Overview
Perhaps you're a diehard Tetris fiend. Maybe you just can't get enough of Mario Kart. Or, you could be an avid Untitled Goose Game devotee. Whichever video game takes your fancy, it has likely robbed you of more than a little precious slumber — so you might as well lean into it and enjoy your next overseas getaway in a video game-themed hotel.
Catering for folks who really do want to eat, sleep and breathe the button-mashing pastime, old-school gaming company Atari is getting into the accommodation business. Launching its own line of places to stay, it's planning to open at least eight hotels across the US. Construction on the first — in Phoenix, Arizona — is due to start in the middle of this year, with other sites in Las Vegas, Denver, Chicago, Austin, Seattle, San Francisco and San Jose set to follow.
Keeping to the theme, guests can expect plenty of gaming — obviously. That'll apply to the hotel's look and feel, as well as to the activities on offer. Design-wise, the aim is to make you feel like you're staying inside an Atari console. The Atari Hotels website calls the hotels "a unique lodging experience", and notes that they'll combine the brand "with a one-of-a-kind video game-themed destination".
That'll include both virtual reality and augmented reality, while some sites will also feature venues and facilities to host esports events. Given that Atari has been around since the 1970s, was one of the industry's pioneers, and is known for a hefty range of games — spanning classics like Asteroids, Centipede, Pong and even Rollercoaster Tycoon — it's safe to assume that the company's big-name titles will all pop up in some shape or form as well.
Other than that, just what the Atari hotels will entail is being kept pretty close to the organisation's chest for now. Opening dates haven't been announced yet either, if you're eager to make travel plans.
Atari Hotels' first site will begin construction in Phoenix, Arizona in mid-2020. Visit the chain's website for further details.