I'm going to miss Disney Quest.  We enjoyed it quite a bit when we went there in 2003.  I got to play some classic arcade games I hadn't seen since the 80's.  It's a shame.  But then it's just a sign of the changing times. Quite a shame.  ESPN Zone isn't really all that special anyway.  It was just better promoted.  It'll eventually go the same way of Disney Quest.

I worked storyboarding Cyberspace Mountain back in the day.  It's sad to see it go, but Disney's got the reputation for having big plans and then scaling back to the point of undercutting all of the work that had gone before.  I don't think that the idea had ever fit in the park itself, but back when DisneyQuest franchises were going to be built in every major city as indoovirtual amusement parks (to rival the plans SKG had for GameWorks arcades- those were the days!) it seemed like it could have really worked.  Ah well...  

But ESPN Zone?  That's just dumbassed.

I'm just as sad--Every trip, the ritual was, hit the parks in the morning, but the first night was DQ till midnight... :)
And it's not about Chicago--that was simply a mistake trying to put a theme park off of resort property, where people have to work during the day--it's just the fact that, well...a lot of us old 80's Pac-maniacs have had to come to grips these last few years with the fact that Arcade Games Are Dead:  They were killed off by finally being left behind by the elaborate scenarios anyone could play at home on their own Playstations (what, "Splinter Cell: the Arcade Game"?), and all that's left for willing quarters nowadays are a few DanceDance Revolution games that only the breakdancing pros play.

Even when I still hit DQ, I used to wonder how it would weather changing times...Now, I just hope that Cyber SM and Virtual Pirates of the Caribbean can find their own good homes elsewhere on property--
Maybe at the theme parks, where we're in a mood to play, and there's no shortage of players?

Do you know what is going to replace ESPN Zone on the Boardwalk? I hoping they put something good there that fits in line with the Boardwalk's entertainment theme.

Hi guys!!

I'd like to point out that a few DQ games (including Cyber Space Mountain) are being part of the Television Tour postshow here at the Walt Disney Studios Park at Disneyland Resort Paris!

:-)

I personally never went to Disney Quest because of the extra charge, but I have some familiy that loves Disney Quest and I'm sure that they will miss it greatly.  I understand that Disney Quest has a limited market appeal, but ESPN Zone also has a limited market appeal.  Disney Quest, I feel, leans more towards younger men, and ESPN Zone appeals, in general, to more men than women.  I don't plan on going to ESPN Zone, but if it's free, I may take a walk around initially.  Does anyone know if it'll be free?

Maybe they'll take some of the rides from DQ,  re-theme them or freshen them up a bit, and plop them down over in Future World at Epcot. Since attendance at DQ wasn't that great, they would be new to most of the Epcot guests, and would put something "new" into Future World to help that problematic area. Heck, why not Tomorrowland in either DL or WDW? Since you woundn't need to now keep them exclusive to DQ, you could clone them and put them in all the Tomorrowlands in all the parks world wide. Just a thought.

Sort of sad to see it go, but not surprised, either. I think Disney never really got a handle on how to market DisneyQuest. We saw it in Chicago first and wanted to go in to see what it was, but you had to pay for a full day's admission, and we only had an hour or two to spare. We finally went to the WDW version a couple of years ago when we bought park tickets that had it included. Again, we'd wanted to go in before, but just didn't know enough about it to justify the price. If Disney had created a way to let you check it out without spending an arm a a leg, I think that would have certainly helped. My daughter loves it, so now we pay extra to go. She'll be really disappointed, but at least we can get in a couple of extra trips before it shutters for good.

Rather than build these huge indoor complexes, I think Disney should have gone after the Chuck E. Cheese market, which is tailor-made for them. We had a Bullwinkle's open up here several years ago and it does great business. We have one Chuck E. Cheese in town that is in poor shape. As my son pointed out once, "Bullwinkle's has a few games that are broken, and Chuck E. Cheese has a few games that actually work."

So, one less thing to do in Downtown Disney and yet another unimaginative, non-Disney restaurant (why not just make a Jimmy Kimmel Live Lounge while you are at it?) If you must close DQ and open a restaurant, at least make it something special and unique.  DQ is one of the last few things that still makes me return to that area (and spend money.)

And here I was thinking that the new foks in charge were trying to bring the Disney magic back.  Apparently a restaurant featuring an ABC property is considered good enough for the "clueless tourists."  It's time to bring some respect back to those who come to Disney expecting the Disney experience and fantasy and not CorporateLand.

Well this just stinks. I've been a huge fan of DQ ever since it first opened. It's one of my favorite places at WDW. Granted, I knew this day would come, I just never really prepared myself for it.

I just hope and pray that Pirates of the Caribbean finds a new home. Of everything my brothers and I do at WDW when my family goes, that has always been one of our favorites. I can remember one trip where after waiting 45 minutes to play it, we did our usual routine of pirate voices, port and starboard instead of left and right, and generally just getting way into it. The woman operating the ride was so impressed with how much we seemed to enjoy ourselves, that she came in and said, "Come on guys, you can do better than that." We just posted a top score in the game, so I replied, "Well, I guess we could, I'm not sure." "Well, try again then," was her replied. Realizing what she was saying, we began showering her with thanks. After all, there was a 45 minute line out there! "Don't mention it," she said. "Really, don't mention it!" And I am glad to say we did achieve a higher score the second go around. So Disney, if you're not going to save PotC, can I have one of them?

While I never visited Dinsey Quest I have to admit it sounded interesting, just not enough to drag me away from the theme parks or resorts.  I liked the concept of brining the theme parks to urban locations, and was interested in seeing the concept expand, but once the Philly project was killed and the Chicago site closed I figured that the WDW site would at some point run it's course as well.

I will miss the ESPN CLUB at Boardwalk.  As a DVC member who's home resort is Boardwalk I love being able to stroll down the Boardwalk to eat, drink and catch a game while on vacation.  With a move to PI/Downtown Disney I doubt I will venture over (now with a wife and three little kids) to a sports related themed resturant.  The ESPN Club was such a nice fit at Boardwalk, a bit small, and I can see why the ESPN ZONE concept at Downtown Disney seems to be on the horizon.  Would love for the ESPN Club to survive, but realize that it is part of the living breathing resort, and that changes are going to happen.

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Well, at least my son is finally old enough to see it once before it closes. I enjoyed it, but with young kids, it was not anything on our to-do list, and it wasn't even anything that caught my young kids attention. It didn't appear to hit the demographics properly for WDW. My son, now 8, will enjoy it, but my daughter, 6, has no interest in it.

I can see why the ESPNZone is a good fit. Disney already allows ESPN to broadcast from its Boston and Anaheim locations on a regular basis. If Planet Hollywood and Rainforest Cafe can make money in Orlando, I'm sure Disney sees that a ESPN location could make a killing.

Maybe the move to gradually phase out these cast members is a wise one. The trend does seem a bit dated. But I am wondering if maybe they can be reworked into the new system-- maybe they can serve beer and snacks at the new location? They could also serve out little paper umbrellas with their characters on them to the customers with a smile! LOL! :D

No!
NOOOOO!!!!!
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!
DISNEYQUEST!!! NOOOOOO!!!! DON'T LEAVE ME!!!!!!!

Seriously, I find this to be really depressing news. Disney Quest combined two of the greatest loves of my life; Disney and gaming. Heck, I could spend hours alone in that free retro arcade by Buzz Lightyear's Astro Blasters (Tron and Disk of Tron own all).

And I always enjoyed all of the attractions. I think my favorite is and always will be the Pirates of the Carribean game. Me and my two brothers (one of whom is Ajguy up there) always looked forward to gathering booty on the high seas, and we always took great pride in our high scores.

I really just loved the aesthetic of the place. The retro scifi neon lights thing... well, I get a kick out of it. God, even the elevator ride at the beginning is a lot of fun.

We're heading down to Florida this summer, so I'm going to be sure to spend some quality time at Disney Quest. Even though I'm sure we'll probably get to WDW again before DQ closes, I want to make these last couple of years count.

I always considered DQ to be a 5th park. Heck, back when Animal Kingdom first opened, I thought DQ was easily superiour to it.

Disney Quest always did an incredible job of entertaining me, year after year. Though it may be closing soon, I will never forgot it.

I never got to go to DQ despite taking numerous trips to WDW the last 4 years.  With 1 then 2 then 3 wee little girls, I didn't think that DQ was the appropriate venue to entertain them.  Also, I never really knew what was in the dang building and wasn't willing to spend that much chicken finger money on finding out.  (3 to a person please).
Anyway, Tolkoto, I love gathering booty on the high seas as well.  And anywhere else I can gather it.
Living kinda sorta near Philly, I was totally jazzed at the idea of having a DQ nearby.  But then Weird Things happened and we were left with a hole in the ground.  
And kMan, I love the idea of dispersing the DQ attractions around the parks.  I bet Innoventions would seriously get a shot in the arm.  Tomorrowland could fit a few things in somewhere, I'm sure.  Maybe in the Toontown Fair.  That would serve families well that have older kids that could care less while parents take the young'uns on the Barnstormer.
Hopefully, I'll get to see it before it exits.  DQ I hardly knew you.

As far as where to move some of the more innovate DQ  games: How about Innoventions? Disney's already got a bunch of their video games over there anyway, Disney's been having a hard time filling space and finding sponsors, and frankly interactive games sound a lot more fun then the corporate shillfest that's there now.

I doubt they'd try to downsize DQ into a Chuck E Cheese-type format. Between Club Disney, the Disney Stores, and DQ, I suspect that Disney's probably lost their appetite for trying to "bring the magic closer to home" with location-based entertainment - for now, anyway...

would love to know how Jim Hill found about about this and no one at Boardwalk or Downtown Disney has been informed.  You would think the information would be provided internally first.  Please state you sources.  From what we heard Quest and the ESPN Club aren't going anywhere.  AND who did you interview for those quotes in the article?  

Like others, I can't say that I'm surprised. We visited DQ once over the years that it's been open, and while I enjoyed the afternoon, I don't know we would've done it witihout it being a part of our pass package at the time.

Seems that, years ago, I remember seeing a sign for a "Tron Arcade" at Epcot, as a home for cutting edge arcade action. Perhaps that concept could be resurrected, altho I'm sure the Powers That Be have already evaluated the feasibility of that.  DerekJ probably nailed it, though ... with the advent of XBox 360, PS3, etc., a stand alone arcade just doesn't have the cachet it once had.

Still, a flagship ESPN Zone does appeal to me, but I'm a wee bit concerned about losing the ESPN Club at BW. We're DVC members, and it sure was a nice complement to the Boardwalk. Of course, if they replace it with something even better ...

I worked for a couple years with the DQ team.  There were a few basic problems:

1.  I think they targeted the wrong audience.  They went after males about 14-24.  The same crowd that plays video games and turns out in droves for Hollywood action pics.  The assumption was that they would have discretionary money and the independence to visit when they wanted.  The problem is that they put "Disney" on the building.  Actually, that is not the problem.  The problem was getting young males to want to enter a buillding with the name "Disney" on it.  Disney would have been far better off targeting families--the same people that visit our theme parks.  A few weeks before the first DQ opened, I did my own little survey of attraction capacity and gender appeal.  It actually split pretty evenly between what I considered "male appeal" attractions and "female appeal" attractions (with plenty of neutral).

2.  Location.  Outside Florida, the plan was to put these facilities in the hip urban districts of major cities.  They really should have looked for where families vacation and put them there.  I would have loved to have seen how a DQ would have done, for instance, in Washington DC.  How many families pick Chicago for a family vacation?  And if the goal is to bring in locals instead of vacationers, why not put it near the museums in Chicago instead of convention hotels?

3.  They were never able to figure out the pricing/ticketing situation.  Guests didn't want to pony up for a full days admission when they didn't know what it was.  But when they started with a point system that truly allowed the guest to sample, the guests complained about having to buy more points and clearly indicated they wanted "pay one price".

The end of DQ is really disappointing.  Those of us who worked on it really thought we were putting together something fantastic.  But what really killed it was the roll-out investiment.  As you expand the number of locations, you are paying for the fifth site before the second site is profitable.  And as the expansion speeds up, you would have far more locations under construction that locations that were open--and it would stay that way for years.  That's a  lot of capital.  When they didn't get an overwhelming response to the first one, corporate got cold feet.    

The whole concept of DQ was to have many locations so that Disney could ammortize development costs for individual attractions over many sites.  Had it worked, it would have been a moneymaiking machine.  But once they stopped at two locations, nothing was viable after that.

It was just a matter of time.

With the growing death/disappearance of quarter-arcade games, and increasing difficulties in finding new ones before the old ones fall apart, the Tomorrowland Arcade (aka TL Power & Lights Co.) next to WDW's Space Mountain could very well be the next empty space (and a big one, at that)...

...Think we've just found a new home for salvaging some of the DQ virtual-game activities, and helped preserve the Tomorrowland experience:
Anyone for a Virtual Jungle Cruise before riding Buzz Lightyear?  :)
(Although we should still keep the Disney DDR machines--Another sacred ritual.)

I enjoyed DQ and went several times. But the last time I was there over a year ago, things were getting run down. Plus, paying over $30 to play a few games was way overpriced.

Sure, I'll miss Pirates and the Virtual Jungle Cruise and the drawing classes. I'd like to see at least some of the "flagship" DQ attractions moved to other locations on property. Do the Pirates game for a few dollars after riding PotC, learn to draw Mickey at the Animation Courtyard, etc.

But, yeah...$30 for one person to play a few video games was way overpriced, when for $30 and entire family could hit the Contemporary's game room and have a ton of fun and not feel like they have to spend the whole day there to get their money's worth.

Funny that only a few months ago, I was told that DisneyQuest was not closing in the foreseeable future because it was still making plenty of money despite "low" attendance.

Sad times if this is true, though.  I guess I'll have to be trained somewhere else.

Unfortunate if they really do replace it with another restaurant.  Then there will be Bongo's, Wolfgang, House of Blues, *and* ESPN Zone right there.

Great.

Since DQ is going to close anyway, what would be the harm in doing an experiment or two? First, I suggest that they cut the price in half (or even more). If it was down to ten bucks a head, I think they would do a lot better. It would also be good to find a way to tell people what's inside. Maybe better promotion on the restort TV channel and some type of preview in the parks. Just to see what happens.

I really like some of the suggestions here for moving the better DQ attractions into the parks. The Pirates game is excellent. The drawing classes definitely need to move to MGM. What I'd like to see is for Disney to build a real Pizza Planet (not the fake one they have now) just like in Toy Story  at MGM, or Downtown Disney. That's what people want to see. That would be the perfect place for many of the video games. And I, too, love being able to play the classic arcade games (especially without having to shovel in quarters). I had to pry myself away from the Classic Star Wars Trilogy game. That one is still great.

I THINK THAT ESPN ZONE WILL BE GREAT IN DOWNTOWN DISNEY AND I LOVE ESPN INCLUDING SPORTCENTER BECAUSE I LOVE THAT. WELCOME ESPN. OH! YOUR SPELL IS NOT EZPN IT IS ESPN.

I am sad because my wife was on the opening team of DisneyQuest when it opened and my son was one of the first "DisneyQuest" babies. So it's passing is very sad and cuts deep. I remember when I used to go in and just play the retro-games and ride Cyberspace moutain many times over. My personal favorite was the inca cars. You could get really good at that, and get loads of tickets to redeem for so-so prizes. It will be very missed in my family.

So DQ is closing? To be replaced by ESPN? Oh ya- that works! LOL!

"(Remember the "Imagineering Lab" at Epcot's Future World? Where two lucky guests from each tour group got the chance to try out the prototype version of "Aladdin's Flying Carpet Ride"?)."

YES! I was one of the lucky ones to do so! And thanks for the write up on the event! My own more personal perspective as a participant is written up in my free downloadable book, <First Visit to Epcot> at lulu.com/JudPub. One little tidbit they shared about the developement of the game was what was running it- "A roomfull of Apples!"

Of course this was back in the golden days of WDW...

For those hopiing for the relocation of the attractions, I would suspect that yes, it will happen: The Alladin thing was (and maybe still is) in an arcade attraction at DL back in 99 or thereabouts.

:)

Jud

Like a number of writers on this forum, I use to work on DQ during development of attraction and venue. The only difference was that I came from an amusement and interactive attraction background, while the majority of the team were theme park skill base.

I still work in the out-of-home leisure entertainment business, on the interactive attractions and amusement side and it is weird to now here proposals for next generation location-based entertainment projects some ten years after DQ. I own a trade e-Newsletter (http://www.thestingerreport.com) that covers the market and they ran the venue close down plan back in 2004!

At IAAPA’04 I met the guy responsible for the gradual wind down of the site with the suspension of any investment. The final nail in the coffin was the withdrawal of Silicon Graphics support and replacement of the image generators for all the interactive graphic attractions (the babies I worked on).

Real sad to wave good bye - as what DQ was meant too originate was the right direction, just too many cooks in the kitchen near the end and too many non-gamers directing the thinking behind the concept implementation (whatever happened to DRE?) I love the story of one of the managers faking ride stats – ha ha.

Just to end my tone – its funning how the most popular attraction Cyber Mountain went on to be the foundation of Mission: Space, and just look at the number of injuries (and fatalities) that CSM caused? Maybe the team on M:S should have used our original research?

All the best,

Seems like Disney is commenting that this article is not true (although I doubt they'd ever 'approve' on rumors). They sited the recent refurbishments at DQ. Read http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/business_tourism_aviation/2006/04/walt_disney_wor.html for the entire article.

I'll be sad  if this was true.   ;_;   I never been to Disney Quest in my entire life but whenever I read about it, the attractions seem to always be eye-catching.  I remember how it use to be pretty big back then, and I have noticed the lack of media attention that the building is receiving since a few years ago.   *sighs*  An ESPN Zone?   I have enough of those up here in the north-east section of the country.  >_<   If I go down to Florida to see another ESPN Zone, my head is going to explode.  

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Ugh! I thought Disney was going to stop all this stupid "Synergy" junk they were doing. I understand Quest wasnt doing so hot but in the first place it's always been a tad too costly. Thats what kept my parents going.

I remember first entering Disney Quest and being awed by it. I love computer games and Disney Quest was like heaven to me. I still have a Disney Quest Minnie beanie somewhere (which I'll now treasure seeing as the merch isnt being produced anymore)

Here in the UK we get free access to Quest on our 14 Day Ultimate passes. Last October we litterly spent over a quarter of our time between parks and all to just chill there and after Hurricane Katrina breezed over we hung out there pretty much most of that day after it was same to venture outside our villa. Plus the family games are fun, all of us always woulkd go on Jungle Cruise and Pirates of the Carrabiean for a good laugh. I think it's a real shame that Disneys decided to eradicate one of the best parts of Downtown Disney just to put up more crud

I know from talking to the Cheesecake staff that they are leaving after their contract ends in 2008. Just looking at what DQ looks like now just shows that they don't really care about the place. Lots of things are broken and the place looks run down. I knew the end was on the way when they got rid of the ticket redemption games. That made playing the games fun. Now you play the same games and they are not dispensing tickets! Then they added these games that dispense prizes. Who cares about that?! I liked personal touch of  walking up to the counter to get my child's prize. Looked to me that they just wanted to cut labor!

awwww! 1st off i dislike sports-so we'll never visit espn or whatever : P
My hubby & i went ever year eventhough the rides were ggetting stale- i always did the drawing class and we loved the snacks and sending e-cards from the wonderland themed software!
and what about keeping a disney theme /: (
-sigh- this sucks
i'm glad we're visiting twicw this year and 97 was the first time we ever went.
gee i really want to spank someone there..
okay who's to blame...
lately i've been disappointed in the animation coming out from them-cars? : P
we need more fantasy! Princesses and fluffy cute things that aren't alway snark...(love stich thu!) how 'bout pixar world- or some other property turned amusement....
awww-poop
this still sucks : (
who's Jim Hill?

If a d I say IF this is true about the Zone coming to Downtown Disney, I hope those who make decisions on its construction and design will take into consideration the technology at the ESPN CLUB before just making it a ZONE.  I've been to both ZONES and the Club and the technology as far as how they can provide so many games to individual monitors far out does the limited ability of the ZONES to have individual games on individual monitors.  So better talk to the guys who work at the CLub and see how they do it cause the ZONES don't.  As an avid sports fan and I like to be able to see all kinds of sports and lots of different games from my seat.  Plus with so many people from all over to have the ability to change individual monitors makes it great.  Everyone from everywhere can see their games.  OH ya the live entertainment they do at the Club, is far better than the ZONES too.  I'd hate to see that all end just to put a bigger sports bar at Downtown Disney.  Take the best from the ZONES and the best from the CLub and make one BIG SuperClub/ZONE.  Just a thought!    

The DAWG

I am an Orlando Resident, and our local paper recently ran an article posting this rumor, which give it even MORE credence.  Having been to California and visited the ESPN zone there, I can see what they envision for the DQ space, and I (begrudgingly) will admit that it is a fit for that part of Downtown Disney.

All that being said, This is an attraction that will not only be missed, but perhaps one day be recognized as 'ahead of its time'. It isnt the first time the Indoor theme park in a box was attempted. Remember "The World of Sid And Marty Kroft" from the Omni International complex in Atlanta, Georgia? http://members.aol.com/interama/krofft.html
DQ made it longer than that did at least.

Ultimately though, I think that DQ was built heavily on VR and on Videogames. The VR market never quite panned out to be The next big thing that its backers anticipated, and the videogame market has come home to roost in our own living rooms, which pretty much put the demise on the neighborhood gamerooms.  

I think that If Disney had perhaps incorporated the DQ project from the start with a more attractive exterior, allowed the public a better idea of what it was like INSIDE, and if they had more consistantly refreshed the contents (one new attraction since its opening? Come on guys!) it could have had a chance. but perhaps another day and time, they will attempt a project like this and fix the mistakes they made.

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I was just given a mesage that the Dsney people are talking about moving the date up to 2007 rather than 2008. Has anyone heard the same thing? This person works out there and has been full of information that backs up the past posts.

Well, that would be a bummer to have another food venue in an area already struggling to keep in customers for their current venues. And all the new carpet and sign's and arcade games recently put in as well as a reported closing of Pirates to update the airbags under the ships and new projectors, as well as Aliden and Comix getting lighter helmets that are HD, it seems like a lot of money is being poured back into the building for a closure around the corner. I know Disney has made mistakes before, but this is too expensive to make another.

They are going to keep the building looking good until the end. People still pay the outrageous fee to get in and play old and out dated VR and video games. They are going to continue to keep selling passes until the last day. Keep in mind that Disney is in the business of making money. They can make all of the money "poured" into the building back. ESPN Zone would be huge for the Orlando area. There is no other place like it inthe area. The Club does not count. It would be very profitable to Disney from the tourists to the locals that they are tring to reach out to. I use to work on the West Side and during the big sports events there is really no place for them to go. Yea, they can go the The Club, but it can only hold so many patrons. Just wait, this will be the best decision Disney has made for the boring WestSide. As far as games go ESPN Zone has plenty to keep people of all ages busy!

doceagle: How many families pick Chicago for a family vacation?

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

I do. I actually had the pleasure of going to the Chicago DQ. It was expensive but still fun. i've never been to the WDW DQ but I hope to make it in May. I'm sad they chose to put an ESPN Zone in its place.

So if they are not closing then why can't you buy Disney Quest stuff in the store? Why are they taking down the coaster infront of the building (from what I have heard that was one big ad for the place)? Ok they painted the building. Big deal. The Staff at the restaurant inside says that they are leaving according to their general manager. Why can't they just be honest with all the cast members and annual pass hoders?

So if they are not closing then why can't you buy Disney Quest stuff in the store? Why are they taking down the coaster infront of the building (from what I have heard that was one big ad for the place)? Ok they painted the building. Big deal. The Staff at the restaurant inside says that they are leaving according to their general manager. Why can't they just be honest with all the cast members and annual pass hoders?

So if they are not closing then why can't you buy Disney Quest stuff in the store? Why are they taking down the coaster infront of the building (from what I have heard that was one big ad for the place)? Ok they painted the building. Big deal. The Staff at the restaurant inside says that they are leaving according to their general manager. Why can't they just be honest with all the cast members and annual pass hoders?

So if they are not closing then why can't you buy Disney Quest stuff in the store? Why are they taking down the coaster infront of the building (from what I have heard that was one big ad for the place)? Ok they painted the building. Big deal. The Staff at the restaurant inside says that they are leaving according to their general manager. Why can't they just be honest with all the cast members and annual pass hoders?

I'm probaly the minority here...but I'm wondering what took them so long to close it.

The idea was good...at the time of inception.  But as another user here put it, the days of plugging quarters into a machine or paying a fee for a whole day at an arcade are vanishing.  At Disneyland, the Starcade used to have two floors of machines with plenty of people.  Now its down to one, with hardly anyone in there.  Plus the arcade that was on Main Street long ago is gone.  This concept was based on technology....and technology changes.

Most avid gamers (I'm one of them) do not go to an arcade. Instead they go home, grab a beer and plug into thier latest console (Wii, Playstation 3, X Box 360) and/or Power Gaming Rig (PC on steroids).  Many even have thier wife and kids playing along.

More people and more games are going online.  With franchise titles going to MMORPGs (Massive Multiplayer Online Roleplaying Games)  such as Star Wars, Lord of the Rings and new one's coming such as Star Trek and Marvel Universe (plus Pirates of the Carribean), many are happy to put in a subscription of 14.99 a month for hours upon hours of entertainment and interaction with other gamers.  Even then, you have FPS (First Person Shooter) and RTS (Real Time Strategy) which only costs the game and you can hook on to a server and play without a subscription.  Friends and relatives can be in another state and you can log in and play with them (or against them) from the comfort of your chair.  So why would you go to an arcade or indoor amusement park (arcade on steroids) that costs quite a bit more and have to be in sync time wise with the rest of your friends/family when you can just go online and play and chat (via VOIP)?  And if they are not online right away...nothing from stopping you from playing while you wait.

The "target crowd" and even the "family crowd" simply went to more economical and amusing alternative.  The market can shift and it has in this case.  It used to be to get great graphics with challenging game play you had to go to the arcade as the old consoles simply could not compete (cost effectively)...now its the other way around.  I'd say Disney management made a good decision (a bit late).  Belive it or not, more and more people go to Disneyland and WDW to actually enjoy the theme parks not play suped up video games they have at home (minus the motion simulators).

I still work there and on February 20, 2008 the Disney people met with the Cheesecake people. The Cheesecake staff was told that they will be closing on June 2008. Looks like it is going to happen.

Jim Hill brings you an update on what may be in the works for the westernmost portion of Downtown Disney. With the Virgin Megastore possibly exiting this dining, retail & entertainment district to then make room for an ESPN Zone

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