Online game bars capture players
By Isabel Tchu

Every thing online is trendy around the whole world. And the newest fad in town is online war games. Seven bars in Macao are offering this new-tech entertainment.

Online game bars are attractive because there are LCD monitors and powerful music in the bars, For MOP25, a customer can play the whole night with free drinks and magazines. 

Alan Lee is the first one to establish a wargame bar in Macao. "I found it very interesting and exciting when I first went to a war game bar in Taiwan. I loved it very much and I saw the place was packed with many people, so I thought to myself that it would be a good business that can go in Macao too," says Lee. 

Patrick Fong, a 19-year-old university student, says that he comes to the bar every day. "It's my habit to come here, I like this bar. It's the best, because it has very new games here and it also has more parking places."

"I like to play here more than at home because the monitor is bigger and the connection is faster if I go to game websites," he adds.

Another customer, Leon Ma, a 20-year-old clerk, says that it is actually cheaper to play at game bars than to spend money buying games. "It is my only entertainment now. In the past, I spent a lot of money in game shops. Now it costs me less to play here. The fee is quite cheap in the wargame bar, yet you can get better and more comfortable environment. You will find it very exciting when all the people are playing the same game, it's like you've had that very spirit to fight the common enemy together."

Online game bars are also a hit place for young boys too. Many boys in school uniform could be spotted in the bar. One of them, who does not want to be named, says that he comes here almost every day after school although his parents do not allow him to do so. "Because they think the game playing is a waste of time and would affect my studies," the boy says, adding that he will try to cut down on his time spent in the bar in future.