Articles
Arcade. Eyesore. It’s Conquered.
of the machines themselves.
Up until the advent of the
Sony PlayStation, Nintendo 64
and, I guess, the Sega Saturn,
arcades were the showcase of
technology that home gaming
aspired to be. Often was the
case a new game would appear
in public cabinet form, and
several pumped quids later a
home version would appear,
looking and playing worse than
its coin-operated counterpart.
But as home gaming technology
picked up the pace, the arcades
couldn’t directly compete with
home tech that not only offered
for the first time the same
level of graphical excellence,
but also something a little
Issue 57 • July 2014
deeper than your typical
shooting, fighting or racing
fare. The arcade industry began
to collapse under the same
gravity of advanced technology
that it once embraced.
Games were getting stories,
customisation and longevity
- requiring memory cards and arcades simply couldn’t
vere from the ‘how much
game is worth £1?’, instant
gratification business model.
However, with all my
moaning, whining, carping
and querulousness, I haven’t
mentioned the one thing about
arcades that haven’t changed.
The one thing that arcades ever
existed for in the first place
that they still offer today. Gone
are the dank-floored, dimly
lit basements, the crowds of
children clambering around
a cabinet trying to see first
hand some kid perform Sub
Zero’s infamous decapitation
fatality in Mortal Kombat. The
classic arcade environment
is gone, and being in awe at
something new in the arcades
is unlikely ever to happen
again. What arcades still offer
to the modern gamer to this
very day, though, is the unique
qualities to games. The ability
to emulate what can’t be done
at home (still not counting
Doodle Jump or Temple Run).
13 • GameOn Magazine