New computers, cushy leather chairs and shoot-’em-up computer games may have seemed like a good way to draw business to Ala Amimi, but it didn’t work in College Park.
In January, a computer gaming arcade, Playdium.net, quietly opened in downtown College Park, nestled between Lupo’s Italian Chophouse and Jimmy John’s Gourmet Sandwiches. From Route 1, its sign is shaded by a tree.
Playdium.net closed its doors within the past two weeks, though city officials said Amimi still maintains the lease of the space. Amimi would not return repeated calls for comment.
Whether students noticed its opening or not, USA Today did. Amimi, the store’s owner, previously told The Diamondback his store would provide students and College Park residents with a different type of entertainment: Internet gaming.
College Park’s Playdium.net was the company’s first franchise in the United States; there are two in Pakistan. The game center allowed video game enthusiasts to interact with gamers around the world with its local area network. Tournaments were held once a week with a $50 cash prize. And on non-tournament days, people could play alone, with friends or use the computers for word processing and Internet access.
Mark Nielsen, executive director of the gaming consultant group iGames, said electronic gaming is the fastest growing segment of the entertainment industry. He estimated that 1 million people walk into gaming centers each month.
In 2004, for instance, the electronic gaming industry made about $16 billion dollars, according to Plunkett Research Ltd. statistics. This includes retail sales of video and PC games and software used for computer gaming.
“This industry is growing,” Nielsen said. “Unfortunately just like any business, some succeed and some don’t. It’s a newer industry to some extent. People are still trying to find the right business model.”
Other game centers have arcades for playing computer games, like Playdium.net, but also incorporate computer and video game rentals to broaden their customer base, Nielsen said.
In the USA Today article, Amimi said he hoped to open franchises in Maryland, New York and California.
Though the number of students in the area is enticing to most businesses, students can access the same games and worldwide cyber competitions from the university’s local area network.
David Fromberg, a senior business major, said he went to Playdium.net about five times.
“I thought it was cool just to go hang out with friends and play a game we all enjoy,” Fromberg said. “People can do this for free in their dorm rooms. Why would you pay money for something you could do for free?”
Another downside, Fromberg said, was that during tournaments players could look at their neighboring opponent’s screen.
“That’s just blatant cheating,” he said.
William Lessard, iGames spokesman, said it’s more difficult to tell if a game center will be successful simply based on its location. “Just as every community is different, I think every game center is different. There’s a different culture,” Lessard said. “There are no hard and fast rules with this stuff.”
Steve Klein, a sophomore criminal justice major who won two tournaments at Playdium.net, said he has been an avid computer game player since high school, though he dropped the habit in college until a friend persuaded him to visit Playdium.net.
The gaming center didn’t entice him to get back into gaming, he said.
“It still wasn’t what it could have been,” he said. “It kind of got old real quick.”
“It was kind of awkward,” Klein said. “There were weird people all around you just kind of into the video games. It was creepy.”
