arcade game

noun

A coin-operated video game or amusement device.

Similar
arcade video game

Meanings

nounarcade game (plural arcade games)

plural arcade games

  1. video gamesA coin-operated video game or amusement device.

    Luckily for fans, these arcade games (as the good old classic titles are now called) used to have rather simple mechanics, and most players could learn to play them, despite their poor or non-existent knowledge of English.

    2014, Miguel Á. Bernal-Merino, Translation and Localisation in Video Games
  2. video gamesA game for a computer or console that shares traits of coin-operated video games, such as short levels, simple and intuitive controls, and rapidly increasing difficulty.

    It's not an arcade game—there is no crack of the bat or roar of the crowd or even much in the way of a screen display—but for the true fan, there is the excitement of mathematically structured matchups of real current and past teams with a more-than-passing resemblance to real-life outcomes.

    1985, PC Mag, volume 4, number 14, page 51
    1 more example

    ‘They’re Twitch Games,’ he grinned, ‘arcade games. An adventure game is one where you use your mind; if you can type, you can play an adventure. If you require anything other than that, you’ve got a twitch game — an arcade game — where your skill of movement is more important than your thinking. […]

    1985, Scott Adams, quoted in Graeme Kidd, Great Scott!, in Crash issue 15

Synonyms & antonyms

nounAn action game characterised by short levels, simple and intuitive control schemes, and rapidly increasing difficulty.

Similar
arcade video game

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Translations

Bulgarian арка́дна игра́
  • арка́дна игра́ (arkádna igrá)A coin-operated video game or amusement device
Chinese Mandarin 大型遊戲機 /大型游戏机, 街機 /街机
  • 大型遊戲機 /大型游戏机 (dàxíngyóuxìjī)A coin-operated video game or amusement device
  • 街機 /街机 (jiējī)A coin-operated video game or amusement device
Danish arkadespil
  • arkadespilA coin-operated video game or amusement device
Dutch arcadespel, speelautomaat
  • arcadespelA coin-operated video game or amusement device
  • speelautomaatA coin-operated video game or amusement device
Estonian mänguautomaat
  • mänguautomaatA coin-operated video game or amusement device
Finnish peliautomaatti, kolikkopeli
  • peliautomaattiA coin-operated video game or amusement device
  • kolikkopeliA coin-operated video game or amusement device
  • arkadipeliA coin-operated video game or amusement device
French jeu d'arcade
  • jeu d'arcadeA coin-operated video game or amusement device
Greek βιντεοπαιχνίδι
  • βιντεοπαιχνίδι (vinteopaichnídi)A coin-operated video game or amusement device
Japanese アーケードゲーム
  • アーケードゲーム (ākēdo gēmu)A coin-operated video game or amusement device
Korean 아케이드 게임
  • 아케이드 게임 (akeideu geim)A coin-operated video game or amusement device
Norwegian Bokmål arkadespill
  • arkadespillA coin-operated video game or amusement device
Polish gra w salonie gier, automat
  • gra w salonie gierA coin-operated video game or amusement device
  • automatA coin-operated video game or amusement device
Russian арка́дная игра́
  • арка́дная игра́ (arkádnaja igrá)A coin-operated video game or amusement device
Spanish juego de arcade
  • juego de arcadeA coin-operated video game or amusement device
Swedish arkadspel
  • arkadspelA coin-operated video game or amusement device
Vietnamese trò chơi điện tử
  • trò chơi điện tửA coin-operated video game or amusement device
Cite this entry
APA

arcade game. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/arcade%20game

MLA

“arcade game.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/arcade%20game. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “arcade game,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/arcade%20game.

Source: arcade game on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.