games.

"Our arcade machines were thankfully not vandalised, as this is the element of the Heart of Gaming that would literally have been irreplaceable," read a statement from the arcade's owners.

It continued: "I'm struggling to find the motivation and the team of staff are just in bits. People... give their lives to help out here because they believe in what it is we do. No one can comprehend why anyone would do this."

Estimates put the total losses of goods at about £5,000.

But fortunes for the arcade's owners changed dramatically on Wednesday, after a Go Fund Me campaign managed to raise more than £5,000 from fan contributions in about a day.

According to the arcade's Twitter feed, the business is to reopen on Friday at 2pm UK time.