Magic City Amusement Arcade Clacton

Clacton Curiosity

There is much more to Clacton than the Pavilion, Promenade and Pier. If approaching from the train station or town centre, then Pier Ave is on the main route to the beach and certainly worth exploring.

This is just the other side of the pedestrianised area in the town centre and also reachable from Marine Parade East or West parking areas. This busy area has a McDonalds and Wetherspoons and is the epicentre of tourist entertainment and nightlife in Clacton-on-Sea. Along Pier Ave are several local amusement arcades and the first venue (which is conveniently next door to Lloyd’s bank) is a bright red building called Magic City. 

From the outside, Magic City may just seem like a typical seaside amusement arcade. Though there is so much more to this venue than meets the eye. The upstairs area is a large sports bar with pool, snooker tables and darts. There is a central wide staircase from the street that leads up to Ads Sports Bar. This isn’t the only bar in the venue though and if patrons are looking for a venue with a distinct casino lounge feel, then this may just tick the boxes. See below for more information.  

Arcade Entrance

Outside the arcade are some permanent kiosks housing a selection of crane claw machines. There is also a nice range of young kiddie rides for passers-by (with children) to enjoy. The amusement arcade occupies the front of the ground floor venue and is u-shaped with central staircase up to the sports bar.

Coin Pushers

There is a nice range of different coin pushes here from modern machines to classic tuppenny falls games. Modern machines include Tom & Jerry, Coronation Street, Minions, Ice Cream and Pick-n-Mix. They have a good range of shelf prizes including sweets and lollies and even £5 notes with bananas?

Whilst the coins fall generously here, we noted that the machines with ticket slots were not paying tickets at the time of visiting. This could have been permanent, due to low season or temporary. The machines still offered the same fun and excitement one would expect from a seafront arcade. 

Crane Claw Machines

As already mentioned there were many claw machines in the street kiosks, where patrons can try to win branded plush toys or other great prizes. They had Mario characters, Steven Seagull (with chips), Spiderman and Garfield to name a few. 

There are also many other types of claw machines available to play here including ‘Prize Every Time’ machines and also the 'Find a Key' gold egg of mystery. 

Further inside the venue there were more modern claw grabber machines including a Happy Sweet Baby, perfect for pint-sized players with winnings including keychains, small plush toys and even ten-pound notes. 

They even had an ‘Over the Edge’ machine, which is a hybrid between a claw machine / pachinko-style ball pusher game, where players have to knock prizes over the edge of the shelf. 

Classic Arcade Games 

For lovers of arcade racing games, there were Super Motor 5 two-player motorbikes and also a Cruise-n-Blast car racing game. There was also a boxing punch machine with a kicker for footballs fans.

Fairground Games & Ticket Slot Machines

We did not notice any fairground games or ticket slot machines. This could have been due to no longer having a ticket system in place and likely because of the slots focus of the rest of the venue. With the amount of other great machines and winnable prizes here it does not matter. 

£5 Jackpot Fruit Machines

In the front section of the amusement arcade there was a selection of triple £5 jackpot fruit machines. Stand-up triple machines included Bullion Bars, Bullion Bars Classic and House of Fortune all with upper feature boards. There was also a row of standalone Rainbow Riches Craic-in-Fun chrome-cabinet machines at 10 pence per play. 

In the right-hand side of the front arcade there were also sit-down versions of Adders & Ladders, Gold Run and a Bar-X all with upper feature boards. Two Skill Ball Zingy machines can be played in the arcade, both having £50 jackpots.

There is also a large amount of £5 jackpot fruit machines in the rear casino slots lounge that we will cover in this next section. 

Casino Slots Lounge

The casino slots lounge really is the jewel in the crown for Magic City. Everything about this part of the venue feels like a high-end casino. From the modern décor to the expensive carpets and furnishings to the vast amount of space, with row upon row of different slot machines.

If entering the casino lounge from Pier Ave (through the casino entrance) one will pass through the side room, which is full of rows of Blueprint Gaming machines, where patrons can play the latest Blueprint / Light & Wonder games. Games include Majestic Fury, Cash Strike Hot Stepper and Midas King of Gold. Jackpots throughout the venue range from £5 all the way to £500 with most machines having £100 or £500 jackpot games. There are also some £25 and £50 jackpot machines to the rear of the venue. 

This opens out into a very large venue with two high-end Novomatic VIP slot machines ready to play. 

The venue is organised around a central luxurious seating area served by a spotless modern arcade bar serving tea, coffee and alcoholic beverages (on some nights serving until 2am!). Even without croupiers, there are group roulette machines, a modern virtual bingo section and a row of classic £100 jackpot video poker machines. Everything anyone would want from a big London Casino is right here.

Entering the main room, the larger sit-down machines are grouped together on the left side of the venue. These include Treasury, Cops and Robbers, Hot Slot Sevens, Austin Powers and several Party Time variations all with upper feature boards. There is also Solid Gold Bar-X, Bullion Bars and Gold Run triples all with £100 jackpots. 

On the right side are many more individual digital terminals from Blueprint and also Golden Greats and further standalone chrome cabinet style machines. There are also many standalone £5 jackpot fruit machines and pub machines with bigger jackpots These include Bully for You, Monopoly, Turbo Deal or No Deal and Cluedo. There are also classics such as Crazy Fruits and Clockwork Orange standalone cabinets.

To the rear of the venue is another large area with even more gaming machines. These seem to be a mixture of everything with modern terminals nestled next to classic pub fruit machines and also some triple machines. We noted Valley of the Kings, Rainbow Riches, Golden Gamble and The Italian Job (remake). There is also another rear entrance here for those who want to get straight into the action. 

Venue Verdict

Magic City is a fantastic casino slots lounge / amusement arcade with the flexibility and entertainment value of a large-scale Casino. There is something for everyone in the front arcade and soft toys can even be won on the street. For adult gamers this place is an absolute mecca and will understandably get busy at the weekends during high season. If you enjoy a coffee or pint whilst gaming, Magic City has definitely got you covered.  

Featured Machine: Novomatic VIP Lounge 2.50