Peek inside Round 1, Towne East’s big new arcade, entertainment venue
A pandemic, admits Round 1 general manager Drew Dixon, is not the ideal time to open a giant arcade and entertainment center meant to attract big crowds of people who’ll stay for hours on end.
But the new business, which is taking up 44,000 feet on the lower level of Towne East Square near JC Penney, is opening to the public at 10 a.m. on Saturday — though it will do so with far more regulations and far less fanfare than it would in normal times.
On Friday, Dixon offered a sneak peek tour of the venue and outlined the ways the business — a big arcade, bowling and billiards venue — will try to keep customers safe during the pandemic.
He’s not sure what to expect once the doors are open, said Dixon, a Wichita native who was hired by the Japan-based chain to run the business, its 42nd U.S. location.
“I’m excited,” he said. “I guess the only nervousness I have is just with COVID-19 going on, I have no idea what the grand opening is going to be like in terms of business. It could be really, really slow, but being from Wichita, I know how crazy Wichita goes for anything new. So I could see it being very busy as well.”
What’s inside
Step inside the massive space, which has entrances both on the southwest corner of the mall and from inside the mall itself, and you’ll be hit by flashing lights and conversation-stopping noise.
To the left is the start of the venue’s giant arcade, which features hundreds of games. Among them are basic Whac-A-Mole type games, but there’s also a section dedicated to racing games, one with dance games and one with Japanese fighting games. There are also movie and television themed games from favorites like “The Walking Dead” and “Jurassic Park.”
Round 1 is well known for its crane games, where people pay to maneuver a claw and try to grasp a plush toy. It has about 45 crane games in one section, and they’re stuffed with hard-to-find Japanese plush toys that are popular with young people. Think adorable kitty and panda heads or stuffed strawberries and pineapples.
It’s also known for having lots of Japanese fighting games that are specific to Round 1 — games that can’t be found at arcade competitors.
Most games allow players to either win a prize on the spot or collect tickets to be used in the massive prize store, also filled with Japanese plush toys, electronics, bikes and more.
There’s also an eight-lane bowling alley that offers cosmic bowling on weekends and weekday evenings, a billiards area with four tables, a snack bar offering burgers, pizza, wings and the like, and a full bar that serves draft and bottled beer, mixed drinks and more.
Private rooms on the side of the venue will be available for birthday parties or private karaoke parties, but they won’t be open until the COVID-19 situation improves, Dixon said.
There’s no fee to enter the venue. People play the games a-la-carte using game cards they purchase either at a kiosk or a counter. They can load 25 cent credits on to the cards, and Dixon said most games take between four and 12 credits, meaning they range from $1 to $3 each. People also can rent bowling alleys by the hour.
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At first, Round 1 will be open from 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily. In the near future, it will expand to its regular hours: 10 a.m. to 2 a.m. daily. The venue is restricted from 10 p.m. to midnight to people ages 18 and older. After midnight, you must be 21 to be inside.
COVID-19 precautions
The venue won’t operate at first as it would if Wichita wasn’t in the midst of the pandemic, Dixon said.
In addition to the shortened hours, Round 1 will be requiring people to wear masks at all times while they’re inside. The venue won’t have masks to distribute, so people must bring their own.
Though they’re not restricting the number of people who can be inside at once, they’ve put in place several measures designed to enforce social distancing, including directional signs on the floor.
For now, food and drink will have to be kept in the snack bar area and won’t be allowed on the game floor or in the bowling alley. Every other booth in the snack bar area has been taped off to encourage social distancing, and bowling alleys will be restricted to four people each.
Hand sanitizing stations are set up throughout the venue, and the games have been adjusted so that people can’t stand too close together while playing the same game.
The venue’s 60 employees must wear masks and have their temperatures taken as they start their shifts.
Dixon said the restrictions will give employees time to prepare and learn their jobs.
“We were initially supposed to be open back in April, but we’re opening right now, and luckily, all the state regulations allow us to open,” he said. “We’ll kind of see what Wichita is going to bring to the table here in terms of business... It gets us that experience before we really start getting busy once we get out of the pandemic.”
This story was originally published July 17, 2020 at 1:04 PM.
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