Following a positive EAG at which the leading machine company confirmed a willingness amongst operators to invest in products they felt would make a difference to their business, Brent's video offering including Dead Heat, Deadstorm Pirates (both Bandai Namco Games), Super Cars, Super Bikes 2 and Terminator Salvation (Raw Thrills) as well as the ICE video redemption game Frogger, have generated huge interest much of which has translated into orders.

John Crompton, Sales Manager for UK and Ireland believes that a strong video offering is crucial to the appeal of arcades and in turn their commercial success. He explained: "An arcade without a good line-up of best in class video products is a bit like a pub without beer - it just doesn't feel right and it rarely works. Video is the arcade's shop window, and great products such as Dead Heat, Deadstorm Pirates, Super Cars, Super Bikes 2, Terminator Salvation and Frogger are all centre pieces which put an arcade on the radar of players. John Crompton, who was born into the industry and spent his entire working life in the business is quick to underline the importance of selecting the right product. "Good video which delivers an out of home entertainment experience will always bring players in. It's only the videos which connect with gamers that have the ability to maximise ROI. As we've said on many occasions the economic downturn has raised the bar in terms of what's expected and if your product is anything other than number one you may as well forget it." This argument is demonstrated perfectly by Dead Heat, Bandai Namco Games' muscle-bound street driving game which uses social networking features to encourage repeat play and patented instant recognition software technology. Following its launch at EAG it has been confirmed as the number one performing driving game in both the Trocadero and throughout the Namco Operations sites.

"Customers who purchase Dead Heat are benefitting from a game whose weekly cash box is up to 30 per cent greater than that of its nearest competitor. Obviously having high performing games represents a key competitive advantage, helping arcades to win customers from other destination venues." Whilst Super Bikes 2, Super Cars and Terminator Salvation all fit into the video games category marked 'adrenaline' Brent has also identified the commercial prowess of slower paced video games such as Frogger which cater for a family market. John Crompton explained: "When you refer to video you immediately think of action-based products but the versatility of the genre means there's room for other product styles. Frogger is the smash hit arcade classic which has been transformed by ICE and Raw Thrills under licence from Konami. The game boasts eye-catching graphics on a 42" LCD panel. The aim of getting Frogger to reach the coveted lilly pad may not have the same high octane appeal of racing Dead Heat's customisable street cars around San Francisco but where ROI is the gauge it remains totally relevant to the arcade business."