It’s a weeknight, after a Rockies game, and baseball fans are celebrating a win. As the hordes flood out of Coors Field and onto Blake Street, little groups splinter from the pack and toward a black awning announcing “The 1Up: Bar Arcade Eats” (1925 Blake St.).
After traveling down a long walkway toward the back of the building, guests enter a dimly lit cavern of lights and sound. Pinball machines and vintage video games line almost every inch of wall space. It’s like a dark Las Vegas casino, except without the drifting cigarette smoke and singsong slot machines.
Sitting at a table, it’s fun to watch newcomers as they enter the 1Up. Eyes shining with happy nostalgia, they drift around the room, mouths agape. Occasionally, they’ll grab another pal by the arm and excitedly point at a favorite game. Eventually, they make it to the bar, where a Colt 45 sign proclaims “This establishment is Billy Dee Williams approved.”
The kitsch factor is high at the 1Up — and it’s completely expected and welcomed. The place specializes in pre-1985 arcade games, after all, and some of the cabinets they have are almost unbelievable.
All the old faves are there, like Galaga, Tron and a sit-down Ms. Pac-Man. But some of the others are downright hilarious. There’s one in a corner called “Tapper,” branded with Budweiser logos, where players scramble to pour Buds for beer-thirsty customers.
Another game is called “Journey” — as in the 1980s pop-rock band. Yes, it’s a branded Journey game, in which the band must rescue its missing instruments from the “Groupoids” in outer space. There’s nothing quite like seeing a little Steve Perry head bouncing along on a spindly video-game body.
After perusing the game selection, drinks are almost an afterthought. Almost. Unlike a mall arcade back in the day, the 1Up is for drinking- age adults. No paper cups of Pepsi here. People want beer.
Happily, the 1Up has accommodated this with slender railings on either side of the game cabinets. They’re perfect for keeping a pint glass handy while smashing buttons, or for resting a drink while watching a friend play.
Crowded around a cabinet while pals zap away at aliens, it’s easy to feel like a teen hoodlum at the arcade in an ’80s movie. All that’s missing is the dangling cigarette and nasty attitude.
There’s a lot right about the 1Up: It’s fun, it’s affordable, it’s nostalgic. If there’s one thing wrong, it’s the giant Jenga.
The idea is good: Sawed-up two-by-fours stacked to create person-sized games of Jenga. But they’re all over the place, and when they fall they are loud. Really, really loud, and accompanied by screams of torment. If you’re watching a game, you can see it coming. If you’re not — say, if you’re immersed in playing pinball — the crashing blocks sound like a sudden gunshot. And then a ball is lost and there are more screams of torment.
The 1Up isn’t the first of its kind. The same concept has sprung up in other cities, and Denver even used to have the pinball-centric Climax Lounge on Welton Street. Nonetheless, it’s a breath of fresh, geeky air in sporty LoDo. Load up on quarters and blast your way to the past.
More news from Blake Street.
On Tuesday, Beta (1909 Blake St.) announced that it’d been named the No. 1 nightclub in the United States for 2011 by British music magazine DJMag. Which is great, but there’s more — Beta was also crowned the No. 1 club in all of North America.
Beta owner Brad Roulier credits the honor to his staff’s attention to the club’s smaller elements.
“We really care about the details,” Roulier said in an e-mail. “Beta was built from the DJ booth to the dance floor, and we expanded that idea throughout the whole club.”
Celebrate with hard-core dance duo the Crystal Method on Saturday — tickets are $20 at .
