linsivvi said:
Hate to burst your bubble but most of these have already been done in the past. In Japan, the biggest arcade owners are Sega, Namco, etc, and they've been shutting down their arcades gradually. Many games already have custom IC cards for stats tracking, and these games usually allow you to purchase upgrades the more you play. Most modern arcades in Asia are already hooked up to the net for worldwide or at least national internet play.
I don't see how having powerful hardware and better graphics than consoles would help. The only thing that works is social gaming and diversification away from video games (see my pics above), and I am not sure if that's a version of arcade that hardcore gamers would care enough to see it saved.
Japan seems to be a different scenario though, in regards to other forms of gaming as well. I think they have great setups that need to be brought over here, as consoles like the PS3 and 360 demonstrate, people are down for online gaming, purchasing upgrades, and all that stuff, here in North America. Japan has become a very different market compared to 10 years ago.
More powerful hardware, a better network, and better interfaces are experiences that people pay for at home, in the US. People crave and want the best HT experience, the best network experience, etc. The problem is they can't pay for all of that. I can't pay $90 a month for a 25Mbps connection...I'm sure I'm not the only one. To pay $1 to have all of that at your disposal, would be the draw. If the arcade experience isn't superior to the home experience, then there isn't a point.
This won't work. Gaming companies need to be specialized to make the best games.
This was never really the case even on consoles. Microsoft never specialized in games yet they came out with games like Halo, Project Gotham Racing, Crackdown, Fable, etc. A company interested in a vertical approach would simply outsource their games, and have them adhere to specific standards they lay down, just as MS has set standards for Live support, Friendslist support, etc.
Too prone to breakdown. Pay-per-play model still sucks.
I'm not talking about thumbprint readers you find on keyboards, I'm talking about ones used in offices and such. Those are made to withstand wear and tear. Pay per play model is highly successful, to say it sucks is an uninformed opinion.
Most users wouldn't return to the arcade anyway. High score lists are better in that regard.
Wrong. Arcades are social hangouts where people return. You just admitted that high score lists are appropriate, which is what I was effectively saying.
Secondly, with all stats recorded across all games, you can access them from anywhere (on the net), compare them with your friends, and get email notices if someone beats your highscore...you don't need to even be at the arcade to find out where you stand.
DLC in a game you don't even own? Give me a break. Arcade games are already overpriced, everything should be selectable by unlocking it.
Games like Initial D get repeated players who upgrade their cars and customize them. Giving them the option to pay for upgrades, rather than play for hours, will end up being the cheaper alternative. Have you been to an arcade recently?
Arcade machines that can support multiple games is a good idea. Those games should be user-selectable to save space.
You want to minimize multiple games on one unit. The point is to be flexible to put out the most popular games during the right times due to restricted floor space. If at a certain time the arcade organizes a tournament for a specific game, all similar machines (ie. say racing units) can be converted easily to that game.
Might be too expensive, especially if it becomes popular and everyone flocks to the same machine.
Have you even used a surround screen setup? All it takes is a projector, which are cheap. The projector projects onto a round screen, and the projection itself is distorted, so when it appears on the screen, it looks proper. It would cost just as much as any other arcade unit that had an HD monitor. I only said "some" because you don't necessarily want to play fighters on that setup.
Hell no, fast food is crap. That would just reinforce the arcade as a fat people's hangout.
You need fast food because you can't make the person wait for a good 1/2 hour before eating in an environment like this. These places don't have infinite floor space, unless they took out the space of a big box retailer, but then the rent costs would be far too high.
Secondly, not all fast food is crap. Places like the Pita Pit, and Sandwich shops, are many times better than a burger or fried chicken place. Secondly, it means far less oily hands touching the arcade units.
Again, I don't have enough time to post it all here.
