Theme packs / Barcade
Barcade birthday party ideas for a grown-up night in
Dim the lights, turn the telly into an arcade, and let the games do the small talk. This is the one theme drawn for adults, and it works best with the room a little dark.
Check my party date$149.99 for the weekend · $200 deposit, refunded when the box comes back
Unlocking the premium themes is $9 for the party — Barcade and every other one, changeable until the day.
The plan
Two hours of barcade party
Food
- Bar snacks in bowls: popcorn, pretzels and a good salted nut. Nothing that needs a fork.
- One signature drink, batched in a jug, with a no-alcohol version labelled beside it. One decision instead of a bar.
- Pizza by the slice at the halfway mark, so the competitive round happens on full stomachs.
Decorations
- Lamps off, one string of warm lights on, and the TV as the brightest thing in the room. That is the whole look.
- A paper "high scores" sheet taped by the door, with a pen. Everyone writes their own name and it becomes the trophy.
- A pink or blue bulb in one lamp, if you have one. It is cheap and it does the neon for you.
One thing that isn’t a screen
A knockout bracket drawn on paper and played on the games with the shortest rounds. Four players a heat, winners go through, and the final is played on the biggest screen.
What usually goes wrong
Drinks and controllers do not mix. Keep the coasters on a side table, not the arm of the sofa, and put the stations on a hard surface at the far end of the room.
A running order that works
0:00–0:20
Arrival
Guests trickle in over twenty minutes. Have the on-arrival activity out and the TV showing the attract screen.
0:20–0:45
The activity
One thing off the screen, with a clear end. Twenty-five minutes is the ceiling.
0:45–1:45
The Party Session
Choose Start Party Session on the arcade menu. It turns on Random Mode: when a game ends, the console picks the next one itself. This is the hour you can walk away from — make the coffee, take the photos, talk to the other parents.
1:45–2:00
Cake
Sing, cut, hand it out. Do not do this at the start; sugar first is a mistake you make once.
2:00–2:40
Back to the arcade
Start another Party Session while the sugar is still working. Four kids at a time, the stations do the rest, and it ends on the winner card. This is the loudest and easiest forty minutes of the party.
2:40–3:00
Wind down
Free play on the console, party bags by the door, parents arriving. The screen keeps everyone in one room while you hand out bags.
The arcade
All 39 games, in Barcade colours
A theme pack is a full reskin — art and palette — over mechanics that already work. These four suit a barcade party particularly well.
The invitation
The invitation, in Barcade colours
Free with every package, and it is the same page your guests actually open — a countdown, the address, a map and a two-tap RSVP. No ads, no account, nothing to install.
Barcade invitationA dim bar after dark: a pink sign over the cabinets, a long counter, and the score in lights.
Book it
Can you get a box for that Saturday?
Saturdays go first, and the box ships 2 days early so you can test it. Your invitation site is free either way, in Barcade colours.
Bashcade Box
+ $200 refundable deposit
Four arcade stations, shipped to your door or collected from us. The standard home party.
- 4 wired arcade stations
- All 38 games
- Party highlights on the invitation
- 3-day window around the party
- Free shipping both ways, or collect it from us