This past May, Matt, Carl, my good friend Ara and I sought out an arcade in L.A. which, we thought, was ground zero for fans of music games in general, Konami’s Bemani line in particular. We were not disappointed. Arcade Infinity did indeed have many incredible music and rhythm games the likes of which could not be found in boring Michigan. We gorged ourselves on Guitar Freaks 5^th Mix, KeyboardMania 2^nd Mix, DrumMania 3^rd Mix, DDR, Samba de Amigo and DanceManiaX. Carl discovered that he is a virtual Kenshiro at Konami’s Fist of the North Star punching game, FightMania. We left Arcade Infinity, having touched greatness, and returned to Michigan.

Michigan, a wasteland for fans of music games. Hell, arcades are getting more and more scarce here every year. Pinball Pete’s in Lansing briefly flirted with the DDR craze by installing a couple of Solo Mix machines, but they were quickly packed up and shipped out for lack of use. The closest Bemani-friendly arcade I knew of was Sega GameWorks, a couple hours away.

And then, being the music game fanatic that he is, Russ "Reverend Mofat" discovered the existence of an arcade catering to the tastes of we who love to get our groove on, right here in central Michigan! In Brighton, a mere 40 minute drive from Lansing! The name of this Bemani paradise? Blasters.

After some planning, Matt, Carl, Jake, Russ and I headed out on a hot and humid Wednesday afternoon in my air conditioning deprived car. We arrived with no cases of heat stroke, and I walked into what I can only describe as my dream arcade. As I entered, to my left sat a DrumMania 3^rd Mix cabinet, next to Guitar Freaks 4^th Mix and Guitar Freaks 2^nd Mix. Along the wall sat 6 Dance Dance Revolution machines, varying from 3^rd Mix Extra to 4^th Mix to the shiny new 5^th Mix. Next to those machines sat a BeatMania IIDX 2^nd Style machine. Across from the entrance were 2 DanceManiaX cabinets, next to a Para Para Paradise machine, and past that were 2 FightMania units, and KeyboardMania 2^nd Mix.

This veritable feast of Bemani goodness takes up maybe a quarter of the arcade. A quick walk around the place confirms that aside from Bemani, Blasters specializes in big Sega arcade units. You’ve got your full-size 18 Wheeler American Pro Trucker with the full cab and giant wheel, the extremely cool Air Trix, full-sized snowmobile and other racing games, and several sit-down, surround sound Sega light gun shooters like Jurassic Park and Confidential Mission.

Unfortunately for gamers with a taste for the more conventional arcade games, Blasters is extremely limited – a Tekken Tag machine and an MvC2 unit are about the only "typical" arcade games in the place. It’s also pretty expensive; most of the games start at $1 per play.

On the appearance front, Blasters is very clean, and the games are spaced out in a way that allows plenty of moving areas between cabinets. The staff I encountered on my two visits to Blasters so far have been very friendly and helpful. On both occasions, staffers made periodic rounds of the arcade and chatted with the patrons.

Brighton, Michigan is now my Bemani mecca, as this arcade destroys Arcade Infinity in both game selection and atmosphere. I still have a hard time believing that this place even exists in the middle of Michigan. But, it does, and it is worth making the trip, at least once, if only to see a lot of arcade games you’ve never seen before.