Before
arcade rhythm games were released, the market had really been impacted by
console & PC gaming. Previously, arcade technology was always a taste of
the future. However, consoles started to provide the same, if not better, technology
compared to the arcade. Because of this the late 90s had seen a decline in arcade
visitors.
In 1999,
“Dancing Stage” aka DDR appeared throughout the UK.
2000 brought the first sightings of “Pump It Up” known as PIU, or Pump.
Arcade dance machines provided an experience only available in arcades! This
revived the player community, at least for one last time. Queues of pound coins
lined dance machines in bowling alleys, arcades, cinemas & theme parks.
Much like the fighting game boom of the 90s, everyone wanted to play & show
off their skills.
Some of the first UK dancegame websites started to pop up, dancingstage.co.uk
in 1999 (which became dancegames.com the following year), then pumpstage.co.uk.
These websites mainly used forums to talk & share information/photos,
organize meetups, talk about Pump, a precursor of how social media is today.
By 2001, Pump became very popular at London Trocadero, often considered the
heart of gaming in the UK. Trocadero was seen as the showcase arcade, debuting
games, running location tests, and of course, holding Pump tournaments.
While each town did have their communities, the most notable hubs of Pump
players (“Pumpers”) were in Paignton, Manchester & of course, London.
As competitive arcade gaming declined by the end of the decade, dancegames,
& Pump It Up remained the only viable option for tournaments & testing
skill levels of gamers, compared to the proliferation of ticket &
redemption machines. The growth of K-pop first via YouTube, then social media,
also immensely helped with the appeal of Korean made Pump It Up.
The UK became a hub of tournament events, notably “International Pump Festival”
or IPF, which originally started in Latin America. London players ran a regional
tournament for this event in 2014, which expanded to other European countries,
& The United States.
Currently the biggest global tournament is “B1G ONE” in Colombia, which the UK
has yet to enter.
So lets grow the scene together & put the UK on the map, once again!
