Bandai Namco has officially revealed details on their first-ever arcade in Akihabara after months of renovations and job listings teasing the new multi-story complex. The game company announced on February 22 that the newly minted “namco Akihabara store” will be opening on March 1, showcasing what the new floors will look like.

The basement to fourth floors will be filled with arcade machines, crane games and gashapon, with the first floor also having an Ichiban Kuji shop that looks out to the main street. The third floor of the amusement area will have an area to host arcade tournaments, such as that of Taiko no Tatsujin. The fourth floor will be exclusively gashapon, with around 800 machines installed to be the largest concentration of gashapon in Akiba. The fifth floor will be a Bandai Card Games official store and tournament center. 

RELATED: Bandai Namco to Open Arcade in Former SEGA Akihabara Building

SEGA, and then GiGO, occupied the arcade, which is just in front of Akihabara Station, for 11 years before it closed on September 25, 2022, due to the end of the fixed-term lease for the building and the non-renewal of the contract to extend it. This was the second iconic GiGO/SEGA to close in Akihabara after SEGA Akihabara Building 2 closed in August 2020. 

namco Akihabara store is set to open on March 1.

Source: Press Release

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Daryl Harding is a Senior Japan Correspondent for Crunchyroll News. He also runs a YouTube channel about Japan stuff called TheDoctorDazza, tweets at @DoctorDazza, and posts photos of his travels on Instagram.