Dave & Busters' Newest Addition: Tempe, Arizona

My girlfriend's birthday was a few weeks ago and she was hitting the big 21 so we decided to go to the video arcade for grown-ups, Dave & Busters. Dave & Buster's is a fairly new arrival in the Phoenix area, before them we only had Gameworks which was great when it opened but very quickly went downhill as the Arizona Mills quickly became a run down area.

When I first walked into Dave & Buster's I was blown away by how incredibly nice and spacious it was, the games were not crammed tightly together and there was plenty of room to casually walk around without having to dodge small children. They card everyone at the door and only allow people 18 and older in unless there is someone 25 years old in your party, and they are very strict on this. If you are under 18 don't even try to get in, the users at the door will stop you in your tracks.

I would advise eating before you go in to play games, they have a decent menu but the service is pretty crummy and the food is just as bad. They have a few deals where you get food and a $10 or $20 game card but it's best to just load up on a big game card. If you go only to play games and don't plan on having any drinks, I can barely qualify this as a cheap trip, Your best value is their $50 game card which will easily last two people a couple of hours. Everything at Dave and Buster's is driven off of your game card, pretty much a credit card without the monthly fees. They have games of all styles so if you feel like shooting aliens, driving a race car, or playing space invaders (yes they really have an old space invaders game, I freaked when I saw it) you can easily get your fill. When you're done saving the world from the forces of evil, you can relax with their numerous ticket games. I'm normally not one to play ticket games, but the ticket payouts are amazing and there is an entire store of things you can buy with the tickets. The store has great items, not kids junk, you can buy shirts, glasses, teddy bears for the girlfriend, even video games, all very decently priced (in tickets, of course!)

Lest I forget, there is also the greatest thing about Dave & Busters, because of the age restrictions you are allowed to drink on the game floor and carry it with you. Most of the games actually have little switches on them that will call a server to you so that you can place a drink order, or if you're not feeling lazy there are two bars at each end of the building. The drinks are moderately priced and if you're a beer nut like myself, they actually have some decent micro brew on tap. Overall, Dave & Buster's is well worth the trip and if you used to be a Gameworks junkie, you'll never go back after a visit here.

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