Dave & Buster's Introduces Betting On Arcade Games As Americans Become Even Bigger Degenerates
Have we officially gone too far with betting in the United States?
In a rather interesting move that will raise a few eyebrows, Dave & Buster's announced Tuesday that it will start offering wagering on arcade games including Skee-Ball & HotShots basketball to customers who are 18+.
The arcade and restaurant chain explained in a press release obtained by CNBC that customers will be able to place a $5 wager (it feels like we're going to soon learn that number can go higher) on a "D&B Rewards" app.
"This new partnership gives our loyalty members real-time, unrivaled gaming experiences, and reinforces our commitment to continuing to elevate our customer experience through innovative, cutting-edge technology," Simon Murray, the senior vice president of entertainment and attractions at Dave & Buster’s, said Tuesday.
Lucra, the company behind the software that will be used by Dave & Buster's "is careful not to use the term ‘bet’ or ‘wager’ to describe its games," CNBC reported. The software company has also developed a way for pickleball players and tennis players to gamble against each other.
In other words, instead of just having a friendly wager with each other and then sending $5 to someone via Venmo, you're supposed to use this Lucra app.
Look, let's cut to the chase here: Things are starting to feel a little weird at Dave & Buster's. It's one thing to have coin pusher games where people sit on a stool and shoot coins as they attempt to complete a set of Elvis or Star Wars collectible cards.
It's another to have "Tutti Frutti Bonus" slot machines as kids enter the gaming arcade as I spotted at the Toledo, Ohio location in February.
(Dave & Buster's slot machines at the Toledo, Ohio store. Joe Kinsey / OutKick)
Now comes the news that D&B's will allow 18-year-olds to bet each other on their phones over games of Skee-ball or pop-a-shot. Call me crazy, but it sure feels like we're conditioning kids without the kids knowing they're being conditioned.
It's not like the public hasn't noticed this trend building. In a 2017 review of D&B's, a TripAdvisor said the entertainment spot felt "Like a casino training facility."
"It is loud, kids are running around without supervision, it reminded me of a casino replacing the old ladies at the nickel slots with kids mindlessly slamming away," the man wrote.
In 2011, Chuck E. Cheese was sued by a woman who claimed that the chain featured gambling devices aimed at children. That woman wanted $5 million in damages.
She argued in the complaint that the games entice children to play over and over to win tickets for prizes and that causes dopamine rushes that are the "same highs and lows experienced by adults who gamble their paychecks or the mortgage payment."
The suit was eventually dropped.
What aren't we hearing yet from Dave & Buster's about this gambling business plan?
Let's do a few hypotheticals:
- It feels like we'll see tournaments. $5 to enter a Skee-ball tournament. You're playing against 500 people at the same time. D&B's takes a cut/vig from the tournament.
- Tournaments run for hours and hours at a time. Thousands of people enter. $5 a head. Maybe they go to a $10 professional pop-a-shot tournament.
- Or, you play $5 per game and it's a national tournament. You can enter as many times as you like. Boom, you spent $50 and scored 55 points. Too bad, some 18 year old in San Diego drained 65 points to win the national tournament.
- $5 Skee-ball games; high score wins the mega prize in the store. Meanwhile, D&Bs makes thousands a day off this one and gives away a $500 PS5.
Buckle up. Gambling isn't going away. It's just a matter of how far the government lets people go into debt before they hold Congressional hearings to rein us back in.
Are you a Dave & Buster's degenerate? Is gambling out of control? Has Dave & Buster's gone too far with arcade gambling?
Email: joekinsey@gmail.com