Remember going to Peter Piper Pizza as a kid and getting that handful of arcade tokens? The sound of them jingling in your hands while you decided which game to play first?

Well, fellow millennials, I have some devastating news. Those days are gone!

During a recent trip to Peter Piper Pizza here in El Paso, I noticed something that stopped me dead in my tracks. No tokens. No paper tickets. NOTHING!

Okay, maybe I’m a little late to this discovery, but when did we collectively decide to get rid of one of the best parts of going to the arcade?!

And it turns out Peter Piper Pizza isn’t the only place that’s changed.

El Paso Peter Piper Pizza No Longer Uses Tokens or Tickets

If you haven’t visited Peter Piper Pizza in a while, prepare yourself.

Instead of getting a handful of tokens to play your favorite arcade games, you now load points onto a FunPass card and swipe it to play. Even the tickets you win are stored electronically!

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Peter Piper Pizza began rolling out this system back in 2022, so I realize I’m a few years late to the party.

But remember the excitement of hitting the jackpot on a game and watching that glorious stream of tickets come pouring out?!

Now it’s just a number on a card. WHERE’S THE FUN IN THAT?!

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Chuck E. Cheese and Dave & Buster’s Have Gone Digital Too

Unfortunately, the arcade nostalgia heartbreak doesn’t end at Peter Piper Pizza.

Chuck E. Cheese replaced its paper prize tickets with electronic tickets back in 2020, and Dave & Buster’s also uses digital cards to track game credits and winnings- at least I knew about that one!

So, basically, the arcade experience many of us grew up with has gotten a major technological makeover.

And sure, it’s probably more convenient. No more losing tokens or dealing with tangled strips of tickets.

But was anyone thinking about the millennials?!

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El Paso Millennials Remember the Good Old Arcade Days

Maybe I’m just being dramatic, but collecting tickets was HALF the fun of going to Peter Piper Pizza!

There was nothing like spending an entire afternoon playing games, collecting what felt like a million tickets, and proudly carrying your winnings to the prize counter.

Only to discover you had enough for a Tootsie Roll, a pencil topper and maybe a plastic spider ring.

AND WE WERE HAPPY ABOUT IT!

I’ll admit, digital cards make sense. They’re easier to use, and you don’t have to worry about losing all those precious tickets before cashing them in.

But there’s something about the sound of tokens hitting the arcade machine and watching tickets slowly spit out that a plastic card just can’t replace.

Kids today may never understand the thrill of standing next to an arcade machine waiting for your jackpot tickets to finish printing.

And as a millennial, I think I need a moment to mourn that loss.

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Gallery Credit: Joanna Barba