Amusements For All !!! - JOYPOLIS, SEGA Amusement, Arcade Centers, etc Thread

[Berto]

King of Japan’s arcades, Sega’s UFO Catcher turns 40

Walk into any arcade in Japan and you’ll likely be greeted by rows of claw machines, known here as UFO Catchers due to the claws’ resemblance to a flying saucer descending to abduct an unsuspecting prize. However, the game got off to a rough start.
“It wasn’t a very popular game machine when it was first launched,” says Mitsuharu Fukazawa, a UFO Catcher “artisan” in the Product R&D Department of Sega Fave, the subsidiary that oversees the company's crane game business. “We developed it with women and children in mind, but at the time there were no attractive prizes and it didn’t get much attention.”
“The prizes were mainly miniature toys and inexpensive daily necessities,” explains Toshinori Abe, director at Sega Fave’s Overseas Sales Department. “The machines weren’t designed to appeal to users through the attractiveness of the prizes themselves but rather as a supporting role to the main machines (mainly video games) installed in arcades.”
A major turning point came when Sega began acquiring the copyright to popular characters and offering them as prizes. In Japan, government regulations on the value of winnings in game machines capped the UFO Catcher prizes at just a few hundred yen, but in 1990 the legal limit was raised ...

Article : https://www.japantimes.co.jp/life/2025/06/24/digital/ufo-catcher-40th-anniversary-sega-arcade/

[Berto]

Drop by SEGA Pop Up Shop in Little Tokyo Los Angeles to get exclusive merch and amazing products in!

Thank you to everybody who came to support✨

DATE: JUNE 27th, 2025 - JULY 27th, 2025
TIME: 12:00pm-7:00pm EVERYDAY
📍 LITTLE TOKYO, LOS ANGELES CA

Source: https://x.com/littleakiba_LA/status/1939036906546946209

[Berto]

Landmark Akihabara arcade, opened by SEGA over 30 years ago, announces sudden closure

Tokyo is about to lose another site of game otaku history.
It’s been a tumultuous couple of years for the arcade industry in Japan. Not even the otaku mecca of the Akihabara neighborhood is completely buffered, as it’s been announced that one of the Tokyo neighborhood’s oldest “game centers,” as arcades are called in Japanese, will be closing and very soon.

Back in the early ‘90s, Sega was riding high, as a developer of not just video game software, but hardware too, producing home consoles, handheld systems, and arcade machines. In 1992, it opened High-tech Land Sega Shintoku on a corner of Chuo-dori, the main street of Akihabara. The entire multi-story building was one huge arcade, eventually changing its name to Club Sega Akihabara and then Sega Akihabara Building 1, now called GiGO Akihabara Building 1.

But now the end is coming for GiGO Akihabara Building 1, and it’s coming very quickly. On Tuesday, Genda announced that the landmark arcade will be closing down permanently at the end of the summer. In its press release, Genda says the reason ...

Article : https://soranews24.com/2025/07/16/landmark-akihabara-arcade-opened-by-sega-over-30-years-ago-announces-sudden-closure/

[Berto]

A SALISBURY arcade "Highest Score Arcade" has been saved after raising enough money to secure its future.

Highest Score Arcade is officially back open after a "huge show of support from the Salisbury community and beyond."
Following a make-or-break weekend, the independent arcade raised more than £3,000 in just two days, securing its immediate future.
Owner James Petherick shared a personal message thanking everyone who visited, donated, and helped spread the word, with support coming not only from Salisbury and Wiltshire but even as far as international supporters. He said: "We’ve been blown away by the generosity and kindness people have shown. Locals, businesses, and supporters around the world have ..."

Article: https://www.salisburyjournal.co.uk/business/business/25318124.highest-score-arcades-future-salisbury-saved/

[Berto]

SEGA STORE TOKYO in SHIBUYA PARCO - LAUNCH TRAILER

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v0PxWNbUKJI

SEGA is thrilled to announce that SEGA STORE TOKYO, SEGA's first official retail outlet in Japan, has opened on the sixth floor of Shibuya PARCO today on July 18, 2025.

SEGA has created numerous characters and intellectual properties in its more than 60-year history and continues to drive high-quality entertainment content on a global scale through the promotion of the transmedia strategy.

A key part of this endeavor involves opening SEGA STORE TOKYO, the first flagship store in Japan, following the successful May 2025 launch of SEGA STORE SHANGHAI. Located in Shibuya, a hub for Japanese entertainment and culture, SEGA STORE TOKYO offers huge selection of items such as ...

Article: https://www.sega.co.jp/en/release/250701_1.html

[Berto]

Joypolis original photo booths are available with Sonic frames! ❕😆

The location is a bit hard to find…
They’re set up in front of the 1st Joypolis Exploration Team ✨

Also at the 2nd Carnival Corner, we’ve got Joypolis-exclusive Sonic prizes ready! ❣

Source: https://x.com/TokyoJoypolis/status/1946012548664582564

[Berto]

"100 Yen Life" Arcade Game Center Bring Their SEGA Arcade Games to Play in K1 Speed!

🎊 FOR THOSE IN SAN DIEGO or attended Comic Con! 🎉

"100 Yen Life" Arcade Game Center are excited to announce that they're working with SEGA to bring you an awesome retro arcade at K1 Speed!

Immerse yourself in the history of SEGA arcade games including originals of some upcoming remasters/versions FOR FREE!

Source: https://x.com/100_Yen_Life/status/1948133094185161174

[Mystic Monkey]

Landmark Akihabara arcade, opened by SEGA over 30 years ago, announces sudden closure



Article : https://soranews24.com/2025/07/16/landmark-akihabara-arcade-opened-by-sega-over-30-years-ago-announces-sudden-closure/

What's going to happen to it in the future? Made into housing or new shops?

[Berto]

What's going to happen to it in the future? Made into housing or new shops?

According to Barry, another amusement company will be filling the space with new amusement center. Matahari Entertainment will take over the building (the company behind Silk Hat, which is a very similar arcade chain to GiGO).
And It’s also not all bad news for GiGO, as they has just announced a new three-story location set to open in Tokyo called GiGO Fuchu. And for SEGA ... permanent SEGA Store is finally opening for the first time in Japan (in Shibuya to be exact).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UXpIA-XFgpg

[Mystic Monkey]

According to Barry, another amusement company will be filling the space with new amusement center. Matahari Entertainment will take over the building (the company behind Silk Hat, which is a very similar arcade chain to GiGO).
And It’s also not all bad news for GiGO, as they has just announced a new three-story location set to open in Tokyo called GiGO Fuchu. And for SEGA ... permanent SEGA Store is finally opening for the first time in Japan (in Shibuya to be exact).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UXpIA-XFgpg

Sega never had a store in their homelands before?

[Berto]

Sega never had a store in their homelands before?

Not a permanent one like now.
They did have some shops every year but time limited, only opened for one-two months (usually called it as a pop-up store).
It kinda worked to add the rarity value to the merchs though.

[Mystic Monkey]

Not a permanent one like now.
They did have some shops every year but time limited, only opened for one-two months (usually called it as a pop-up store).
It kinda worked to add the rarity value to the merchs though.

I wish UK had a legit Sonic store.

[Berto]

I wish UK had a legit Sonic store.

SEGA always tried with pop up stores first.
If they all went well, they could recisonder to make the permanent one later.
I don't know how well their pop up stores in UK.
The last one was in June at The Events Plaza at Chiswick Business Park.

[Berto]

【Initial D Arcade』 × 『Yakuza』 Collaboration event starts today!







https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W0rO7S0AkgA

7/31 (Thu) – 【Initial D Arcade』 × 『Yakuza』Collaboration event starts!
This is the ultimate collab for street racers!
Event runs until 12/3 (Wed), 2025!

▼Details here
https://info-initialdac.sega.jp/6494

[Mystic Monkey]

SEGA always tried with pop up stores first.
If they all went well, they could recisonder to make the permanent one later.
I don't know how well their pop up stores in UK.
The last one was in June at The Events Plaza at Chiswick Business Park.

I'm guessing it didn't went well. I don't know how many video game franchise stores there are in UK.

I believe there is an official Pokémon store somewhere, but I am unsure.