on the T-shirt was a blocky, stylized version of the Minneapolis skyline in vibrant primary colors. She’d wrapped a wide fluorescent pink leather belt low on her hips, probably to hold up the purple mesh skirt that resembled a tutu. She’d finished the ensemble with white high-top sneakers laced with lime-green, Day-Glo-orange and pink laces. She’d layered so many bracelets up both of her arms she actually jingled.
“Somebody raided her mother’s closet for that straight-from-the-’80s garb,” I said with a grin.
Dallas beamed. “The T-shirt dress is new, but my mom lent me everything else. Isn’t it gnarly?”
“Totally gnarly. But I wasn’t aware this was a costume party.”
“If it was, you’d lose, dude. Where are your Vans? Your pastel T-shirt paired with a sports jacket? Your T&C board shorts? Your fanny pack?”
“What’s wrong with what I’ve got on?”
She assessed my outfit; from the hip-length sleek-cut gray wool jacket, worn over a mustard-yellow mock turtleneck sweater, to the oxblood-colored belt that held up my gray, yellow and maroon plaid slacks, and ending with the burgundy leather sneakers that tied the look together. Her gaze met mine and she grinned. “Nothing. Your ensemble is one hundred percent on point, as usual.”
“Thank you.”
“I dressed this way to have some fun with the pre-opening par-taygoers since I’ve been super stressed. Plus my horoscope said to indulge my whimsy tonight.”
“Well, from what I’ve seen, you’ve certainly outdone yourself.”
“Would you like a tour of Full Tilt?”
“Only if you’re not too busy.”
Hooking her arm through mine, she said, “I’ll always make time for you, cuz.”
I’d seen the layout for the space, but I’d been skeptical that a barcade—an ’80s arcade gone upscale bar—could be realized. Pinball machines and tabletop games were scattered throughout. While technically this was one enormous room, the alcoves with the half walls separating the space and the low ceilings relayed a more intimate feel. Add in the seating arrangements, from high-top tables and chairs to couches to groupings of lounge chairs, no two areas were alike. There were three small bars spread out, rather than just one large bar, which would keep the place from feeling crowded. One thing I’d noticed too was the extra room between each pinball machine. If a customer arrived with friends, they could stand around the machine and egg on the player.
Arcades weren’t a thing in my younger years. We didn’t need a specific place to meet and hang out; instead we played Xbox, Wii, PlayStation at friends’ houses. But seeing the arcade wars shown on TV and movies from that time period had made me nostalgic for the loss of something I’d never had.
“So this is the rock ’n’ roll section,” Dallas said. Then she pointed to the corner. “That Metallica machine is rare, so it’ll be popular.”
I ran my hand over the Kiss pinball machine—one of five, all different.
We passed a half wall and Dallas said, “These are our classic arcade games. There are several here I’ve been practicing on in my downtime.”
“Which ones?”
“Tempest. Space Invaders. Asteroids. Ms. Pac-Man. Tetris. Centipede. Donkey Kong.”
“Got it going on like—”
Dallas placed her hand over my mouth. “Do not get that song stuck in my head tonight, Nolan.” She whirled around, taking several long strides, and turned a corner.
This area resembled a home theater with four big-screen TVs arranged in a rectangle. “This room is our crown jewel, with the exception of the Medieval Madness pinball machine we bought that cost as much as a new car.”
“What’s so special about this area?”
She literally bounced on her toes with excitement. “It’s our cell phone games area. If you’re used to playing Angry Birds on your phone, you can log in to our server and play it on the big screen. And you don’t have to switch to a handheld controller, which is usually why some players can’t level up on a gaming system, when they’re used to playing in app format.”
“Dallas. That’s genius.”
“I know, right? It’s set up for singles and multiple players. We’ll debut an original Full Tilt game app every other month that newsletter subscribers can download. They can practice the game on their own time or come in and try it out on the big screen and we’ll host tournaments with prizes.” She beamed. “No one else has even thought of doing this. Lucky for us, we have our own software developer who did.”
My eyes narrowed. “Is he developing just phone apps?”
“She”—Dallas emphasized—“is also an engineer who’s going all MacGyver on swapping guts and parts out of old pinball