Beloved Northridge Arcade Saved By Community

NORTHRIDGE, CA — In many arcade games, right when it feels like the player is about to fall off a cliff, they acquire a surprise energy ball or burst of stardust that keeps them going into the next round.

That’s what happened to Northridge’s beloved Neon Retro Arcade, which has raised $18,147 from 413 donors on GoFundMe as of Monday afternoon. Thanks to the donations, the small business can stay open for another month.

The arcade, near the intersection of Reseda Boulevard and Nordhoff Street, is owned and operated by Mark and Mia Guenther, a Reseda couple who bonded over a pinball machine in Guenther’s dorm room. For years, the their two arcades – the other is in Pasadena – allowed gamers to enjoy everything from Mortal Kombat to Ms. Pacman to The Simpsons.

“We started this arcade back in 2015 with just a crazy dream we pushed forward,” said Guenther. “We weren’t sure if anyone would even come to the arcade, but we had such a great reception from the community that we knew we had something special.”

But the arcade had to shut down on March 16 due to the coronavirus, and has struggled ever since. On the website, the Guenthers wrote that they applied for government loans, sold many games, sold discounted passes and other arcade merchandise, negotiated partial rent deferral, and used up much of their savings.

The Guenthers thought they might be able to reopen in July to meet their mounting expenses, but found themselves facing an imminent closing. They set up a GoFundMe page asking for $10,000, which they received within nine hours. The donations will keep the arcade going for another month or two.

“Our employees as well as past employees who are no longer working with us anymore contributed their hard-earned money,” Mia told ABC News. “To us it meant the world. It really showed how much of a family we really are, and how grateful we are for this whole community.”

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