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Author Topic: Video Games In Lobby Claude S. Ayakawa Film God Posts: 2738 From: Waipahu, Hawaii, USA Registered: Aug 2002 posted 02-05-2004 02:14 PM                        While video machines might be profitable for the theatres, I never liked them when they were placed in the now defunct Pacific Waikiki Twins in Honolulu. The Twins had a very beautiful lobby and looked classy until the machines went in. The chain's new Ward 16 that contributed to the demise of the Waikiki theatres also has a very beautiful and spacious lobby but there are no machines there. The machines are all in a separate gaming room where they belong and the kids using them appears to be having a lot of fun. -Claude  |  IP: Logged Chris Hipp Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1462 From: Mesquite, Tx (east of Dallas) Registered: Jul 2003 posted 02-05-2004 02:19 PM                     Most theatres charge at least $1 per game. Im not sure about any legal issues with this idea, but you can build you own arcades froa bout $5-600 using a PC or console (Xbox, ps2 etc) and you could keep the profits and save money on the games. But it might be against the rules, jsut an idea. Also, if your theatre is a trouble spot for kids to just hang around then a lot fo video games would be a bad idea. If you do have a problem then make sure the games are passed the point where you need a ticket. You do not want your customers to think that are going to an arcade or kid hangout that jsut shows movies on the side.  |  IP: Logged Daryl C. W. O'Shea Film God Posts: 3977 From: Midland Ontario Canada (where Panavision & IMAX lenses come from) Registered: Jun 2002 posted 02-05-2004 04:12 PM                        One word: contactor If you have to do some wiring to add receptacles for all of the machines, get a contactor (and separate panel) installed so that you can turn everything off with one switch / key. It makes shutting down at the end of the night so much easier (if the machines are left on after the last show the kids will never leave). It's especially handy if the circuit breakers aren't close by or aren't switch rated breakers. As for people wanting a refund for a machine eating their money... using the amusement company's (or your own) tokens makes this a non issue since you just give them more tokens, which doesn't really cost anything unless your staff is stupid and gives them out like candy at a parade.  |  IP: Logged Robert E. Allen Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1078 From: Checotah, Oklahoma Registered: Jul 2002 posted 02-06-2004 02:18 PM                     In our area I have given up the idea of putting a coin operated game room in a theatre I'm planning because when I was talking to the local distributor of those games last week he said the bottom had dropped out of the business for two reasons: home video games and the fact that our rural community charges a tax of $50 per machine per year. You might want to check with your community as those fees could sure eat into your profits.  |  IP: Logged Dennis Udovich Film Handler Posts: 71 From: Sheboygan, WI, USA Registered: Dec 2001 posted 02-06-2004 11:42 PM                        We have six video games in the lobby in two different areas. Our cut is 50% and the vendor brings in the games, services them, counts the money, and gives us our share every two weeks. It's easy to make $800 and more per month. It is very important to get a report from the vendor showing what each game takes in. Switching to different games on a regular basis is important too. Some games get old after awhile, others keep bring in the money. My vendor gives me "refund" money if a problem occurs with a game. This doesn't happen often.  |  IP: Logged Nate Lehrke Master Film Handler Posts: 396 From: Denver, CO Registered: Oct 2002 posted 02-07-2004 01:47 AM                     Not sure if his is more of a vending machine but in addition to the video games, the 50 cent merchandise machines are very popular. Theses machines offer variety of crap like: tattoo’s, stickers, necklaces, rings, glow sticks ECT for 50 cents. Just tonight I watched a young girl put 8 dollars in to try and get a certain ring! Can’t remember what the contract on those are but I think it’s about 50/50 like the arcade games.  |  IP: Logged Jason Black Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1723 From: Myrtle Beach, SC, USA Registered: Nov 2000 posted 02-07-2004 06:43 AM                        Nate, SO called "impulse machines/toy dispensers are normally on a 60/40 split in the vendors favor. They do, after all, buy the merchandise inside the machines. Our setup is 66/34. We also get refund monies for failed games. If we did not, I wouldn't issue refunds at all. My stance is, it's not my machine but if you call the #800 on the game they will take care of you accordingly. I know, I can hear it now... "but it's in your theatre lobby". to which my reply is this... I have ZERO direct control over the machines. No access, no knowledge of them, etc. Why should my company lose money due to the 1) improper operation of a sub'd out vending/game machine, 2)some kid not reading the fact that the game they're about to play takes $1.00 not .50? Our old game company left keys with managers so that we coudl issue refunds from the coin boxes or fix bad coin drops. This was a very efficient system. I didn't mind fixing a down game, where I could, of course. After all, in reality, more money in the coin box means more money to me personally! Our past vendor was a great outfit to work with.. this new one.. well, let's just say they are there. [ 02-07-2004, 04:06 PM: Message edited by: Jason Black ]  |  IP: Logged Chad Lindsey Film Handler Posts: 38 From: Ada, OK, USA Registered: Feb 2004 posted 02-11-2004 09:47 AM                     Regarding this Dance Dance Revolution game... does it create a noise problem? We have a rather small lobby, the space might be worth the money, but what about the disturbance?  |  IP: Logged Richard Cieplechowicz Film Handler Posts: 16 From: San Antonio, TX Registered: May 2002 posted 02-11-2004 12:09 PM                     The volume controls on DDR can be adjusted to whatever volume you desire; however our game room shares a wall with the managers office and no matter how low the volume is you can hear the music and kids dancing on it. But it is well worth the headache. The money we make on the unit makes up for the money spent on asprin.  |  IP: Logged Thomas Procyk Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1842 From: Royal Palm Beach, FL, USA Registered: Feb 2002 posted 02-11-2004 03:21 PM                     That "Dance Dance Revolution" has to be the absolute dumbest game I've seen. It's a disgrace to videogames, dancing, AND music. I can't even concentrate on my Ms. Pac Man game at the local arcade because that damn thing is blasting out repetitive beat after beat when no one is even near it. It's also huge and obnoxious with all of its lights and giant blinking speakers. I'd imagine this thing would be very annoying at a theater. Another bad idea is air hockey tables. Our theater has two of them and they are the biggest moneymakers, but the slamming of the puck can be heard in the auditoriums. Even when we got the rubber "silent" pucks, you still hear the thumps... Be careful who you get to "manage" your arcade games, and also make sure there's a contract or something that lets you choose the games or how often they change. The person who does our games is a nice guy, but a bad businessman. He'll come in, empty the games, rip off any "out of order" signs we put up (some games are ALWAYS out of order) and then leaves. We've had the same games for over 6 months. There are games no one plays that are still there. There are games where he took the front panels off to fix them, and left them that way for weeks. Make sure you indicate where you want the games placed, too. "Wherever they fit" or "wherever there are plugs" will get them placed in the dumbest places in your lobby. (If the customers have to walk around a machine to get to the auditorium, it's a bad place!) We have signs on all our games-- "NO REFUNDS, play at your own risk!" and every day, people complain that the machine took their money. That's the oldest trick in the book to get a free game, but they'll bitch until you give them their $0.25 weekly income back. The worst is when they say, "I put about two dollars in there and it still did nothing." I said to them, "Oh, the first two quarters weren't indication enough that it wasn't working?" They swore at me and left. IMHO, theaters should only equip lobbies with "quick" games that people can play before a movie. A pac-man, galaga, some type of shoot 'em up, maybe a fighting game... but none of that crap that costs you dollar after dollar to proceed to the next level or those stupid driving games that take up so much room you might as well sell cars in the lobby instead of have videogames for extra profit. =TMP=  |  IP: Logged

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