SEGA acquires struggling GameWorks

by Alan Rose { Nov 4th 2005 at 3:20PM }

In an effort to revive the bankrupt GameWorks arcade chain, SEGA's US Entertainment division has acquired the struggling franchise. A former shareholder in GameWorks along with Vivendi Universal, SEGA is planning to re-launch the chain in the hopes that it will emulate the successful Japanese arcade biz.

For the American market, this means taking the "Chuck E. Cheese for grown-ups" formula and infusing it with more upscale bars, overpriced food and beverages, and expensive games machines you can actually sit on! If I wanted to spend that much money for an evening of entertainment, I'd go to a Red Sox game. Can't we just plop a few quarters into a machine and have some fun anymore?

While they're at it, SEGA can give Gillian Anderson some work as a spokesperson, or token vendor.

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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

White Rose Duelist @ Dec 18th 2005 10:03PM

That have those already. It's called Dave & Busters. Best restaurant chain ever. i don't know why the closest one to Boston is in RI, though.

Aric McKeown @ Dec 18th 2005 10:03PM

As if the Dreamcast tanking wasn't enough, now they have themselves in another hole.

evosix @ Dec 18th 2005 10:03PM

as a manager for the gameroom department at a local amusement center, i find it difficult to see how sega can actually accomplish that goal. the arcade industry in the united states has dwarfed due to the emergence of home console/pc gaming. a lot of arcades generate their revenue from redemption/ticket-based games.

The Wookiee @ Dec 18th 2005 10:03PM

Due to the price point of arcade games there is no logical reason to choose a night of playing arcade games versus a night of staying in and playing games on my computer or console(s). The author is right, I would rather spend that money on tickets to an event or perhaps going to a nice restaurant / bar, or a club.

There is a but...

If an "arcade" such as GameWorks can successfully manufacture a social atmosphere with food to eat and beverages to drink and on top of that, provide a flat fee structure for the games, I'd be more than willing to come out. I would love to be able to pay a $15 - 20 entry fee for a pass that would allow me to play all the games I want while enjoying a few drinks. A flat fee structure / gaming pass takes away the stigma of constantly reaching in your wallet for dollar bills or tokens which, in my opinion, feels wasteful, especially when you have a computer and console sitting on a high-speed internet connection at home.

While I'm not going to frequent this place every night, I would definitely include it as a destination I would go out to on a monthly basis.

Personally, I think it's fun to game socially (meaning in the same physical co-presence as someone, not just on the Internet).

Rob X. @ Dec 18th 2005 10:03PM

I guess this means thqat Sega will hopefully start making games for aracades in the US. Where I live (San Antonio), there is only one arcade that has games newer than 5 years old and they are all Japanese imports the usual guitar, dance and motion sensing games.

Trace @ Dec 18th 2005 10:03PM

The saving grace for arcades are the "gimmick" games, for lack of a better term. The sort of game that has enhanced playability due to some hardware addition that would be a tad costly for a home user - Silent Scope, a racing game with hydraulics, Dance Dance Revolution, Pump It Up, etc.

I still hit Gameworks and Dave and Busters not only for the expanded gaming experience, but for the fact that you can socialize while playing a game. Traditional arcades always has a feel of solitude to them, but introduce a bar/club element to the atmosphere and you've got a different beast altogether.

AbleJames @ Dec 18th 2005 10:03PM

There's a GameWorks in Minneapolis that I went to a month or so back--it didn't seem to be doing too bad. Not tons of people, but not empty either. There was a bar, and the layout felt very much like a 'club' packed with arcade games rather than an 'arcade.' However, there didn't seem to be too many people dancing and doing all the normal stuff you'd see at a real club (Horny college students getting drunk? Sorry, no.)

And there really were a lot of games, and a very large percentage of them were the $20,000 big-screen units. All games had card readers, and you bought a card with credits on it, which would be deducted when you played a game. There was also the option of getting a card that allowed unlimited play. I think it was $20 for 3 hours of whatever you wanted to play.

I was just there for the Initial D, and compared to some other arcades, it was expensive, but in all it was a pretty decent experience.

Mark @ Dec 18th 2005 10:03PM

Nolan Bushnell is trying to revitalize this market with his iWink arcade chain, which will cater towards young singles and feature more "casual gaming."

But I wonder if there really is any significant demand for these upscale arcade centers. It seems to be something that investors in the restaurant industry desperately want to see happen, but the customers aren't there.

Tony Bussert @ Dec 18th 2005 10:03PM

We've got one here in Seattle. It's been here for almost 6 years maybe, and I've visited it at least once a year. It's not somewhere you go once a week or anything, but if you've got a bunch of guys together with not much to do it's a good place to go. Hell, on Thursdays they have ladies night so you can even get some chicks with your vids and beer.