Four venues cover almost all of Amsterdam’s arcade and gaming scene, and they charge in four different ways.
Knowing which is which decides whether an evening costs six euros or sixty.
The Four Places Worth Knowing
TonTon Club is the original arcade bar here, and its locations have changed - it now runs at Westergas, on Polonceaukade 27, and in Noord on Aambeeldstraat 28.
Entry is free, board games are free, and the arcade cabinets take tokens at €1 each or six for €5.
The cabinets mix retro fighters and pinball with Dance Dance Revolution and Mario Kart, and the kitchen runs a Japanese-American menu.
Check the day before travelling: Westergas is closed on Tuesdays and Noord on Mondays and Tuesdays, and both open at 4pm midweek, 2pm on Friday and 1pm at weekends.
Blast Galaxy, near Sloterdijk, works the opposite way round on a flat entry fee for unlimited play with no tokens and no time limit.
The floor is vintage cabinets - Donkey Kong, Pac-Man, Galaga, Street Fighter - so it is the one to pick if you intend to stay for hours rather than an hour.
Gamestate at the Johan Cruyff ArenA is the largest, with over ninety games and a rechargeable play card rather than coins.
It leans modern and carnival - racing rigs, basketball shooters, ticket redemption for prizes - and it is the only one of the four built for children.
A’DAM VR Game & Race Park occupies a floor of the A’DAM Tower in Noord and sells timed sessions rather than admission.
Booking online is effectively required, and the price depends on the session length and group size.
Picking By What You Want From The Evening
For unlimited retro play, Blast Galaxy is the only flat-fee option and the maths works out in your favour past about the first hour.
For a night that is a bar first and an arcade second, TonTon Club is where the twenties-and-thirties crowd goes, and it sits well before rooftop bars or a live music venue.
For children, Gamestate is the safe answer, since the arcade bars serve alcohol and skew adult after dark.
Its games need no explaining and the prize counter does the motivating, and it pairs naturally with the best playgrounds for children or a family boat tour on a longer day out.
For headset gaming, A’DAM VR is the dedicated option and Gamestate carries racing and VR simulators alongside its arcade floor.
Both run on booked slots, so neither works as a spontaneous stop.
The ArenA Option Before A Match Or A Show
Gamestate sits on ArenA Boulevard within a few minutes’ walk of the Johan Cruyff ArenA, the Ziggo Dome and AFAS Live.
That makes it the obvious way to absorb the hour before doors or the hour after a match while the crowds clear.
It opens every day, which none of the others do.
The area is on the metro and the mainline rail network, so it is reachable directly from Centraal and from Schiphol without changing - a personal OV card makes that simpler if you are here for a while.
Restaurants and bars surround the boulevard, so dinner, games and a concert fit into one trip out.
The rest of the city is covered in the guide to Amsterdam.
Before You Go
Payment differs at every venue: tokens at TonTon Club, flat entry at Blast Galaxy, a rechargeable card at Gamestate, a booked session at A’DAM VR.
All four take cards including foreign ones, though a card with a foreign transaction fee will quietly add to the bill - the credit card options in the Netherlands cover avoiding that.
Tuesday to Thursday afternoons are the quietest windows across all four.
Friday and Saturday evenings are busiest at TonTon Club and Gamestate, and school holidays fill Gamestate during the day.
You will be standing for most of a visit and moving for some of it, so flat shoes and no coat you have to carry.
These rooms get crowded and bags get left behind at cabinets, which is an argument for something you wear rather than something you put down.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the best arcade bars in Amsterdam?
TonTon Club, at Westergas and in Noord, is the established arcade bar and combines free entry and token-priced cabinets with a full bar and kitchen.
Blast Galaxy near Sloterdijk is the alternative if the games matter more than the drinks.
Which venue has the most machines?
Gamestate at the ArenA, with more than ninety games weighted towards racing simulators, shooters and carnival machines.
Blast Galaxy holds the deeper collection of genuine vintage cabinets, all included in one ticket.
Do Amsterdam arcades use tokens, cards or pay-per-play?
TonTon Club sells tokens at €1 each or six for €5, Blast Galaxy charges one flat entry for unlimited play, and Gamestate issues a rechargeable play card topped up at the venue.
Cards are accepted for all of them and cash is rarely needed.
Which arcades suit families and children?
Gamestate, comfortably - it is bright, all-ages, runs birthday packages, and the games need no instructions.
The arcade bars are adult-oriented in the evening even when children are technically welcome earlier in the day.
Where can I play VR?
A’DAM VR Game & Race Park in the A’DAM Tower in Noord is the dedicated venue, running rollercoasters, heists and shooters on timed sessions.
Gamestate carries some VR and racing simulators within its wider floor if you would rather not build the evening around a booking.
When is it busiest, and should I book?
Friday and Saturday evenings are the peak everywhere, while Tuesday to Thursday afternoons are close to empty.
VR sessions and group visits need booking, TonTon Club and Blast Galaxy take walk-ins, and public holidays and school weeks stretch the waits at Gamestate.
