A hockey game for your arcade or game room
Brudvig Hockey 2027 is arcade hockey: three on three, big hits, no penalties. Rink Lobby Mode turns it into the cabinet. Put a computer on a screen, open brudvighockey.com/?bar=1, plug in controllers, and it runs an attract demo until someone presses A. Free play, because there's no coin slot.
What you need
- A screen. Any TV with an HDMI input. A smart TV's own browser can run it, but read the controller note below first.
- Something to run it. A laptop or a mini PC on HDMI. Anything from the last six or so years with Chrome or Edge is fine. A Windows mini PC is the usual pick: it sits behind the TV and nobody steals it, or at least nobody has yet.
- Internet. Wi-Fi or a cable. The game loads once and then needs very little, but phones join through brudvighockey.com, so it has to be online.
- Two to four game controllers. USB or Bluetooth: Xbox, PlayStation (DualShock 4 or DualSense), Switch Pro, or any generic one that works in a browser. Wired is the least drama.
- Optional: phones. Customers can play on their own phones by scanning the QR code on the screen. No app.
A smart TV's browser usually does not see game controllers, and some are slow at 3D. Phones still work there. For controllers, use a computer.
Setting it up
- Plug in. The computer to the TV with HDMI, and to power. Not the battery. A laptop on battery saver plays hockey like it skated here.
- Open Rink Lobby Mode. In Chrome or Edge, go to brudvighockey.com/?bar=1, or open brudvighockey.com and press Rink Lobby Mode on the menu. Bookmark it. A reload keeps it in Rink Lobby Mode.
- Go full screen. Click once, or press any key or controller button. Rink Lobby Mode goes full screen and asks the screen to stay awake.
- Connect the controllers. See the next section. Each one joins by pressing A (any face button works, ✕ on PlayStation).
- Walk away. With nobody playing for a minute, it runs a computer-vs-computer demo with PRESS A TO PLAY on it. Any button stops the demo and that controller is in.
What Rink Lobby Mode does: the main menu only, no links out of the game, controllers join from a big panel, phones join with the QR code, and after each game the post-game counts down from 20 and goes back to the lobby by itself. To leave it, hold Esc or a controller's Back button for 3 seconds, or press the small EXIT in the corner and confirm.
Step by step with a diagram and the exact controllers and hub we use: local multiplayer with controllers.
Pairing the controllers
- USB: plug it in. Done.
- Xbox (Bluetooth): on the computer, open Bluetooth settings and Add device. Hold the small pair button on top of the controller until the Xbox logo blinks fast, then pick it.
- PlayStation DualSense or DualShock 4: hold Create (or Share) and the PS button together until the light bar flashes, then pick Wireless Controller in Bluetooth settings.
- Switch Pro: hold the small sync button on top until the lights run, then pick Pro Controller.
A browser only sees a controller after its first button press, so press one. In the lobby: stick left or right picks a side, up or down picks the team, A is ready, B leaves, LB and RB change the arena. One player alone plays the computer. Two to four split however they like, up to four a side, and phones can fill in.
Buttons feel wrong? In the lobby, press Y (△ on PlayStation) on that controller and press each button in turn. It's saved on that computer for that kind of controller.
Leaving it running all day
- Sleep: Rink Lobby Mode asks the browser to keep the screen on, but the computer's own settings win. On Windows: Settings, System, Power, set screen and sleep to Never when plugged in. On a Mac: System Settings, Lock Screen, turn display off: Never.
- The TV: turn off its eco mode, auto power off and "no signal" sleep, or it will helpfully switch itself off at 4 pm.
- Kiosk mode: Chrome has one with no address bar and no tabs. Make a shortcut to
chrome.exe --kiosk https://brudvighockey.com/?bar=1. For Edge:msedge.exe --kiosk https://brudvighockey.com/?bar=1 --edge-kiosk-type=fullscreen. Alt+F4 closes it. - Start on boot (Windows): press Win+R, type
shell:startup, and put that shortcut in the folder that opens. Set the PC to turn on after a power cut in its BIOS if it has the option, and have Windows sign in by itself only if the machine is somewhere staff can see it. - Updates: set Windows Update active hours to your opening hours so it restarts at night, not mid-overtime.
- Sound: the speaker button in the top corner mutes it. The TV remote also works, and is the one staff can find.
Phones as controllers
The lobby shows a QR code and a six-letter code. A customer scans it, picks a side and taps Ready. Their phone becomes a stick and four buttons, and they can watch the big screen or their own. Phones and controllers play in the same game. Up to eight players a game, three a side. Nobody needs an account or an app, and nothing on the phone needs to be on your Wi-Fi.
How it fits an arcade
- Attract mode. After a minute with nobody in, the computer plays the computer with PRESS A TO PLAY over it. It loops all day.
- Walk up and play. No menus to explain. Press A, pick a side with the stick, press A again.
- No coin mechanism. It's free play. If you charge for the room or an hourly pass, that's your business, which is the point of a business.
- Controllers wear out. Wired ones last longer and don't need charging. Buy a spare.
- Sit-down or stand-up. A TV on a wall with controllers on short cables works. So does a cabinet with a monitor and a mini PC inside.
- Tournaments. The printable bracket handles 4, 8 or 16 players.
Anyone who remembers arcade hockey from the 2000s will recognise it. A short history of arcade hockey games.
What it costs
Nothing. No license, no subscription, no account, no per-player fee. The game is free in any browser, and Rink Lobby Mode is the same game with the kiosk parts switched on. Your costs are the screen, the computer, the controllers and whatever the controllers cost to replace after someone celebrates a goal.
Questions, or want to tell us where it's running? Contact us. The full controls are on the controls cheat sheet, and the phone-only version is play on your TV.
Questions
Is there an attract mode?
Yes. After a minute with nobody playing, Rink Lobby Mode runs a computer-vs-computer demo. Any controller button or a tap stops it.
Can it take coins or tokens?
No. It runs on free play. There is nothing to buy in the game.
Can I put it in a cabinet?
Yes. Any computer that runs Chrome or Edge, a screen, and controllers or an encoder that shows up as a game controller in the browser. Remap the buttons with Y in the lobby.
How many players?
Up to eight a game, four a side. Up to four on controllers, the rest on phones.
A controller does nothing.
Press a button on it once: browsers only see a controller after a press. Then try a USB cable. Use Chrome or Edge. If it is a strange generic one, remap it with Y in the lobby.
The screen went to sleep.
Set the computer's sleep and screen-off to Never, and turn off the TV's own power saving. Rink Lobby Mode keeps the browser awake, not the TV.
It stutters.
Plug the laptop into power, turn off battery saver, close other tabs, and check hardware acceleration is on in the browser settings.
Phones can't join.
The computer needs internet. The phones use their own data or any Wi-Fi. The code changes when the page reloads, so scan the one on screen now.
How do I get out of Rink Lobby Mode?
Hold Esc or a controller's Back button for 3 seconds, or press EXIT in the top corner and confirm. In Chrome kiosk mode, Alt+F4 closes the browser.