Massive virtual arcade on the Las Vegas Strip files for bankruptcy after just one year in business

This image shows the first location of the Electric Playhouse in Albuquerque, N.M., Tuesday, Oct. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Susan Montoya Bryan)

LAS VEGAS — A massive virtual arcade located on the Las Vegas Strip filed for bankruptcy after just one year of operation, facing a pending eviction and millions in unpaid claims, court documents show.

The Electric Playhouse in Las Vegas, a high-tech gaming and dining centre inside a mall at the world renowned Caesars Palace resort, submitted the filings in federal court on Monday. The filing requested that the motions for bankruptcy be heard on an accelerated timeline so that current employees can be paid on Friday.

The sprawling 10,000-square-foot Las Vegas gaming venue is equipped with a network of sensors that track the movements of guests to create a digital avatar, “similar to a player inside a video game,” the website said. Guests use their bodies to play games instead of controllers or consoles, with the walls and furniture of the kaleidoscopic, windowless rooms responding to body movements to create interactive games.

The company has between US$1 million and $10 million in assets, and will not be able to pay unsecured creditors after administrative fees associated with the bankruptcy are paid, according to court filings.

The venue opened in Las Vegas, a city known for pricey shows and around-the-clock gambling, just three years after the first location opened in Albuquerque, New Mexico, in 2021.

The court filings didn’t list a reason for the company’s financial turmoil and an attorney for the company couldn’t be reached for comment.

Tourism in Las Vegas was markedly down this summer, with resorts and convention centres reporting fewer visitors compared to last year, especially from abroad. There was an 11 per cent drop in June 2025 compared to the same month the year prior, when the new Electric Playhouse opened. In that time, hotel occupancy has also fallen by about 15 per cent, according to data from the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority.

Still, many businesses in the world famous partying destination characterize the downturn as a return to normal after a post-pandemic spike, and remain optimistic.

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The Associated Press