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A place to play...
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Engage with community...
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Make great things...
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Learn about games...
About The Arcade Vaults
We are The Arcade Vaults, an exciting and unique venue and community in the centre of Cardiff for all things gaming. If you make games, play games both old and new, want to learn about games, or would just like to engage with the community in this amazing world of games, then this is the place for you.
At the heart of The Arcade Vaults and its community is you; the players and the creators. We believe that everyone should have the opportunity to play games and even more so, anyone should be able to make them and understand how they are made.
COVID-19 NOTICE
There are no longer legal restrictions in Wales due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, we will still operate our Bar/Cafe area, the Arcade and The Community Rooms are operating under some COVID safe guidelines. These include:
- tables, chairs in the bar and cafe areas and the keyboards/mice/controllers in the new PC suite will be cleaned reguarly.
- hand sanitiser points throughout the venue.
- the recommendation that you wear masks throughout the venue unless you are eating/drinking or have a valid reason not to wear a mask.
- alcohol based anti-bacterial wipes for you to clean controllers (which we will be regularly doing throughout the day).
Thanks for understanding and hope to see you soon!
The Stuff We do
- Our arcade is split into two areas - we have a space featuring classic consoles and hundreds of games, with a small free-to-play area where we also serve coffee, tea, drinks and gamer friendly snacks. We are also open on selected evenings for those that like a stronger beverage with their gaming fun!
- The Community Rooms are our co-working and events space, tailored for anyone interested in making games or being part of a community who do but open to everyone to experience. There are three pricing tiers available to anyone who wants to use the space for work, with high-speed broadband (wired and wireless), tea and coffee, and a kitchen, plus various tech facilities and business support!
- Our Upper Arcade and The Community Rooms are available for hire. We can run events for you with a wide selection of retro and modern gaming consoles, or just provide the spaces on their own to you, with access to our bar.
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We organise events and parties across the UK. And we really do everything, including supplying the gaming gear and screens, promotion of the event, set-up, photography, prizes and so on! We also do educational seminars and networking events for those of you in the community looking to learn something new or meet like-minded people.
Upcoming Events
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D&D - One Shots
Sat | 25 September 2021 | 12:00 to 22:00Sat | 25 September 2021 | 12:00 to 22:00Have you ever wanted to play a Role Play Game but been a little bit put off? Did you ever have those friends in School who played Dungeons and Dragons and always wanted to play but were worried what your other friends would think?
This is your chance!! Dungeons and Dragons or DnD as it’s known for short is the world’s most popular Role Play Game (RPG). Our one-shots return with four unique campaigns for beginners or anyone looking for a one-off RPG fix, to try out and explore over 2 sessions (12pm - 4pm and 5pm - 9pm). Our super friendly Dungeon Masters will aim to ease you in and will also make sure you have a fun and wild adventure!
Please note, all these campaigns are only suitable for those ages 16 and over:
- Leaning into the McGuffin
- Curse of the Revenant Fang
- Dead Mans Tower
- The Marked Man
COVID-19 Rules
In order to keep safe during the COVID-19 pandemic, we have some restrictions in place, and please be aware - these are all mandatory! If you need any further information please contact Scott at scottrt@thearcadevaults.org.uk
- Each D&D Game is limited to 4 players each now (instead of the usual 6).
- We are required by law to take your contact information for test and trace. These are stored by us under GDPR guidelines.
- Whilst you will not be required to wear a mask, we would recommend that you do wear one if possible. Your Games Master will be wearing a Face Shield during the one-shot.
- There will be hand santiser provided if you need it.
- You will be asked to bring your own dice - we will be unable to provide any.
- The most important thing to remember - have FUN.
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Games Wales - Cardiff September Meet-up
Thu | 30 September 2021 | 19:00 to 23:00Thu | 30 September 2021 | 19:00 to 23:00The Games Wales monthly meet-up/social! We're working towards our first talks in November as well as the first Community Game Jam since the lockdowns lifted. Pop along and say hi!
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Breakin' the Vaults #2
Sat | 2 October 2021 | 15:00 to 21:00Sat | 2 October 2021 | 15:00 to 21:00The Arcade Vaults and the South Wales Fighting Game Community join forces to bring you a Saturday of Fighting games!
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Community Game Jam
Fri | 15 October 2021 | 18:00 to Sun | 17 October 2021 | 17:00Fri | 15 October 2021 | 18:00 to Sun | 17 October 2021 | 17:00Are you a creative games designer, artist, programmer or audio designer up for a challenge? If so, come and be part of the Games Wales Community Game Jam. You will have the weekend to conceive and build a game based on unique theme chosen by the community leaders! You don't even have to produce a digital game - budding tabletop/board game makers are also welcome along!
Doors will be open from 5pm on Friday evening for everyone to meet, after which the theme will be announced. Games will need to be submitted to itch.io on Sunday before 4pm, after which teams will then have the opportunity to present their game to everyone else.
Tickets cover running costs for the weekend, and access to the Community Rooms and the Upper Arcade (if required) of The Arcade Vaults. This includes free teas and coffees, plus access to a kitchenette with a fridge and microwave. There will also be a lot of pizza available to all on the Friday night! We're located right in the City Centre so you will have access to plenty of other food options for the entire weekend.
Facilities also include access to 7 PCs and a MacBook, a printer and scanner, and a limited number of monitors. We will be restricting PC access to one per team unless circumstances permit this to change, and they will be available on a first come basis. Send us a message to find out more about them!
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Note that this will not be a 24 hour site - access will be limited to 8/9am at the earliest and around 10/11pm at the latest. If you are coming in from outside of Cardiff there are lots of places to stay nearby.
COVID related information is available on our homepage