Games N’At offers arcade nostalgia with BYOB fun

‘ ‘ ‘ On a busy night in her arcade, Marian Jones stepped into the ladies’ bathroom and peered… ‘ ‘ ‘ On a busy night in her arcade, Marian Jones stepped into the ladies’ bathroom and peered into the trash can. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ A diaper, a black thong and a container for PoliGrip denture cream sat in the bottom of the basket, and Jones thought about the kind of destination her arcade, Games N’At, had become. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘I guess we just have something for everybody,’ concluded Jones, who opened the business in Pittsburgh’s South Side six years ago with her husband, Bill. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ Because the married couple designed Games N’At to appeal to a wide variety of customers, the meeting of the diaper, the thong and the dentures did not happen by accident. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ Games N’At attracts people for many reasons, including its bring-your-own-alcohol policy. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ Every Friday night is college night, when students can purchase unlimited gaming tickets for $10 each and drink as much alcohol as they want, valid ID permitting. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ So far, Jones hasn’t encountered any problems with this policy, as students come here mainly to play the games, but she has noticed one peculiarity. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘When somebody comes in with a bottle of rum, a black thong always turns up,’ she said while laughing, leaning against a pinball machine. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ But the ability to get inebriated and play Pac-Man at the same time is not the only thing that sets Games N’At apart from other standard arcade venues. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ It features a mix of old and new gaming options, all within a vintage atmosphere, which Jones has created out of the knickknacks she finds at garage sales and oddity shops. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ In a room that contains the fully functional relics of video gaming’s earliest days, a classic Pac-Man machine beckons for the next challenger. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ A mammoth machine called the Ultracade sits in another room, waiting for someone to play one of its 93 vintage arcade games. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ The billiards room boasts a record-playing jukebox from the ’70s, which plays everything from Roy Orbison to Aerosmith at the rate of eight songs per dollar. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ In the party room, a deer’s head draped with a Steelers scarf stares down at clients. It was a present from one of Jones’s old boyfriends. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ An old, circular washer from the ’50s stands in the corner of the room, great for storing large amounts of ice-chilled beer for parties. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ Like everything inside her arcade, Games N’At itself has an interesting story behind it, a story that could only have happened in Pittsburgh. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ The arcade was once a giant garage for the Jones’ first business, Triangle Messenger, which they owned for more than 20 years. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ It was the first delivery service in Pittsburgh to use both trucks and bicycles to make deliveries within the city. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘The reason for the bikes was that it was just easier to make deliveries to places like Downtown and the South Side,’ said Jones. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ But after Sept. 11, insurance rates skyrocketed, causing the couple to close their business. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ A friend suggested that they use their garage to open an arcade because people were getting sick of the high prices at fancy arcade chains. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ While they were painting and plastering the walls, arcade game lenders told Jones they could never fill up the garage’s 10,000 square feet of space. ‘They said, ‘You’re crazy, you’ll never fill up the place,” she said. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ So Jones decided to buy all the games off the Internet. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ On a second-floor room in the back of the arcade, bubbly letters over four mini-bowling alleys read ‘Pins Over Pittsburgh.’ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ This game, which Jones calls ‘duckball,’ involves throwing a bowling ball half the size of a regular bowling ball down a 43-foot alley instead of the traditional 55-foot one, with the aim of knocking down ‘duckpins.’ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ When Jones’s father died in a car accident, she used the money from her insurance settlement to build this memorial to her father, who was an avid bowler. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ A painting of her father lining up to strike down pins hangs on the left wall. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ Customers receive the stickers, which list the time their gaming pass expires, on their way into the arcade. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ A customer gave Jones the idea one day to encourage customers to put their stickers on the wall on their way out. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ The last thing clients see when they walk out the door is a mountain of stickers, a growing testament to the gamers who support the Jones’ arcade. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ A bicycle also hangs in front of the door as a reminder of the garage’s past and present.