Editorial It may sound strange to a lot of readers still trying to get their hands warm, but spring is right around the corner. Really! Remember, time flies when you’re having…or in our case, selling…fun. The industry’s “silent salesmen,” of course, are its machines and the “Class of Spring 2018” will be on display at the Las Vegas Convention Center Feb. 28-March 1 when the 2018 edition of the Amusement Expo does its pre-spring thing. (The day before the machine show, Feb. 27, will be devoted to seminar lectures and such, and you thought your school days were over!) Considering…
Author: RePlay Editor
Attractions & Experiences Are Great… But Cultivating the Social Experience is Essential to Longterm Success by Howard McAuliffe, Partner, Pinnacle Entertainment Group “What are the best new games?” This is often the first question we hear from clients, and we can see from the clicks on our emailed Pinnacle Report that articles about top games are by far the most popular. But in reviewing TrendWatching .com’s 2018 trends, it is clear to me that how facilities interact with customers is far more important than what games are earning currently. Our industry has been cyclical over the last 50 years. New…
Being Prepared Isn’t Always Enough Reflections on Snow Blowers & Good Neighbors by Jack Guarnieri, Jersey Jack Pinball & PinballSales.com It snowed yesterday. I guess you should expect that during winter in New Jersey. I have a snow blower –– a pretty big one too –– that’s about 10 years old. I checked it a couple of months ago, and it started and the blades spun around. I needed it today with 18” of snow on the ground, plus three-foot drifts. I made it out to the shed, pumped the gas a few times and pulled the rip cord and…
A Look at 2018 Could This Be the Year of the Indie Game Developer? by Adam Pratt, Game Grid Arcade & ArcadeHeroes.com Happy New Year readers! I trust that you all had a wonderful and prosperous holiday season regardless of the events that you celebrate. For my arcade business, we get to mark 2017 as our best year yet, which gives me plenty of optimism going into 2018. Something I feel especially positive about is “indie” game development. While I and other RePlay writers have covered the indie game business before, there are exciting developments taking place that warrant a…
Making Good Progress AAMA Chief Talks Amusement Expo and Reflects on the Early Days of Her Term Q: We’re all getting ready for the Amusement Expo, but before we dive into that, how have the early days of your term gone? A: So far so good! Amazingly, it’s been three months already. I really enjoy working with Pete (Gustafson) and Tina (Schwartz). They bring a whole new level of energy to the job. Pete now has some time as EVP under his belt and is in his own groove, which allows the both of us to work well together. There’s good…
Step Right Up Coastal Amusements Brings Classic Carnival Game to Coin-Op When designing a coin-op redemption game, the ideal is to create one that’s fun and easy to play for all ages, and one that also carries timeless appeal. That’s much easier to say than to do, but according to the team at Coastal Amusements, they’ve done just that with the classic carnival game-inspired Ring Toss, shipping this month. Ring Toss is exactly what you’d think: A modern redemption game version of the toss-the-ring-on-the-bottle midway game. A colorful cabinet (complete with red and white striped tent top), 46 LED-lit plastic…
Make 2018 a Party to Remember New Year, Best Year! Build on Last Year’s Lessons for Success By Beth Standlee, CEO, TrainerTainment What did you learn in 2017? Did you have more group events than you did in 2016? How about your birthday party program? Was it everything you had hoped it would be? What is the plan for 2018? Have you set your goals? Do you have a plan for reaching them? Do you have the resources in place to reach higher with parties than ever before? A key resource would be a person who would champion group and…
Thinking “Smart” Pays Off Smart Industries’ Toppers Talk Ticket Time, Giant Taj Mahal, the Fair Play Pledge and the Future for the Agile Company In the 1960s, the late Gordon Smart founded a company that has helped transform the amusement and redemption landscape. Smart Industries, now headed by Gordon’s son Jeff, has been a mainstay in crane games since its inception, and today continues to revolutionize cranes with innovative ideas such as their most recent success, the Ticket Time crane. This concept, which the firm proports to have popularized, adds a lucrative twist to the traditional idea of what you…
What’s Hot…And What’s Not – Part Two Trends Shaping the Amusement Industry: A look at Trampoline Parks by Frank Seninsky, President/CEO Amusement Entertainment Management (AEM) & Alpha-Omega Amusements & Sales If we want to talk about trends in the industry, we should first discuss those seven-year cycles that seem to surprise and haunt us simultaneously. Those mangy cycles usually have to do with a new technology and how long that technology takes to gain traction (approach utilization of 20% of the market) and increase market share. The newest format of indoor Trampoline Parks has been developing through its cycle for…
During the opening seminar of IAAPA’s FEC Summit this morning, attendees and sponsors scattered throughout a lively meeting room were asked to share how many years they’d been in the industry. The combined experience of the eclectic guests, who hailed from Argentina, Chile, China, the U.K. and over 30 states, added up to 2,100 years. With over two millennia of amusement-focused experience jammed into a sunny, Laguna Beach resort, it’s nigh impossible to not find the answers guests are looking for. The annual FEC Summit focuses on sharing, engagement and growth, inviting members of the FEC community to share their…