Arcade and location-based entertainment entered 2023 with plenty of momentum, but the year also exposed significant differences between independent arcades, family entertainment centres and larger chains. This review examines business conditions, trade shows, new releases, venue growth and the stories that attracted the most attention.
For Australian operators and enthusiasts, the broader lesson is familiar: demand for out-of-home entertainment remains strong, but rising equipment costs, uneven consumer spending and competition between venues continue to shape the market.
The digital arcade community
The publication behind this review reached its 17th year during 2023. Its website remained active, while YouTube delivered stronger growth than other social channels. The channel reached 17,200 subscribers and introduced memberships. Increased interest in video content led to more news videos, but there were no plans to close the website.
A livestream discussing the year was planned for 1 or 2 January. Website readers came from around the world, led by the United States, followed by the United Kingdom, Canada, Japan and Australia. YouTube viewership had a different order after the United States: Indonesia, the United Kingdom, the Philippines and Japan.
Ted joined the editorial team, bringing additional perspective and assistance. The site also received a refreshed logo, with further minor changes still intended.
For more arcade coverage, explore the RETROCADE arcade blog.
Business conditions were difficult to read
Feedback from operators was mixed. Some reported a better year than 2022, while others experienced a decline. The reviewer’s own venue, Arcade Galactic in Salt Lake City, Utah, operates approximately 65 games and had been running for 15 years.
A second venue in Ogden, Utah, operated from 2020 to 2022 before closing on 31 December 2022. Some equipment was sold, while the rest moved to the original location and helped strengthen its opening position in 2023.
The year proved unusually unpredictable. The business normally follows two annual peaks, during summer and the Christmas period, with quieter periods around the end and start of the school year. Tourist destinations can follow a different cycle, depending on visitor numbers.
Although 2023 began well and produced a short improvement in July, trading weakened progressively afterwards. November was the venue’s poorest month, an unusual result because the period around Black Friday is normally its second- or third-best time of year.
Operators assessing conditions can consider unemployment at both national and local levels, workforce participation, consumer spending and confidence, GDP growth, inflation, interest rates, quarterly retail sales, investment performance, trade balances, consumer debt, taxation and regulation. Competition between nearby venues adds another variable.
Those indicators appeared mixed overall, although several had been moving in an unfavourable direction.
Why cinema performance matters to some arcades
Movie theatres and arcades both belong to out-of-home entertainment and location-based entertainment. The connection is especially clear when an arcade operates near a cinema, where successful films can increase surrounding foot traffic. Family releases are particularly valuable for some venues.
At Arcade Galactic, an IMAX theatre sits nearby in the same mall without an attached arcade. Since the cinema opened in 2012, weekend arcade performance has often reflected which films were attracting local audiences. A large family entertainment centre further along the mall also competes for visitors seeking bowling, laser tag or games unavailable at the smaller venue.
The cinema market was uneven in 2023. More films reached screens than during the previous few years, but several major studio releases underperformed. The success of Barbenheimer and The Super Mario Bros. Movie demonstrated the upside, yet those hits did not remove the broader uncertainty.
The argument is not that every arcade depends on a theatre, or that cinema weakness explains every difficult trading result. However, in locations where the two businesses share foot traffic, theatre performance can materially affect smaller operators. The loss of cinemas could therefore have consequences for nearby independent businesses, including arcades.
Trade shows returned strongly
One of the year’s positive signs was the return of major amusement trade events across the world. Attendance was healthy, and IAAPA Expo 2023 in Orlando reported record attendance and engagement. Raw Thrills produced the most-watched booth tour from the event coverage.
The Amusement Expo International event also performed well. Its most-watched manufacturer booth tour featured Sega. JAEPO attracted attention for Japanese arcade releases, while London’s EAG show drew interest from European readers.
The American Amusement Machine Association also reported raising approximately $400,000 for children’s charities during the year, with a gala held in September.
New arcade games released in 2023
Excluding Japan, the year produced an estimated 57 new arcade releases, including videmption and virtual-reality titles. Removing those categories still left about 40 games, above the more usual annual range of 25 to 30. Redemption-only products were not included, so the total would be higher if they were counted.
The increase reflects demand from operators as well as a backlog of projects delayed during the pandemic. Most games take roughly 18 months to develop, meaning the delayed-development pipeline continued to influence releases during 2023 and was expected to reduce further during 2024.
Growth in the number of operating arcade rooms creates more potential buyers, but not every venue can purchase new equipment. Debt accumulated during the previous few years made additional investment difficult for some operators, particularly those already experiencing weaker trading.
Equipment prices remained another major barrier. Many new machines were priced at $20,000 or more, making them difficult for smaller venues to absorb. The limited number of new products below $10,000 leaves operators increasingly dependent on used equipment, which in the reviewer’s experience generally performs below comparable new machines.
Despite those challenges, the higher release count was a positive development for the industry. A 2023 arcade game showcase was also planned.
Titles expected during 2024
The 2024 release-tracking page was scheduled to launch on 1 January. Games identified through IAAPA included Apex Rebels from Sega Amusements, Asphalt Moto Blitz DX from LAI Games, Godzilla Kaiju Wars VR from Raw Thrills, Goldstorm Pirates from Bandai Namco and the USA model of Taiko No Tatsujin from Bandai Namco.
Additional titles were expected for exA-Arcadia, including an unnamed project described as likely to attract considerable attention. Fighting-game fans were encouraged to watch the platform, where Omen of Sorrow AC and Phantom Break Omnia had been shown at IAAPA.
New venues and the location picture
Reliable global counts for operating arcades remain difficult to establish. An earlier industry estimate listed approximately 2,500 arcades, 3,500 family entertainment centres and almost 161,000 street locations such as petrol stations, rest stops and lobbies. Those figures were published before the industry’s strong pre-2020 growth, but the methodology behind them was not fully clear.
Five location reports published during 2023 covered openings in February, May, July, September and December. Together, they identified 202 new venues worldwide, although the count was not intended to represent every opening. Closures often receive more attention, but the number of openings was described as considerably larger.
Family entertainment centre growth remained an important driver of equipment demand. Prominent operators included Dave & Buster’s and Main Event, with a combined 220 locations at the time of reporting: 162 and 58 respectively. Round1USA had 50 locations, while Bowlero expanded into 13 states during the year. Chuck E. Cheese and Peter Piper Pizza also reported a strong year and significant employment through an infographic from their chief executive, although a current combined location total was not available. Before bankruptcy, the group had operated more than 1,000 locations.
Large venues help support ambitious new machines, but their spending power can leave smaller operators with fewer affordable choices. With relatively few new games below $10,000, many independent arcades must consider second-hand equipment or focus on maintenance and upgrades. RETROCADE’s arcade machine buying guide can help buyers compare options, while arcade repairs and servicing remain important for keeping existing cabinets earning.
The ten most-read stories and videos
The channel’s ten most-viewed videos were not all uploaded during 2023. The leading video became the channel’s first to pass 500,000 views. A planned full playthrough of The Walking Dead in Big Buck Reloaded had to be repeated after the recording captured no sound.
Among videos released during 2023, a direct capture of House of the Gundead attracted the most views.
- February 2023 Location Watch: the newest places to play arcade games
- GoldStorm Pirates seen on test in the United States
- Unico USA launches 26-inch arcade CRT replacement LCD panels
- Ice Cold Beer remake scheduled for February
- Andamiro reveals Pump It Up 2023 Phoenix
- Raw Thrills announces Godzilla Kaiju Wars VR for IAAPA 2023
- IAAPA 2023: the grand preview
- Bandai Namco Amusements tests a DeadStorm Pirates sequel in Japan
- JAEPO 2023 round-up of new Japanese arcade games
- Bandai Namco’s Taiko No Tatsujin begins testing in the United States
Japanese arcade coverage continued to attract strong interest, even though many of those games do not receive official support in the United States or Europe. Round1USA exclusives may help explain some of that attention.
The most-read story concerned the United States location test for Taiko No Tatsujin. The game had not appeared at an amusement trade show and remained in testing at the end of 2023, meaning any release would have been a 2024 possibility with no confirmed timing.
For Australian collectors building a personal setup, options range from full upright arcade cabinets to space-saving bartop arcades. The year’s industry trends show why choosing the right footprint, budget and maintenance plan matters as much as selecting the games.
Overall, 2023 delivered a mixed but active picture: independent operators faced uncertain trading and high machine prices, while trade shows, new releases and family entertainment centre expansion pointed to continued industry demand.
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