Soviet Arcade Game Museum & Ye Olde Gaming, Does It Have To Die?

Just seen on BBC News in the UK!

This isn’t just any old museum, but one of USSR era games, machines and consoles. I found this particularly interesting as it goes on about arcades, which I figure are probably dying out through the ease and accessibility of gaming today. You don’t have to go to an arcade to do it when you can sit at home.

It’s a real shame, as arcades were where I spent a lot of childhood memories and fond ones at that. Here’s the video to get you thinking.

 This is a link to their website.

Makes you wonder doesn’t it?

I recall many a fond memory playing House of the Dead, Time Crisis and all other manner of shooting games to racing games, you name it.

It brings a tear to my eye knowing these iconic places where so many have had fond childhood memories of loud blaring machines singing happy jingles, the bright colors and the thrill of winning at those places are going downhill because of UK legislation.

Gambling machines, or fruit machines as they’re called in the UK, are now by law restricted to only four per venue, regardless of size. Tax on them has gone up because of gambling laws. Because of that, some twit somewhere tried to tax them more and discourage gambling and has inadvertently ruined an iconic piece of British heritage that’s been a common sight on the beaches and promenade’s for over three decades.

Go to any beach in England, guaranteed you will find at least one amusement arcade.

Blackpool Pleasure Beach, Western Super Mare, Newquay, Bournemouth, Minehead.

I assume they are still there now. Or hope, even.

I recall going to this very arcade in Minehead as a child. Doesn’t look like much does it?

Its still got a place in my heart for all those hours I spent playing there. Likely it always will.

Its strange. I love gaming. Be it casual, or hardcore. I can’t help but worry, with the economic downturn and people spending less money, that this new gambling taxation and restriction on machines causes so many more people to buy consoles. Staying indoors. Forgetting the predecessors of any console, The Arcade Machine, in arcade venues in Britain. A lot of people look to the present day in gaming, many more to the future. But how many of the kids on Call of Duty, roaring “STFU”, or the intense hardcore gamers, even the retro gamers who look at old consoles like the Atari… How often do they think of the real start of commercial gaming?

And as daft as it sounds, I don’t want to ever lose the arcade experience.