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Movie Theaters Get Game

--By Kathryn R. Hoffman

Every summer has its big-screen blockbuster. Last year, it was Spider-Man. In 2001, it was Shrek. What will turn up the heat in movie theaters this year? At the Pacific Theatres Gaslamp 15 in San Diego, California, it just might be Madden 2003, the Sims or an updated classic, Pac-Man.

Kids in California are getting a sneak preview of what a night at the movie theater could become. Last January, ESports Arena, a computer-and video-game company, opened its first entertainment center in the Pacific multiplex. It turned one of the theaters into a high-tech game room, replacing the seats with more than 90 game stations. Each station includes PCs and systems such as XBox, PlayStation 2 and GameCube.

ESports Arena has attracted more than 5,000 new members in its first four months. Nearly one in three is a kid. "It's so cool," Louis Ward, 12, told TFK. "Some of the games are linked, so you can play against someone who's all the way across the room." Each member has a photo ID card, which keeps the younger players away from violent games.

ESports plans to open 400 more arenas in cinemas across the U.S., starting with two in Los Angeles, California, this fall. About 145 million Americans play computer and video games. More than 221 million games were sold in the U.S. last year. That's almost two games per household! But will players leave home to get into the game and then pay $4 an hour?

Ashley Graham, 14, who won a recent video-game tournament at the arena, prefers to play at home. But, she says, she would go to the arena over the movies any day. "You don't have to just sit there. You have something to do."

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