A clever tribute to the arcades of the nineties and the grind of your first teenage job.
Remember those teenage years when you first realized how much grind and boredom comes with doing menial jobs, for much-needed money? Clever, and rather bizarre, Arcade Paradise lets you relive those intoxicating, revealing times, while also acting as a love letter to the video game arcades of the 1990s.
From the age of fourteen I can remember having a string of grueling summer jobs, including working behind the counter at the local greengrocer, packing hi-fi components in Slough, and working on a machine floor scooping swarf (turning the finger-shredded scraps of metal into components). In comparison, Ashley, the protagonist of Arcade Paradise, has it easy. His domineering, bloated father, a successful businessman who always wants to spoil his son, owns a launderette that he reluctantly lets his son take over.
However, it is not just any laundromat. In the back room are a couple of arcade machines and Ashley is an avid gamer, which you can tell from the way he plays the routine tasks required to maintain the laundromat: unclogging the toilet becomes a boss fight, clearing gum and tossing trash in the bin around the corner becomes time games, and everything – including the wash – earns you money, which can be reinvested in the laundromat.
The 90s feel of Arcade Paradise is perfect. In the cramped office you have an early PC, which connects to the nascent web via modem, and soon you start making enough money to add to the arcade machines. The machines themselves are not just monkey classics of the time, but have a mash-up approach: a combination of things like Pac-Man with Grand Theft Auto, Candy Crush with Zelda (which is actually a little less intriguing than it sounds) or WipEout with OutRun.
Anyone who plays Arcade Paradise will find certain favorites among their arcade machines – ours includes a completely simple but horribly addictive box stack game and a clever hacker-themed effort with number-matching in a Tetris-esque framework, which is sure to would go viral if made into a standalone mobile game.
Period details abound, such as CRT style filters and chiptune-inspired music. Arcade Paradise is a loving tribute to the last days of the arcades and will stir many a nostalgic feeling in those old enough to remember them.
If there’s one structural problem with the game, it’s that you have to take intervals in between laundry maintenance to get acquainted with the arcade machines. At first, even the latter is remarkably convincing. Arcade Paradise divides itself into separate days, so if you’re totally invested in the game, you’ll want to start each day by clearing out the (again, 90s-style) clutter that accumulates.
As you develop a sense of ownership towards your mini domain, you will also want to maximize the financial return you can get from doing the laundry; your digital watch tells you when each washing or drying machine load is done and the longer you let it rot, the less you get paid for it.
But eventually you’ll get bored of the laundromat and focus more or less solely on the games. The business simulation side of Arcade Paradise progresses quite slowly, but you find that you can turn unused rooms into more arcade space, and once the arcade machines make more money than the laundromat, washing clothes is no longer a priority. It’s worth noting that you can also win an achievement by fumbling in one day and doing exactly nothing.
Every day you get three objectives – mainly related to playing the games – and the money you earn is paid out in pounds instead of dollars, meaning it can only be spent on upgrades. Some are cosmetic, but others are useful, such as garbage bags that hold twice as much trash or an assistant (who really wants to play the games but can still save you a bit of a grind).
There are plenty of nicely observed comedic touches that crop up throughout the game, often featuring your dad who, despite swans all over the world, is somehow able to keep an eye on you. Ultimately, Arcade Paradise is a small indie game without major consequences. But it’s also hellishly addictive, surprisingly well-structured, and one of the best period pieces you’ll ever clap your eyes, capturing a moment in time with a lot of affection.
If you fancy a vicarious trip back to the arcades of the 90’s, as well as those barely remembered first teen forays into the job market, you’ll love it. But even in the intentionally mundane wash-and-cleanup mini-games, there’s satisfaction to be had, let alone the clever arcade mash-ups. So if you’re curious about what the 1990s were like (perhaps thanks to a parent who always talks about it), it offers a chance to get some insight into that too.
Arcade Paradise review summary
In short: A clever management sim that pays tribute to both the arcades of the 1990s and the exquisite grind of teenage jobs.
Advantages: Some inspired mash-ups of well-known arcade games with strangely addictive cleaning and laundry mini-games. Great humor and music, with perfect historical detail.
cons: Some will find the sim element too slow; quality of the arcade games is often inconsistent.
Score: 8/10
Formats: PlayStation 5 (reviewed), Xbox One, PlayStation 4, nintendo switch, Xbox Series X/S and PC
Price: £15.99
Publisher: Wired Productions
Developer: Nosebleed Interactive
Release date: August 11, 2022
Age Rating: 12
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