IAAPA Expo returns to Orlando, Florida, from 18–22 November 2024, offering a first look at arcade, redemption, pinball, simulation and location-based entertainment products expected to reach venues in 2025. The exhibition is enormous, so this guide concentrates on the Games and Arcade Pavilion, with larger VR and attraction suppliers covered separately.
IAAPA Expo is the largest tradeshow held by the amusement industry. The Orange County Convention Center also hosts exhibitors covering inflatables, theme-park rides and industry technology. The trade-show floor opens on 19 November; the opening day is reserved for education sessions and setup.
Visitors should plan for long days and substantial walking. Four days may still not be enough to cover the convention centre, so comfortable, well-worn shoes and a route planned around priority booths are essential. Product lists can change because of shipping delays, unloading damage or late exhibitor decisions. This preview focuses on video arcade, videmption, redemption, pinball, VR and simulator products.
For home collectors, the show is also a useful reminder of how commercial arcade design differs from a domestic setup. RETROCADE’s arcade-machine buying guide explains the practical considerations when choosing a cabinet, while the arcade blog follows the wider industry.
Major arcade exhibitors
Raw Thrills
Raw Thrills’ main display will be distributed across Betson booths 515, 615 and 818, with additional products appearing at Bandai Namco Amusements because Bandai Namco Amusement Europe distributes other manufacturers. Angry Birds Boom! will make its United States industry debut after appearing at IAAPA Expo Europe.
The new two-player tethered version of Halo: Fireteam Raven is also scheduled. Godzilla Kaiju Wars VR will receive its complete five-chapter version at the show; existing owners can request a free upgrade kit through their distributor, although shipping was expected after IAAPA. NBA Superstars will receive software intended to make play faster and more exciting, while Marvel: Contest of Champions gains updated cabinet artwork reflecting Deadpool versus Wolverine.
- Angry Birds Boom!
- Halo: Fireteam Raven, two-player tethered
- Godzilla Kaiju Wars VR, all chapters
- NBA Superstars
- Marvel: Contest of Champions
- Fast & Furious Arcade
- Minecraft Dungeons Arcade
- Big Buck Hunter Reloaded
Wahlap
Wahlap’s own booth is 210. Its headline display is expected to be Monster Eye 3 in its original form, alongside Asphalt Moto Blitz DX, Asphalt 9 Legends DX, Prize Popper and Thunderbolt Shot.
TouchMagix
At booth 1640, TouchMagix will present its mixture of redemption and videmption products. The principal new launch is Minions BullsEye Mania, an interactive darts game. Other confirmed products are Crazy Prize, Pudgy Penguins Polar Challenge, Mega Blaster, POP IT!, SpaceWarp 66 DX and Carnival Cups Crane.
Alan-1
Making its first IAAPA appearance with booth 3902, Alan-1 will show two-player and three-player versions of Asteroids Recharged and the two-player version of Avian Knights. A three-player DX Asteroids will also appear at AVS Companies. The proposed arcade edition of Gravitar Recharged has been delayed until Amusement Expo 2025.
Adrenaline Amusements
Booth 1341 will feature Duck Derby: Pump ’N Race, a large videmption interpretation of a carnival water-pump game. A smaller Drakons: Realm Keepers model using an 80-inch flat-screen, rather than the 100-inch LED board, is also expected. Confirmed titles are Duck Derby, Drakons Realm Keepers and NFS Heat Takedown.
Additional arcade, redemption and pinball products
Ace Amusement
At booth 440, Ace Amusement will show Skull of Shadow, Fast Racing and Rush & Catch. Some products are expected to be exclusive to this booth.
Amusement Source International
Booth 2437 expands to a 30-by-30-foot space and will include redemption and videmption products. Skull of Shadow headlines the video selection, with three cabinet versions available for sale; the four-player tethered stand-up model will be the only version displayed at IAAPA. Other confirmed products are Rolly Carnival, Play A Ball, Egg Mania, Infinity Roll, Clown Ball, Happy Mania and a mobile-phone case vending and printing machine.
Andamiro USA
At booth 1800, Andamiro will focus on redemption, including a new Star Wars coin pusher. The list also includes Crazy Toy Jr., Pump It Up Phoenix 2024, SpongeBob Squarepants VR Bubble Coaster with the new Ghost Coaster ride, the single-player Spider-Man pusher and Talking Tom whacker.
AVS Companies
Booth 1617 will be the location for Alan-1’s three-player Asteroids Recharged DX and the only display of Kung Fu Panda: The Warrior’s Gauntlet VR from Utah-based Night Heron Entertainment. AVS itself is based in Illinois.
Bandai Namco Amusements
Booths 1300 and 1600 will combine Bandai Namco’s American and European operations, with selected Raw Thrills and Adrenaline Amusements products also present. The major launches are GoldStorm Pirates, making its US industry debut, and the USA version of Taiko No Tatsujin.
The confirmed range includes Taiko No Tatsujin Kiddie Ride, Wani Wani Panic Kiddie Ride, Animal Kaiser Plus, Looney Tunes Red Zone Rush, Tom & Jerry Kitchen Chaos, Pac-Man Roller, Jumpin’ Jupiter and Tower Island. Bike Dash Delivery and Jump Racer had previously appeared on test, but their IAAPA status was uncertain.
Bay Tek, Coastal Amusements and Elaut USA
Bay Tek occupies booths 1015 and 1024 with ICEE Slush Rush, SpongeBob Squarepants Dynamic Duo VR, single-player Goatz ’N Ropes, Toilet Bowl Toss, Big Bass Wheel and several Skeeball products. QB Throwdown was not listed and may have been shelved; Battleship Bounce may or may not appear.
Coastal Amusements’ booth 1315 includes Wave Riders X-Treme, Claw Frenzy, Double Play, Level Up, Tilt A Wheel, budget Break The Plate, Jumpin Space and Wild Things 2-Player. Elaut’s booths 2215 and 2221 will feature Baby Bear, Popeye Boxer, Popeye Dizzy Divers, Slap Shot, Superman Worlds United and The Smurfs pusher and crane products.
DOF Robotics
DOF Robotics will debut the arcade racer Angry Birds: Fury Road, alongside its Supernova simulator and AIQ, an AI-powered queuing system.
exA-Arcadia
Returning with its own booth 238, exA-Arcadia will display Jitsu Squad Feat. the Samurai Pizza Cats, Fixeight EXA Label, Wild Guns Rawhide, Cyberblocker R, Earthion EXA Label, Batsugun EXA Label Ver 1.5, Demon Front EXA Label, Airgallet EXA Label, Asuka 120% Burning Fest EXALLENT, Daemon Bride exAgain, Bunny Bomber Blast!, Omen of Sorrows: Arising Chaos, Phantom Breaker Omnia, Breakers Revenge Chicago and Daybreak Slam. New trackball controllers and two private-showing games—one EXA Label title and one licensed beat ’em up—are also planned.
Gesture Art & Design, ICE and IGPM/Kalkomat
Gesture Art & Design moves Food Flight into the Games Pavilion at booth 1717 after California testing.
ICE, at booths 1606 and 1806, lists Neon Bowling, Smash ’N Win, Stop The Drop, Yeti Go!, Double Dribble, Quarterback Pro and World Football Pro. IGPM/Kalkomat will present boxing machines including the new Kaboom, Power Slap and established products.
Pinball and other exhibitors
Jersey Jack Pinball, booth 809, will focus on Avatar. Stern Pinball, booth 815, will show Metallica Remastered, The Uncanny X-MEN, John Wick and JAWS. JET Games, booth 1027, is expected to display Mega Shot, Big Shot, Jet Darts and Quick Toss.
LAI Games uses booths 200, 400 and 603 for Kaiju Rampage, its version of Wahlap and IGS’s Monster Eye 3, plus Tornado, Galaxy Hunter, Lost Pirate and Mount Shabang. A mixed-reality projection-mapping shooting game using an unidentified major licence was expected as an early pre-release demonstration, although details were not confirmed.
Sydney developer MonkeySplash Studios will make its arcade debut at booth 811 with Chef It Up, recently tested at Dave & Busters Orlando.
Player One Amusement Group, booth 631, will promote an unnamed wrestling-licensed redemption game by Premier Arcade Games, with several professional wrestlers, including Hulk Hogan, scheduled for autographs. PLAYMIND, booth 829, will show two- and four-player PLAYBOX systems, with redesigned two-player cabinets.
PrimeTime Amusements, booth 804, will be the exclusive exhibitor for Step ManiaX, Killer Queen Arcade and the pay-to-play version of Subsoccer Arcade. Really Big Crane Co., booth 102, will focus on cranes and updated software for Zombie Jam.
Sega Amusements
At booth 1006, Sega will present Apex Rebels, Zombies! Ready, Deady, Go!, Big Sea Fishing, On Target, Allstars Ultimate Disc, Allstars Air Hockey, High Five and one-, two- and four-player versions of Win Fall Revolution. Possible additions included an enclosed Mission: Impossible Arcade and Balloon Circus. The new 3MindWave collaboration Alpha Ops VR Strike is expected to make its industry debut.
Other confirmed or expected displays include Smart Industries’ JJ Bot: The Avatar at booth 424; Team Play’s Pixel Pix Gen 4 Deluxe, Photo Motion and Carnival Wheel at booth 1700; Tecway at booth 600; and Triotech’s Super Blaster, Qube and Storm VR across booths 1359, 1361 and 1658.
UNICO USA will show the Nova Blast cabinet at booth 5627. UNIS, celebrating 30 years at booths 1332 and 1636, lists Neon Rush, Bigfoot Smash, Dino Storm, Monster Kart, Sailor’s Quest VR 2, Carnival Shot, Quack King, All About Tickets, Toy Box, Toy Box Capsule, Capsule Station and the emoji range. Valley-Dynamo, booth 624, will show Valley Panther ZD-11, Dynamo Cosmic Thunder, Dynamo Fire Storm and Tornado T3000. Zooom Studios, booth 262, lists AstroLOLogy, The Depot Line, Open Ice Quad Air, Monster Prize, Space Race and Prize Bus.
VR, mixed reality and simulator providers
The following exhibitors concentrate on larger attractions and higher-cost equipment, generally aimed at family entertainment centres, theme parks and other commercial venues rather than a conventional home arcade. Operators should compare floor space, staffing, throughput and budget before considering these systems. RETROCADE’s racing arcade range covers a more compact alternative for driving-focused play.
Amusement Products, Ballast VR and Breeze Creative
Amusement Products, booths 4669 and 4869, works with go-karts and systems such as the VEX Solutions Free-Roam VR attractions previously shown. Ballast VR, booth 7350, focuses on waterpark and waterslide VR. Breeze Creative, booth 6009, will present mixed-reality projection products including the Animated Sandbox and dynamic tables and floors.
Creative Works and Hero Zone VR
Creative Works, booths 2871 and 3072, may show Lucky Putt Bar Games, Limitless VR and the VAR Box, although the latter products were not fully confirmed. Hero Zone VR, booth 457, will debut a mobile free-roam setup and Wizard Academy, a cooperative puzzle game for up to six players. Players become students completing magical tasks, collecting artefacts and solving challenges before time expires. It is the ninth in Hero Zone’s growing catalogue and was developed in-house.
Hologate, Holovis and Ideas Extremas
Hologate, booth 4458, will introduce the wireless ARENA INFINITE system, designed to work with its existing game library. Holovis, booths 573 and 1868, specialises in theme-park attractions and may use its stands primarily for business development. Ideas Extremas, booth 3609, will introduce a VR Arena connected to its ropes-course business.
Immotion, Inowize and MaxFlight
Immotion, booth 1374, develops educational VR experiences for museums, zoos and related venues. Inowize, booth 3874, returns with its QBIX immersive game room, now offering six games. MaxFlight, booth 3065, is expected to show its established motion platform, although a new hardware platform was not confirmed.
Owatch VR, Rilix and Talon Simulations
Owatch VR, booth 891, will present the VR rhythm ride Beat Star and a motion-based space-travel ride. Rilix, booth 638, is working with Andamiro on the new Ghost Coaster ride for SpongeBob VR Bubble Coaster, alongside its standard VR rides. Talon Simulations, booth 2064, supplies VR installations for family entertainment centres, including the previous Top Gun Maverick experience at Dave & Busters.
Valo Motion, VR 360 Action and VR eSport Arena
Valo Motion, booth 4879, will show North American versions of its ValoArena and ValoPark concepts following IAAPA Expo Europe. VR 360 Action, booth 4089, is expected to display its established VR simulators, although new products were not confirmed. VR eSport Arena, also identified as Phenomena VR on some materials, will operate its free-roam arena at booth 886 with its latest software.
Zero Latency VR
Zero Latency, booth 3686, will showcase its free-roam VR offering, with the Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine experience expected to be a major attraction.
What to watch at IAAPA 2024
IAAPA includes far more exhibitors than those listed here, but this selection covers the manufacturers, distributors and attraction providers most relevant to arcade operators. The strongest themes are licensed videmption, multiplayer arcade releases, upgraded VR attractions, redemption equipment and new products from Australian developer MonkeySplash Studios.
For anyone comparing commercial releases with a domestic cabinet, RETROCADE’s arcade machines catalogue provides a useful point of reference. IAAPA’s products are designed for public venues, while home buyers must also consider installation, maintenance, controls and available space.
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