Haha, I also have a kid, so that’s quite relatable!
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I’m at my Mum’s place in Liverpool at the moment (just round the corner from @Yakumo old house!) and took the opportunity to visit Arcade Club in Bury near Manchester, where my Flicky (1984, SEGA) arcade cabinet is on loan.
Great fun playing a whole host of vintage arcade games, plus a few new ones. My favourites… Tempest (1981), Omega Race (1981), Super Pang (1990), Super Off Road w/ Track Pack (1989), Warlords (1980), Super Monkey Ball (2001), Robotron (1982), Hard Drivin’ (1989), Joust (1982), The New Zealand Story (1988), Xybots (1987), Super Sprint (1986) https://www.arcadeclub.co.uk/games/
There’s also a small arcade bar in Liverpool called NQ64 which is one branch of a chain. I want to visit whilst I’m still here.
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I took my boy to the place in Bury back in 2018. He really loved it. I caught him playing Space Harrier saying “hay dad, you have this. I thought it wasn’t good but it is”. 
. He was 11 at the time.
I still find it strange that your mum’s place is basically around the corner from where I grew up.
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Yes, it is quite bizarre. I think we moved there 1988, I moved away in 1998, she’s still here.
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I went here. It’s… OK… let down by single game cabinets having been converted to badly fitting flat screen LCDs with wrong aspect ratio and resolutions that made the games look like trash. And at least half seemed to be running emulators? Weird.
Still, I had fun with:
- Outrun 2 (2–4 player versus)
- Point Blank 3 (2 player)
- Rambo (2 player)
- modded home consoles GC, PS1 classic, SNES, MD, etc (2–4 player)
and
- Final Tetris (a truly weird Korean unauthorised version) (2 player)
https://harddrop.com/wiki/Final_Tetris
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Jilly’s Arcade on the boardwalk in Ocean City NJ is definitely a quality experience for racing and pinball. They recently got in Dr. No and Godzilla pins and they more importantly have one of these…
It is glorious. If you can find one near you, go check it out. It’s a fantastic Daytona experience.
Does anyone have recommendations for arcades to visit in the LA area? Preferably closer to the coastal areas. I’ll be visiting family around the holidays.
I know I’ll end up at the lame one on Balboa Island (kids like it, plus balboa bar), but I’d like to check out a good one as well.
I’m in Sevilla at the moment and it turns out one of the bigger arcades in Europe is located a ten minute train ride away in a town called Dos Hermanas. €10 for four hours, here is the list of cabs. My partner and I had a whale of a time!
There was a beautiful Space Invaders cab:
It was nice to see Galaga:
Even Jumpman made an appearance:
We spent a bit of time with some all-time favourites:
My partner is a good driver so she took to OutRun pretty quickly and even beat me once!
One of the highlights of the evening was playing F-Zero AX on a real cab for the first time. It only took me two decades to find one… Here I am living the dream:
I managed to play quite well with Falcon:
There were some cabs I didn’t know existed, like this bizarre Luigi’s Mansion rail shooter, apparently developed by Capcom:
Final Furlong by Namco was new to me too:
On the subject of Namco, Point Blank was fun:
It was a good warm-up for another highlight, co-op Time Crisis II:
This hasn’t aged a day. The foot pedal system is so satisfying and the game is so tightly designed. Perfectly paced too. We saw this one through to the end credits, only needed a few continues towards the end. Decent effort.
I was surprised to see Taiko:
I was even more surprised to see Densha de Go!!
This was one of the most immersive experiences I’ve had in an arcade. The three-screen set-up and clicky lever really raise the stakes to an uncomfortable level.
Maybe it’s because I played this last and was exhausted by that point… Still, it was stressful XD
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great shots! there’s just something magical about the arcade
is that Virtua Fighter 4 in the 4th picture?
Seville is magical. Enjoy.
Looks like you hit the jackpot! what a selection
SEGAbits Presents Arcade Adventure 3: Arcade meetup at Galloping Ghost Arcade in Brookfield, IL on November 2, 2024
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I’m passing through Osaka at the moment and went to a first class arcade this morning… here’s a quick summary.
It’s called Royal Game Center and it’s in Umeda, a commercial district in the north of the city.
To find the arcade, you need to drop down into the basement of one of countless skyscrapers. Coffee is serious business in this part of town.
When we arrived, this lone wolf was already sharpening his shooter skills:
Every game is ¥100 a go. I hopped on a couple classics:
As we are in Osaka, we paid tribute to the local legends:
More multiplayer action in the puzzle department — it was cool to play Tetris: The Grand Master for the first time…
We played a round of Puzzle Bobble too. I fancied a quick go on Mr. Driller G but it was occupied by this guy, who clearly knows what’s up:
This is the most well maintained arcade I’ve ever been to. Every cabinet I touched was in outstanding condition. Even early doors, work was in progress:
The only non-standard cabinet was this Densha de Go! 3:
Simply beautiful…
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I mean, if there’s one deluxe cab you need in a Japanese arcade, it’s one where you drive the train, right?!
I see Elevator Action on one of those cabs. Is it common for Japanese arcades to have a mix like that? Old and new?
My son arrived in Japan a couple weeks ago with the US Navy. I hope to visit him during his time stationed there, and play all the candy cabinets! 
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I have a barcade within walking distance of my place. This makes it look like a joke. Thanks.
I really want a sega astro city someday. The only thing standing in my way is my wife. She says the entire wall of video game shelves should suffice.
I guess she has a point. But man seeing those astro cities and new astro cities always gets me craving one for myself.
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This particular arcade has games solely from the 80s and 90s, which is why I made an effort to visit. Apparently it opened in the 80s. It’s definitely not your run-of-the-mill arcade.
Having said that, it isn’t the only old school arcade in Osaka. There are a few. I’d say Osaka is one of the best cities in Japan if you’re specifically into arcade gaming.
It’s also conveniently located for a day trip, regardless of where you are in the country. Be sure to check it out if you have the chance!
Retro arcade Zarigani in Osaka has had a devastating fire.