For decades, gaming has been entrenched in pop culture across New Zealand, but for many, that all began in the arcades with what are now classic game machines. From the moment that Space Invaders landed in the late 1970s, there wasn’t any turning back. Spacies, as it became commonly known, spread everywhere.
The arcade tower that put the entertainment medium on the map even made it to a Ngongotahā parlor on the north side of Lake Rotorua that Preston McNeil – now a machine builder in his own right – would frequent. From there, Double Dragon, Scramble, Street Fighter II: Hyper Fighting, and Time Pilot powered up the scene.
Of course, the arcade gaming scene isn’t anything like it was. While nostalgic pockets still exist, what it means to play arcade games in New Zealand has evolved greatly, following the trend of ever-improving entertainment technologies.
Arcade Gaming Shifts Online
Arcade gaming doesn’t require a terminal or even a trip to a gaming hall anymore. Instead, when arcade gaming is referred to in New Zealand, it more likely refers to a collection of popular online games. Offering a different experience to usual online casino gaming, arcade games online expand greatly to offer more interactive gameplay. Mines, Dice, Wheel of Winners, and Balls Galore Lightning Drop all headline the modern popular arcade gaming landscape.
Typically, these arcade games have skill-based elements, get players actively involved in the gameplay, allow the user to customize the volatility and settings, and come with multipliers and power-ups to unlock.
On land, dedicated arcade halls and even the odd placement of arcade game machines have faded. Some of this will be down to the growth of home console games, their expansive and accessible offerings, and then the rise of internet gaming. Some stood longer than others, with the 2000-opened Yifans in Auckland closing lasting until 2016.
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Arcade machines fading from the limelight across New Zealand was, perhaps, foretold by their own rise to prominence. In the 1920s, it was the pinball machine that dominated, being made on a huge scale within the country with others imported from the US. In the late 1970s, these mainstays were overtaken by video games.
Spacies, as mentioned, was the headline act and the one that truly announced the change in preferences for Kiwis. When it landed in Christchurch, it created a gold rush that earned bags of cash for operators. The demand for these machines was incredibly high, with its peak aligning with the 1982 opening of the Wizards arcade next to the Isaac Theatre Royal.
Today, there is still an enduring fondness for classic arcade video game machines. The more commonplace form of the entertainment medium is found online and on home consoles and personal devices, but having arcade machines can now be a nostalgia-fueled selling point.
That’s why the company Pintech continues to exist. They repair and restore vintage video games and pinball machines, many of which were used in the opening and special retro showcase at Arcadia in Christchurch in 2017. Arcadia remains today, as do several other specialized entertainment venues across NZ offering these classic games.
Arcade gaming may have transformed from shifting analogs in a game bar to tapping screens at home, but there’s still a fondness for retro game machines across New Zealand.
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