Last week I was invited to the opening of a new arcade which features rooms filled with classic arcade games, pinball machines, bowling, ping-pong and more.
While I was getting my butt kicked in Street Fighter, I couldn’t help but notice this group of people sitting down, not playing any games, all looking at their phones. I quickly snapped this photo and sent to my wife and kids and said “I think they are missing the point.”
Does this really matter? Probably not. But I remember a time growing up when convincing an adult to give you money to play an arcade game was a real feat and those quarters were cherished because if you lost quickly in the game, you were probably not getting another chance.
That night, at the VIP opening of the new arcade, I had free drinks and all the games were free to play. Yes, I was taking photos of the coolest games to text to my kids, but mostly I was playing the games and having a blast. I specifically enjoyed the Guns N Roses pinball game.
Who knows, maybe there was something really cool happening on their phones and it was me who was missing the point?
Aaron Hartley 