Special Coverage 2008 Fall MoviesThe Must List2008 Fall TV2008 Emmy Awards2008 Fall Music

Part virtual-reality center, part video arcade, and part suburban-mall hangout, a new kind of entertainment emporium called GameWorks -- the brainchild of Steven Spielberg -- has landed. A lights-blazing combo of coffeehouse, brew pub, and Internet cafe, it's packed with 250 games: retro titles like Pac-Man, hits like Wave Runner, and signature inventions like Vertical Reality, a two-story shoot-'em-up. The first GameWorks, a 30,000-square-foot adult arcade, opened March 15 in Seattle, with Las Vegas (late April) and Los Angeles (late summer) soon to follow and 100 planned worldwide. Inside Spielberg's so-called three-ring circus, the roar of miniature race cars merges with the whine of VR Jet Skis and throbbing music that blares from huge speakers as overhead monitors display gamers at play.

But what's to keep these high-tech playgrounds from becoming $10 million (the reported cost per site) penny arcades? ''It's very expensive to keep it updated,'' cautions an industry analyst. ''When people come back in six months, they want a new experience.'' Oh, those fickle gamers. Let's see if Spielberg's got their number.


Sign up for EW.com's The 25 newsletter!

Stay in the know and get EW.com's top 5 stories, 5 days a week (sent weekday afternoons).
Posted Apr 25, 1997 | Published in issue #376 Apr 25, 1997 | Order Article Reprints