Level 1 Arcade Bar in Gilbert is closing. Here's why

The popular joystick and pinball joint is shutting down its original location at the end of January.

December 27, 2024

Image: People playing pinball in an arcade.

Pinball action at the original Level 1 Arcade Bar in Gilbert. Benjamin Leatherman

Audio By Carbonatix

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It's game over for the original Level 1 Arcade Bar after five years in operation.

The owners of a popular nightspot in downtown Gilbert's Heritage District announced Friday on social media that the location will close at the end of January because they could not negotiate a new lease with their landlord. The closure coincides with the end of their current agreement.

"Thank you for the laughs. Thank you for the fun times. Thank you for the parties and for the costume nights and the friendships and even for the tears as we write this,” the announcement stated.

The closure of Level 1 Game Bar in Gilbert will not affect its second location in downtown Mesa, which opened in 2023.

According to the announcement, the owners of Level 1 Arcade Bar plan to open another Gilbert location in 2025. Further details are expected to be announced “shortly.”

Benjamin Leatherman is a staff writer for Phoenix New Times where he focuses primarily on arts, culture, music and nightlife. He joined New Times in 2003. Prior to that, he contributed to magazines such as Tips & Tricks and The Wrestler. Benjamin has earned multiple awards from the Arizona Press Club including an award for sports enterprise reporting in 2009 and an award for statewide arts reporting in 2014. He holds a bachelor’s of arts in journalism from Arizona State University’s Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication.

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