one alternative to membership or an addition, would be a deposit system- like many pubs use with the pool and darts equipment. obviously the price would have to be higher since gaming equipment is expensive.

also, aren’t the australian gamer guys along with Yahtzee of ZP fame doing something similar to this?

that way you get to see what kind of interest there would be and get a base of members started before you invest in a pub.

Seriously made me lol. I assume you’re speaking for experience?

If it is full of PS3s and 360s, what is the drive to bring people out of their home where they can play the same games for free with their own food?
The other problem with using home consoles is how are you going to keep the media secure? One guy goes to take a quick piss then the next thing you know, someone popped the copy of COD4 out of the PS3 he was using and takes it home.

If you are running PCs you have to lock the security on them very tight so that your patrons don’t come in and start leeching every title on your server onto their portable media to take home with them.

Arcade cabinets are expensive to buy and expenive to maintain. Qualified technicians and good replacement parts are much more rare than they were in the days of the arcade.

Most of these places would have to cater to those of us old enough to remember the arcades and the fun we had there, plus sell booze.

The current youth enjoy their internet anonymity so they can act like complete assholes to their competitors without getting popped in the mouth. That is a broad generalization of the youth, and if you are not like that, then I do not mean you. However, if I sat in a club and the kid next to me was shouting “LALALALALALA” into his headset constantly, I would stand up and fucking punch him.

Now, if you can find a way to give people someting they can not get anywhere else, like a Battletech Pod setup or a similar experience, you start to get more options. Perhaps you integrate this setup into a bowling alley/billiards hall. Then you start to draw a wider audience. Parents end up participating in bowling leagues on a weekly basis for competition and they can have their kids play in the arcade section, etc.

Sorry I sound so negative on a concept I really love. I have just watched so many things like this that people tried to start just crash and burn.

I have a few suggestions.

With regards to the worry over people getting wrecked, there are several measures you can take to minimise this:

* Don’t sell spirits or shots; sell single-shot cocktails instead. Also, try and encourage the purchase of non-alcoholic drinks as a completely acceptable alternative and make sure beer is of the lower alcohol APV.

* Make prices more expensive than usual compared to pubs like Wetherspoons.

* Make sure there are bouncers on the door and put very strict rules on people being banned if they cause any trouble.

* Breathalyzers. I kid you not. If you give the barman the power to be able to Breathalyze people if there’s a worry that they’re too drunk, that can be used as cause to refuse them a drink. If they persist then they get a warning and after that they get thrown out.

I know this sounds very draconian – maybe it is – but, ultimately, it should maintain a fairly trouble-free environment. People who don’t drink to a large excess won’t sweat about these measures at all because it’s none of their concern; it’s the troublemakers you have to worry about.

Also, on what types of games should line the pubcade (which I think is a great name, by the way): make them arcade games, old and new classics, joystick cabinets, whell cabinets, DDR, Wii, etc. Try and provide what people can’t get at home. By this I mean that you might want to minimise the amount of PS3s and 360s available because I don’t think it will sell the place. People can get that stuff at home. Maybe there should be a few exceptions, like a Halo 3 or CoD 4 night or a Pro Evo night once in a while.

Also, excellent idea with the membership card, persistant ranking, points, achievements, etc. Further, if this is successful, you’d have plenty of great marketing opportunities available from companies who want to advertise a new game coming out, so there are additional revenue streams apart from gate receipts, fees and refreshment sales.

Also, make wi-fi available (maybe a fee attached?) and keep the place clean, tidy, comfortable and smelling nice. Primarily make it a place for playing games instead of drinking and it will stay that way. One of things that kept me and so many others away from arcades in the past when I was young was the horrible atmosphere, damp smell, fag ends on the floor, poor lighting, etc. Make it a pleasent space to spend an evening in and then you’ve got yourself a winner.

(Sorry about the long post, it’s just that I’ve talked about this before with a friend and I just KNOW that this is going to happen and will work in some format or another. It’s just a case of finding the right blueprint.)