Worcester Business Journal

wbjournal.com | January 27, 2025 | Worcester Business Journal 11 the owner of a nightclub in Providence, to begin the process of opening the first Free Play location. Based in the former location of Maxwell Silver- man's Toolhouse Restaurant, Free Play Worcester has more than 70 arcade machines, as well as 15 pinball machines and other attractions, such as foosball and bubble hockey. Free Play outlasted Pixels & Pints Arcade Bar, a fellow Worcester establishment opened in 2019. Orig- inally opening on Graon Street, Pixels announced it would be moving to a new location in May 2021 but never reopened, suggesting adding arcade machines does not make running a bar or restaurant any less challenging. Part of Free Play's sticking power has been its ability to keep offering fresh experiences, said Leone. Aer opening, the venue added a dance floor, with DJs and karaoke featuring 80s and 90s music, as well as an out- door courtyard with a stage for live performances. Free Play Worcester has brought some modern tech- nology to its games; multiple pinball machines at the business are equipped with Insider Connected, a tech- nology platform created by Illinois-based Stern Pinball. Launched in 2021, Stern's technology allows pinball players to scan a QR code allowing their scores to be tracked in an app and displayed on a video monitor, turning what was once mostly a solitary experience into something more interactive. Usually a 21+ venue, Free Play has established a weekly family period on Sunday aernoons aer cus- tomers kept asking for the ability to bring their children along. Inspired by its success in Worcester, the business is working on opening a third location in Taunton. Leveling-up on value Just as the name suggests, all machines at Free Play are free to play, with the business instead charging an entry fee which ranges from $7 to $12, depending on the night. Games in the company's collection range in age from 1979's "Asteroids" to "Hatsune Miku: Project DIVA," a Japanese rhythm game still being produced by Tokyo-based Sega. Like any collectible, the value of a particular ar- cade machine is ultimately what someone is willing to pay for it. Spurred by a COVID-19 pandemic-in- spired increase in home collectors and the increas- ingly scarce availability of original machines and parts, the value of classic arcade machines has sky- rocketed over the last decade, with some machines doubling or even tripling in value. "When I started this hobby, a lot of these games were fairly inexpensive in terms of acquiring them," said Leone. "A lot of them were free at the time because we were going through the 2008 financial crisis. People were losing their homes and needed to move out. A lot of these games were just kind of sitting around and didn't work." This has turned machines like 1978's "Space In- vaders," 1981's "Centipede", or 1982's "Burgertime," into a bit of a dream scenario for a business owner: a piece of equipment bringing in revenue while continuing to increase in value. While the rate of the price climb has slowed a bit since the pandemic, values are still heading upward. Particularly rare or desirable machines can fetch upward of $5,000. "A lot of these games, the same ones that I once picked up for next to nothing, are either impos- sible to find or very expensive," Leone said. "It's thousands of dollars to get these games today, and oftentimes, if you want to find them, you have to ship them." Leone guessed the collection at Free Play Worces- ter is worth somewhere in the six-figure range. Part scarcity A reason for the increase in values is the scarcity of replacement parts, said Andy Jimison, founder of both MallRats arcade and Materia Arcade & Video Games in Worcester. While Jimison was surprised by the relative ease of restoring machines when he first got into the hobby, the machine's displays can be a problem. "e monitors themselves, those are kind of an outlier," Jimison said. "ey're old [cathode-ray tube] monitors. ey're going to keep dying. And the peo- ple that know how to repair those and the equipment you use to repair them are getting more rare." While not quite a bar arcade, MallRats Arcade is pretty close. Located inside the building formerly known as the Midtown Mall, it shares a wall with the Odd by Worcester Brewing. e cra brewery's own- er Jay Grey worked with Jimison to open the arcade in November, which is open to all ages. In addition to giving Jimison more space to store his growing collection, MallRats allows him to share the joy created by the machines with Worcester. "ey're meant to be played in a community space with strangers," he said. "I never wanted to have my arcade in my basement. at was never my goal." Fitchburg's soon-to-be location e staying power of Free Play in Worcester has shown midsize cities are seemingly large enough to support bar arcades. Leominster native Joshua Rife is betting the concept can work in the smaller city of Fitchburg, boosted by the ongoing revitalization of its downtown and the area's student population provided by Fitchburg State University. A graduate of FSU's video game design program, Rife shares a passion for gaming and seeks to tap into customers' fond memories of decades past with ret- ro-themed lighting, artwork, and cocktail menus. His business, called Power Surge, will include gaming consoles like Nintendo Switch to help entice college-age audiences too young to remember classics like 1982's "Ms Pacman" or 1992's "Street Fighter II." Power Surge Bar Arcade is planning a spring opening at 347-355 Main St. Combined with new apartments above, the business will bring new life into a downtown building constructed in 1877. "We'll have the classics like 'Galaga' and 'Pac-Man.' We're going to have 'e House of the Dead,' a shoot- ing game they had in the 90s in roller rinks and places like that," Rife said. "'Dance Dance Revolution' is a big one we will have." Free Play Bar & Arcade opened this Worcester location in September 2021 after the successful launch of its first location in Providence. W Notable games in Free Play Worcester's collection While prices have cooled somewhat since the COVID pandemic caused a surge in demand for arcade cabinets, many games are worth more than double what they were valued at just a decade ago. Year Game Manufacturer released Description 2013 estimated value 2023 estimated value Asteroids Atari 1979 One of the first commercially- successful arcade games, players must use lasers to protect a spaceship from flying asteroids. $400 - $800 $650 - $1,000 Donkey Kong Nintendo 1981 Among the most successful arcade games of all time, Donkey Kong introduced the world to the character of Mario $400 - $800 $800 - $1,000 as he worked to save the (blue cabinet) (blue cabinet) damsel in distress from the $500 - $1,000 $1,500 - $2,000 titular barrel-throwing gorilla. (red cabinet) (red cabinet) Punch-out!! Nintendo 1984 The top-selling game of 1984, this two-screened boxing game later inspired a 1987 game for home consoles featuring Mike Tyson. $350 - $550 $2,300 - $2,800 X-Men Konami 1992 A six-person, side-scrolling game where members of the Marvel Comics superhero team work to defeat Magneto. $750 - $1,500 $2,500 - $4,000 NBA Jam: Midway 1994 An over-the-top version of NBA Tournament basketball, featuring 2-on-2 Edition gameplay, high-flying dunks, and players who literally catch fire when performing well. $250 - $300 $1,500 - $2,500 Note: Prices not adjusted for inflation and based on machines in pristine working condition Sources: Exidy Arcade Price Guide, various websites

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