Sega’s iconic Tokyo arcades are officially no more | VGC (2024)

FAQs

What happened to the Sega Arcades? ›

However, a large majority of these were closed in the 2000s, primarily due to a worldwide decline in the amusem*nt arcade industry rendering some centers unprofitable, an ongoing recession in Japan, and cost-cutting measures at Sega in the midst of their restructuring.

In August of 2020, word came that Sega Akihabara Building 2 was shutting down, and the same thing happened for Sega Ikebukuro GiGO in August of 2021. It's especially sad since GiGO Akihabara Building 4 contains not only an arcade, but also a cafe for rotating collaborative events with popular game franchises.

Although Genda originally wanted to keep the Sega name for marketing purposes, that changed in 2022, as the company announced that it was going to be getting rid of the Sega branding from all of the arcades and replacing it with GiGo, which is now reflected in Like A Dragon: Infinite Wealth as all the arcades across ...

There are many cities with arcades, specifically Taito and GiGO, the two that I have been to the most. I've visited these arcades in Akihabara, Ikebukuro, Shinjuku, and Shibuya, but there are probably more. It's easy to hop on the train to get there, but if you're new to the train system, it can be overwhelming.

But, eventually, the economics became less attractive, and the arcades started closing or changing direction. These days, classic arcade machines are expensive to maintain and require specialist technical knowledge; the parts aren't being made any more.

Sega had commercial failures in the second half of the decade with the 32X, Saturn, and Dreamcast, as the company's market strategy changed and console newcomer Sony became dominant with the PlayStation, in addition to further competition from Nintendo.

There were also reports of increased crime associated with arcades due to lack of adult supervision. Many cities and towns implemented bans on arcades or limiting businesses to only a few machines by the mid-1980s.

From 1983 to 1985, the gaming market witnessed a loss of revenue that totaled $11,900,000,000. The arcade industry was almost completely killed but managed to be sustained, that was, until home video game consoles came about. The birth of gaming consoles heralded the death of arcades.

The obvious culprit would be a downturn in business due to the coronavirus outbreak, which has vastly decreased the number of visitors to Akihabara, and even among those who are making the trip, the prospect of sitting in an enclosed space while grabbing joysticks and mashing buttons without the machine having a ...

The incident took place in Tokyo's crowded Akihabara district around noon on June 8, 2008. Kato rammed a truck into a pedestrian-only zone and hit five people. He then got out and randomly stabbed other pedestrians with a knife. Seven people died and 10 were injured. The death penalty for Kato was finalized in 2015.

Why did Sega go bust? ›

In 2001, after several commercial failures such as the 32X, Saturn, and Dreamcast, Sega stopped manufacturing consoles to become a third-party developer and publisher, and was acquired by Sammy Corporation in 2004.

Despite the popularity of Sega's gaming centers, the company also encountered some controversy due to a lawsuit against Sega's Key Master arcade prize machines, which many gamers alleged to be rigged. As reported by Video Games Chronicle, Sega arcades will soon disappear entirely from Japan.

A few of Sega's early consoles outsold their competitors in specific markets, such as the Master System in Europe. Several of the company's later consoles were commercial failures, however, and the financial losses incurred from the Dreamcast console caused the company to restructure itself in 2001.

7 Sega SG-1000

Sega's very first home video game console hits a graded price of $1,558.70 USD, making it Sega's rarest and most expensive system as well as their oldest. Finding each of the 79 games released for the SG-1000 is another quest that just might take up the rest of your life to finish.

Among them is the popular Tokyo Joypolis, which is operated by game-maker Sega. This is the largest game center in Japan, and it features attractions that use cutting-edge technology and arcade games spread across three floors, with new ones being added regularly.

At Sega Amusem*nts International, we bring you the latest, innovative and top-performing games for your Arcade, Family Entertainment Centre, Bar, Theme Park or Bowling Centre.

In the modern day, there are an estimated 7,206 arcade businesses. In the last five years alone, the U.S. arcade industry decreased by 8.2%.