Sega Arcades To Disappear, Ending 50-Year History
Japan's iconic Sega arcades, which have given gamers a place to gather and play since the 1960s, are officially being shut down. The gaming centers could be found all across the Pacific nation, with a peak in the 90s seeing as many as 1,000 locations open at once. Many Easter eggs, like classic Sega arcades in Yakuza: Like aDragon, demonstrate the powerful influence that these locations have had on Japanese pop culture.
Sega Corporation is most well-known for creating video game consoles like the Sega Genesis and Sega Dreamcast, along with popular gaming franchises like Sonic the Hedgehog and Yakuza. Along with these home console experiences, however, Sega has also crafted its own arcade cabinet games including Virtua Fighter and Daytona USA. Creating a social place for Japanese gamers to experience these beloved titles, Sega arcades could be found in locations all across the country including Tokyo's Ikebukuro, Akihabara, and Shinjuku districts. Despite the popularity of Sega's gaming centers, the company also encountered some controversy due to a lawsuit against Sega's Key Master arcade prize machines, which many gamers alleged to be rigged.
Related: Sonic the Hedgehog & Yakuza Themed Colognes Released By Sega
As reported by Video Games Chronicle, Sega arcades will soon disappear entirely from Japan. Rental business Genda Inc. has now acquired every share of Sega Entertainment, with the company soon being renamed to Genda GiGO Entertainment. This means that Sega arcades throughout the country will become GiGO arcades, with the Genda GiGO chairman Hisashi Kataoka expressing a desire to carry on Sega's tradition as "an oasis that quenches people’s thirst for real entertainment." However, Video Games Chronicle also
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