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One of Akihabara’s most defining landmarks will soon undergo a massive change. Genda GiGO Entertainment has announced that it will close its GiGO Akihabara 1 arcade center on August 31, 2025. However, the landmark building should not have any major changes in its purpose, as Matahari Entertainment will afterward take over the building and set up its own amusement center there.
The building’s history as an arcade center began when Sega set up High Tech Land Sega Shintoku there in October 1992. It managed the facility until 2020, when Genda gradually acquired Sega’s amusement center business. Genda completed the takeover in 2022, and it eventually renamed the Sega arcade centers to GiGO.
The relinquishment of GiGO Akihabara 1 will follow the closure of the #4 arcade center in September 2022. However, Genda GiGO has since re-established the Akihabara #2 arcade center in late April 2023. After relinquishing #1, the remaining three amusement centers Genda still owns in Akihabara will be #2, #3, and #5.
As for the upcoming new owner, Matahari Entertainment has been known to run its own amusement center chain called Silk Hat. The company has hosted not only crane games and Purikura photo booths but also arcade games by Sega, Bandai Namco, and Konami, such as Chunithm, The Idolmaster Tours, and the BEMANI rhythm games.
This arcade center, located at the heart of Akihabara, has also been featured in video games that depict the area, such as Akiba’s Trip and Digimon Story: Cyber Sleuth. It remains to be seen whether the ownership change will impact the upcoming release of Digimon Story: Time Stranger, which will let the player explore Akihabara in addition to Shinjuku.
The GiGO Akihabara 1 arcade center will be available until August 31, 2025. Matahari Entertainment will afterward convert the building to a Silk Hat amusement center.
