Destinations Europe Russia

Museum of Soviet Arcade Machines in Moscow

The Museum of Soviet Arcade Machines in Moscow is, in my opinion, something that you should do if you visit Russia’s capital. I don’t know about you but just the name of this place made me want to go. It’s not everyday you get to relive some of your childhood playing games.

When you enter the museum and buy your ticket, you will also be given a matchbox with a collection of 15 kopek coins. Each of these coins gets you one play of each of the games in the museum. You will find the usual shooting type games and racing games. There are some others as well which, even after 2 or 3 goes, I have still no idea what you are supposed to do!

 

Matchbox with coins for the games

Matchbox with coins for the games

 

The museum also has a bar/cafe where you can get pretty tasty looking burgers and beers after all the exercise 😉

 

Bar area in the museum of soviet arcade machines

Bar area in the museum of soviet arcade machines

 

Over 50 games to choose from

Over 50 games to choose from

 

Sometimes you have to wait for a game, other times you don't :)

Sometimes you have to wait for a game, other times you don’t 🙂

 

I really like this poster

I really like this poster

The Games

The aim of some of the games are fairly obvious. If you have to hold a gun and theres a target, then its pretty simple really. One of the games, Snaiper-2, involved a static gun and static targets that you had to hit. Another game involved a moving target – a light that would move across the screen. The woman I watched playing this was very good and barely missed a shot.

 

Sniper-2

Sniper-2

 

I am going to call this one 'Duck hunt'

I am going to call this one ‘Duck hunt’

 

The game Morskoi Boi (Sea Battle) is basically a periscope of a submarine that you look through, viewing enemy ships in the distance crossing from left-to-right and right-to-left. You aim, and fire. When you fire, a torpedo is launched towards the ship which you can view via a green ‘dot line’. If you miss, try again. If you hit, you see an explosion and take aim at the next ship. Great fun!.

Ready. Aim. Fire.

Ready. Aim. Fire.

Sports

The football game will look familiar to most people. The basketball game, you had to press a button from 1-15. Whichever player pressed theirs first, the ball would go towards their opponents net. It looked like good fun and seemed to very popular with families during my visit. There is also an ice hockey table game as well.

 

Futbolas

Futbolas

 

Basketball

Basketball

 

There are also racing games of different types. One of these is set in space and you have to race between different markers on the screen. Once you reach that marker, a new marker appears for you to reach. Another is where you race in a straight line with obstacles in the way which you have to avoid as well as others crashing into the back of you.

Space race

Space race

 

You are the blue car, avoid the green obstacles and get out of the way of the red ones coming behind you

You are the blue car, avoid the green obstacles and get out of the way of the red ones coming behind you

 

The Strange

Some of the slightly different games include a soviet style claw machine where you could win sweets. The sweets looked too small to hold onto for me and unsurprisingly i didn’t win. There is also an old school pinball machine. This one was very popular among the older men that I saw there!

Zona

Zona

 

Old school pinball

Old school pinball

This one I have no idea about. You move the tank via the two controls at the bottom and fire using the white button. Despite many attempts, I never seemed to get any kills. Maybe I was doing it wrong, who knows!

Tankodrom

Tankodrom

 

Me in Action

Check out the video below of me in the Museum of Soviet Arcade machines, playing one of the games. Apart from a couple of shots in the middle, I don’t think i did too badly, especially as i was recording with my free hand. Let me know what you think of this place. Would you want to go to this museum?

 

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18 Comments

  • Reply
    Juliette S
    April 6, 2018 at 10:14

    How very interesting, I never knew this place existed. I’m sure my husband would be totally into playing them all. At any gaming arcade, I’m usually found by the air hockey! I can’t play any other games very well but I can smash my opponents in air hockey 😛

    • Reply
      Damien
      April 11, 2018 at 22:07

      Haha, one of my friends always plays air hockey with me when we meet up for bowling. It usually involves the puck being sent halfway across the room at great speed. I am surprised we haven’t seriously injured someone yet!

  • Reply
    Amy Alton
    April 5, 2018 at 14:50

    Never heard of this! What fun that you get to actually play the games.

    • Reply
      Damien
      April 11, 2018 at 22:06

      It really is!

  • Reply
    Astrid Vinje
    April 5, 2018 at 06:24

    How interesting! We have a similar type of museum in my city, but dedicated to pinballs. I think I would gravitate towards the racing games, as I’m not very good at the shooting games.

    • Reply
      Damien
      April 11, 2018 at 22:06

      I would love to try those pinball games. I think the racing games where the easiest to just pick up and have a go without any prior knowledge of the games

  • Reply
    Avril is Away
    April 5, 2018 at 02:21

    The kind of thing you’d never expect to stumble upon 😀

    • Reply
      Damien
      April 11, 2018 at 22:05

      One of the reasons why we all like to travel I think

  • Reply
    Jennifer
    April 3, 2018 at 18:02

    This is one of the coolest, most random things. I love it! I would probably spend all of my money there. Now I have a reason to go to Russia:)

    • Reply
      Damien
      April 11, 2018 at 21:57

      Haha, yeah it is really good fun and you can pass a lot of time here!

  • Reply
    Patricia
    April 1, 2018 at 21:41

    This is a crazy museum for sure! I would not know where to start, but there seems to be a little bit for everyone.

    • Reply
      Damien
      April 11, 2018 at 21:56

      I think you are right

  • Reply
    The Travel Bunny
    April 1, 2018 at 11:13

    This is awesome! I had no idea a place like this even existed!

    • Reply
      Damien
      April 1, 2018 at 15:19

      It is a lot of fun for sure

  • Reply
    Bernie
    April 1, 2018 at 10:29

    What a brilliant place! I could so enjoy spending my matchbox full of coins there. (I have stealth skills at the ice hockey, so I’d be taking on allcomers there!) The whole retro-gaming including the arcade games is fascinating to me, probably because I remember a lot of the machines from the first time round…

    • Reply
      Damien
      April 1, 2018 at 15:19

      I am the same! I believe there is also a place in St Petersburg but the one in Moscow has more working machines.

  • Reply
    Well Worn Suitcase
    March 31, 2018 at 22:50

    Oh how cool! My husband and kids are huge video game nerds, they would love this place!

    • Reply
      Damien
      April 1, 2018 at 15:18

      Cool. It is well worth a visit!

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