History of the Video Arcade

Spent a good part of my time in the late 70s and early 80s in video arcades.
Started with Space Invaders, then moved on to Defender, Missile Command, Robotron, Xybots.
Guess my affinity was with Williams based games.
Used to play many others: Asteroids, Galaga, Tempest, 1942, Smash TV just to pass the time.
Never got into the shooters, Mario themed games, racing games, nor pinball, albeit they were very popular.
All there seems to be today are shooters and racing games, nothing original anymore.

Intriguing quote from the article. Article implies that the decline of video arcades was a result of parents fears as opposed to at home video games:

"It’s shocking, of course, to realize that the "golden age" of video game arcades lasted just a few, short years, but if we tie it onto the turbulent history of pinball, we’re looking at a much longer, institutional part of our culture which, in the 1980s, began to pass away. Like roller skating rinks and other public spaces "for young people only," our culture seems to have decided that kids are better off when they’re not alone with other kids, and worried parents have been victorious in their mission to rid us of these troublesome spaces for loitering, described by New York City in 1942 as a "menace to the health, safety, and general welfare of the people.""

http://www.theverge.com/2013/1/16/3740422/the-life-and-death-of-the-american-arcade-for-amusement-only

http://www.arcadefly.com/
http://www.arcadelocations.net/