I've been to Nickel City once and it was a wonderful experience!! My toddler and her friends found plenty of games to keep them occupied for hours, pizza and other food. This is a great fun place for all ages, especially if you are a child of the 80's and want to re explore all the nostalgic games that you likely remember :). We loved the huge array of prizes the kids could pick from. Hope to return soon! read more

An 8 year old's dream come true. All games are a nickel. Staff is very responsible when machines aren't operating correctly ( and that seems to happen frequently). Prizes are perfect and exactly what one would expect given the price to win them! read more

Got a deal on LIVING SOCIAL for Nickel City & decided, why not? Well...YUCK! I actually got a refund on the 2nd voucher after I used the 1st one. The place is filthy! There are plastic nickel bags all over the floor along with the white paper bags to hold tickets. SHAME! Then the games are OLD! 1/4 of them didn't work or I wasted tons of time chasing one of the workers around to get the tickets out the machine because the games didn't spit out the tickets. WASTE OF TIME!! Then the eating area is GROSS!! None of the tables were wiped down! They don't wipe down the counters either. Look under the Pepsi machine on legs, about an inch of dust!! YUCK! Then, the place smelled bad in there. Like burning carpeting. This place needs an overhaul & good scrubbing!!! NEVER AGAIN!! read more

Hosted a party here and felt like they were rushing us out the door the whole time. We spent $400 here and received the worst service ever. If you're planning a party here you're better off elsewhere! read more

I graduated bootcamp and instead of seeing the bean or some other stuff like that I went here with my family and let me tell you this place .... fucking amazing I had so much fun just really brought out the child in me very cheap so loads of fun and time for a fair amount of money I can't remember if all games cost 5 cents probably an occasional 25 cent to a dollar game I can't remember and I think they offer military discount so yeah ...... IT IS WORTH YOUR MONEY AND TIME read more

I almost don't want to review this place because I'm afraid if too many people find out about, then it'll be packed all the time! You can go to nickel city with $10 and play video games for hours. They always have like 30 games that are free to play as much as you want, too. I went with 4 instead of 5 starts just because there are often a little too many games that are broken and take your money, but hey, when its only a nickel its not that big of a deal! read more

I've been to nickel city plenty of times and its always such a good time. Very cheap. The only thing I'd say is a lot of the games break they could use some newer games. read more

It was our first visit at Nickel City after a year or two and boy has this place changed. There are only a handful of "lame" Nickel machines left and everything else was changed to electronic card swipe type machines. Not sure why they still call it Nickel City, it would be more appropriate to rename it to Dollar City. Prices for games have gone up drastically and this place is now just another commercial rip off place like Boomers, etc... read more

What a fun inexpensive place to go. They have a lot of free classic games too like pac-man. Sometimes there are so many kids in there though it can get crazy and I don't recommend the food-otherwise it is so much fun. Some of the games break down a lot but you can usually get a staff member quickly to get your money back....A read more

I used to really like this place. They had fun games for cheap prices. Then last night, my boyfriend and I went here. We figured Monday night would be a good time to go since there weren't going to be as many kids. I double-checked there hours and saw they were open from 2-10. Well about a half hour after we got there at 8, they announced that they would be closing at 9. When we pointed out that their website said they were open until 10, they simply said it was a slow night and they were closing early. There were still several families there playing games, including us, and we all had to leave early. We wouldn't have come all the way there if we'd known they closed early, and just felt it was very unfair of them to just decide to close early. Then when it was 9 and we were trying to turn in our tickets into the machine, they just turned the power off! It was all very frustrating and rude and very poor business. The least they could have done was let us know when we got there that they were closing at 9 and also refund us our cover charge. Won't be going back anytime soon. read more

this is place is for kids but i went here with a friend of mine. games are for nickels but food is expensive.

Cheap games , free games, classics, shooters, fighters , racing , drifting , mario kart. my girl said it was the best date she had ever been on read more

Although a little run down. It's a great inexpensive place to have a good time. Great for little kids early in the day time and is very popular with older kids later at night. It's not that big, but has a good assortment of game options. read more

In high school I used to love this place. Now it's just ok. A lot of the games are either old or broken. They do have a decent amount of new ones. I'd say it's still great for kids up until high school. And tokens are a nickel which is the best ever. If I go to any arcade it is this one however the fact that last time I went my favorite machines were broken and the others were just ok made me take away a star. Still love this place though. read more

pretty fun place, they could work on the decorations and overall atmosphere a little bit. The games really bring me back to my childhood, also I love how cheap it is to play and have a good time. I still find myself going back to this place even though I am probably a bit too old for it. read more

Really great place to go and spend some hard earned Nickels! There is a row of old school FREE arcade games. Pizza was not to bad, but i wish they had more room to sit. We went on a Saturday late afternoon, by 6:30 pm the place was packed!!! Check out http://chicagokidsstuff.com/nickel-city-games/ Will be posting more pictures when I go back this weekend. read more

I love nickel city and it's my favorite arcade by far. The prices and games are amazing and it's great for all ages. My only complaints are that a lot of the games don't work, there are not enough basketballs in the basketball game and the cleanliness of the bathrooms. The last time I went EVERY toilet was overflowing and the stalls, walls and floor looked like they hadn't been washed in a year. Yuck! read more

this place is a migraine waiting to happen. lots of bratty kids running around, terrible food, and a staff that is lazy and/or doesn't care. it takes forever to cash in your tickets, and if a machine is broken, don't count on anyone fixing it. i refuse to take the kid i babysit for here, especially cause last time we were there i got pushed over by a 7 year old boy. it was quite the scene... read more

If I could give zero stars I would. Rude staff and half the machines didn't even work.

This place is disgusting. A good friend of mine worked here and here and nothing is sanitary. All the food made is prepared by someone who hasn't showered that day and probably didn't wash their hands. Specific foods are left out for days and put back on the self for customers to eat. The games are all disgusting. Sticky, gross knobs you have to sanitize your hands immediately after using. Half of the machines don't work. And if they do, you'll have to wait in line. The prices aren't anywhere near as much money as you spending on Nickles. It's a of false advertisement that some games cost up to 15 nickles. The floors looked like they haven't been washed since the day the place opened. I can't imagine what the back of the consession stand looks like. Unless you want to get sick, I highly recommend spending a few extra dollars and going to Dave and Busters where the games work and food is great. read more

We had a 7th birthday party for our son at Nickel City. He knew them from his school and camp field trips and wanted to have his party there. We were very pleased with the staff who was in regular contact with us leading up to the event and very accommodating before and during the party. Both the adults and kids had a great time and we would definitely go back. read more

I came to this place with my camp for the day. At first glance it's your regular arcade, but if you look at all it's even worse. There was about one helpful worker who hopefully leaves that hell-hole. Other than that there was broken machines, twenty five cent prizes, and bad service all around. read more

Here's the thing about arcades: you CAN'T cut costs by not having the games repaired. There are a LOT of games here with broken controls, and it is so frustrating to put your money (even a nickel) in and not be able to control your character. Many games were not even turned on. As an older gamer, these are the ones I wanted to play, like Pac Man. read more

It was fun and entertaining! But the place was dirty and nickels got stuck in the games a lot. Plus a lot of machines were out of order.

I went to Nickel City with my family just to hang out and had a blast. There are a wide variety of games to play there and even if you run out of nickels you can still play at the free section. Keep in mind the place is not perfect, but it's great for any gamers or arcade goers. read more

OMG what a DUMP! Dirty, filthy, horrible staff! Went to the snack bar and all the tables were filthy, there was a puddle of pop on the floor waiting for someone to fall in, and the staff blind to it all! The games are old and mostly not working. There is no place to sit to supervise your children. The prizes are crap. Not worth a NICKEL! read more

I go here with my divorced parents because when ever they are about to kill each other I guilt trip them by saying we are surrounded by 5 year olds. I also went here when mom said she's selling me to the pirates and I put my head in a claw machine so the pirates take me to scrub their boat read more

i had like 1,200 tickets and they gave me 500 i mean i had 2 4 feet tickets then a whole pile of them! "greatest arcade ever."

Not the cleanest place in the world, but the guys that work this place are pretty nice and it's a great way to spend $10 with my 6-year old. We always have a blast. Rainy day and you can't find antyhing to do, you have to check this place out! read more

I just have to say that this place family owned is the most trustworthy and honest business I have been to in a long time! I was playing the game with my niece where you have to throw a ball at a clowns face and my 2500 dollar ring flew off my finger and landed inside the machine. The employees there did everything in their power to search move this 8000 pound machine and locate my ring although they were able to find it. I proceeded to tell them that I believe that it fell inside the machine and they assured me that on Monday their tech would come in open up the machine and look for it. Well they did just that they found my ring and gave it back to me! I don't think they make businesses and people like this anymore so I've been coming there for years and I will continue to come there for years I recommend every family to bring their kids there it's so friendly and safe honest and their staff is really really great! read more

Northbrook's closest version of Enchanted castle. A very good value. Literally a nickel gets you very far at this arcade/kids playground.

This is a great place to take the kids. It costs $2 per person that is playing to get in. Then you can buy bags of nickels for various games that you can earn tickets for, or you can play the free games, but they don't earn tickets. You can trade the tickets in for prizes. The staff is very nice. It is not a highbrow place at all, but the kids love it, and you can't beat the price. Over winter break we were three people and went for 2 hours and it cost a total of $21. I personally love playing Pac Man, which is one of the free games. One time that we were there, someone was using one of the 'dance revolution' type games as their workout, towel and all. It isn't fancy, but every time I take my kids and their friends, everyone has a great time, and I can be a big sport & treat them because it is so reasonably priced. read more

Pickpockets abound. The place is loud, noisy and expensive. In addition, the staff was not helpful after my daughter's purse was stolen. The police refused to come, because these kinds of thefts happen often. Buyers Beware! read more

what more can you ask for?! nickel games and only 2 dollars entrance fee! they got a lot of old school games which are still very fun and it brings back good childhood memories.. the newer games would cost you more nickels to play.. every time when i come here i spend at least $20 dollars because of the ticket games lol.. but most of my friends spends around like $10 and they have a blast! this place is no Dave and busters or game works, but hey.. its cheaper and its still fun! read more

I was looking for a fun way to spend Sunday evening with my boys (5 and 7) and my husband. We were looking for something fairly inexpensive that we could all enjoy. I stumbled on this place and decided the price was right. It was great, they have old school games for free. My 7 yr old and husband beat the Ninja Turtles game while my 5 yr old and I played every single ticket game. 2 hours and only $12 later we were walking out the door with Slinkys and dumdum pops. All laughing, we had a blast. Yes some of the games are old, yes I lost a few nickels on machines and didn't want to put in the effort to get the money back (all though as I was leaving I did see the cashiers refunding someone) and yes it took awhile to get the tickets redeemed (just about as long as any other place though). The price is right and for a family with two boys it was a great inexpensive night out. We will definitely be back :) read more