Archived from groups: alt.games.quake3 (
More info?)
"Tanel Kagan" <lawman@kagan.freeserve.co.uk> wrote in message
news:cc072fd5.0404080424.33880e5c@posting.google.com...
> Hello Group,
>
> I'm looking to start a "gaming cafe" in a high street location,
> possibly with 10-15 networked PCs where groups of friends (or
> strangers!) can come along and blast each other to pieces, race each
> other off the track or whatever else takes their fancy.
>
> The legal side I'm cool with, but I need some customer input.
>
> Question is, what do you, the people, expect from something like this?
>
> Would you go to a place like this with a group of friends?
>
> Which games would you expect to see offered?
>
> How much would you be prepared to pay per hour?
>
> Are there any specific devices or technical gadgets you would want to
> see in your "gamestation" that you wouldn't necessarily have at home?
>
> Any other relevant comments which you would like to make?
>
> Regards,
>
> Tanel.
http://www.cybercade.com/
This site has an interview with someone who runs a gaming center, and a list
of links to gaming centers in the U.S. You can get an idea of what others
are doing, and possibly contact some of them to learn about their
experiences and any advice they might have. Quite a few are no longer in
business, which may be valuable information in itself (though not at all
surprising considering the entire dot-com meltdown), but many are still
going.
There are probably a fair number that aren't on the list, such as one near
me (which I think used to be a Neutral Ground location):
http://www.matchplay.com/
It might make sense to emphasize events such as tournaments (where everyone
has the same system setup for fairness, servers etc. are set up and there
are officials running the whole thing, it can be played on LAN, there is no
cheating, they can meet their opponents in person, and the whole thing can
be made into a fun event), LAN parties (with an ideal setup and location,
existing network, and dispensing with the need to even lug your own
computer, though if you have the luxury of sufficient space, the ability to
have BYOC events might be good too), and team/clan gaming (providing for
in-person voice communication, even if you're playing against opponents
elsewhere on the internet), that aren't easily done from people's homes
(even if they do have a fast computer and internet connection, which more
and more people do). You could possibly reach out to businesses for fun
"team development" or bonding sessions and the like (the kind of thing where
a workgroup or group of salespeople or managers would all go play paintball
or whatever).
In addition, make it fun and inviting (and exciting) to help attract
walk-ins, some of whom many have never even played computer games before. I
think maybe have some areas or displays that people feel comfortable just
coming in and watching or fooling around with, something less intimidating
than having to pay up front, sit down at a computer, get configs set up,
learn the controls, etc. Some big screen displays of competitive games in
progress (or even playback recordings/demos of past games, QdQ runs, or
whatever) could provide a spectator element. I know that when the original
Nintendo was new, it was such a cool thing. Someone would get one as a
Christmas gift, and all their family and friends would gather around
marveling at it and trying it out. I haven't really seen that happen as much
in recent years, but if you can capture anything like that in your location,
that could be quite attractive.
For most of the types of computer games that are likely to work in a place
like this (FPS and RTS usually, and perhaps massively multiplayer
role-playing), most specialized equipment and controllers aren't really
helpful, other than perhaps voice communication (mainly for playing against
other voice-com enabled players on the internet, though possibly being able
to chat with teammates in the same room without needing to shout or let the
other team hear would sometimes be nice - but having an environment where
people don't feel inhibited from yelling across the room at each other may
have its attractions too). It's possible you could look at some nice setups
for flight simulators and the like, but I'd be careful about not spending
too much on such rigs unless you have a proven audience for it. I also agree
with the advice that avoiding the newest technology can dramatically reduce
costs without sacrificing much performance. There are some other interesting
possibilities: it's possible a setup (if it can be easy to use and done for
low cost) that can capture a player's face and create a custom skin for them
on the spot might be neat, for instance.
I'm not sure I like the ideal of the generalized cyber-cafe: it's likely
you'd end up doing nothing well and having no coherent audience (this may
have been the problem with, for instance, Cybersmith - at first it was like,
"wow, so this is the internet, how cool", but ultimately they didn't have a
coherent audience). People who like to drink coffee, read newspapers, do
homework, chat, and generally hang out in cafes (while surfing the web?) may
not mix with an active gaming crowd (let alone a business crowd, which would
probably want something more along the lines of a Kinko's along with some
private workrooms and other ameneties, if there's a market for it at all),
and the setup, equipment, atmosphere, decor, etc. needed for each is quite
different.
One thing I would consider, though, is selling a range of computer hardware
and software, network gear, etc. Computer gamers are a major market for such
products, and I think the gaming experience can certainly inspire buying.
Even if you're not making much on computer time or whatever, you can still
make money on product sales. But I would pick the products you sell
carefully to be the best quality and/or value, and most appealing to gamers.
You don't want to try to be a full-range computer store, or get to the point
that the gaming is a money-losing side business (at least you don't want to
cause that to happen unnecessarily).
But the thing I'd most emphasize is how much sheer fun it is to play games
with friends (and strangers) IN PERSON, compared to sitting alone in a room
at home and only "talking" to other players through text messages (or, at
best, a headset with fuzzy, laggy internet sound).
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