{"id":357372,"date":"2026-07-10T05:25:32","date_gmt":"2026-07-10T05:25:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/peraltafinancing.com\/arcade-game\/newsbytes-gigo-expo-2026-rhythm-game-updates-pinball-catch-up-more\/"},"modified":"2026-07-10T05:25:32","modified_gmt":"2026-07-10T05:25:32","slug":"newsbytes-gigo-expo-2026-rhythm-game-updates-pinball-catch-up-more","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=357372","title":{"rendered":"Newsbytes: GiGO Expo 2026, Rhythm Game Updates, Pinball Catch-Up & More"},"content":{"rendered":"


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Welcome to another edition of Newsbytes, the series of posts here on Arcade Heroes that curate small bytes of news from around the arcade world. Unfortunately, this late Spring\/beginning of Summer has been something of a drought in regards to major stories, but we\u2019re remaining attentive to find anything we can that pertains to arcades and pinball. There has at least been numerous smaller things developing for them, so that\u2019s where posts like these come in. This one is being done on a Monday instead of a Saturday or Sunday as usual, as we had to verify some last minute information on a few subjects before publishing. Onto the news now:<\/p>\n

GiGO Expo 2026<\/h3>\n

GiGO, the chain of arcades in Japan that are operated by GENDA, has become big enough now that they are hosting their own yearly arcade expos to show off new games. Being held in Akihabara,<\/a> one of the main attractions they have staged for 2026\u2019s is their showcase of the next Jubeat from Konami<\/a>, in its first appearance since last month\u2019s Japanese location tests and PlayX4 in South Korea. Alongside that, there has also been some neat-looking mini models shown off of Konami\u2019s other rhythm games,<\/a> Beatmania IIDX<\/em> and Sound Voltex<\/em>.<\/p>\n

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As well as Jubeat<\/em>\u2018s appearance, there has also been a few exhibition tournaments held there on existing games, such as Sega\u2019s Initial D The Arcade<\/em> and even Virtual On Force<\/em><\/a>, which released to arcades well over 20 years ago, but continues to harbor a dedicated playerbase in Japan to the extent that GiGO still operate cabinets in a few of their locations (including one of the main Akihabara venues, where they held this part of the expo<\/a>). This feels like a vestige of when many of them were under Sega\u2019s ownership, so it\u2019s cool that they are continuing to carry this torch:<\/p>\n

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It would be nice to see a chain out West (maybe Dave & Buster\u2019s or Round1) do something similar to GiGO here, although there is the question of where it would be held. Tokyo is much better as a central gathering point for those interested in arcades; perhaps the best place for a similar US event would be Chicago, given its legacy of being home to numerous major manufacturers (and it already having lots of pinball shows thanks to that), or a return to Dallas, TX, as Amusement Expo has been in D&B\u2019s (and LAI\/Andamiro USA\/ASI\u2019s backyard).<\/p>\n

Rhythm Game Updates<\/h3>\n

Jubeat\u2019s appearance at GiGO Expo is not the only Japanese rhythm game news we have had this month, as in the past week there has also been announcements for two of the newest versions of mainstay titles in that genre. Konami have additionally been keeping themselves busy in working on their latest yearly edition of Beatmania IIDX<\/em><\/a>, with this being the game\u2019s imminent 34th update. Dubbed Zinrai<\/em>, it is set to go on test twice over the coming couple of weeks; a release date has not been announced yet but that should come sometime closer to September, for both Asia and the US cabinets that are out there.<\/p>\n

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Then Sega have also thrown back the curtain on the next version of their touch slider rhythm game Chunithm<\/em>, in the first full refresh for it since 2024\u2019s Verse<\/em>. This one is called Chunithm Mate<\/em><\/a>, in a name that perhaps resonates most with British and Australian folk, as jokingly pointed out by some. Unfortunately the game still remains officially exclusive to Asia (where Japan gets first dibs on updates like these), though given the recent success of Maimai DX<\/em> in the US, it\u2019s now not so unlikely that this might come over some day. For now, it\u2019s releasing July 2nd out in Japan, with a livestream to promote it in tow.<\/p>\n

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In other rhythm news on the dance game side of things, Pump It Up Phoenix 2<\/em> is soon to launch<\/a>, with Andamiro releasing it everywhere unlike the above two games. StepManiaX content update #78<\/a> has also just dropped, with the SMX team promoting their game in Japan again, through a special gathering for it at the location that recently tested a deluxe cabinet.<\/a> It\u2019s awesome that they\u2019re really putting in the effort there \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n

Teases For Sonic The Hedgehog<\/h3>\n

One place that hasn\u2019t been too slow for news has been pinball, although a lot of the recent announcements have been aimed more at collectors than location operators. We\u2019ll get into one of these here in a moment, but the big one that everyone has been talking about has been the imminent official arrival of Sega\u2019s Sonic The Hedgehog<\/em> to the genre. While Jersey Jack Pinball were mainly coy about it for a while, they recently unveiled a timer and are throwing out some \u201cspy shots\u201d (close-up teasers shared across every pinball focused social media account & blog out there). Let\u2019s start with a gif that popped up in an email; JJP has been great about putting together super high quality trailers for their games and this appears to be from one (as do their other teases put out there):<\/p>\n

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Below is several still glimpses of the game, compiled into one picture. Top left is what appears to be the game\u2019s topper, although correct me if I\u2019m wrong, JJP has done two types of toppers in the past (one for LE, another for CE). This seems to have a track that those toys move along, but we\u2019ll have to wait and see to be sure. Top right comes from a very quick Instagram reel<\/a> showing the pinball flying down a lane.<\/p>\n

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Bottom left shows what appears to be the CE version<\/a>, with some holographic foil stickers and a cool shooter rod, whilst the bottom right is the first official glimpse we got<\/a>, with a Sonic sticker for the start button. There was also an accidental email sent out from a distributor who mentioned that there would be three models, Arcade, Limited, & Collector\u2019s Editions, but there weren\u2019t any other details than that to share (like pricing). I have to assume that it will be on the high end as JJP tends to be, which makes it tough for operators to swallow.<\/p>\n

The dirty secret is unfortunately that pinball is really not that great of an earner in 90% of the venues where it\u2019s placed. Yes, there can be exceptions, like Stern\u2019s Godzilla<\/em>, and I\u2019ve heard good reports from operators about both Pok\u00e9mon<\/em> and JJP\u2019s Toy Story 4<\/em>. But $10k pin games have become more difficult than ever to justify when you could buy a bunch of crane machines and make bank in a few weeks or months. That doesn\u2019t diminish their value for collectors at all, and that\u2019s the market that continues to drive many (if not most) sales. If we could get more pins that satisfy that earnings ceiling though, then there would be value for more than just collectors to think about.<\/p>\n

Could Sonic be a game that joins the exceptions on location? Time will tell. I think there\u2019s a good chance, as Sonic is another IP like Pok\u00e9mon with a strong, multi-generational fanbase, and the IP hasn\u2019t turned off most of their fans as many old IPs have managed to do in recent times. Either way, the game is set to be fully revealed tomorrow on June 23rd, so keep your eyes peeled for a post and a livestream dedicated to it.<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Pedretti Launches Tales of the Arabian Nights Remake<\/h3>\n

On the tails of Sonic (pun intended!), Pedretti Pinball<\/a> announced their latest release this week, an official remake for Williams\u2019 1996 game, Tales of the Arabian Nights<\/a><\/em>. I had thought about doing a post on this earlier in the week, but as I read into the details, it became clear that this is one of those releases targeted more at collectors. That\u2019s fine, and the company has already sold out of their 399 unit 30th Anniversary Edition. Chances of finding one of those, or a Legacy Edition Remake out in the wild may be a challenge though, which is unfortunate.<\/p>\n

\"Tales<\/p>\n

Pedretti announced the game on their Facebook page, first with some details in press release style<\/a>, then with several follow-up posts that included photos and details. The main takeaway from the extra details is that you can pick between playing 1.0 software (that still includes some bug fixes and improvements to the original + the overall improved tech & visuals), or the new 1.5 software that expands on the game, adding more goals to the \u201ctales\u201d and such that should be a fan pleaser. Per the press release, there are also these lighting improvements that they bill as \u201cimmersive lighting\u201d:<\/p>\n