[es2k]

GT5 Club. Members will have access to a facility that has 16+ Monster 3D LCD's, each tv equipped with PS3, Logitech G27, Playseats and will have races every weekend.

GT5 is not just a game. Its a driving simulator. Iv waited for GT5 to come out for so long...and finally in 2 days it will be out. I am so excited.

How much is each individual willing to pay monthly to use this facility?

This could be possible with some sponsors i personally know. Please keep this thread civilized. I just want some feedback from the Revscene community. If i get enough support and positive feedback, this place will exist.

[Razor Ramon HG]

So what's the catch?

[es2k]

no catch. just marketing for Sony X Logitech. Creating a new era for gaming!

[TOPEC]

I can see this being a 3 minute thing, 6 months down the road after gt5 is out, and when everyone gets bord of it...
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[InvisibleSoul]

In the end, isn't it all about cost? Can't really gauge interest without having a figure...

[Fuhrër-Z]

This idea isn't worth it, the cost of starting up is high and maintenance is gonna kill you. People will abuse the seats and wheels and in 2-3 weeks you'll see everything begin to break down quickly.

[Mugen EvOlutioN]

^

totally

ur repair bill is gonna be > revenue

[kchan]

The idea itself is good, but if the pricing is going to be similar to the LFS simulator we have locally ($20 per race I belive) then no one would pay for. Even so, if you do $1 per match I would question if people would play that much say months down the road (unless you've unlocked every car etc. In the game). And another problem that would happen is that, unlike arcade racing games, people won't go in themselves and play themselves while waiting for people to come in to challenge them, because I'll assume you will charge $ per race, then why would people pay to play career mode/single player? Hence, only groups of friends/communities would either come all at once to play which also means you won't make as much daily/weekly since you've lost the whole 'walk-in customer' factor

But all in all, I'd say it could be a decent place especially if you will be selling up to date products (include more than just sony + logitech please) at a competitive price

Just my 2cents
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[gilly]

^ op said races will happen once or twice every 2 weeks. so there is no walk-in customer factor at all.

[kchan]

^ op said races will happen once or twice every 2 weeks. so there is no walk-in customer factor at all.

he's also said that it is a facility selling products thus i would assume it would be open daily, the races that happen once or twice every 2 weeks could possibly by a sort of tournament? If people come in wanting to race within their own group of friends at any given day, i would be pretty sure OP would want the business.

[Meowjin]

http://gootecks.com/hype-building/hype-building-101-the-venue/

read this.

[Ikkaku]

if people use the equipment like how they do with max tune and battlegear, you'll be replacing the G27 on a daily basis

[es2k]

First of all, I would like to thank you all for the input. Of course i have thought of the factors you guys have said above. I am coming up with ideas to tackle those problems and try to build this community. I hope you guys would support this idea because you never know. I personally think GT5 will be the next cool thing....
All my closes peers have already preordered GT5 and many already have the steering wheel / Playseat set up at home. But that doesn't matter, paying $2 bucks each to race with 15 other buddies in the same room? Priceless

This facility will also welcome Corporate events/ Parties / Blow off steam (eg book the facility for 1 hour private use)

Please give me more feedback! =)

Thanks RS community!

[es2k]

Possible locations: RC or Metrotown

Imagine...
At least one of these facilities in each city all over North America, Asia, Europe...

Believe that anything you can imagine, you can make real.

[es2k]

Also, to prevent people breaking the equipment, there will be staff onsite. Customers will be required to put some kind of deposit.

Would this work?
$4 dollars per race, Nurburgring only
16 machines LED TV

$6 dollars per race, Nurburgring only
2 machines 3D TV

[Fuhrër-Z]

^I've read the 3d for Gran turismo isn't all that impressive. Is it worth the premium price and chance of people stealing glasses?

[Hondaracer]

Can you play with 15 diff people on the same track?

personally i'd never go cause i'd rather play in my own setup at home, it might be cool to do with a bunch of friends for 2-5 races, but i dont see my friends paying $20 for a couple races more than once

[es2k]

Personally I wouldn't mind to pay 20 bucks each time if i could race with my friends. I'm sure couple dollars per race wouldn't be a problem for our big spending power Chinese friends :)

[Manic!]

This will sound stupid but I know years ago it was illegal to charge people per game on a home gaming counsel. Your better of charging a per month membership free like they do in gym's. That way you will have a steady flow of income and know how many people you will need to break even. Don't make the location a mall the rent will kill you. Try to find a warehouse or something cheap as possible.

Look for something higher end than the play seat and the Logitech wheel because most hard ore GT players have those at home. Don't skimp on the sound, i got a few great budget idea's. Also look at other games like Madden and Street Fighter(no wow please). I bet there are a number of people who wouldn't getting out of the house once in a while. Kind of like the gamers version of going to a bar.

250 members at $40 a month is $10000.

[Meowjin]

I'm working on something for street fighterm
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[Dragon-88]

Honestly its a great idea but its never going to happen.. Cost to profit is minimal.. You also have to look at who your customers are most likely high schoolers.. Which mean lots of immature youngster that dont treat the place well... Which also means they wont treat your hardware any better.. Look at lesters.. most of their games are pretty broken or very loose and look at their customer base... Also if you are looking into a warehouse location which means they need vehicle transportation.. Hard for high schoolers.. Also you will be open late hours becuase thats just peak in vnacouver... Who knows who will show up..

[Grandmaster TSE]

good idea but i highly doubt it will work in reality

your operation costs will be too high and wont be profitable at all
the only way i see this working is if you and a bunch of friends fork out the money to start this private club and only you guys will be playing, so at least you know that everyone dished out money and will treat things better, plus you would know everyone

[ilvtofu]

I think the monthly fixed costs of opening a facility will be too high to be feasible. A better idea IMO is at some guy's basement/garage find some friends/start a club to fund 2 setups. More like a club/party/get together than a business but it's affordable and definitely less stress. The demand just isn't there IMO to keep a business like that running, especially when it's something a lot of people already have.

Best bet start a facebook group or a club on revscene and find people who have setups and play online every now and then. See how that turns out, sounds like fun to me

[Meowjin]

Did anyone ready my link?
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[Presto]

I think the monthly fixed costs of opening a facility will be too high to be feasible.

That's basically the problem. Unless you own a big warehouse, or something, the cost of leasing a location is going to be the biggest expense. If you're thinking RC or Metro, then your costs will be much higher.

[ilvtofu]

^Maybe an established place like E-spot could invest in these and have a room for "elite" club members or smth like that

[Dragon-88]

I just thought of something.. Parts for logitech wheels are impossible to get aswell so u better know how to fix them by diy.

[es2k]

Thanks for all the feedback.

First of all you guys don't need to worry about my costs, and income. Thank you for the concerns!

I just need to know if i have local Vancouver people that are just as enthusiastic as me. If i could gather a group of people that are willing to help out and gather people with me, that would be great! I know there are people who are willing to pay a couple bucks, there are people who arent willing to pay a cent, there are also people that will pay for all of the equipment and wont ask for anything in return, and there are also people that dont mind forking out the money, but they ask for something in return. I wont generalize people on the forum. I need individuals that like cars, like racing, are civilized, and are willing to start this community with me! I don't care whether you are 50 years old, 15 years old highschool kid, or 28 year old married man, as long as you are polite and enthusiastic you are welcomed!

[Manic!]

Is this for profit or non profit?

[mos_skeeto]

Thanks for all the feedback.

First of all you guys don't need to worry about my costs, and income. Thank you for the concerns!

I just need to know if i have local Vancouver people that are just as enthusiastic as me. If i could gather a group of people that are willing to help out and gather people with me, that would be great! I know there are people who are willing to pay a couple bucks, there are people who arent willing to pay a cent, there are also people that will pay for all of the equipment and wont ask for anything in return, and there are also people that dont mind forking out the money, but they ask for something in return. I wont generalize people on the forum. I need individuals that like cars, like racing, are civilized, and are willing to start this community with me! I don't care whether you are 50 years old, 15 years old highschool kid, or 28 year old married man, as long as you are polite and enthusiastic you are welcomed!

I would be up for it. I used to frequent on a forum that sat on granturismo.com and made some good car friends. Maybe this will be something like those little groups of people who hang out at the Landsdown parking lot and drive RC cars. If you decide to peruse it let me know if you need help setting up something online like revscene's message board.

[gilly]

im up for it.

[twitchyzero]

if you are looking for civilized members i would stray away from RC and Metro where you'll attract the high school kids that will drive in a manner where you'll be repairing your equipment on a weekly basis.

[Meowjin]

your trying to build hype for a community that doesnt exist yet. Make a community first and then people wil come.

[mk1freak]

this brings back memories of the days of daytona usa x 4 (or 8player) and 4minute drifts on advanced :D well ~4min10secs lol

[Cman333]

Although the concept is great. I don't think you've thought this through.

You need to build a stable business. Here's a few things that come to mind right away.

Building a business based around ONE console game will kill you. You'd be better off starting a LAN cafe with a bunch of G25/G27's. Even then, when they break due to excessive use (which they will very frequently) then what? You charge the customer the full price of the unit? What if they were using it lightly and it just broke because the previous guy was using it hard? And lets say you charge a damage deposit, then you have the down time because your steering wheel needs to be repaired. Most manufacturers don't warranty consumer electronics for commercial use.

Next issue which is the most important...

Why would someone want to pay $4/ race when your usual arcade games cost $1-2/race and doesn't require a damage deposit. And how much would your damage deposit be? $20? That wouldn't cover the cost of repairs or replacing it nor would it cover the down time and business you will lose. So...$100? $200? I don't know about you, but I sure as hell wouldn't whip out $200 deposit + $4/race to play video games. And think about your target market....what age group are they? Do they have $200 + $4/race? I just spent 3-4 hours playing many races and redoing many races. That would cost me $150+ to play at this GT5 Club. Sorry. You haven't sold me.

And have you ever looked into HOW MUCH a retail spot in Richmond Centre/Metrotown costs? You see those shitty little food court stalls that barely fit 10 ppl inside? That'll probably run you around 6-10K/month on a 3-5 year lease. You would probably need MINIMUM 1000/sq ft. which will run you at least 10K in a prime mall. So 10k/month + electric + insurance + wages + renovations + security deposit. You would need to make at least 20k/month in sales for this to be semi worthwhile. That means you need to sell a MINIMUM of approx 170 races/day to basically break even.

Do you really believe you could keep this place busy for 3-5 years on a daily basis? If so, then great. Odds are. Not likely.

Remember the days of Daytona USA the arcade game? People would line up and play that shit. I know I did back then. Do you think if some arcade had 16 machines they could keep those machines busy everyday for 5 years? Nope. GT5 is a fad. Great game, but once the hype dies down, you're basically stuck with an expensive dream.

Yes the idea is cool. But as a business...guaranteed failure.

[Purely]

^Maybe an established place like E-spot could invest in these and have a room for "elite" club members or smth like that

Yeah, I believe Espot used to have xbox 360's..

[J____]

i dont think this is feasible business wise if you were to open a facility catering only to GT5. Yes it would be a great idea if you already operate an arcade and add this as a section. But all that investing just for GT5.... you'll shut down in a year with debt.

edit: cman333 hit the nail on the head.



if you really want to do this because ur passionate about the game, then better thing to do is lease a place for other business purposes and have this club going on in the off hours. If it builds interest and you see it making a profit, then slowly convert. During peak season you can lease it out for other purposes.... lets say... MJ gathering for the clais' :D

[es2k]

cman333 thanks u analyzed it! haha believe it or not i have a spreadsheet that calculates the costs and everything. I never really looked into this as a business or money making idea. I just wanted to gather GT5 fans and play together. If any of you are interested, i have empty office space at Bridgeport in Richmond, we can try setting it up with out own equipment. I have already picked up a new tv, g27, and gt5 yesterday! i dont have the play seat yet though!

Let the gaming begin!
please PM me your number if you are interested!

[es2k]

Let me turn things around, so IF....IF the equipment was fully sponsored
What do you guys think =D

Thanks again guys, Thanks for all the feedback

[Cman333]

Let me turn things around, so IF....IF the equipment was fully sponsored
What do you guys think =D

Thanks again guys, Thanks for all the feedback

I think you need to start a Forza 3 club :)

Screw the G25/27, get these:
http://www.fanatec.de/html/index.php?id=250&lang=en

If you were to rent a small warehouse and get a few friends to chip in then that would make sense.

Say $2000/month rent + utilities. That seems more realistic. Still unsure about $4/race + damage deposit. If your doing this on passion and don't expect to make profit then this is basically just a GT5 social club. Maybe charge a monthly fee or something. I'm sure a few RS people would do it.

But again, how long do you expect this hype to last? 2-3 months tops? Seems like alot of work for a few months of success.

I don't know about you guys, but I like console gaming at home. I wouldn't drive somewhere on a daily basis to play the same game I have at home with people. Maybe once in awhile.

Hell if you're serious about it, I have 400ish sq ft in shop I could spare for you try it out. Right now it's just used as storage lol.

[Manic!]

Need to get this:
http://www.fanatec.de/webshop/new_usa/images/rsc3m_en_02.jpg

I'm sure people would pay $40 to $50 a month to play on that.

http://www.fanatec.de/webshop/new_usa/product_info.php?cPath=29&products_id=45&osCsid=e75f2599997bed56752624d8c303d2a8

[q0192837465]

It is kinda similar to the CS craze back in the days. I've never understood how it got so big. We would go every week & spend HOURS playing at $10-15/hr. Can anyone see the same with GT5?

As for initial investment, it's pretty similar. But only have 1 game is probably not gonna fly. The other thing we have to think about is the support. Are there going to be custom tracks? Are there going to be side games like car soccer?

There r definitely possibilities, but it's gonna be very hard work. I dun see it working as a hobby even if just want to break even. Also, how much money r u willing to throw into it on a continuous basis?

[es2k]

Okay guys, iv finally decided to club will not be open to public, i will keep it friends only and by recommendation only. This club is going to exist but my friends and i feel that this is going to be dangerous Telling people on RS where this club is going to be is stupid! haha So this place will exist and everything is under planning!

Revscene community thanks for the feedback! And remember, if one day you do see a place that has a lot of driving simulators, thats ME!!!

[theBlackMarkers]

http://www.vf1motorsports.com/

[wasabisashimi]

Did anyone ready my link?
Posted via RS Mobile (http://www.revscene.net/forums/announcement.php?a=228)

your link is broken