Shanghai's best video game arcades

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From dusty retro havens to gleaming mall venues, Shanghai is full of brilliant games arcades. With lots of variety and fun at low cost, they're a perfect indoor activity for those rainy days or just straight up video game fanatics. Here are some of the best the button-blaster and dance mat dens in Shanghai.

Photograph: Time Out

Fengyun Zaiqi Game Centre

Best all-rounder
This huge, underground game haven is the ultimate all-rounder. Gleamingly clean, it boasts loads of new basketball hoop games, a large retro console section with classics such as Street Fighter II, Raiden 4 and Tekken, dance games including Dance Evolution and a musical section with Guitar Freaks XG and Drum Mania XG. Shooters include the challenging Razing Storm, Time Crisis and Operation G.H.O.S.T.. If your remit is no more complicated than ‘I want to play tons of great video games’, this is the place for you. The easiest way in is on Wusheng Lu, near Huangpi Bei Lu.

221 People's Avenue

Photograph: Time Out

Lie Huo Game Centre

Best for retro variety
This Jingan haunt boasts a great retro console section that makes it worth visiting. Hard-to-find gems such as Power Smash Sega Pro Tennis (it really is a retro treat being able to play as Tim Henman) plus classics such as Tekken, Street Fighter II and Tetris abound. We had a good level of soft toy-grabbing success at the claw machine next to the Initial D4 console too, while the Daytona USA racer is another fun nostalgia hit. There's also House of the Dead and Time Crisis cabinets, as well as a button-press and taiko drum rhythm games.

77 Jiangning Lu

Photograph: Kenny Ong

Sega Joypolis

Best for insane variety
There's a pop-idol simulator (outfit options and real stage included), arcade racing simulators (cars included), the 'spy school' where you have to pretzel your way through a room without tripping any security lasers (among other more traditional escape rooms), a small bumper car arena and more. And then there's your standard claw machines, ticket accumulating games, basketball shooters and so on. No fighting games, but a handful of shoot 'em ups.

Fourth Floor, 3300 Zhongshan Bei Lu, near Jinshajiang Lu

Photograph: Time Out

Tom's World

Best for families
There are numerous branches of Tom’s World arcades in malls around town (just search '汤姆熊'), all populated with sugar-high kids hooking ducks, clawing for soft toys and winning tokens for prizes. With plenty of simple but fun screen bash games and dance consoles, Tom’s World arcades are great places for children to burn off some energy on rainy days. They’re worth a visit for older gamers too – Changning’s Cloud Nine Mall branch, for example, features modern shooters such as Terminator: Salvation and Ghost Squad, plus Tom’s World venues are the only places in town we’ve seen the brilliant drive chase game Tokyo Cop.

1018 Changning Lu

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