"The IAAPA show was well attended this year but with less representation from the coin-op amusement side," according to FEC operator Chris Cotty.
"Many manufacturers were very scaled down from years past but it was good to see big players like Namco, Andamiro, Sega and Global VR still showing a strong presence."
Games that attracted Cotty’s attention included Namco’s Tank! Tank! Tank!, Global VR’s Twisted Nitro Racing, Terminator from Betson/Raw Thrills and in the cranes section Coast to Coast’s six station circular Hot Stuff.
Commenting on the market in the US generally, Cotty told InterGame: "Business in the US continues to be deeply depressed. One of the saddest things I heard from a manufacturer was ‘the US and the UK don’t matter any more - those markets are dead’.
"While this may be close to the point it is a signal that new products and ideas are desperately needed. I’m not ready to give up on these markets and now look to see a pick-up in machine sales as the recession lessens.
"For 2010 we expect to see the recession become a recent bad memory and sales to increase. In the last two years operators have halted reinvestment drastically, if not entirely. Unfortunately, this has caused earnings to drop so far that many operators cannot recover and they have left the industry.
"Many arcades in the US have perished, even many landmark arcades that everyone figured would be around forever are now gone. The only good thing about this, is that it creates opportunities for those of us who held on through the tough times."
