I loved this spot!!! Super cute retro arcade bar/restaurant. Perfect for sport fanatics and gamers. There are plenty of flat screen tv's with games to play. You can sit at a table and eat while playing games. They have arcade games as well. Their menu is super cute! Just overall this place really comes together well. I appreciate the small details..actually, I appreciate ALL the details they put into making the spot so cohesive with their theme. Such a staple and must do when in Boston! Their food and drinks were also pleasant but it was the theme for me. read more

See all

Oh my goodness! This place is so much fun! $5 cover for all you can play arcade games. Drinks and food are extra. It's a great time and a good way to connect with old friends and to meet new friends. read more

This place is one of my favorites to bring friends. Some of the cabinets are broken, but I mean, for $5, you can't expect much, and it's still a great deal. The staff is very friendly, and the geeky but still sort of nightlife vibe the place has is very comforting to me. Food-wise, I've only ever had the Zelda fries, and they were fine, but maybe not if I were the one paying (although inflated priced for food in this area is to be expected). But the thing about this place is that you really don't NEED food. Just a couple friends and $5 is all you need to get a worthwhile experience. read more

This place is awesome for gamers You can play video, arcade and pinball games while having a cold drink.

Very fun place, I've had birthday party's here and everyone is always very nice and helpful.

Do you like video games? What about drinking? Fun times with good people and good food? Cool it's all here. Tell them Quesogato sent you and you'll get a free high five! read more

VERSUS - Entrance - Arcades Near Me - Boston, Massachusetts

See all

Classic video games, pinball, full bar and decent bar food. Do you even need to read anything more? It's pay one price for all the games and the video games (some 40 years old) are in great workable shape. PlayStation and X-Box at the bar for more current gaming. Pop a shot and skeeball are a little weak from a playability and maintenance standpoint but that's my only negative feedback. The music / the wall art / the staff - it's all good. Enjoy! read more

Such a fun bar! Unlimited free old fashion arcade games. Drinks are expensive, but worth it since the games are free. read more

VERSUS - Arcades Near Me - Boston, Massachusetts

Food is solid -- pretty typical bar food. The trivia night pre covid was a blast and the atmosphere is very chill.

Great time! $5 gets you entry and free all night arcade games! Friendly staff and friendly patrons!

I enjoy this place it's a good time. The menu is kinda pricey if you're bringing a few children but 5 dollars for unlimited game time makes it seem like change when you think of what you'll spend at a place like dave and busters. I honestly don't think it's anything to complain about because the experience and feels you get in this place are priceless. Makes you feel young but always makes you super okay with your age if you're getting up there because of all the old school treats you can appreciate in there. The food is tasty and the drinks are yum so I definitely recommend this place. I like it enough to have been more than a few times already. The set the food up and serve it on pretty cool things like lunch boxes and frisbees. Milkshakes and ninja turtles, yeah this place rocks. Plus the the art on the walls will get you some pretty good selfies xx read more

See all

We recently rented out this venue for a birthday party during the day on Saturday. The entire process and dealing with the staff was incredibly easy - I was able to coordinate everything over email with Jenna and they were very accommodating as to what I wanted. The place itself is awesome - three separate spaces laid out longways like a bowling alley with the bar in the middle. All of the games were working just fine while we were there and all of our guests had a great time. We had the pizza, mac and cheese bites, tater tots, pretzels, veggie tray - the tots were a crowd favorite. Very happy with the beer selection. When our event ended at regular business hours, they let us stay at a table - the place did have a few people waiting to get right in but it wasn't crowded at all for the first hour it was open. I will definitely be back. Parking would be an issue if you were driving - but its near public transport. read more

VERSUS - Arcades Near Me - Boston, Massachusetts

See all

WHAT A SUPER COOL PLACE. For $5 per person, you can play as many arcade games as you want. Some are vintage and others are pretty new. This is the best place to go with your friends. The drinks are pretty good too and I really enjoyed my cocktail ($14). My fiance was getting cans of beer. They had some nice options. Wish they would expand to having more craft beer on tap. Either way, loved this place. There is nothing better than drinking with people you love and playing unlimited arcade games as an adult. you can even get two controllers to play Mario kart, etc. at the bar if you give them your ID. Will totally come again. I am not sure why the readings are entire here. It is possible the $5 flat fee for unlimited games is a fairly new thing. Don't get rid of it!!! read more

See all

fun place! got the impossible burger and it was great, just gets busy on weekends so it can be a bit crowded but the service is still amazing read more

Love this new arcade bar and restaurant downtown Boston. Pay $5 for all the arcade games you want to play... pac man, pinball, skee ball, giant connect four, Jenga at your table, play station at the bar... very cool and fun and different!! Full bar with comfy bar stools if you want to chill while the others in your group play or for post game cocktail. The menu is comprised of apps, burgers, pizzas, and some sides. They do have a salad for you greens lovers (me)! Try the wings (4 different sauce options... ever try Dr Pepper flavor?!). Definitely had some fun here! read more

VERSUS - Sneak peak at the menu... def a pub grub type of menu with pizzas, burgers and some yummy apps - Arcades Near Me - Boston, Massachusetts

This is purely for the gaming selection. Half the pinball machines do not work. The video games are dated from the mid-80s. I don't think I got excited about arkanoid when it was a modern game back then. read more

Really fun spot. Wish the basket ball machine was working as it didn't keep track of our score, but playing ski ball and street fighter while tipsy was fun. They had unlimited games for $5. Not sure if this is daily or just a Saturday night special read more

See all

Versus is a retro arcade bar, a few of these have popped up in recent years. This one is located near downtown crossing inside the old Gem (and Kennedy's before that). In the short time this place has been open I've managed to stop in twice, once for lunch and other time after work. Lunch, as you might expect, was pretty quiet. The food was great and you could pretty much have the run of the place, and the option of paying $5 for unlimited video game play ($10 on the weekends) it was a solid value! This place seems like it will make a great place for after work drinks with its mix of good vibes and nostalgia. The food was of your typical bar fare with its own unique twists. Most items have some type of video game flair or reference. They have shot glasses made out of original Nintendo cartridges you can take with you. At the bar there was a mix of tv's showing sports and also people playing Mario Kart on a Nintendo Switch. Most of the arcade games were older classics and pinball, with the exception of a brand new Ninja Turtles game. As for the food and drinks: 8-bit Old Fashioned - a sweeter take on the original classic. I really enjoyed it, as I like my old fashioned this way. Versus Burger - what I really liked about their burgers is that they are all quarter pounders. So they're perfect my portioned in my opinion. It came with caramelized onions, cheese, and bacon. I added tater tots instead of fries and they serve it to you inside a lunch box Dr Pepper Wings - they come bone in and the sauce was like a sweet BBQ. Another solid choice. read more

VERSUS - 8-bit Old Fashioned - if you like them on the sweeter side this is your jam! - Arcades Near Me - Boston, Massachusetts

New spot not far from Boston Common (3 min walk). There isn't much seating as it's first come first serve, and large groups can get a little tight (there were 8 of us). The lines for games can get long, too. We were happy that unlimited play was only $5 and food was a decent price. The music was pretty blah and apparently is on repeat all day, which kind of stunk. Some of the food (pretzels, hot & spicy wings, Dr. Pepper wings) was unremarkable. I enjoyed my mac & cheese bites (they were able to make them without bacon) and a friend of mine liked her Impossible burger. I'd like to come back and hopefully have time to play more games, since it was pretty crowded. read more

Definitely add this to the top of your must do list in Boston if you have kids or are looking for a night out with your friends. Kids welcome until 7:00 pm them 21+ till close. All of your favorite games, great cocktails and all of your favorite pub grub. This was one of the highlights of our trip. Unlimited play for $5, stiff cocktails and an awesome staff who are all on point. Shout-out to the Manager Mike who I called ahead of time and gave us the low down and welcomed us once we arrived. We'll definitely be back every time we're in Boston. Kids said it was the highlight of their weekend. read more

See all

Games are fun, but space is rather limited and appetizers are prohibitively expensive on nights without a special deal. There was a fun Jack Daniels promotion going on, so that was nice. read more

Cool new arcade bar near Park Street! I went at 3pm on a weekday, so the place was empty and my review might be a bit skewed, but I had a great time. I paid $5 for unlimited game time - they have arcade games, but they also have a basketball game, ski ball, ping pong, etc. They also have board games. They have a full food and drink menu. I ordered the cheese fries and wings, in addition to a cider. The food was fine: not delicious, but not bad. I do wish they had more drink options. I don't like beer, but I didn't want to pay $12 for a wine. Cider worked out, but they only have one brand. Prices were a bit above average, but that's to be expected with the location/theme. I'll definitely be returning! Versus offers a fun, new twist on a Friday night out. read more

See all

I think the idea of Versus is so cute, but there is not much accessibility in the area. Being under 21, there is minimal seating, which can be frustrating. The steak and cheese egg rolls were soooo good but it took a while to get to eat them as we had to find a place to eat them. The staff was so kind and helpful, I just wish there was more seating and maybe more games. read more

There's something really special about a bar with TVs showing patrons battling it out in Smash Bros or racing to the finish in Fall Guys rather than a bunch of sports games I've never really cared about. The food and drinks all had fun names and were very tasty and the staff were super friendly. There's not a lot of games to play here but for only $5 and all you can play you are definitely getting your moneys worth. I highly recommend it. read more

Great service - hosted a birthday party there for my husband and the catering host and team were fantastic. So organized and easy to work with. Loved the experience and everyone had a great time! read more

Awesome concept. Many of the games were out of order and some that worked had sticky buttons etc. need to maintain the place a little better. Didn't try the food. read more

I haven't tried the food but $5 for games goes far - Make sure you check out both sides

$5 for unlimited game play is just unheard of to me! There is a bar and some tables in between two other rooms of different game machines ranging from skeeball, connect 4 basketball, driving games, pinball, old arcade games, shuffle board, and more. The drinks are well-stocked and reasonably priced too. If you like arcade games this is a great place to visit for that fleeting sense of nostalgia. read more

This review is based on a private event we held here. They have an awesome assortment of vintage (and a few modern) games that are fun for kids and adults. The set up is great for a private event as there is plenty of space spread out over 3 rooms. They offer passed food which is perfect for an event where people want to float around between the bar and games. The passed apps, sliders and pizza were all very good. They allowed us to play our own music over the speaker system which was a nice option. The staff were excellent. Some of the guests received tours of the games from the manager and the bartender took great care of everyone. I wanted to give 5 stars but the bathroom situation was a little odd. It seems like they are remodeling so maybe improvements are on the way. If you are looking for a venue to hold a party with kids and adults take a look at Versus, we loved it! read more

VERSUS - Wall art and pinball. - Arcades Near Me - Boston, Massachusetts

We stopped in to play some arcade games. Its $5 cover to play the games. It was super hot inside. We stayed for 30 minutes

Had a great time at Versus and the staff was so nice. I had made the dumb idea to show up to what I thought was a bar/restaurant but really just a bar with a starving 7 yr old. The place was packed due to a corporate event and there was nowhere to sit. I had ordered a pizza at the bar and was struggling to find somewhere to sit when the manager (owner?) came over and mad a makeshift table with chairs for us so we could sit and enjoy our pizza which was surprisingly delicious. We will definitely be back read more

I've only been a few times, but wow, I absolutely love this place. Each time has been a blast; with only a $5 cover for unlimited gameplay, what's not to love? The staff is great, the drinks are great, and the bar has console games. The one time I decided to spend the night there by myself, I ended up making a bunch of friends and uniting over destroying each other in Smash at the bar. Handing off controllers and inviting other people to play simply made for a warm and welcoming environment. Regarding their food and drinks, I haven't tasted the food at all, so I can't comment on that. I'm a bit boring with drinks in that I either just order straight whisky or an IPA, but this week, I plan on trying their themed cocktails, which I've heard nothing but positive things about. I did try someone else's "multiplayer" cocktail last time which was served out of a Mario Mystery Block -- super delicious. The only downside that I can think of is how crowded it gets on weekends (Friday and Saturday nights), but that's to be expected. The place is small and located right in the heart of downtown Boston. But hey, that makes it easily accessible by public transport, so no complaints here. read more

Never been to a barcade that allowed kids before. We went for a few hours on a Saturday afternoon to kick off our night. I guess that was our bad going before 8pm because there were shitty kids running everywhere. We were there for less than 3hrs and saw a kid break 2 games. One caused a total scene slamming a game and neither parents or employees stepped in. Another 8yo kid tried to push me off the pinball game and then laid on it when I wouldn't move to let him play. Idk if there are kids at a place if they're behaved but it just felt like we were adults at chucky cheese. If a drunk guy would be kicked out for acting a certain way I think the kids should be treated the same. A lot of the games had loose controls or were just flat out broken and it's pretty easy to see why. Maybe we'll try going back another time after 8pm because the drinks were really good for a fair price and the food was decent bar food. I definitely recommend the multiplayer cocktails for a group! 8yrs came in a really cool ceramic die. Staff was super friendly and personable too. read more

I've been to many barcades and each one clearly has a deep love, respect, and passion for games - this is not one of the barcades. In fact, I would not even classify Versus as a barcade, but a bar that you can maybe play a game or two at. There is no love, respect, or passion for games here, just a cold attempt to draw in a niche gamer crowd. The Lack of Love The decor and game selection is clearly focused on cashing in on a trend. For $5, you can play: consoles you have at home (except the controllers are broken); oversized versions of childhood boardgames like Jenga and Connect Four (except they're sticky), and a few classic cabinets like Street Fighter (except they're perpetually crowded); for $14, you can drink meager cocktails with tangentially game-themed cocktails. I didn't try the food because I didn't feel like paying $15 for four wings. The Lack of Respect There is nothing in this bar that shows its appreciation for games. The decor is as if the research that went into this place consisted of a cursory Google search of "retro games" - Roy Lichtenstein-esque paintings cover the walls with one or two Pac Man merchandise are scattered about. If there were no television monitors displaying Fortnite, you wouldn't know you walked into a barcade. The Lack of Passion Every barcade I've been to has been started and run by people who love games - they understand what makes a game memorable, and they want to share that love with the world and disallow classics from fading into history. Nothing at Versus tells me that they love games. Although they offer a selection of the most recent, trending-on-Twitter consoles and recognizable retro cabinets, they are poorly maintained. Buttons are stuck, joysticks glide, and unlockables aren't unlocked. How do you expect people to enjoy the things they came - and paid - to enjoy if you don't offer the pure experience? If you want to improve your ratings, Versus, I recommend that you research what it means to be a barcade. Cater to your audience - pay attention to the history of games and their significance as cultural icons. "Nerd culture" isn't just a marketing ploy; if you want to be successful, you must have love, respect, and passion for it. read more

We were here for a company outing night. Staff was super friendly and the appetizers were great! The bar is not huge and we had over 200 people show up so it did get a bit crammed when it came to space and finding a game to play. It was fun playing Nintendo at the bar and having drinks! read more

$5 Unlimited play on pinball gets you 2 stars. I suck at pinball and for $5 I could PLAY. ALL. NIGHT. Sadly pinball is basically the only game worth playing. Dated games, some broken or poorly working. Others are just bad. My gut tells me they just bought cheap used games that were never really working perfectly in the first place. Its also downtown, but there are less bros than most of dowtown, so thats a plus. Go for Pinball. Don't go for most anything else. read more

Hearing about a new arcade bar downtown sounded like the perfect idea to celebrate my birthday. On top of that, the management group (that owns other bars in the area like the Grand and Red Lantern) was more than eager to offer the ability to reserve a seating section if we could guarantee a minimum spend. Unlimited playing via wristband! I was so excited, what could possibly go wrong? Well, for a bar called Versus pretty much every multiplayer game they had was totally broken (or in the case of Hydro Thunder which was at least working -- not networked in the first place) Air hockey - out of order Big Buck Hunter - 1 of the guns totally broken Hoops - out of order Mortal Kombat - 1 of the joysticks totally broken Ski ball - one of two machines out of order, and crammed in the corner without much room to play on it anyway Pinball machines were generally ok, although some had sticky buttons which made playing them pretty hard. The consoles also worked. Other machines that were frozen looked like they might have just needed to be reset, but various attempts to bring it to the attention of the staff went nowhere. The drinks were fine and not too outrageous. The food was possibly average/what you'd expect out of gamer snacks if one of my guests didn't get a moldy burger which was just salt in the wound at that point. Pretty much a colossal let down for a bar where the 20 of us had to hit an $800 minimum (which we did hit, plus additional "management fee" for the reservation and included tip). It's partially on me for not looking, but we even got booted at 8PM sharp. You'd think that if they know a group of 20 is coming and making me pay $70 in planning fees, they might remind us to come a little earlier on in the day so we could at least keep buying drinks and play some of the few games that were not out of commission. It was just a huge bummer, because its in a cool location and the space itself is neat and seems like it could have a lot of promise if they just gave the most minimum of a shit at maintaining it (shocking given its only 1-2 months old how totally broken it was). Don't think I'll be going back anytime soon. If you're looking for an arcade bar, stick to Roxie's in Central or try giving Lucky Strike/Jillian's another look if you haven't in a while - its recently overhauled and has an entire floor entirely full of multiplayer arcade games and a prize room that were all in working order. read more

I really want to like this place. Versus has the best selection and best pricing-model of any barcade that I've been to. This may have been an issue with the night I went in particular, but there was a live DJ in one of the game rooms and it totally killed the fun for me. I went to Versus to hang out and play games with my friends, but couldn't hear the games or my friends over the music. read more

When this popped up on my Yelp app, I was pretty excited! Located at the heart of Downtown Crossing, I thought that it had a prime location and adds to 'A4cade by Area Four' in Cambridge for arcade bars. I went on a Friday and got there around 9:30 and had no trouble getting in. Compare this to 'A4cade by Area Four' where the wait can be up to 45 minutes when I first visited. For the price, it really cannot be beat. $5 gets you unlimited play at the machines! But I also didn't see any machines that take coins/change so I guess that their business model is just to have everyone pay for the unlimited play. They have a wide range of retro machines and arcade classics such as air hockey and skee ball as well as giant Jenga near the bar. I didn't buy any drinks so I cannot comment on the price and quality of the drinks. My friend did buy a beer and a mixed drink and I believed that cost him around $20. Not too bad considering the price of the games. The menus posted by other Yelpers also show the food prices, which appear decently priced for the area. I would definitely come back next time I am in the mood for some drinks and arcade games. read more

My friends and I visited Versus while on vacation. After sipping wine at the wine bar down the street, we saw this establishment and decided to check it out. We were so glad that we did! Great drinks, unlimited games for free on Friday evenings, and friendly employees. Can't get better than that! read more