Showtape

This article is about the history/information about a showtape. You might be looking for list of every showtape released in Chuck E. Cheese locations.

Examples of showtapes on different formats.

A showtape (or sometimes referred to as a showdisc) was the term coined to describe the containment of information for the animatronic shows at Chuck E. Cheese and it's predecessor restaurant, Chuck E. Cheese's Pizza Time Theatre. It contains all of the programming for the characters, lighting effects, video footage, and show audio. The term is also used to describe the audio-visual experience seen during a showtape playthrough.

As of 2025, showtapes are now widely digital, with only select international stores still receiving physical disks.

Stage types

• Existing Stages
  • CEC Stage - This refers to stages with the Cyberamic setup (i.e. the Road Stage, 1-Stage, etc.)
  • 3-Stage - This refers to stages that use the CEI animatronics (i.e. the 3-Stage.)
• Studio C
  • Studio C SD
  • Studio C HD

Showtape formats

• Reel-to-Reel - 1977-1990
• Cyberstar VHS - 1988-2006; the computer running the animatronic figures was upgraded to include a special VCR that would play video footage on television monitors mounted to the ceiling of the showroom.
• Floppy Disk - Unknown
• Laserdisc - 1996-1999 (Awesome Adventure Machine and Studio C only); retired in favor of DVD
• DVD - 1999–2023; retired in favor of the CEC Media Network system.
• USB Stick - 2010-2022; used only for Studio C HD stages.
• SD Card - Unknown-2022; used only for Studio C HD stages.
• CEC Media Network - 2022-present; first media format to not be physical, rather being digital.