Arcades & Barcades in Tucson, AZ

Arcades aren’t the popular Tucson pastime they used to be.

Back in the 80s, you couldn’t toss a quarter on Congress Street without it slipping into the coin slot of a Ms. Pac-Man or Donkey Kong.

Now, like in many cities, the arcade scene is a nostalgic part of Tucson’s past.

For the most part.

Just because they don’t dot The Old Pueblo like they once did doesn’t mean Tucson arcades are completely obsolete.

If you want to play your video games on stand-up (or sit-down) machines in Southern Arizona, you still can.

You might just have to go a little further to find a Tucson arcade with a good supply.

Or you might have to be 21 to enter.

Arcades in Tucson

These arcades in Tucson are for all ages:

Dave & Busters

1390 E Tucson Marketplace Blvd
Tucson, AZ 85713
(520) 330-3400

Arcade Hours:

Monday-Thursday: 11 am – Midnight
Friday: 11 am – 1 am
Saturday: 10 am – 1 am
Sunday: 10 am – Midnight

Game Sampling:

• Skee-Ball
• Basketball
• Cruisin’
• Console Games

Main Event

4700 S Landing Way
Tucson, AZ 85714
(520) 503-3301

Arcade Hours:

Monday: 11 am – 1 am
Tuesday-Thursday/Sunday: 11 am – Midnight
Friday: 11 am – 2 am
Saturday: 9 am-2 am

Game Sampling:

• Dance Dance Revolution
• Racing Games
• Classic Console Games
• Skill Games

Peter Piper Pizza

Multiple Locations

Arcade Hours:

Sunday-Thursday: 11 am – 9 pm
Friday: 11 am – 11 pm
Saturday: 10 am – 11 pm

Game Sampling:

• Classic Console Games
• Skill Games

Lucky Strike Bowl

4015 E Speedway Blvd
Tucson, AZ 85712
(520) 327-4926

Arcade Hours:

Sunday-Thursday: Noon – 11 pm
Friday: Noon – Midnight
Saturday: 9 am – 11 pm

Game Sampling:

• Console Games
• Pinball

Round1 Bowling & Arcade

Park Place Mall
5950 E Broadway Blvd #110
Tucson, AZ 85711
(520) 485-4288

Arcade Hours:

Daily: 10 am – 2 am

Game Sampling:

• Dancing
• Riding Games
• Skill Games

Chuck E. Cheese

6125 E Speedway Blvd
Tucson, AZ 85712
(520) 777-1077

Arcade Hours:

Sunday-Thursday: 11 am – 9 pm
Friday: 11 am – 10 pm
Saturday: 10 am – 10 pm

Game Sampling:

• Riding Games
• Basketball
• Kid-Friendly Console & Skill Games

Funtasticks

221 E Wetmore Rd
Tucson, AZ 85705
(520) 888-4653

Arcade Hours:

Monday-Thursday: Noon – 8 pm
Friday: Noon – 10 pm
Saturday: 10 am – 10 pm
Sunday: 10 am – 8 pm

Game Sampling:

• Skee-Ball
• Riding Games
• Skill Games

Golf N’ Stuff

6503 E Tanque Verde Rd
Tucson, AZ 85715
(520) 296-2366

Arcade Hours:

Winter

Monday-Wednesday: 10 am – 9 pm
Thursday: 10 am – 10 pm
Friday-Saturday: 10 am – Midnight
Sunday: 10 am – 9 pm

Summer

Sunday-Thursday: 10 am – 11 pm
Friday-Saturday: 10 am – Midnight

Game Sampling:

• Shooting Gallery
• Riding Games
• Console Games
• Skill Games

Barcades/Bars With Arcade Games in Tucson

Barcades are just what they sound like – bars with arcade machines.

These places serve booze and typically require players to be 21+ to enter.

Here are the bars in Tucson known to have arcade games:

(We’ve only included true barcades, i.e. bars with a good selection of machines.)

Cobra Arcade Bar

63 E Congress St
Tucson, AZ 85701
(520) 499-3999

Arcade Hours:

Monday: Closed
Tuesday-Sunday: 4 pm – 2 am

No. of Games: 30+

Game Sampling:

• Rotating Console Games
• Rotating Pinball

Arcade FAQs

How many arcades are left in the U.S.?

It might be hard to believe, but there are still more than 5,000 arcades in operation in the United States.

Though, many of these arcades are part of larger business structures.

Successful chain Dave & Buster’s, for instance, is both a sports bar/restaurant and an arcade.

Old-school fave Chuck E. Cheese is also a restaurant that specializes in birthday packages.

This might sound like a fair many arcades left, but compare that to the early 1980s when there were 24,000 full arcades in the U.S. (most of which were just arcades) and you can see how the numbers have dwindled.

So, what happened to them?

What happened to video arcades is pretty much the same thing that’s happening to movie theaters right now.

Like streaming, which has made movies more readily available to consumers, video game consoles brought the games players loved to play in arcades right into their living rooms.

At the same time, the technology was evolving.

The same way giant 4K screens have made the things we watch at home look better than ever, video game consoles grew in quality until playing at home was just as satisfying as going to the arcade.

And no one had to put on pants to do it.

Will arcades come back?

Arcades are already making a comeback… in a way.

But almost all of them are using the Dave & Buster’s success strategy as their blueprints.

Basically, they’re part bar/restaurants, part arcades.

Unlike Dave & Buster’s, though, which separates its over 21 area from its arcade area, many of these new “barcades” don’t admit anyone under the age of 21.

So, in most cities, older gamers have more options than younger ones.

But, given that arcades could be lost to another era, we think a few arcade options are better than none.