15 replies to this topic

[turboshandy]

exciting times for bognor regis 

 

https://www.mrpsclas...uk/default.html

[wearecity]

I do like to take a trip from London to Bognor for a visit every few years, as part of a nostalgia trip to see the Butlins, as it holds a lot of childhood and adulthood memories for me (as well as fruitys). Must definitely pay a visit when it's open.

[vectra666]

Good luck to Dave aka Mr p, he Seam's to be going from strength to strength since Gravesend, does anybody know how spa's arcade's doing??

Edited by vectra666, 25 September 2018 - 09:30 AM.

[gemini17]

exciting times for bognor regis 

 

https://www.mrpsclas...uk/default.html

I would never word this as an exciting time,as the coastal arcade industry is beyond struggling across the country.

Through family illness I have visited the Isle of Wight,Portsmouth,Weymouth,Littlehamptom,Hayling Island,Worthing and more recently Great Yarmouth and surrounding areas-and the picture is very bleak. Especially in the over 18 areas of the arcades where even in the height of the Summer holidays,sometimes there was just me and my partner playing the slots with 4/5 staff wandering around with little or nothing to do!

3 arcades went in to liquidation on the Isle of Wight and I can only see this as a continuous trend flooding the country from the south,spreading North.

An Arcade in Bognor which was very popular just off the sea front fell by the way side early last year,so it would never be a location I would choose to open a new venture in the arcade industry.

I agree the arcades the owner has have established a regular following and good reputation but Bogner is a good distance from them and building this takes time.

I personally don't see over 18 areas in arcades lasting longer than the next 5 years as many arcade owners I have met and got to know in my near by town of Blackpool,are simply losing money on them year after year.

More money is made from the children's ticket machines than is made from the over 18 areas,and this is where many arcade owners are now putting there investment into.

My in laws live in Portsmouth and I will be there next year so if the arcade is open then I will have a look and report back as to what it is like etc.

If it is open and still there that is.

 

Jay

Edited by gemini17, 25 September 2018 - 10:37 AM.

[richy1976]

Late 90s arcades started struggling as the big boys started taking over.

[turboshandy]

gemini17 what arcade are you on about mate? which one went? 

Edited by turboshandy, 25 September 2018 - 06:45 PM.

[gemini17]

gemini17 what arcade are you on about mate? which one went? 

Opposite the pier arcade.

Was off the street corner to the sea front.

I don't know what happened to it but it was open one day and closed the next(so the locals were telling us)

 

Jay

[gemini17]

gemini17 what arcade are you on about mate? which one went? 

Just looked it up on google maps 

 

Was called Monarch Amusements-cash casino

 

Waterloo square.-Google maps show this as May 2017.-and it's all boarded up with flyers all over it!

 

Jay

[evo1]

Its a shame that the laws was changed to bring in these 500 jackpots. Back in the day 4.80 era arcades by us was packed nearly everyday,now never anyone in but they must be making something as up by us they are in the process of changing to admiral and opening 24hrs. Wheres the fun in putting note after note in.

Also you can see why seaside arcades are go to ticket machines its called family fun at a great price  

50 tickets for a 5p chew WTF.

 

And them 2p pushers,place a few keyrings on top only for kids to put 5 pound on 2ps in not to get the keyring walk off and then see the floor staff walking around opening up the glass and move the key rings back,ROBBING F**ks

 

GREED!!!!!!

[gemini17]

Its a shame that the laws was changed to bring in these 500 jackpots. Back in the day 4.80 era arcades by us was packed nearly everyday,now never anyone in but they must be making something as up by us they are in the process of changing to admiral and opening 24hrs. Wheres the fun in putting note after note in.

Also you can see why seaside arcades are go to ticket machines its called family fun at a great price

50 tickets for a 5p chew WTF.

 

And them 2p pushers,place a few keyrings on top only for kids to put 5 pound on 2ps in not to get the keyring walk off and then see the floor staff walking around opening up the glass and move the key rings back,ROBBING F**ks

 

GREED!!!!!!

It's very sad Evo.

Don't get me wrong it's very sad to see the arcades demising at such a rate.

I still love slots but ive stopped playing locally now this past 6 months,as most days I was playing in the arcades alone.

Ive saved 100's and until I relocate in 6 years I won't be playing another 1p in them.

If we go away we have a dabble here and there but I mainly go to see how the arcades are doing-and as I state above it's a very bleak picture.

I popped into a local arcade in nearby Cleveleys today,just to catch up with friends and people I got to know.

They have around 80 x over 18 slots and around 60 ticket/10p slots and I counted 10 people in the arcade-3 in the 18+ area's and 7 in the ticket area.

That was around 3pm!

One of the staff stated it had been real bad over the holidays too-which was far from surprising.

 

Jay

[wearecity]

Yep the £500 slots were the definite start of the end for AWP's, as my mate said, why play for £25 or £35 (whatever it was at the time), when I can play for £500.

 

So you either have £500 slots or forget it nowadays for arcades.

 

Hopefully Mr P's is doing well enough to become like those retro arcades that are opening up, like the one in Bury near Manchester.

[jamesy4]

like the one in Bury near Manchester.

 

I am going through Bury in a few weeks. Do you know what the arcade is called please as I may pay a visit to it as it will keep me away from going to Blackpool/Morecambe/Southport all the time.

 

Thanks.

[andy-1]

Its called the arcade club.

 

Here is a link to the website.

 

https://www.arcadeclub.co.uk/

[barxfan]

I don't think many people would risk ruining their seaside holiday by having a session on today's Category B3 /C offerings.  People have wised up, they know rowing a B3 on 90% payout and shockingly bad game design (for the most part) will have a bad ending.  Likewise Cat C's with percentages nailed to the floor and rinsed to death by local clueys, £100 after £100 into those disgusting Triple 7 games for nothing back...

 

10 years ago I was out and about (inland, Midlands) every weekend with a decent float, no insider knowledge - just playing the Monopolys, Golden Games, Party Times, Electrocoins on 92-94% payout.  Great fun.  If todays crappy clone arcades could match even 50% of that entertainment I would be back, but it's just sheer greed.  Few owners want to give the player a game any more, just strip the contents of their wallet as fast as possible in return for a watery coffee and zero entertainment.   And they wonder why their arcades are dead these days, when they've turned most of their wage earning customer base off for life and the committed grannies are also dying off fast.

 

Forget about new recruits starting to play, the young are mostly online - anyone turning 18 and popping into their local arcade with a few tenners probably isn't going to be back!

 

Makes no business sense at all, surely it's better to "win" £20-£100 regularly from a large customer base, than depend on completely ruining a small handful of addicts?

 

Now I just sit at home on PS4 and save the money instead of watching £20 after £20 disappear into stone dead games.  Or play online.

Edited by barxfan, 27 September 2018 - 04:28 PM.

[turboshandy]

well i can tell you guys Monarch Amusements-cash casino closed a few years back and it closed due to the owner not paying the corrent liscences 

I was in there at the time they did loads of checks on him loads of popele in black suits lol so he was shut down pretty much straight away

hence why gone so fast it was in the paper when he went to court 

was a busy arcade realy had some good machines in it the owner was a bit of miserable bugger though hahaha

[wearecity]

Agree with barxfan although it's been more like 15-20 years, when any fun went for me. Didn't stop the addict in me playing for a few years after.

The addiction in me is now virtually non existant. I do still have a dabble now and then, if the opportunity arises, like a casino trip or visit to a mates by the sea. But everything is controlled on how much I'm willing to stake.

I don't think I ever went into that arcade in Bognor and there wasn't much choice in the town, not like Blackpool, Margate, Hastings etc... back in the day.

Mentioned a few times, the one non large company arcade I went in at Bognor. A small one run by an old man, who was miserable despite my interest in the fact he had a number of £6 and £8 jackpot machines well into the 2000s.

He just told me phones and cameras not allowed and I only went to answer a text.

Edited by wearecity, 28 September 2018 - 07:14 AM.