It’s not time travel in the way sci-fi books and movies present jumping back and forth through generations, but the new airside lounge at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA-TAC) — an airport considered to be the best in North America — is most definitely a blast from the past. Located in the airport’s North Concourse, Sky Gamerz is a vintage video game aficionado’s dream come true. And yes, we are talking golden oldies, as in classic 1970s and 1980s games like Ms. Pac-Man, Donkey Kong, and Dig Dug. Even better, the games are free to play. Atlanta-based entrepreneur H. Lamar Willis and business partner Jonathan Ford are the brains behind the retro concept. Willis, who grew up playing the games featured at Sky Gamerz, was inspired by people-watching during his frequent business travels.
His aha moment? Noticing how many fellow airport patrons — including business travelers who appeared to be about his age — were playing video games on their phones to while away time between flights. That’s one of the reasons he decided to go retro. “Retro is always a safe bet because what we find is that even children like retro video games. Donkey Kong, Ms. Pacman, and Frogger are all games kids are not familiar with but are excited by,” Willis said in a blog posted by the Port of Seattle.
Revisit the glory days of video games at Seattle airport’s Sky Gamerz
