The Next Generation Arcade: Fun For all Ages

The arcade is not just a remnant of the past waiting to be destroyed before the next club or bar opens. The arcade is exactly what it has always been: a great place to hang with your friends, become the master at your favourite game, or bring your sweetheart in an attempt to impress her with your sweet pinball skills.


Arcades have always been a great meeting place, even when you were a kid, the one place you could go to where you knew you'd have a fun time. You would spend hours mulling over Ms. Pac Man, trying to beat "DTM"'s record. That still hasn't changed, and in case you were worried: the ubiquitous "DTM" is still tearing up the Pac Man machine, taunting you to try to beat him.
The arcade all began with "Galaxy Game", a coin operated video game developed by students at Stanford in 1971. In 1972, Pong was released by Atari and the draw of the arcade began. The 70s saw various games develop and become hits, but the arcade didn't catch on until the early 80s. The "Golden Age of Arcades" as it has been called lasted until 1986. During this period the classic games like Space Invaders, Asteroids, Pac-Man, Donkey Kong, and Frogger were all released. This "Golden Age" was followed by several recurrences in the early 90s. However, the Golden Age will last forever in the ethos the American adult.

Today, arcades are great places to do the same things you did in the past, except now the games are virtual reality and high definition. They draw you in with mesmerizing graphics, and surround sound audio. They hold on to you with intricate story lines and developing personalities of the characters. Yes, today may itself be the Golden Age of Arcades and we don't even realize it.
The average kid these days thinks of video games and can't imagine how they are played without a TV set and a console, or a computer on steroids. The fact of the matter is that the local Arcade is still thriving with the amazing aforementioned game designs. Now the arcade is place to bring the entire family where games, food, drinks, and entertainment are all in one spot - no more wandering down the street for a piece of pizza when the arcade closes.
An entertainment centre like Playdium offers a 40,000 square foot indoor arcade with simulators, 4D games, HD games, and more. Playdium has an 11 acre outdoor park with go karts, mini golf, trampolines and so much more. The arcades golden age may be long past, but the second coming is already here.