Arcade Club Bury (Review)

Tron: Ares is due to hit cinemas this October (2025) in the UK, and thinking of Tron reminds me of classic video game arcades thanks to Flynn’s. In present day arcades are generally found in bowling alleys and can cost quite a bit (£1 a play on average, and £2 a play is not uncommon). So where can that classic video game feeling be found?

The Arcade Club has locations in Blackpool, Leeds and Bury. Unlike regular arcades where its pay per play, Arcade Club works on a model where you pay to enter the arcade and then play the games for free. I visited the Bury arcade club 27/09/2025, where it was open 11am to 11pm and entry for adults (16+) is £18, with entry for children (under 16) is £10. 

Located in Ela Mill, the arcade is split across multiple floors with each floor handling different arcade gaming. Entering on the ground floor currently sees players greeted by retro classics such as Pac-Man, Ms. Pac-Man, Galaga, Simpsons, Frogger, Scramble and so much more. I quickly found myself playing the light gun game Virtua Cop 3, with fond memories of Virtua Cop 1 & 2 on the Sega Saturn. Several continues later, and that entrance fee has already nearly been earned already.

Next up on the ground floor, physical pinball machines including Avengers and Flintstones. The virtual versions on modern consoles / PC may be fun, but the feel and dynamics of a physical machine add to the fun. A couple of tries on the Super Mario pinball machine and I’m ranking the scores in the multiple of millions. 

I next headed to the top floor, for the retro arcade cabinets. Fighting classics like the Mortal Kombats sit close to Tapper, Tempest 2000, and WWF Wrestlemania. Dragons Lair, Space Ace with some Strider and Terminator 2 action. This is the floor for me. Childhood favourite X-Men was available in its 6-player cabinet version, and although I’ve played it a lot since childhood it was great fun having an in-person multiplayer session.

Flicky, Battlezone, Asteroid, Quantum, cabinets that move (Sega’s classic Outrun), connected cabinets for two player Sega Rally action, Golden Axe, Rampage, R-Type, Spider-Man, different flavours of Star Wars…this floor had it all, alongside a café.

Down a floor and its Japanese imports, and although they have not really been my thing they are fun and intense to play. Amongst these are the Capcom fighters that I could never find in the arcade when I was younger and have only really experienced through emulation and home console release… Marvel vs. Capcom, X-Men vs. Street Fighter, Capcom vs. SNK 2, Vampire Saviour. It’s a mix of single player cabinets and two player cabinets. Not to say other fighters are missing (for example Tekken was there).

This floor is also home to rhythm games and dance games. Seeing a Guitar Hero cabinet allowed me to jam along to Slowride (Foghat), The Metal (Tenacious D), and Rock and Roll All Night (Kiss). It is a shame the Guitar Hero franchise ended, and if Activision ever re-release Guitar Hero 3: Legends of Rock for the current series of home consoles I think it would sell well.

I found myself on Theatrhythm Final Fantasy All-Star Carnival thanks to its different control system, and after a few minutes trying to understand the Japanese menus, I was enjoying matching button pushes / movement to the rhythm of music from Final Fantasy I whilst taking in an animated battle.

Down another floor and its air hockey, basketball hoops, and connected X-Boxes, plus sofas for those looking to recharge. The big draws on this floor for me were the Star Wars Battle Pod, just seeing the technological jump between the Atari original and this…wow, and the large Mission: Impossible arcade cabinet set up, which is perfect for multiplayer action.

With many hours of arcade gaming achieved, it was time to call it a day…but not before a few quick games on MotoGP (located on ground floor).

So was it worth £18? Yes, several times over. The difficulty of the classic arcade games is deceptive leading to a lot of continues, machines like Guitar Hero encourage multiple tracks to be played (especially in multiplayer), and in-person multiplayer cabinets would empty a wallet very quickly.

The Arcade Club keeps a list of available arcade games up on their site, so if you are after a particular title give it a check. Opening times vary depending on day with Fridays after 6pm being for adults only, so check before visiting. A queue was already forming at 11am on Saturday morning, so it may be best to book or get there early. The Bury location has an on-site car park, and is only a 10 to 20 minute walk from Bury’s shopping Centre.

If you are after more retro gaming in the North West check out The North-West Computer Museum (Leigh) or the (available at weekends/school holidays) Power Up event at Museum of Science and Industry (Manchester).