Arcadia magazine

[castlevania fan]

Hi Guys

I got this magazine and i really like it even though i don't know any japanese. What does everyone else think of this magazine?. Also is it true that in japanese arcades they have about 20 of the same machine lined up against each other like say street fighter third strike?. Also i went on the amusement cue website now thats what i call an arcade i'll have to take a trip to Japan. http://www.am-cue.com

[Saurian]

That's it man - the arcades out in Tokyo are amazing places to go (clean, very well presented) it's not just the layouts that are class the standard of play aswell is superb.

For example you have Club Sega in Akihabara, the bottom floor of that arcade is VF4: Final Tuned, you walk down and are confronted by two big screens showing footage of the last tournament and a room full of VF cabs lined up back to back with challengers facing off on either side. The place gets proper live man when things hot up and the sickest players turn up - the vibe is incredible.

You get bigger arcades where the layout is per genre - like HEY in Akihabara where they have the basement for manga, the next floor is pure shoot em ups, next is beat em ups and then you've got a floor of dedicated and prize giving cabs. I used to work in arcades here and what struck me most is due to gaming being much more established in Japan people play a wider variety of product - here if the machine doesnt have a wheel or gun on it or if it doesnt somehow emulate a real experience (however badly) it doesnt make money, but gaming seems to appeal to a wider age group of both sexes who play a greater variety over there.

One large shopping plaza I went to had a mid sized arcade full of SF2 Anniversary Editions - and it was savage!