flynn23 wrote:
] ] There was a time when an arcade operator in America could
] ] buy a Ms. Pac-Man machine for less than $1,000, let it
] ] sit in an arcade, bar or storefront, and see that game
] ] make back over 30 times the initial investment. In 2004,
] ] that kind of profit margin is little more than a pipe
] ] dream.
] ]
] ] Since 2001, Midway completely shut down its arcade
] ] division, Konami closed its U.S. arcade operations, and
] ] Capcom did not even support its most recent title, Capcom
] ] vs, SNK 2, in the U.S., instead handing the game over to
] ] Sega for sales and marketing purposes.

I went to Vancouver recently. They still had the old style street arcade. Like in malls in the 80s. That it was tied into a video peep show did not detract from the sentimental feelings it invoked in me. That I ran out of quarters, did.

RE: State of the U.S. Arcade Industry 2004