Gaming Cafes are very popular in certain parts of the world while they’re almost unheard in others. In this article I go over what gaming cafes and bars are and where to find them.

What Is A Gaming Café?

A gaming café is a place where people go to play video games and hang with other gamers. Typically, people will pay a certain hourly or daily fee in order to be able to play and use the gear and internet that is provided by the café. The gaming café may even sell food / drinks.

Gaming cafes are popular for a few reasons:

For one, they provide a place where gamers can meet to socialize and hang with other gamers.

Given that most gaming is done online these days, it’s nice to be able to meet up and interact with other gamers in person.

Another reason that gaming cafes are popular is that they usually have better internet and better equipment than the average gamer.

Because gaming cafes are centered around gaming, they must make sure they have the best of the best when it comes to gaming. If they didn’t, why would anyone visit?

These top-notch gaming setups are a major pull for those who have average or below average gaming setups.

Lastly, gaming cafes appeal to those who want to play a certain game without having to purchase it.

Gaming cafes usually have a large selection of games for their customers to play. This large selection of games is just another tool that these cafes use to attract future customers.

Although paying for games has become less and less common over the years, there are still some games that must be purchased and some people may want to play the game before they buy it.

Gaming cafes have also decreased in popularity over the years as fast internet and quality gaming equipment has become more accessible.

With that being said, if a gaming café sounds fun to you, here is how you can find one near you.

How To Find Gaming Cafes Near You?

To find gaming cafes near you, the best thing to do is open up a map tool like Google Maps and type in “Gaming Café”. If you live in or near a big city there should be several results that appear, but if you live in a small town you may have to travel a bit further to find a gaming café to visit.

You could also use Google to search for “Gaming Cafes in my city” or “gaming cafes near me” if you are not seeing what you are looking for on Google Maps.

If you can’t find any nearby gaming Cafes with a Google search or with Google Maps, the next step is social media.

Many cities have Facebook groups dedicated to gaming in the area and some people in the group may have info on where you can find a café to game at.

Lastly, if you can’t find anything online, try visiting your local game store and try talking to people there.

GameStop is a good place, but really any game store where you can talk to fellow gamers/nerds could be a good place to find a gaming café in your area.

Are Gaming Cafes Worth It?

Gaming cafes are worth it if you enjoy a social atmosphere centered around gaming. Even if you’re not particularly social but want to play games on equipment you don’t have, a gaming café could be a great option. Gaming PCs are expensive, so a gaming café is a great place to try one out.

When my friends and I were in high school, none of us could really afford a fancy gaming PC, so instead we’d all go to the local gaming café every weekend so we could experience League of Legends without lag.

It was always a super fun time and worth every single penny we paid. So gaming cafes are worth it, especially if you have some good friends to go with.

They’re a great place to be social with other gamers and just have a great time gaming. Besides gaming cafes there are also gaming bars. Let’s talk about those.

What Is A Gaming Bar?

A gaming bar is a bar or business that serves alcohol to its guests while also providing games to play. Sometimes these games are in the form of retro arcade machines, Pinball machines, etc and other times these games are in the form of gaming consoles or PCs. A gaming bar may also play eSports on their TVs.

In general, a gaming bar is going to be a bar centered around gaming. What kind of gaming will depend entirely on the bar.

I’ve been to a gaming bar where you could request a Nintendo 64 be brought to your table so you and your friends could drink and play Mario Kart together.

Other gaming bars will be more about socializing than actual gaming. They won’t have consoles or games to play, but they’ll show eSports tournaments on TV, have many gaming posters / decorations, etc.

It really just depends on the gaming bar that you go to, but if you are into gaming and want to socialize then gaming bars can be pretty cool.

What’s The Difference Between A Gaming Café And Gaming Bar?

The main difference between a gaming café and a gaming bar is that a gaming café will always have consoles and PC games to play, while a gaming bar may have games like Pinball and retro arcade machines instead. Gaming bars will also serve alcoholic drinks while gaming cafes usually do not.

A gaming cafe is always going to be focused on the gaming aspect of their business. When you go to a gaming cafe, it will always have games for you to play.

Sometimes the cafe will have consoles (XBox, Playstation, etc), sometimes it will have PCs. It depends on the café.

A gaming bar won’t always be focused on the actual playing of games. Sometimes a gaming bar just has a theme centered around gaming.

Other times they’ll have old school games (Pinball, Pac Man, etc) as opposed to the modern games of gaming cafes. A gaming bar will also serve alcohol to its guests while a gaming café will not.

For this reason gaming cafes also tend to attract a younger audience than that of a gaming bar.

Basically, gaming cafes are for those who are looking to game hardcore whereas a gaming bar is intended for those who are looking to socialize with some light gaming sprinkled in.

Inside a gaming bar there are also bartenders, but they work a little bit differently than a typical bartender does.

What Is A Gaming Bartender?

A gaming bartender is a bartender that works at a bar or pub with gaming of some kind involved. These bartenders usually have to pay out guests and keep them happy so that they want to game. Gaming bartenders make their money from patrons playing games instead of from patrons drinking and tipping.

A gaming bartender will have different meanings depending on where you are and who you ask, but most of the time its referring to the bartender at a bar that offers games of some kind.

Most of the time, these games come in the form of slots or some other form of gambling, so a gaming bartender will be in charge of cashing players out as well as serving drinks.

In more casual conversation, a gaming bartender could just refer to a bartender that also enjoys gaming.

However, this is not a typical usage of the phrase so you’ll have to use context clues to decide whether someone is talking about a gamer that happens to be a bartender or, more likely, a bartender that works at a gaming bar/pub.

Gaming cafes and gaming bars can both be a lot of fun. If you are into gaming I recommend you at least check them out so you can see what they are like.