Video Games Take Over Multiplex

Movie theaters and video games go hand in hand. I remember that when multiplexes first started springing up around me in the early '80s, they all featured an abundance of arcade games. Besides the fact that the bigger theaters had bigger lobbies to hold a number of games, and besides the fact that games were such a big trend when multiplex construction was on the rise, cinema planners and owners were smart to see the connection between one visual entertainment and another. Eventually, game systems at home caused a decline in arcade games. Local arcades closed down and new theaters were built with less space for the games. I did notice while working in movie theaters that kids would come in solely to use the games without interest in buying a movie ticket, but for the most part game playing at the cinema has significantly decreased in popularity from what it once was.

Starting November 18, however, video gaming at the cinema is set to take a new turn -- in Belgium, at least. A new theater run by Kinepolis (the company credited with building the first megaplex, by the way) in Bruges will be offering a service where people can play video games on the big screen. The service will allow customers to play either their own PS2 games or one of the titles provided by the theater in one of their digital-screen auditoriums Wednesday and Saturday afternoons. The cost is to be 15 Euros ($19 US) per half-hour, per console (regardless of number of players).

So far, this idea of XL Gaming, as Kinepolis is calling it, is confined to theaters in Belgium, where the company plans to feature the service nationwide in all of their locations. I think it is likely to catch on in other places, though, including here in America. Big-screen gaming has been made possible thanks to the technology of digital projectors, which has already led to successful alternatives in cinemas here. The major chains in the U.S. (Regal, Cinemark and AMC) currently offer live concert and sporting events, as well as special screenings (like the recent A Nightmare on Elm Street showings), all courtesy of digital projection and National CineMedia, which is the co-venture set up by the three chains to help increase the digital projection roll-out. So big screen gaming is definitely plausible as a next step for this group of theatre-owners. And it could very well be a step in the direction of more interactive entertainment in the future. Perhaps one day the movies and the video games will be the same thing.

[via In Focus]