler box with drinks and going to a internet cafe with friends to play Counterstrike. Far more fun than playing just online.
For whatever reason arcades seem to be doing well where I live. We have:
Gattitown (really good pizza buffet, required to buy on entrance, then a regular chuck e cheese type arcade)
Billy Bobs (their key to sucess is capitalizing on how much people love the Rockafire Explosion band. They are basically one of the last places you can go and see a full performance of those animatronics and FNAF has really made people more interested in/nostalgic for arcade animatronics. The other big factor is Billy Bob's is ghe cheapest place to host a birthday party in the area. You pay $50 to rent a party room and how much else you spend is all up to you. They also still have all their games as paid with quarters, and there are plenty of 25-75 cent games. This makes it perfect for if you only have $5 and want to have a little fun).
Old North Arcade (basically a barcade that leans into the video game theme for all its drink names and specials. They have lots of pinball machines, some old Nintendo games set up to play, and they also have good pizza. Also located right next fo a movie theater which helps. And no kids allowed after 8pm)
There's also a great local restaurant that has a brewery inside of it which has a small arcade upstairs where most of the games you dont even have to pay for, its just there and is fun to hangout there while you wait to be seated.
Overall, I think that online and personal consoles will never conpletelt replace social gaming. I think we all crave connection abd interaction. I think fostering community and social gatherings are the future of arcade type businesses
This channel is so addictive I can’t stop watching 😩
Great insight! I used to love going to arcades with friends when I was younger. There was this arcade in Schenectady called “Wow!” Good times we had there. I'm not sure what's more fun: arcades back then or the stock market now? I think arcades might win the prize. Thanks for the video, Modern MBA. - Fazal Hussain
Love these videos and seeing the passion people have for their businesses and ideas. Really inspirational stuff but also shows that great ideas are one thing but doesnt guarantee a successful business.
I dont think these projects are scalable. The old arcades focused on a very specific customer.
These new projects want to be gathering places for "everyone" but "everyone" has different wants and needs.
Its to shizophrenic. As a gamer you need space that you can "close" and "open" on demand. Instead you have this overlit hub where groups dominate.
“Should” these projects be scalable?
@@lorenzo89er only if they want long term sustain and growth.
I could see OS in some big cities (I think london would love it), but 1000 boxes yea lmao
I love arcades, I wish more of them were still around. It was a lot of fun visiting them at the malls.
If I ever get to New York City, I will will definitely want to spend time in this bar. This bar looks awesome.
America really really needs a place for people interact like an arcade place. We really need it!
More and more topics this channel covers really are things I have interest in. Am hoping you get to a pickleball related topic soon 😂
What needs to happen is for these venue owners to work with, or even be, game developers creating titles that you cannot get on PC or console. In particular, VR games due to the hardware being prohibitively expensive. This mirrors why theme parks have remained popular because you cannot get those experiences any other way and just as Disney have in-house architects and engineers to make their attractions, the future of arcades are businesses with their own game development teams.
And we know this model works because SEGA did this exact thing with games in their own venues that were never released on consoles. Where they lost that momentum was due to fighting the console war instead of doubling down on their strengths. If SEGA had admitted defeat following the 32-bit generation they wouldn't have blown their finances on the Dreamcast and kept trying to hold ground against both Sony and Nintendo who had no interest in the arcade business.
I love this type of stuff, as an entrepreneur the innovation and design is everything, it's kind of a game designing an experience for others to enjoy and earn a profit. Even in multiplayer games, most of the time spent on acquiring loot or character gear ultimately is a way of improving the player's worth and ultimately the chances of playing with others who have worth. the game mechanics simply are a technological tool that connects that need by design incentives.
It's inspiring me to see my business invention from a clearer perspective of design. I almost wrote out my whole business theory in this comment but I don't think that would be wise because the internet is forever and it took me over a decade to imagine my design. but it has to do with getting a percentage of sales from a system of people having a cashless automated vending machine outside their house for farm products
The subtitling [wasnt] really necessary to [get] the point across . well made doc and hits close to home .
The guy down the street from where I live opened an Arcade with a party room on the side and a cafe in the front. He uses a pay once for the Arcade and the food is great. He has been doing great for a few years now.
I'm loving this series - every video has been fascinating
Lol these tech Bros have no idea how to run a business. Or what it would take to actually become profitable...
They're out of their freaking mind with that 15k month rental
180,000 a year in just rentals they could build their own infrastructure.... Do they not realize this?
Love the industry analysis videos. Keep up the good work man!
Theres a local game store and acarde near where I live. Its great to see the place full on Friday night and the weekend. They host TCG games and let you rent retro consoles or PC to play old games in addition to the arcade.
hell yea
4:00 Chuck E. Cheese 🐭🍕🧒
8:12 Dave & Buster's.🕹🙋
40:02 There's a nice throwback to a previous episode. 📊🎃
I was really excited to hear there is one of the game of 1000 boxes in my area in Dallas but I just called the location and they said they no longer are offering it, which really sucks to hear. I feel like if that location had marketed better I would have known about it because I was ready to book a reservation right after watching this video.
if that 2nd group can create an experience like what TeamLabs did with Borderless then they'll be successful. that exhibit is amazing, and people literally come to Tokyo and have that as a destination item on their itinerary. it is an incredible exhibit
I got suggested this when arcade shop/twitch channel Brooklyn Video Game Arcade announced it’s closing down.
Make it make sense.
0:49 The chart shows Street Fighter 2 as having come out in 1982 which is almost a decade before it actually shipped to arcades.
No wonder 1000 boxes has 2 locations. its 100k for the first month (85k setup + 15k/month) and that one place you said runs it once a week.... so thats $265,000 for the first year, and they run the show 52 times... so they said 34 people per event (1,768 people per year) so they need to charge $149.87 per person just to break even in the first year. Yeah no, thats not going to fly for most people, and i can see why no operator wants to purchase, my qustion is how did you get those two suckers to sign up? Seems to me that you need to lower your price so the operator can change $30-40 per person and make a 50% profit or forget it they will just do something else, like just put a sports game on a large tv and sell beer.
Investors don't expect a 100% return on investment in the first year of operating anything. If someone is able to come close to getting 100% return on any investment in 1 year then almost all investors would be jumping on it.
Really miss the old videos focused on stats and graphics
Great episode; nice business model to encourage community and interactions with people
I love these deep dives into topics and businesses I wouldn't have known I was interested in. Maybe your just doing a good job sharing info.
You're on a role with videos man. Keep it up
The main thing is Arcades have had to innovate, to stay relevant. "In person video games" was always niche, yet there's a large audience of people that sustain that type of business model.
The few arcades, that currently thrive, are very niche. There's only one type, in a few major cities. Everything is also custom. This isn't a franchise, like McDonald's, with thousands of locations. Even Dave & Buster's only has 220 locations.
Hey! I really enjoy your content. Keep it coming!
I’m not sure why I am not seeing stuff by your channel. You tube doesn’t recommend your content to me even though I’ve been subscribed for a long time. Noticed that your views dropped a lot compared to previous video too. Hopefully the algorithm gods will be on your side again. Really good videos and explanations, just sad to see UA-cam algorithm not working correctly
4:52 no man, chuck e cheese pizza was top tier
Dave and Busters has really been pushing a lot of innovations lately though few of them stuck. From sports gambling with chips to betting on games with friends through their platform, I do trust their management to figure it out. Their acquisition of main event has been successful and they’re building stores with different footprints and updating outdated stores. With their massive walls on TV’s at the updated locations, they’re ready to add sports gambling to their revenue streams and have talked positively about it on earnings calls. The sports book concept would be a game changer but, of course, there are a lot of legal hurdles and questions as to how that might impact attitudes of customers who bring their kids. It is, first and foremost, an adult arcade so the upside likely exceeds risks in that respect. Their stock moves like clockwork between $30-$50 since 2021 and has been easy to make money on with how highly autocorrelated it is on a day to day basis. Average analyst target still remains above $60, so the street likes the value and I think it’s justified. Till they can fully realize their potential, I’ll happily ride the wave.
What the ???? First 2 mins and this is way off factually. CEC didn't make the change to have an arcade in the 90s. Showbiz/CEC was originally designed with an arcade and redemption as the main part of the plan from the onset. The late 90s was just success garnered from a few competitors closing and a CEO that was born to run the show. I was okay with him getting that wrong, but then you say the video games are "turnkey" with no labor costs is hilariously wrong. Each CEC not only paid a professional with electrical engineer level training to fix the games daily, but also employed 20+ other workers to maintain and clean the games. My source? I was a distric trainer for CEC from the late 90s to 2005 when I opened my own business very similar. I wish I didn't have labor costs.
This is not my knowledge base but I could tell something just felt off, thank you.
I really wish an OS NY would come to Florida, that is what we need here!
Here in richmond va we had an arcade bar called The Circuit. It had that newness in its initial launch along with self serve beer taps. The business eventually closed due to machines breaking and just not being repaired. Whether this was due to cost or them just preparing to close I cannot answer. But it definitely lacked the community aspect in The OS concept and was doomed to fail I reckon
Great and interesting video on a topic I care about deeply as a regular at my local arcade. I only wish there had been some discussion of Round 1 and how the Japanese arcade model has begun to grow in the US.