Imagine passing the time before your next flight playing free retro video games while enjoying delicious small bites like poke nachos and pulled pork sliders and sipping a craft cocktail. Thanks to the vision of H. Lamar Willis, Jonathan Ford, and SSP America, that dream is now a reality at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA).
Willis and Ford wanted to offer something new for travelers to pass the time at the airport and the result is Sky Gamerz, a gaming lounge now open in N Concourse, serving up retro video games alongside a full food and drink menu. With its dark, cozy interior, offset by pink and green neon lights that match the retro video game aesthetic, Willis and Ford have created the perfect atmosphere to relax and take in some old school entertainment while waiting for a flight.
When Willis and Ford initially pitched the idea of a gaming lounge to airports, they cited the large and growing number of people who play video games. “Many people are playing video games on their phones, or with relatives, friends, or children, even if they didn’t play video games as kids,” Willis said. “Tens of millions of people are playing and buying video games every year, and the number keeps growing exponentially.”
When selecting games for Sky Gamerz, Willis said he didn’t want to go too gamey or too nerdy to start. The retro video games available to play at Sky Gamerz are designed to appeal to a wide audience, but particularly to business travelers, which represent the largest population of travelers. Many of whom played Atari, Ms. Pac Man, or Donkey Kong growing up. He plans to eventually add some newer games to Sky Gamerz’ offerings.
“Retro is always a safe bet because what we find is that even children like retro video games. Donkey Kong, Ms. Pacman, and Frogger are all games kids are not familiar with but are excited by. And the greatest thing is that at SEA, we don’t charge you to play. This lowers the stakes and also creates that opportunity to try something new.”
From trucks to airports
Like Sky Gamerz’ business traveler audience, Willis grew up playing the video games now considered retro. Atari was his gateway to this pastime, and over the years he graduated to the other systems like Nintendo, Sony PlayStation, X Box, and handheld gaming devices like Nintendo Switch.
His personal passion shifted into a business venture when he and Ford launched Peach State Gamerz, a company that provides gaming trucks for corporate and individual gaming events around Georgia. Willis’ son (then eight years old) first introduced him to the concept of a gaming truck after coming across one at a birthday party and suggested that Willis and Ford, long time entrepreneurs, buy their own. Willis brushed it off at first, but after he encountered a gaming truck at a second party, he thought “that is brilliant,” and Peach State Gamerz was born. After successfully operating Peach State Gamerz, Willis and Ford expanded their vision to the world of air travel. They had experience bringing businesses to Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL) and thought a gaming lounge would be a perfect addition to an airport.
“There aren’t a lot of entertainment spaces in airports,” Willis said. “In order to be successful, we wanted to also have a food and beverage element to it. Good food and beverage combined with gaming hasn’t really been done anywhere in the airport space. It’s the first of its kind and the food and aesthetics turned out phenomenally well. It’s an opportunity to be entertained but also have great food.”
First location
Willis and Ford are also set to open a Sky Gamerz at ATL, but SEA is the first location to open its doors. Willis said he pursued a location at SEA due to its deep connections to the gaming world. Seattle is home to PAX West, the largest gaming conference in the world. In addition, every major company with a gaming element has a presence in Seattle.
Willis worked with SSP America, which operates restaurants at airports across the U.S., for five or six years on other ventures before broaching the idea of a Sky Gamerz partnership.
“When my partner and I thought about bringing on someone to work with us, SSP was the first company we could think of because they treat their partners fairly, and they are easy to work with. They also held true to our design vision when they built this place out. That was really important to us not to lose the essence of the project,” Willis said. “I am looking forward to being able to serve the SEA community in a way that creates buzz and excitement. I hope this is a launching pad for many other around the country.”
Joe Pucci, Director of Operations at SEA Airport for SSP, said he is excited to help bring Willis and Ford’s vision to life. “I’m looking forward to guests and travelers coming and just being blown away, by not only the concept of Sky Gamerz, but the food at Sky Gamerz. The food is made fresh every day in the restaurant, and on top of that we have really cool drinks that our beverage team has come up with that are a perfect fit.”
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