Namco Nakano Store Ends Arcade Idolmaster Operation After 20 Years
The end of regular operation at this store closes a two-decade run of the arcade original, with the cabinet preserved on site as the series' origin point.
Reporting from 1 source: Denfaminicogamer.
Namco Nakano Store announced on September 4 that it would end regular operation of the arcade version of THE IDOLM@STER. Operation began on July 26, 2005. The store cited age-related malfunctions making stable operation difficult. The cabinet remains as a display item, along with 20 years of player communication notebooks.
The arcade cabinet stays. Namco Nakano Store said the machine will not be removed, and it will be displayed alongside 20 years of communication notebooks written by players, as the origin of the Idolmaster series. The store is inviting people nearby to stop by.
The arcade THE IDOLM@STER launched nationwide on July 26, 2005, by Namco, now Bandai Namco Entertainment. It offered online battles and data saving, uncommon at the time. The network service ended on September 1, 2010, and offline cabinets kept running in arcades since then.
The store's notice cited malfunctions from age-related deterioration as the reason. THE IDOLM@STER TOURS remains playable at the same location.
Synthesized by Yomimono from the 1 cited source below, including Japanese-language reporting where cited, then editorially reviewed before publishing.
Sources
- Denfaminicogamer namco中野店のアーケード版『アイドルマスター』が稼働終了。経年劣化による不具合のため、2005年から20年以上にわたる稼働に幕