The release of Daytona Championship USA is right around the corner although we haven’t heard much since an 8-unit appearance of the game at Amusement Expo in Dallas last month. The game was stated as being close to completion at the time but there was still fine tuning and other work to be done with location testing. Location tests are rarely announced and promoted in the West (unlike Japan) so this news should be of interest to Daytona fans in Florida.

8-player Daytona Championship USA Spotted At Dave & Busters in Hollywood, FL

That’s right, if you want to check out Sega’s revival of the Daytona USA series for yourself, then head over to the Dave & Busters location in Hollywood, FL. There is currently an 8-player setup there, presumably running the latest software and presumably on test since there has been no announcement for shipping yet. Of course, sometimes Dave & Busters does get their hands on things before anyone else so that could be the case here as well. If it is on test then I imagine that it depend

Many thanks to James for sending these our way. Click on them to enbiggerate them (I know, that’s not a real word )

If you get a chance to try this out, let us know what you think below! Until then, click here for another recent Daytona CUSA video.

The post Daytona Championship USA 8-player Spotted In Florida appeared first on Arcade Heroes.

Who is ready for another round of new arcade location news? I knew you were.

4th Coin-Op Game Room Coming To The Gaslamp Bar – San Diego, CA

(Thanks to TJ for correcting me on the number of Coin-Op Game Room locations there are; this will be the 4th, not the 3rd)

Opening their 4th location overall and second in San Diego, the Coin-Op Game Room is expanding their business with the latest location opening up sometime by the end of this Summer. Replacing a sports bar that had been there since 2015, the revamped bar/arcade will feature around 50 video games from the 80s & 90s, touching on many classics that patrons will know and love. Thanks to Toby for sending this our way.

A Coin-Op Game Room location

Strike Zone Entertainment Center – Sebastian, FL

Over in Eastern Florida, a new FEC has opened their doors by the name of Strike Zone Entertainment Center. As the name implies, they have a strong focus on bowling although as a part of that they have arcade games to enjoy. By the pictures I see newer products on hand – Batman (Raw Thrills); 2x Dead Heat; Fruit Ninja FX2 (videmption); Jurassic Park (Raw Thrills); Pirates Hook (4p, videmption); Pop The Lock (videmption); 2x Super Bikes 2; Temple Run 2(videmption); Termination Salvation; Transformers: Human Alliance (Deluxe); Typhoon and plenty of redemption pieces and cranes. Check them out on Facebook here.

Two New Dave & Busters Locations – New Orleans, LA; Alpharetta, GA

With Summer about to start, D&B has opened the doors to two new locations. As always we can assume that the game selection follows the D&B purchasing pattern with a few variations when it comes to some of the older games. If you’re looking for new stuff though, either location will certainly give you what you want.

The newest peach in Alpharetta, GA has arrived & new fun in New Orleans, LA starts now! #grandopening #daveandbusters pic.twitter.com/2VgshTRqGd

— Dave & Buster's (@DaveandBusters) May 22, 2017

Parody News: The All Big Buck Hunter Bar In CO

I saw Raw Thrills retweet this story of a bar opening in CO that has nothing but Big Buck machines setup inside. It sounded odd and sure enough, ‘Killpad’ is a parody site that is trying to be like The Onion. The idea is worth a chuckle but if their other stories are written in the same way, the quality of said writing leaves something to be desired. Such as being funny.

(Repetition can be funny when used properly but it is more effective in a visual/audio medium than it is in writing since you can’t control the timing of the reader. If anything, it is painfully obvious that they are trying to please the SEO requirements that their site software is using; i.e. you are supposed to have a min. number of words in the post; make sure the title of the page has a nice length; repeat the keyword a certain number of times so that Google will place you higher in search results than those other guys; etc. Comedy isn’t very fun when you only expect algorithms to read your content and not actual people. BTW – did I make sure to mention the word LOCATION enough in this post? Better go back and lard it up!)

The post Location Watch: Coin-Op Game Room (CA); Strike Zone Entertainment Center (FL); 2 New Dave & Busters (GA, LA) appeared first on Arcade Heroes.

If you are looking for some exclusive videmption content then Dave & Busters has it for you once again. Earlier this year, the company worked hand-in-hand with Adrenaline Amusements to create Pirates of the Caribbean Crossy Road. This was a variation of Disney Crossy Road (a game that Adrenaline still hasn’t listed on their website or social media but is apparently for sale) that was launched as a part of media hype leading up to the most recent Pirates of the Caribbean movie. It was also exclusive to D&Bs.

Spider-Man Homecoming Videmption

UPDATE: Turns out Dave & Busters launched an ad for this game yesterday but I missed that until now. Here it is:

Now if you go into a Dave & Busters, chances are you will find the same situation happening again as D&B has teamed up with Adrenaline again for Spider-Man Homecoming. As seen on location via Arcade Hunters:

It has been a while since Spider-Man has starred in a video arcade game. There was the self-titled beat ’em up in 1991 and he has appeared in some of Capcom’s Marvel fighting games. On the pinball side, the character did star in a 2007 table as well as the Vault Edition remake last year. For this one, it is based on the re-re-reboot (I’m losing track – and interest – at this point. Everybody knows the origin story to Peter Parker, move on already) of the Spider-Man franchise that is launching in theaters on July 7th.

By the reports of how the game plays, it is an “endless runner” style game that has you playing as Spider-Man against the Vulture. Run or websling along a path until you confront the Vulture. Beat him via button taps and win the ticket/coupon jackpot. The cabinet has a colorful design that departs from Adrenaline’s usual style (which you can see right next to it with Crossy Road Arcade) and it supports 2 players at the same time. It also looks like the control is super easy – just a single button control.

For anyone out there who has played it, what did you think?

The post Spider-Man Homecoming Videmption Arcade Lands Exclusively At Dave & Busters appeared first on Arcade Heroes.

It’s the last day of June so let’s check out some of the newest arcade businesses that have opened their doors out there.

Cineplex Rec Room Now Open In Toronto

The first location we’ll take a look at today is the opening of Cineplex’s Rec Room in Toronto. Cineplex owns various companies throughout Canada, including the recently rechristened Cineplex Starburst (now known as Player One Group, which operates and distributes new arcade games in the US & Canada).

The Rec Room serves as a new concept for them to be tackling, aiming for that high end, ritzy FEC. Game maker Barron Games was there for the grand opening (click here for some photos). By looking at the pictures there and on this article about the opening from Blogto, the games are heavy on redemption but there is some video entertainment to be found. That includes: Aliens Armageddon Dlx; Cruis’n Blast x2; Daytona Championship USA x2; Jurassic Park Arcade; Mario Kart Arcade GP DX x4; MotoGP x4; and more. One significant part of the opening is this marks the first international opening for the out-of-home VR entertainment experience The Void, which is headquartered out of my home state of Utah. They fell quite short of their goal of having 300 locations open by the end of 2016 (they now have two I believe) but marketing hype aside, The Void does offer one of the best VR experiences I’ve come across out there thanks in great part to the use of in-game mapped walls.

Gatti’s Pizza Open Today In Mesquite, TX

Bringing the ‘pizza buffet’ experience to Mesquite, the newest Gatti’s Pizza has opened their doors there, bringing with them 4500 sq. ft. of arcade gaming entertainment. Corporate chains like this usually don’t publish games lists and from their Facebook page they have this slideshow video which shows a strong focus on redemption gaming. (Direct link if the embed below doesn’t work for you)

EXPO Food Market in Buffalo, NY Adds An Arcade/Bar

As a part of an upscale food market that brings a few different related small businesses together, the Gypsy Bohemian Grove Bar (or GBGB) has opened their doors, adding a small selection of arcade machines to the side. From the photo on this article, that is only 5 games strong – Big Buck Safari, Donkey Kong Jr., Hydro Thunder, Pac-Man, and Space Invaders – but it’s not always about the quantity for locations when an arcade may not be their primary focus.

Buffalo gets a funky fresh bar with an old school arcade attached. https://t.co/G78n8Z8rHo

— Ryan Cravens (@ryancravens) June 27, 2017

TILT Arcade/Bar Coming To Greenville, SC “This Summer”

This tweet below briefly mentions a new arcade/bar aiming to open in Greenville this Summer. Even looking at their Facebook page, details are scarce at this point apart from them appearing to probably having a focus on classic games like Donkey Kong. This is not related to the chain known as Tilt Studio which has a number of locations setup across the US.

Pints and pinball machines are coming to Greenville this summer. https://t.co/gjGCPuUqUj pic.twitter.com/hPl8xEggvU

— FOX Carolina News (@foxcarolinanews) June 19, 2017

Round1USA In Hicksville, NY Open Tomorrow

I think we’ve mentioned this one two or three times now as the opening has been put off but the latest R1 location is finally opening their doors tomorrow. Just in case you are in the area and hadn’t heard.

Hicksville, NY (Broadway Mall) @Round1USA OPENING 7/1 @ 10am!!https://t.co/4bSETmez8i pic.twitter.com/fMGryTbSmo

— bemanistyle (@bemanistyle) June 26, 2017

Dave & Busters Coming To Utah

I once was told that the last state that would find a Dave & Busters would probably be Utah but with news that the company has set their sights on opening a location at the Gateway Mall in Salt Lake City, UT, it looks like we’ll be beating out several other states in that ‘race’. That new D&B will be opening sometime next year, which just so happens to be when Round1USA will also be opening up at the South Towne Mall (which is about 15-20 minutes south of Salt Lake City’s downtown). To make things more exciting for me with my location that is right in the middle of those two malls, I’ve been hearing rumors that the empty Macy’s bulding in the mall I’m at is going to be filled by an unamed FEC that will have “bowling and laser tag”. Fun times – but I’m not too worried. I’ll keep stepping up my game as I can afford to and roll with the punches as I can.

For those interested into some ‘inside baseball’, I can comment further, touching on things that article doesn’t mention since I’m a local and familiar with some of the business history apart from the geography of the area. The Gateway Mall is owned by the same company that owns the mall where my arcade is at. All malls across America have been struggling in the era of internet shopping dominance and digital products so it is no surprise to hear that the Gateway has had a challenging existence. They already have been home to a few different arcade businesses – the aforementioned Tilt Studio had a place there, there was an arcade/bar called Skybox and Gameworks attempted a location there too, only to close after six months.

The new management is focusing on revitalizing The Gateway to bring businesses back and landing D&B as a client is certainly a good score for them as I think they have the strongest brand recognition of the bunch that have tried and failed in the area. From the sounds of it, D&B is going to become a major attraction for the mall by taking over the old food court area so that will certainly be a benefit.

That said, there are tough challenges for The Gateway in general. It’s not just the upper class City Creek mall being a few blocks away – City Creek has a retractable roof so that you can wander the area in mid-February without trouble while The Gateway is still 100% open air (whoever came up with that brilliant idea for Northern Utah must not have been a local. We’re not Minnesota but we still have more cold days than warm ones).

Then there are security problems with the hot-button issue of a homeless shelter in the area that has caused a bit of visitor drain; that shelter and the crime ridden Pioneer Park finding themselves closer to Gateway than City Creek. Gateway is trying to address the security problem as best they can while the city and county are attempting to come up with a solution to the wider problem the city has been experiencing with the shelter.

Granted, Salt Lake and the businesses there get treated with much better media coverage regarding crime then surrounding areas so it won’t be an insurmountable task for them to convince people to come back. I’ve never been able to get my business mentioned by one of the local major networks (of the CBS/ABC/FOX/NBC variety) while they have covered similar businesses “on the East side”. There’s a silly local myth I’ve heard for as long as I can remember that considers everything West of a main street called Redwood Road to be worse than Biff Tannen’s 1985 from Back To The Future II while everything East is a utopian Eloi paradise where people don’t even know what crime is. That permeates into news stories and what they cover. The reality as you can imagine is nowhere near that but usually the dumbest misconceptions are the ones that tend to stick around.

Overall, 2018 is going to be a great time for the FEC market in Utah. It will also allow me to check out some of those exclusive games that D&B or R1USA tend to get their hands on without having to wait for a show like IAAPA. I’ll certainly be keeping an eye on these developments as they unfold.

The post New Locations: Rec Room (Toronto); Gatti’s Pizza (TX); GBGB (NY); Round1USA (NY) appeared first on Arcade Heroes.

I’m sure you have heard plenty of news, both heroic and heartbreaking, in regards to the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey that slammed into Southern Texas this past weekend. The devastation left in the wake of the storm has left at least 40 people dead and structural damage is believed to exceed $50 billion. Many have lost everything so rebuilding and returning to “normal” is a difficult task.

We’ve not heard a lot about the state of the amusement industry after the storm – I don’t just mean in terms of location damage but for the homes and lives of those that work in the business. Industry newsletters from Replay Magazine and Play Meter have both been providing some updates as they know about them with Play Meter sending out info this afternoon about how to donate towards relief efforts through PayRange.

I also have received a letter that was sent out to different Dave & Busters entities – not a press release per say but it has some info that people might find pertinent. To quote from the letter:

In the wake of this tragedy, the spirit of Houston persevered. Our teams
have been on the ground ensuring our team is safe and working to help them
rebuild their lives. This continues to be our priority and since Monday the
HEART fund has provided over $100,000 in assistance. Mike Corbell, our
Regional Operations Director, is in Houston working side-by-side with our
teams and General Managers Tom Au-Yeung, Adrian Williams and Andy
Oreskovich.

We recognized that with our stores closed there are negative financial
implications to our team. Fortunately, our stores sustained minimal damage,
and our teams have put great effort into getting them reopened. It is with
gratitude that we share all three Houston stores will reopen today at noon.
Despite the fact that many have suffered near total loss of all their
possessions, when we reached out to out to the teams they were excited to
return to work and help us reopen. We were told by many that this was the
first step in regaining normalcy in their lives.

The outpour of donations from our broader D&B team that has come together
to provide support in this time of great need has been moving. Lastly, we
want to thank our people of Houston for showing us the extraordinary power
of the human spirit. We are proud to be a part of this community and
believe the city will recover Texas Strong!

I added the emphasis there as I think that is important. Work doesn’t have to be just about the money, the right work gives you purpose beyond the paycheck.  Fortunately, no one from the D&B team (or any other amusement company from what I have heard) lost their lives in the storm; it is also good that the locations did not suffer major damage as this allows them to re-open sooner.

My thanks to D&B for sending this news along and I truly do hope that the region is able to recover as quickly as is possible. If you know about other locations that have been affected, comment below; and if you have the means to do so, make a donation at a reputable charity.

The post Dave & Busters Houston Locations Re-Open Today appeared first on Arcade Heroes.

Earlier this Summer, we were pointed to a location test by Raw Thrills of an Injustice: Gods Among Us arcade game. Built upon on the mobile version, this game has been designed to offer something akin to those Japanese card vending games that have occasionally tried to land on the North American market, but not to great success.

Injustice Arcade Lands At Dave & Busters

Now, arcade chain Dave & Busters has obtained a timed exclusive release of the Injustice Arcade game, with their locations hosting the game right now. In discussing this release with Dave & Busters personnel, I have been able to learn a few things about it.

For starters, the cabinet is meant to be exclusive to D&B. That features a 55″ screen (oddly with no bezel) and a wider control panel. The “Gods Among Us” subtitle has been replaced with -Arcade-, to help distinguish this from the home releases but I believe the game is still based upon the mobile version. They also have a special Justice League topper with Batman, Wonder Woman, The Flash, Aquaman & Cyborg. Note from this picture taken by The Arcade Hunters,  it does not use the likenesses of the actors from the upcoming film:

 By what I have been told, the general release of Injustice Arcade will feature a 43″ monitor and not have that topper. Otherwise the game should be the same; we can expect a release of the game December/January.

Certain elements have been “modified…to make it family friendly and fun for everyone” according to Raw Thrills. Arcade Hunters stated that includes all guns featuring a red/orange tip ala toy guns; certain characters like Lobo not flipping the bird. No option to change that from the sounds of it.

During the Summer test it was stated that the game featured 48 cards; that has now been bumped up to 200 unique cards. Card packs are “$150+” for 750 RFID tagged cards. D&B has unique vertical banner posters that shows the cards as separated out in three categories – Bronze, Silver & Gold. Most cards belong to Gold which seems a little counter-intuitive but there are rarities that are only shown with a big ‘?’. D&B currently does not have any unique cards but they will be rolling out exclusive redemption prizes for the game. Nick from The Arcade Hunters was also able to shoot almost 15 minutes of video to provide a review of the game here:

Some Distributors Beginning To Take Orders

When I opened my e-mail this morning, I received more than one message from a distributor saying that they are taking IAAPA orders for Injustice. This likely is limited, if you judge by past performance, so if you miss the IAAPA order train then it will probably be sometime in January that you get one. This also provides us our first look at the standard cabinet; I didn’t see pricing on it yet so I’m still unsure where that lands.

I will get my first chance to play Injustice Arcade at IAAPA 2017 a month from now but in case you come across it at a D&B location before then, let us know what you think of it.

The post Dave & Busters Launches Injustice Arcade With Exclusive Cabinet; Sales Open For General Release appeared first on Arcade Heroes.

As mentioned in yesterday’s post about new arcade locations, there are many new venues going through the process of opening their doors out there. Some are taking more time than others but I’m impressed by the sheer numbers of what I have come across. As such, this post will serve as “notice” to readers out there of what to expect; I also won’t bother listing all of the location names in the title as there are too many. . Thus it will be a little different from other location posts as I am not researching all of the games that are going into the venues (either because there is no information on such a thing or that can always change). Let’s get started and list them by month:

(Thanks to both Micheal Louie, Ryan Cravens & Replay Magazine for some of the tips on these)

Round1USA (Greensboro, NC) – This one is actually celebrating their grand opening today, thanks to Jordan for the correction. Looking pretty sharp from the photos in the Tweet below as Japanese arcade gaming comes to NC:

https://twitter.com/Round1USA/status/956949601361285121

February

Big Thrills Oakdale (Oakdale, MN) – Starting off with a location that was mentioned in the Replay Magazine newsletter yesterday, this growing FEC chain is going to be turning heads by offering a new attraction – axe throwing. Yes, you read that right…think darts but with hatchets/axes. They also will have a modern arcade, replete with a mix of video and redemption titles, weighing more on the latter. Visit their main website here.

Mega Blast Laser Tag (South Bend, IN) – We haven’t reported on very many laser tag arenas but it is possible that I’ve overlooked those as opposed to not having many open their doors. For this company in Indiana, they are opening their second location on Feb. 2nd. Like most laser tag arenas, they will have an arcade with “about 50 games”; entertainment will include pinball, air hockey and VR. Read more about them at the South Bend Tribune.

Players Club (Washington DC) – The DC area has seen a lot of growth in the past decade but it wasn’t until this past year that we really started to hear about arcades setting up in the region. Most are using the bar/arcade format though so I do wonder how that will work out in terms of overlap. Players Club will also be a bar/arcade, offering video arcade games from the 80s and “six pinball machines.” Read more about them at NBC Washington.

Quarters Arcade Bar (Salt Lake City, UT) – I missed this in the initial post but found out shortly afterwards that a bar/arcade is coming to Utah and they plan on being open by the end of February. They have pinball and are also trying to Kickstart the funds for getting a Killer Queen Arcade setup. Should be interesting to see how a bar/arcade really performs in a State that probably has the fewest number of bars per capita in the country. Their Facebook page is here.

March

John’s Incredible Pizza (Westminster, CA) – Over in California, a new John’s Incredible Pizza is putting together a 41,000 sq. ft. facility capable of accomodating over 1000 guests. It will offer similar attractions as other JIP locations, which will include an arcade. The PR doesn’t mention any details about that aspect of the location however.

Cherry Lanes Barcade (Sturgeon Bay, WI) – Offering the ‘first barcade in the county’, the Cherry Lanes bowling location shut down in January for a complete remodel. As a part of the new design, arcade & pinball machines will be a part of the mix although the article at Door County Pulse doesn’t specify details on that part of it. Their Facebook page also doesn’t show anything about the arcades yet but I imagine most of their time and focus has been on refurbishing the bowling side of it (which is not exactly a fun process).

“Spring”

Doc Brundy’s (Spanish Fork, UT) – Out in my sort of neck of the woods (about an hour South) is something that puts a twist on the bar/arcade trend with an upcoming sodacade called Doc Brundy’s. The reason for this is mentioned in this article by White Hutchinson Group, where they have been consulting with the owners. In a region where 88% of the immediate populace likely doesn’t drink alcohol, jumping through the expensive and time consuming hoops to get a liquor license isn’t exactly a recipe for success. The next best thing – soda (which is something I have thought about doing too, if I wasn’t in a mall already). You can visit their Facebook page here.

Dave & Busters (Salt Lake City, UT) – Since we’re on the subject of my residing state, I should note that Dave & Busters has begun construction at the Gateway Mall in downtown Salt Lake City. I am amazed that said mall is still in business as the last time I went by in September, there were about 10-15 shops left. Anyone left including the mall management are banking all of their hopes on D&B to turn the ship around as it is has been a ghost town there for quite a while. As mentioned in a previous post about this though, it’s also a challenge in that they are going to be the 4th company to attempt a big arcade in that mall, having been preceded by Tilt, Skybox (a bar/arcade) and Gameworks.

Round1USA (Murray, UT) – Ditto as to what I just mentioned about D&B, Round1USA has set their sights on a mall that is about 15-20 minutes South of SLC. They also have begun construction at the South Towne Mall with plans to open sometime this Spring. South Towne is in much better shape than the Gateway as it is more of a traditional indoor mall (Gateway is an open air mall aka, glorified strip mall) but they oddly do not have other entertainment options around like a movie theater. I haven’t heard much else about R1 going in there but it’s safe to assume that it will enjoy a similar setup to other R1USA locations.

As a note, I have still been hearing rumors that The Rush Funplex, an FEC setup in Syracuse, UT (about 30-45 min North) is still trying to move into the mall where I am at but I haven’t heard anything other than they might be taking over the $1 theaters that just closed. If they move in this year, I’m not sure that it would be wise for me to stick around (given that they have much more capital to throw at their arcade than I do plus all of those other attractions) so another move might be in my future. :/ For those unaware, I moved my arcade biz inside of the Valley Fair Mall last May, spending quite a bit of cash to do so. It sucks if this happens but as Jack Tramiel used to say, “Business is war.”

YESTERcades #3 (Westfield, NJ) – I recall mentioning YESTERcades on the site previously and since we first did mention them, they’ve been growing. They expect to open their third location in New JErsey by the end of March. Read more details at mycentraljersey.com.

May & June

810 Billiards & Bowling (Myrtle Beach, SC) – A new 43,000 sq. ft. is under development in Myrtle Beach, seeking to bring a sports bar, 20 lanes of bowling and an arcade together for the guests. This appears to be a surprise to some in the area as the owner of the new location also owns 710 Burgers Bocce Beer and Bowling in North Myrtle Beach. They are targeting a May/June opening date. Read more about it at Myrtle Beach Online.

Endgame Arcade Bar Tempe, AZ – Patrons in Tempe have a new bar/arcade to look forward to although “new” isn’t entirely accurate as the company is relocating from a previous location to a much larger one. This space will integrate three different bars into the space and will focus primarily on “console and PC gaming”. In browsing their Facebook photos, I only came across a three or four photos of the arcade area, which isn’t very large but I imagine they will keep that, at least. Read more about it at ktar.com.

Coming Soon / Sometime In 2018

For locations that do not have any month or seasonal date to them quite yet:

Myrtle Beach Pinball Museum (Myrtle Beach, SC) – This is a location I discovered through using Instagram for my business – they are very active on there despite not having opened their doors yet. No date is setup for that opening yet but they do seem to have quite a collection of pinball machines to play. Check them out here.

Big Al’s (Milpitas, CA) – I’ve heard of Big Al’s but never visited one before. Based out of Washington State, they appear to offer a solid FEC experience, replete with brand new arcade machines. Opening in Milpitas has some gaming significance to it as well – once upon a time that city was the home of Atari Games. You can read the article about the new development here at Mercury News.

Launch Trampoline Park (Richland, VA) – Bar/arcades haven’t been the only trend one can find in out-of-home entertainment growth, trampoline parks have also been enjoying a bit of attention lately. Sometimes these will offer an arcade as a part of the main attraction; in others, trampoline parks are setup inside of existing FECs. For the Launch Trampoline Park chain, they are aiming to open up their 26th location in Richmond, VA this year, an arcade being included in the details. Read more about it RichmondBizSense.com.

Xtreme Action Park #2 (Florida) – This one might be 2019/2020 but I do know that the massive Xtreme Action Park in Ft. Lauderdale, FL is going to be opening a 2nd location in the state sometime in the near future. The existing XAP has quite an impressive setup with a modern arcade blending both video & redemption as well as other attractions (go karts, trampoline park, rope course, escape rooms, a car museum) to go along with it.

Whew, that’s all…for now. If you know of a place that just opened or will be opening soon, please let us know and we would be happy to mention it on Arcade Heroes! If you live near any of these locations, be sure to go out and support them!

The post New Arcade Locations Part #2 – Coming In 2018 appeared first on Arcade Heroes.

UPDATE: Dave & Busters officially rolls out Tomb Raider Arcade. Click here for details.

Last year right before IAAPA 2017, we found out that Canadian based game maker Adrenaline Amusements was working on not one but two different video arcade games involving Ubisoft’s Rabbids – Rabbids Hollywood and Rabbids Ticket Fiesta. When I got some hands-on time with both games at the show, I was surprised to see that Hollywood was a straight up video arcade game without any ticket dispensers. It is also notable for it’s 120″ screen and support for 4 players at once, a rarity among arcade light-gun type games.

After checking their website, it has been updated to show that the game is now shipping out to interested arcades & venues out there while Rabbids Ticket Fiesta has been delayed until March. I did try and reach out to Adrenaline for comment on this a couple of weeks ago but did not hear back.

Tomb Raider Lands At Dave & Busters

(Thanks to Jdevy for the tip)

UPDATE: Thanks to Jordan on Twitter for providing this more professional (albeit with heavy JPG artifacts) cabinet image of Tomb Raider. The image on the screen looks to have been cut and paste from the newer TR game…or it could be one of the cinematics as it is unusual for a light-gun shooter to be in 3rd person. The marquee as seen in the initial images below also appears to be incomplete as Lara Croft also belongs up top; likely they will add that piece once the software is unlocked. Interesting that this image shows standard coin doors as opposed to typical card readers that D&B uses…maybe there’s a slight chance this is a timed exclusive for D&B.

Original Post: A bigger surprise also came along a few weeks ago when I heard that Dave & Busters was getting a “variation of Rabbids Hollywood” based on the popular Tomb Raider series of video games. The game would reportedly begin shipping out to certain, unspecified locations within a “couple of weeks.” I reached out to both Dave & Busters and Adrenaline for comment but there was none to share; so we rely on internet sleuths to notice when said game shows up unannounced.

The game has because showing up at certain Dave & Busters locations this week although we do not know at the moment whether or not all D&B locations will be receiving the game.

This uses the same cabinet as Rabbids Hollywood (4-players at once, 120″ HD screen) as seen above, with the artwork, marquee and pistols changed to fit with the new game.

Here’s a pic of the cabinet snapped by “HellaPancakeSwitch” on Reddit:

UPDATE: Here’s another photo found on the Tomb Raider Forums. This is odd as it shows the game flow from when you start with the cinematics and such. It also shows that like Rabbids Hollywood, it has three levels.

By this you can notice the Crystal Dynamics and Square Enix logos on the left. Between that and the text/art of the marquee, this appears to be based on the video game that Square Enix released back in 2013/14 but modified in some way to be more of an action shooting game than a platform hopping, exploration action game. I would venture to guess that the pistols use a similar technology to Rabbids Hollywood, which appeared to be internal gyroscope sensors as opposed to your typical IR LED net placed around the marquee.

As you can see from this photo above, this is another cross promotional effort by D&B to tie in a game with a movie. Last year you saw them do that with Pirates Of The Caribbean and Spider-Man Homecoming; now it’s Tomb Raider. This marks the first time that the Tomb Raider series has appeared in arcades in any form. Here’s the latest trailer for the upcoming Tomb Raider movie, just because:

If you have a Dave & Busters near you and are interested in this game, I imagine that it should be playable by this weekend at various locations. Unfortunately we don’t have any further details on this one yet but we will certainly update this post once more is known.

The post Rabbids Hollywood Released As Tomb Raider Comes To Dave & Busters appeared first on Arcade Heroes.

Mentioned the other day on the blog, certain undisclosed Dave & Busters locations began to receive Tomb Raider arcade machines. Designed by Adrenaline Amusements, the game cabinet was based upon the recently launched Rabbids Hollywood 4-player light-gun game while the software is an arcade exclusive adaptation of the most recent home title by Square Enix/Crystal Dynamics. Now, Dave & Busters has officially confirmed the launch of this new exclusive for the company. From Kevin Bachus of D&B:

We are exclusively launching Tomb Raider as a larger than life four player shooting puzzle game at all 108 Dave & Buster’s locations starting this week. This is a game I’ve wanted to make for a long time, and with the spectacular new Tomb Raider film just around the corner, it presented the perfect opportunity to work with Warner Bros and Square Enix/Crystal Dynamics to make it a reality.

Since I knew that the team at Adrenaline was as passionate about Tomb Raider as I am, there
was never any question that they would be the right partner for us to bring the game to life, using the same technology they’d shown us a few years ago that also powers their new Rabbids Hollywood game.

The game will only be available in Dave & Buster’s venues until later this year, when additional
chapters will be added and the game will be re-launched both by us and by Adrenaline to the industry at large.

Also just shared about an hour ago, here is Dave & Busters’ promotional ad that showcases both the Tomb Raider movie and game. It doesn’t show gameplay for more than a second (and the actors appear to be playing in front of a black screen with the footage spliced in afterwards) but as Mr. Bachus stated above, if you are near any one of the 108 D&B locations this weekend, you’ll get a chance to play it.

What do you think about this new release?

The post Dave & Busters Officially Rolls Out Tomb Raider Arcade appeared first on Arcade Heroes.

Remember the Tomy Waterfuls? If not, it was a handheld toy that was popular in the late 1970’s and 1980’s. The object of the game was to fill the toy up with water, put the plug in and then use buttons to produce invisible jets within the water to “toss” the rings onto the pegs inside. You probably had one when you were a kid but chances are that you forgot about it – until you see this arcade game that is! The best thing about this new version is that it does not leak water all over the place like the toy did, so your parents – and in this case, arcade operators – will not get mad!

This 1 or 2 player ticket video redemption arcade game is made by ICE and the object is the same as the Waterfuls toy: get the rings onto the pegs to score tickets. Setup in a similar manner to other psuedo-holographic games out there (like Fishbowl Frenzy), this uses real pegs while the water effects and the rings are all video. There is a yellow button for Player 1 and a red button for Player 2 on the machine that you use to pump the rings up in the air. The button on the game is pressure sensitive making the game entirely skill based. There are 2 pegs per player where you have to land the rings; different colored  rings have different point values. It’s currently located at Dave & Busters Buffalo in the Walden Galleria Mall in Cheektowaga, NY.

A closer look at the control panel. Single button play, very easy to play.

As you can seen, this cabinet is bright and attractive, and it seemed to be extremely popular at this location. It is a concept that in my opinion will do very
well in modern arcades. There is also a chance it will be at the Amusement Expo 2018 event in Las Vegas next week but I have not confirmed that yet.

In this video I play this game twice to show how it works. I did say in the video there are 3 pegs to land the rings per player however there are only 2.

(NOTE: We did check with Dave & Busters management about posting about this prior to publication due to their new policy regarding certain games and filming. They stated that it was ok)

The post New Arcade Game from ICE – Tomy Waterfuls Ring Toss Spotted at Dave & Busters Buffalo appeared first on Arcade Heroes.

We’ve had a lot of big news items hit the wires this year, some of them coming from arcade chain Dave & Busters as they seek to differentiate their game offerings from the competition. They got their hands on Tomb Raider Arcade, which film began hitting silver screens last night and which arcade title will remain exclusive to them until later this year. Now, they are adding something else to the arcade/movie related roster: Rampage.

For a quick refresher, Rampage was designed by Brian F. Colin and released in 1986 with Rampage World Tour being produced in 1997. Since all of the Midway IP is now owned by Warner Bros. and they have kept most of those titles dormant, ’97 was the last time it graced the scene.

As you know by now, Warner has been working on a Rampage movie starring Dwayne Johnson, that is loosely based upon that 1986 arcade game of the same name. By the trailer they appear to have changed a bit of the original story (such as the three animals originally being humans but being mutated into giant animals via some means; now it seems to be alien tech mutating animals into larger creatures). Judging by this trailer, it’s a little bit Planet Of The Apes mixed with Jurassic World:

The New Rampage Arcade Machine

(Thanks to Jbean for this image)

To coincide with the film’s release (April 13th), Dave & Busters and Adrenaline Amusements have teamed up again to create a new a video redemption game based upon the film. Adrenaline has been very busy as of late, Rampage marking the sixth new title they’ll have launched in the past six months.

I reached out to Mr. Colin who designed the original game but he was not involved with this, only hearing about it for the first time once I sent him the e-mail.  I also reached out to Adrenaline for more details but have not received more than a confirmation that they are working on it; unfortunately this muddy image above from another source is all we’ve got for the time being. I was told that it has a single joystick and a button and the main focus is to play for tickets. It is looking like this is also going to be a D&B exclusive but like Injustice and Tomb Raider that might change with a wider release down the road. No idea at the moment if this plays like old school (or World Tour) Rampage but we should know soon enough.

We’re keeping our eyes peeled for any more info on this one – if you do come across it this weekend, let us know what you think.

The post Rampage Returns To Arcades As A Dave & Busters Exclusive appeared first on Arcade Heroes.

We only reported about the existence of a new Rampage arcade game in development by Adrenaline Amusements a few days ago. Where I was told that Dave & Busters locations would have it this week, the company has just put out a trailer that shows a couple of cumulative seconds of footage of the game in action. It also appears that a D&B gets smashed in the movie…

As you can tell from that footage as well as the trailer thumbnail, this is setup to work like the classic Rampage, with George, Lizzy and Ralph enjoying a health bar but also what might be an attack or defense meter (the second bar below the health has what looks to be a shield icon…hard to say); then there is something below that which might be lives. I reached out to Adrenaline for comment and will update accordingly.

I’ve been told that the cabinet design is “very similar” to a cabinet for an unreleased videmption game that was on test last year by a different company. Without specs though, we can only guess at things like dimensions and screen size (looks like a 55″ but could be a 65″ just as well). It is certainly different from the upcoming TMNT game in that the control panel appears to be detached, with some inches of space in-between that and the monitor section.

It does have a joystick although I noticed that the actress was not using it here, doing the typical “actors ‘play’ video games” thing You appear to climb and destroy buildings just like in the original, with destruction also happening on the ground with the vehicles. With that, I think there is a good chance that this could find its way to the rest of the industry as some point and made also have an amusement/non-ticket mode. If so, what would you think about it then?

The post Rampage Arcade 2018 Gets A Teaser Trailer appeared first on Arcade Heroes.

It’s high time that we had another new locations post, isn’t it? This one is a little more international than usual, so let’s get started with Germany:

GameOn Berlin Open In Germany

By what little I understand about opening a small entertainment business in Germany, it’s task that is much more challenging than normal. As a testament to that, we first mentioned GameOn Berlin nearly four years ago, when they were first seeking crowdfunding to bring their ambitious plan to fruition. Now, that has finally come to pass, at least as an “exclusive events venue” (aka, they are not a facility you can just walk into and play whenever). If you do book an event or attend one of their open functions, then you can enjoy console, PC, VR and board games along with video arcade titles. Those include several titles imported from Japan: Dariusburst Another Chronicle EX, Gundam pods, H2Overdrive, Taiko No Tatsujin and more. Visit their website here.

Round1USA Opens At Greatlakes Mall, Mentor, OH

Fans of Japanese arcade gaming in Ohio now have a Round1USA location to head to for such delights. That does include everything you would expect at other R1USA locations, including bowling, ping pong, food, karaoke and of course, an amazing arcade floor:

Bowling Arcade Billiards Karaoke and MORE!!! Round1 Now Open at @GreatLakesMall in Mentor, OH!!! pic.twitter.com/SbpIuf6tyL

— Round1 USA (@Round1USA) April 2, 2018

GameOn! Arcade Now Open In Auckland (New Zealand)

Thanks to Nathan for the tip on this one last month. New Zealand isn’t a place that we hear about too many arcades opening their doors but if you are in or near Auckland, you can get your arcade fix with the new GameOn!. Not related to GameOn Berlin (as far as I know). They are operating a modern arcade that is mixed with both redemption, video games and even amusement VR such as We Play VR (Namco) and Overtake VR. For the standard arcade machines, they have DDR (2017), Maximum Tune 5DX+, Pump It Up Prime 2018, The Walking Dead and more. Check out their website here.

Quarters Arcade Bar Opens In Salt Lake City, UT

This is one mentioned back in January and a couple of weeks ago, they finally opened their doors. Their game selection includes around 15 titles such as Area 51, Big Buck Wild, Golden Axe, the first two Mortal Kombats, NBA Jam, Rampage, Street Fighter II, X-Men and the illustrious Killer Queen. They also have several pinball machines, including three different Star Treks from 1979 to 2013 (they must really be fans), Game Of Thrones Pro, Hook, Spider-Man Vault Edition, and Stargate among others. Their Facebook page can be found here and if I can find the time, I’ll drop by there one of these days.

New The Rec Room Headed To Winnipeg (Manitoba, Canada)

Brady Starburst (a major distributor in Canada), continues to expand their location operations within the country, announcing another Rec Room establishment, this time in Winnipeg. The Rec Room will be a part of Seasons Of Tuxedo, a major shopping district in the city. The facility will feature 40,000 sq. ft. of out-of-home amusements, including various food options, VR, bowling, ping pong and the hottest new trend in FECs, axe throwing. The venue will have 110 arcade games, judging by other Rec Rooms, you’re probably looking at everything being recent. Read more about it at Blooloop.

Coming Soon

For a couple of items of approaching openings, Dave & Busters’ SLC location has been announced as opening on May 14th. It is down at the Gateway Mall as the first part of a major $100 million renovation of said mall.

Mentioned back in February, construction has begun on the 810 Conway FEC in Conway, SC.

An FEC is coming to Nagpur, India but details are very scant at this point.

That’s all I’ve managed to find for now. If you find yourself near any of these facilities (such as myself with the two mentioned locations in Utah), then be sure to hit them up as soon as you can!

The post New Arcades Open: GameOn Berlin; Round1USA (OH); Game On! (NZ); Quarters Arcade Bar (UT) & More appeared first on Arcade Heroes.

Time for another look at new arcade locations to open their doors out there – or who soon will.

Another Castle:Arcade Edition Expands To Another Location (Marysville, WA)

(Thanks to Logan N. for sending this my way)

A new bar/arcade has opened their doors in Marysville, WA, a city located North of the Seattle area. Their grand opening was back on March 17th, which I missed in the last location post. They have a focus on selling games for home consoles but have been adding the arcade/bar concept to locations like this one. Their video game selection isn’thuge but it does appear to span the decades – A Frogger & a PlayChoice-10 from the 80s, Area 51, Neo Geo MVS and Rush 2049 from the 90s and a Big Buck World from the 10s. Their main focus appears to have gone to the the pinball machines, with them grabbing various titles from recent times including: Aliens(I was informed that while in the photo below, the game was pulled due to a major fault and replaced with a Total Nuclear Annihilation for the moment), Attack From Mars Remake, Ghostbusters, Houdini, Medieval Madness Remake, Spider-Man Vault Edition, Wizard Of Oz, and a couple of others that I can’t make out from the photo (looks like The Hobbit, Dialed In and a couple of Sterns, one from the red dot matrix days and one of the new LCD tables). The opening was mentioned on this Facebook post

Xplore Kids Family Fun Center (North Shore, NY)

Parents looking for something to take their kids to in the North Shore area of New York state can now look to this new FEC that also recently opened their doors. They have a large soft playground, inflatables and around 35 modern arcade machines. That includes titles such as: Ghostbusters Arcade, Lane Master, Pop The Lock, Rabbids Hollywood, Super Bikes 2, Transformers Human Alliance and more. Check them out here.

4th GameTime Location Opening First Week Of May (Ocoee, FL)

A new FEC that is part of the GameTime chain is prepping for their Grand Opening on May 4th-6th in Ocoee, FL. They already are open as a ‘soft’ opening but will be holding that grand celebration for the official roll-out.Fortunately they have a full games list here, which includes games like: After Dark, Cruis’n Blast, Daytona Championship USA, Deadstorm Pirates SE, Dialed In! pinball, Dream Raiders, Jurassic Park Arcade, Luigi’s Mansion Arcade, Medieval Madness remake, Super Alpine Racer, Target Bravo Operation GHOST and many more.  Visit the location webpage here.

Dave & Busters For Madison, WI

For another state capital where you can find a Dave & Busters, they have just opened the location in Madison:

New #FUN arrives in the capital! Our doors are now open @DaveAndBusters Madison, WI! Details: https://t.co/uCQHIGVUlM pic.twitter.com/CIcNQYPzu0

— Dave & Buster's (@DaveandBusters) April 9, 2018

Wonderland Arcade Faces An Uncertain Future

This isn’t a location opening but after a fire destroyed a nearby business, an arcade in Regina, (Saskatchewan, Canada) by the name of Wonderland Arcade is facing the possibility of losing their equipment and thus the business. The games were spared from the flames but not from the water that was used to put the fire out. Here’s hoping that they can salvage it all and pull through.

Playdium Replacing Odeon Theater (Brampton, Ontario, Canada)

This bit of news won’t really be relevant until mid-2019 but if you’re anywhere near Brampton, Ontario, then know that Cineplex is planning on replacing the old Odeon Theater with a brand new FEC complex.

Also of note, I know of a new arcade coming soon to the Santa Clara/San Jose/SF area (Ghirardelli Square…not 100% sure where it is exactly at the moment) in California but they are still working on it…getting close. Probably will be on the next location post

That’s all I could gather for now – if you find yourself anywhere near these locations, pay more than lip service, drop in and buy a coin or card and play!

The post Open For Business: Another Castle: Arcade Edition (WA); Xplore Kids (NY); GameTime #4 (FL) & More appeared first on Arcade Heroes.

One gaming theme that never fails to gain positive attention in the amusement business belongs to dinosaurs. People of all ages are fascinated by the creatures, although the main property where they get attention both on the silver screen and among arcade cabinets is Jurassic Park.

2015 saw the release of Raw Thrills’ Jurassic Park Arcade, a game that still is one of the top earners on the market three years later. With the IP turning towards Jurassic World in recent times, and the upcoming arrival of Jurassic World 2 to theaters, you might have been wondering if anyone in the amusement business might be dabbling with it. The answer, as the headline to this post reveals, is yes.

I had been hearing from some Dave & Busters employees about the upcoming arrival of “some kind of Jurassic World VR game” since April. They were not sure who it was that was making it however as even with units appearing at locations this week, there wasn’t an indication of who was involved.

UPDATE: Dave & Busters has posted a new trailer for the game:

Today, The Virtual Reality Company (VRC) pulled the curtain back on Jurassic World VR Expedition to reveal that it is their brainchild. Let’s just copy & paste from the website in regards to a description of this motion simulator VR experience:

The post Jurassic World VR Expedition Debuts Today At 100 Dave & Busters Locations appeared first on Arcade Heroes.

It’s time for a new location update although I’ve been sitting on the news for some of these as many are announcements for arcade venues that are opening well down the road. Let’s get to it:

Subpar Mini Golf, Ghiradelli Square (San Francisco, CA)

With a new mini-golf facility opening up in San Francisco, an arcade has been added to it to entertain guests who are waiting for their turn at a round of golf. The game line-up is mostly modern with several titles from Raw Thrills, an upright Let’s Go Jungle by Sega, a few crane machines, some banked Skee-ball alley bowlers, air hockey, a Grumpy Cat Photo Booth and more. This particular arcade has been designed by site friend TJ Beyer who recently setup the arcade machines at Lvl Up, also in the Bay Area.

1985 Arcade Bar + Grill (Wichita, KS)

Bringing more retro arcade goodness to Wichita is this venue, set to open any time now. It offers “14 pinball machines and another 25 video arcade games” all set to play at a quarter; I guess true to the 1985 name, I cannot find any website or social media page for them.  To read more about it, click here (kansas.com).

Ryan Family Amusements Adding Arcade Room Location In July (Plymouth, MA)

Reported by Replay Magazine today, an FEC chain by the name of Ryan Family Amusements is expanding their game room operations into the famous historical town of Plymouth. They are taking over a closed restaurant there and adding 35 new games to a 2,700 sq. ft. space. It will include video and redemption games and is opening next month.

Famous Hot Dog Stand Johnny O’s Prepping To Open A Bar/Arcade (Chicago (South Side), IL)

Also via Replay is this story in South Side Weekly about the challenges that the famous Chicago chain of hot dog stands in Chicago has been through as of late. As they recover from the loss of the “Johnny O” and one of his sons, John Jr., the sons who have taken over the business are setting about to convert one of their old closed locations into a bar/arcade. There isn’t much information on it yet nor an ETA but it sounds like it could happen this year. We’ll keep an eye on that along with news on the other locations.

Lois Lanes Set To Open In November (Watford City, ND)

It certainly is a rarity to report on a location opening up in North Dakota but here it is. The cleverly named Lois Lanes naturally features bowling (20 lanes) along with a trampoline park and a 1,500 sq. ft. arcade. That sounds a bit small given the facility is 30k square feet but once nice thing about such large facilities is that you tend to have a little bit of wiggle room. Read more about it at kfyrtv.com.

EVO Entertainment Headed To Schertz, TX

File this one in the memory banks of 2019 – it’s still a ways off. By the initial press release, it sounds like it will be rather impressive – the venue is being built with a $23 million investment and will land at 72,000 sq. ft. This will include a movie theater, laser tag, bowling and food as a part of the attractions and of course a video arcade with over 100 games to enjoy. We’ll keep an eye on this one too but click here for more info (mysanantonio.com).

Dave & Busters Updates

The first D&B to open in Utah did so a few weeks ago in downtown Salt Lake City. I wrote about this one a little bit already and from the sounds of it, they had a successful soft & grand opening. I saw people on social media networks writing about it, posting photos of their game floor.  They also recently opened locations in Rosemont, IL, Madison, WI, Massapequa, NY and this week in Torrance, CA in case you missed that.

Look out there is a new way to PLAY in South Bay! Today we celebrate the grand opening of Dave & Buster’s Torrance, CA! Details: https://t.co/uwV762dzCj pic.twitter.com/R5MtNf1Uw3

— Dave & Buster's (@DaveandBusters) June 11, 2018

Round1USA Updates

Round1USA has also been busy although I have not heard a thing about the Utah location that they announced some time ago – it was supposed to open up this Spring. Either way, I’m keeping my eyes peeled for news. In the meantime they are preparing to open locations in South Portland, ME and Albuquerque, NM this Summer; for their games they continue to please rhythm game fans with the likes of Groove Coaster 4 and Dance Rush Stardom.

We’re getting excited for Round1 @TheMaineMall opening next weekend but we also have Round1 @CoronadoCenter in Albuquerque, New Mexico coming soon. ⁰⁰
Check out these pics of how the construction is going.
Please excuse our mess. pic.twitter.com/tabWn9Ck1r

— Round1 USA (@Round1USA) June 8, 2018

That’s all I’ve managed to come across for now – if you happen to find yourself near any of these locations that have (or will soon) opened, be sure to do more than just pay lip service in support – drop by, buy some credits and have fun!

The post Location News: Subpar Mini Golf (CA);1985 Arcade Bar + Grill (KS); Ryan Family Amusements (MA); & More Upcoming appeared first on Arcade Heroes.

The wait for Halo Fireteam Raven is almost over, with the game now available at one Dave & Busters location and soon rolling out to the others. This version does “not have the finalized cabinet art” but that will be remedied in July. We have confirmed that it is presently at the Rosemont, IL D&B location, which is where it appears that this picture was taken for this tweet;

In the wild! (Wings) ⁦@DaveandBusters⁩ pic.twitter.com/N4cNEt8gYB

— Frank O'Connor (@franklez) June 26, 2018

You also have this video showing all of the cutscenes captured from a test unit:

The game has about 45 minutes of gameplay which is about 20 minutes longer than most light-gun shooters; if you really don’t mind spoilers then this video shows the whole thing.

For something shorter, Raw Thrills also released this new trailer to promote the game for the Summer Dave & Busters release (as a reminder, other locations out there will have access to it around September). It has not been confirmed exactly when that will take place but given that the Summer is upon us, it should be happening any time now (given that the location test unit will be finalized in July, we can guess to look for it at other D&Bs around then).

The post Halo Fireteam Raven Update – Now On Location Test appeared first on Arcade Heroes.

Initially unveiled in May 2018, the surprise announcement of Raw Thrills’ biggest game cabinet to-date had no trouble in dominating headlines across the gaming sphere. Announced as a Dave & Busters timed exclusive for Summer 2018, that wasn’t exactly a precise release date like console gamers are accustomed to so interested players have been waiting with baited breath to find out when they can find this fresh Halo gaming experience. It was only last week that we heard about the location test for it in Illinois but it seems that involved parties are eager to get the game onto location as promised.

Well, the wait appears to be over – not long ago Raw Thrills was promoting photos from their factory floor showing Fireteam Raven units being tested after production…

…and now thanks to our friend Nick over at The Arcade Hunters, we see that the game is setup in all of it’s majestic glory at the Islandia location (Long Island, NY) Dave & Busters location(correction here as previously I stated the NYC location). On an Instagram & Facebook post, Nick also mentions that the game is “as big as four Cruis’n Blast units put together”, which is what I thought from the measurements I was taking at my location…

You say goodbye. I say #Halo pic.twitter.com/UVS9CsuW39

— The Arcade Hunters (@ArcadeHunters) July 4, 2018

Granted, the NYC location is probably important enough that they get their hands on units in any “first wave” of company-wide game shipments but if you see one out there at a different location, let us know in the comments below.

UPDATE: Raw Thrills just shared this on their social media, saying how “pictures don’t do it justice”. A truth that plagues arcade media of all types ;):

The post Halo: Fireteam Raven Begins Landing At Dave & Busters Locations Across The US appeared first on Arcade Heroes.

(Thanks to everyone who sent this in)

We know that Sega’s next installment of their popular House Of The Dead series is bound for arcades all over the world this year but exactly ‘when’ and ‘where’ have been burning questions for many fans. Now you can rest easy as a thread on the Dave & Busters Reddit has a little bit of information on when you can expect to come across the game.

According to Kevin Bachus of D&B, they have purchased House Of The Dead Scarlet Dawn units for all of their locations, with the intention of seeing the games in operation in time for Halloween season. These are NOT location test units but will be the final production models; Kevin also calls it the “best of the series by far.”

I reached out to Sega Amusements about this and confirmed the news with additional information/clarification that 1) Sega is filling orders on a “first come, first serve” basis and D&B has filled that. Orders are not closed so that other interested chains can still get the game in this year, just that you have to wait in line (no information was given on how long that line is but with all D&B locations getting the game, you’re looking at around 122 units to start). 2) They are still aiming to have these ship by the end of September/beginning of October; Transformers Shadows Rising still looking like it will be shipping the end of this month (for anyone curious about that).

UPDATE: For those who are curious as to how the game has been testing in Japan (I’ve yet to hear about a test out West yet however, I do know that units are in Sega’s possession in the UK), The Website Of The Dead has this list of compiled details/impressions on the game from recent testing.

So there you have it – House Of The Dead Scarlet Dawn for Halloween. We’ll certainly be paying attention to any additional news that comes along for this game!

The post Sega’s House Of The Dead Scarlet Dawn Headed To All Dave & Busters Locations This Fall appeared first on Arcade Heroes.

Wondering whether or not you should shell out the cash to play Dave & Busters new Jurassic World VR experience? I recently checked it out at my local Dave & Busters so we can try to answer that question for you. Being interested in VR and motion simulators I was naturally very excited to try out this experience. This is the first chain-wide large scale VR operation based on a large-scale recognizable brand that I know of in the USA. This VR simulation experience is made by VRC, The Virtual Reality Company and you can find a link to their website right here.

http://www.thevrcompany.com

I played the attraction at the Cheektowaga, NY Dave & Busters in the Walden Galleria Mall.

The experience costs $5 to play, you have to purchase an attraction credit to play it which is separate from the game chips you use to play all the other games at Dave & Busters so you cannot use chips to play this attraction. Attraction credits are purchased at the kiosk or from the same place you recharge or purchase your power cards.

Once you purchase your credits you stand in line for the attraction. This attraction requires a separate employee to run. There was a steady stream of guests at this attraction at my location but it was not so much that I had to wait in a long line to play it. I only had to wait one turn to play. The attraction is a 4 seat motion simulator that moves in all directions (it doesn’t go upside down or anything crazy like that) with a small staircase that the employee has to pull down for guests to get in and out of the ride. It has 2 screens where onlookers can view the action, but the screens show a blank image once the game actually starts for the players inside the simulator.

Once you sit down there is a single lap belt to buckle. The headsets used are a HTC Vive. There is a single controller that is held in one hand with 2 buttons on it. Its probably a good idea to buckle the seatbelt and put the controller on your lap before you put on the headset so you are not fumbling around looking for the controller like I was; this way you can grab the controller easily after you put on the headset. Once you put the headset on you will see instructions on how to adjust it which is very easy as it adjusts with a single knob. It is possible to put the headset on over glasses but your experience may vary depending on the type of glasses you have. Once everyone is strapped in the ride will start.

Without giving too much away on this attraction, the object of the game is to scan dinosaurs with a handheld scanner as you run through the Jurassic Park World (please note there is no actual running as you are sitting in a motion simulator). The handheld scanner is the one controller in your hand and it will light up as a bright white object in the game world. Depending on how many others you are playing with you may see the other scanners in the game as well. The game will keep track of how many dinosaurs you tag with the object being to tag as many as possible. There are no battles and no bullets so there is no real shooting in this game. Even if you do not tag a lot of dinosaurs it does not detract from the experience at all. I personally managed to tag 27 dinosaurs. It is fun to play with 4 riders in the simulator.

Now we will answer the most important question, is this experience worth the extra $5 to play? Yes it is. I can definitely say it is worth the money, and everyone should try it out if you have the opportunity. If you have to make a special trip to a further location to play it, its still probably worth your time and money, just call ahead to make sure the game is in working order before you travel a long distance to play it. The graphics, game and experience is very well done, and feels like one of the large theme park attractions at Disney or another large theme park. The graphics are just amazing. The motion base looks intense when you are watching the ride but while you are in it, it feels very smooth and matches the action in the game perfectly, the motion is not too intense and it does not hurt. I did not feel sick on the ride at all. I did not notice any technical glitches and the simulator seemed to be in perfect working order.

When you are done with the ride you can take a picture in front of the backdrop.

If you have had a chance to play it, do you agree or disagree with my review above?

The post Dave & Busters new Jurassic World VR Expedition Experience Delivers on the Fun appeared first on Arcade Heroes.