This Connecticut Arcade Lets You Play Dozens Of Vintage Pinball Machines And Classic Games
Modern games can look almost impossibly realistic. Sometimes, though, all you really need is a silver ball bouncing wildly while you desperately try to keep it from disappearing between two flippers.
That old-school chaos is alive and well here.
Rows of vintage machines give players plenty of chances to rediscover games they remember or finally understand what older relatives have been talking about. This Connecticut arcade puts classic gaming back where it belongs: beneath flashing lights and at your fingertips.
No complicated storyline is required. You press start, figure things out and become weirdly determined to beat a score that meant absolutely nothing to you minutes earlier.
The nostalgia is only part of the appeal. Older games still know how to create competition remarkably quickly.
Will you walk away after one round when your score is sitting there practically begging to be beaten?
1. Retro Games Turn This Arcade Into A Throwback
The room has its own soundtrack. Arcade jingles overlap, tokens clink, and familiar games light up the floor from every direction.
GameCraft Arcade brings together dozens of machines from different eras. Classics include Asteroids, Frogger, Joust, Space Invaders, Tempest, Tetris, Donkey Kong Jr., and Ms. Pac-Man/Galaga.
Fighting and sports fans can jump into Mortal Kombat 2, Street Fighter 2, or NBA Jam.
Some cabinets are made for a crowd. The Simpsons supports four players, while the massive X-Men game can handle six at once.
Other machines include Battletoads, Centipede, Robotron: 2084, and Gauntlet: Dark Legacy.
Newer gaming gets space too. Nintendo Switch and Xbox Series consoles expand the choices beyond traditional cabinets, with games such as Mario Kart World and Rock Band 4 available for group play.
Games use tokens, so grabbing a pouch at the start makes hopping between machines easy. It is worth checking out the room before spending them all.
That way, an old favorite hiding farther back does not get discovered after the tokens are gone.
With so many generations of gaming together, everyone can chase a high score on something they recognize.
Just try stopping after one game.
2. Dozens Of Pinball Machines Bring Serious Variety
More than 40 pinball tables share the building with the video cabinets, which puts this collection well past the usual bar-with-a-few-machines setup. Out of the 100-plus games on site, pinball clearly carries the most weight.
Manufacturers represented include Stern, Williams, Bally, Sega, Chicago Gaming and Jersey Jack. Few Connecticut arcades make it this easy to see different eras of pinball lined up in one place.
The collection gives you an accidental history lesson in how the hobby changed, from simple ramps and drop targets to layered rule sets with video screens built into the playfield.
Age range matters here. Gorgar and Paragon date to 1979, Creature from the Black Lagoon and Funhouse carry the 1990s, and newer tables like JAWS, Harry Potter and Avatar: The Battle for Pandora round out the modern end.
Newcomers should not feel intimidated. Older machines tend to be more forgiving to read, with fewer instructions to track, while modern tables reward players who take a minute to study the scoring card.
Most pinball games run around two to three tokens, so a small pouch stretches further than you might expect. Pick three or four tables you like and repeat them rather than trying to play all 40 in a single visit.
3. Its Southington Location Hides Plenty Of Nostalgia
Arcade night can easily become a whole outing here. GameCraft Arcade sits inside Factory Square, a converted Southington complex where several independent businesses share the same destination.
The arcade spreads across two floors, giving its collection of games plenty of breathing room. Brick walls add character to the space, while the expanded upstairs area helps distribute players when weekend crowds arrive.
There is more happening around the building too. Factory Square includes other entertainment and dining businesses, and the nearby Farmington Canal Heritage Trail gives visitors an easy place to stretch their legs before or after chasing high scores.
GameCraft generally opens later on weekdays, making evenings the main time for play. Friday and Saturday hours extend later, while Sunday offers an earlier start and finish. Monday is typically the arcade’s day off.
Weekday evenings can be a good choice for players hoping for a quieter experience. On busier nights, arriving earlier gives you a better shot at popular machines before more groups settle in.
GameCraft Arcade is at 168 Center Street, Suite 106, in Southington.
Factory Square has parking available around the complex, making it convenient for groups arriving together.
Once the games start flashing, though, exploring the rest of the building might have to wait.
4. Classic Cabinets Bring Old Favorites Back
Muscle memory is a funny thing. Put your hand on a Donkey Kong joystick and the old timing comes back faster than you would guess, even after decades away.
Foundational titles anchor the collection. Pac-Man, Centipede, Galaga and Donkey Kong are all here, joined by Asteroids, Joust, Burgertime and Tron for players who want variety beyond the household names.
Fighting fans get their own corner of the lineup. Street Fighter 2: The New Challengers and Mortal Kombat 2 still draw people who remember arguing over who got the next round, and the original hardware makes those matches feel right in a way emulators rarely do.
Group cabinets deserve special mention. NBA Jam handles four players, and the six-player X-Men machine turns a random group of strangers into temporary teammates within about thirty seconds.
Each machine is marked with the number of tokens it needs, which keeps the math simple. Most classics ask for just one or two, making them the best value on the floor.
If you are showing the games to someone new, start with Galaga or Pac-Man. Both explain themselves in one round, and neither requires a rule sheet.
5. Flashing Pinball Tables Fill The Room
Forty-two pinball machines create a wall of light and sound that is honestly a little hypnotic. Backglasses glow, bumpers flash, and the steady rhythm of flippers keeps time across the room.
Modern licensed tables pull a lot of attention. Avengers: Infinity Quest, Deadpool, Godzilla, Guardians of the Galaga fans aside, Guardians of the Galaxy, Jurassic Park, Star Wars and Stranger Things all appear in the lineup, each packed with modes and callouts.
Collectors gravitate toward the older machines. Medieval Madness, Monster Bash, Lord of the Rings, Creature from the Black Lagoon, Funhouse, Scared Stiff and Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory are the kind of tables people travel to play.
Gorgar from 1979 offers the oldest experience on the floor, with simpler rules and a speaking voice that felt like science fiction when it first arrived.
Machines here are generally kept in good working order, something regular visitors tend to mention, and cup holders or stands beside many games mean you are not balancing a drink on the glass.
Watch someone else play a table before you feed it tokens. Two minutes of observation will teach you more than three wasted balls.
6. Different Eras Of Gaming Share One Space
Fifty years of game design sit within about a hundred feet of each other here, and the contrast is half the fun. A 1979 pinball machine with a simple speech chip stands not far from a table with animated screens and multiball modes.
Video games follow the same arc. Space Invaders and Pac-Man represent the earliest wave, while console setups with Nintendo Switch and Xbox Series bring things into the present.
That spread means groups with different tastes can all find something. A parent who logged hours on Centipede and a teenager raised on Mario Kart can wander the same floor without either one getting bored.
Skeeball adds a physical option for anyone who wants a break from screens, and the modern lanes are popular with visitors of all ages.
A fun wrinkle: some of the older machines are more difficult than newer ones, because early arcades were designed to end your game quickly. Expect short rounds on the classics and longer sessions on newer tables.
Give yourself at least ninety minutes. Rushing through this many decades in half an hour sells the collection short.
7. High Scores Keep Friendly Competition Going
Bragging rights are tracked in writing. A high score board gets updated regularly, listing top results across many of the arcade and pinball machines, which turns a casual visit into an ongoing challenge.
Games featured on the board include Burgertime, Centipede, Donkey Kong, Frogger, Galaga, Skee Ball, Monster Bash and Avengers: Infinity Quest. Seeing a number next to a game you love has a way of pulling you back to the same machine three or four times.
Tournaments raise the stakes further. Events such as the Perfect Pour and Tapper High Tips Tournament give regulars a reason to sharpen up on specific titles.
Pinball leagues also make use of the space, which means you may catch serious players working through tables on certain nights. Watching them is a decent free education if you are curious about strategy.
None of this is required, though. Plenty of people never look at the board and simply play whatever catches their eye.
If you do want your initials up there, pick one game and stay with it. Spreading tokens across twenty machines makes for a fun night but rarely produces a record-breaking score.
8. Nostalgia Makes It Hard To Play Just Once
Nobody finishes this place in one trip. With over 100 arcade and pinball machines across two floors, plus consoles, the math simply does not work in a single evening.
Tokens help the pace stay relaxed. Sold at the bar in five-dollar increments, they let you play as much or as little as you like, and most games ask for one to two tokens while a few premium titles run three or four.
Entry rules are worth knowing ahead of time. Monday through Saturday the arcade is for guests 21 and over with valid photo ID, while Sundays are family days when those under 21 may enter with a parent or legal guardian supervising them.
On family days, guests under 21 cannot sit at the bar or make purchases directly, so plan accordingly if you are bringing kids.
Visitors frequently describe the staff as welcoming and the game selection as far bigger than expected, which explains the number of people who return within weeks.
Leftover tokens do not expire in your pocket, and many regulars keep a partly full pouch at home specifically as an excuse for the next visit.
