Photo by Deb Gau Amy Schreifels and Dan Scamp, of the Marshall Pizza Ranch, said customers have been excited to try out the new FunZone arcade at the restaurant. popular with visitors

MARSHALL — The Pizza Ranch in Marshall isn’t only a place to eat — now, kids and families can stay and play, too, restaurant staff said.

The Pizza Ranch in Marshall recently opened a new addition, the FunZone arcade. The 1,000 square-foot arcade includes 20 different games, and a prize counter where players can redeem game tickets. So far, it’s been a hit with customers, Dan Scamp said.

“There’s been a lot of excitement. It’s super nice to see,” said Scamp, one of the owners of the Marshall Pizza Ranch.

Scamp said FunZone arcades are a feature that’s now part of many new Pizza Ranch locations. Bringing a FunZone to Marshall is a process that’s been a long time in the planning.

“It’s been over a year that we’ve been working on this,” he said. The process of opening a FunZone in Marshall included working with the Pizza Ranch corporate offices, plus renovating part of the restaurant and getting the games set up. It was a significant investment for the business, he said.

The part of the Marshall Pizza Ranch that was converted into the FunZone included its former basketball court and part of a seating area, Scamp said. The arcade features “something for everybody,” he said, from virtual-reality and video games to a ball toss game and claw machines.

Instead of using coins or tokens, players use cards loaded with game credits to play FunZone games, said Pizza Ranch manager Amy Schreifels. Some of the games have prizes, while others give out tickets that can be turned in at the prize counter.

Scamp said people have shown a renewed interest in arcades in recent years. He and Schreifels said it was also good to be able to help add to entertainment options in the area.

“I think it’s exciting for parents to have another option for a birthday party,” Schreifels said. “You can bring the kids in and let them play,” she said. However, plenty of grown-ups have fun playing the arcade games, too, she added. Schreifels has seen families enjoy the FunZone together.

Scamp and Schreifels said an Avengers-themed arcade game that features bonus prize cards with Marvel superheroes on them has proven popular with older players. While the cards can be turned in for tickets, some people like to collect them, they said.

The FunZone officially opened on March 6. While Pizza Ranch is still trying to get the word out about the arcade, the response has been good.

The first weekend the FunZone was open was “crazy,” Schreifels said.

“Last Saturday we probably had a good 60 to 70 kids in here,” Scamp said.

The FunZone arcade is open from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. at Pizza Ranch. Scamp said their next goal is to develop package deals for events like birthday parties. More information on booking party packages should go up on the Pizza Ranch website in April, he said.

It’s been fun to see customers’ reactions to the new arcade, Scamp said.

“Every time someone comes in and realizes it’s open, they get excited,” he said.