Playing video games and pinball machines is, by necessity, a hands-on experience. In light of the coronavirus pandemic, Logan Bowden, QuarterWorld arcade’s director of operations, didn’t see a safe way to keep going.

On Friday, March 13, QuarterWorld decided to shut down its arcade at 4811 S.E. Hawthorne Ave.

“We have an obligation to Portland and the community to shut down, to do our part,” Bowden said. “That was a hard call last week.”

The decision would become moot three days later, when Gov. Kate Brown announced a four-week shutdown of all bars and restaurants. That effectively killed overnight the other side of QuarterWorld’s business – supplying and servicing games for other establishments.

The QuarterWorld staff contemplated what this would mean, not just for their company, but for the Portland area.

Four weeks, stuck at home?

And QuarterWorld was sitting on a treasure trove of unused games…

The company had never offered rentals to the home market before, but this seemed like an opportunity. They started by renting games in back-stock, then expanded to include just about everything in the arcade.

“We are in the unique position to be able to offer a little bit of entertainment for those four weeks when you’re at home,” Bowden said. “If you can take that time to get better at your pinball game, hey, we’re here to help.

“Games bring a lot of joy to people, and we’re glad we can assist in that,” he said.

Month-long rentals, with delivery and installation included, range from $100 to $300. You can take home your own Big Buck World for just $200 a month. Doctor Mario? Only $175. Bowden keeps an updated list of games available on the company’s Facebook page. More continue to be added.

“We’re doing what we can to weather this storm,” he said. “Obviously, it’s something that we did not, or anybody for that matter, anticipate occurring.”

So far, there has been a fair amount of interest. Two teams of truck drivers were kept busy with runs on Thursday, driving to Camas, Gresham and throughout Portland. Games get a heavy Lysol treatment before being delivered by workers wearing masks and gloves.

One of those deliveries – a Metallica Pro Edition pinball game – went to the home of Eric Sorenson, who, along with his wife and child, are big pinball fans. With Portland Public Schools closed, and his company, Puppet software, on full-time remote work, the Sorenson family plans to be home pretty much for the foreseeable future.

“Portland is an amazing pinball town, and we’ve got a great scene here,” Sorenson said. “I imagine there’s a bunch of people in similar situations to us where our flipper fingers are getting twitchy not being able to get out and play.”

For QuarterWorld, Bowden admits, “It’s a small bandaid on a big gash, but we’re doing what we can to keep as many employees employed as this thing goes on.”

When the arcade closed, QuarterWorld went from about 48 employees to a dozen, he said, retaining primarily the technicians and those who deliver the machines. Bowden said he plans to bring those laid-off workers back, when there’s a place to bring them back to.

“We’re taking it day by day,” he said. "It’s scary. We don’t know what’s going to happen, but just remember to look out for one another, wash your hands. There’s a light of the end of the tunnel, and we’ll get there.”

-- Samantha Swindler; sswindler@oregonian.com; @editorswindler

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