Are Next-Gen Consoles Destroying Arcades?
It's hard to believe now, but there was a point in time when arcade games destroyed their console counterparts.
As incredible as the 8-bit NES system and the 16-bit Sega Genesis Console were, they could not hold a candle to their arcade counterparts. You can look at any game that was featured on both the consoles and the arcades.
From the 1980s to the early 1990s, arcade games comprised of the most advanced (at that time) state of the art technology. Compare famous arcade games like Donkey Kong, Double Dragon, Contra, etc to the NES versions. It's blatantly obvious that one was more powerful than the other.
No matter how much more powerful consoles grew, it still couldn't catch up to the experience that arcades drew. Even when revolutionary computer games were released like Doom or Half-Life, it still didn't have the graphical and audio power of Time Crisis at your local arcade.
Somewhere along the lines, things have changed. It really became evident when the past next-gen consoles (XBOX, PS2) came out. It was first time people can unequivocally say that home video games could compete with arcades. The sound and graphics were razor sharp.
The popularity in arcades had been dropping previous to that time, but this was really the last nail on the coffin.
Add that to the fact that the days of 25 cent games were long gone. It used to be that you walked into an arcade with $5; you knew your afternoon was set. But due to the higher cost of games, arcade owners needed to be reimbursed at a faster rate than before. So the newer games cost 50 cents, 75 cents, 1 dollar.
People could get that similar experience at home without having to pay for each play. Gamers stopped spending hours on end (some used to live there!) anymore. Now they could just get their kicks by lying on the couch. It was a lot more comfortable.
Now, with the most recent invasion of next-gen consoles (XBOX 360, PS3, Wii) arcades are practically a prehistoric experience. Something that old geezers ramble about (Back in my day....).
Now, with the Nintendo Wii's ability for a gamer to interact with the game just by hand and arm motions, it stole the last original trait of the arcade games. These were the kind of innovations you only saw in an arcade machine: The ability to play with more than just a basic joystick and buttons.
It's really a shame that this has happened. I remember before I started caring about girls, cars, well....basically all that teenage stuff, video games were a major part of my childhood. As much as I loved my NES, I remember more of the days where my dad would drive me and my friends to the local arcade. The place was like a cathedral for us.
We would spend all morning and afternoon there. Our eyes were completely bloodshot and there was that pesky echo from spending hours listening to loud computerized noises. But oh.......was it fun.
Can it ever get back to that point? Well it's not looking good. It's gotten so bad that arcade are slowing down in Japan. IN JAPAN! This is somewhat scary because Japan is the Las Vegas of arcades. Sure, the games might not be in the traditional American mold, but they are arcades nevertheless. The Nintendo Wii has obviously had an influence in that.
I know there must still be a market for arcades, and for the life of me I hope there can be someone who comes up with the magic formula.
Let's everybody get back to playing video games the way they used to be. In a loud room with pizza stained joysticks.
