Midnight Arcade

The idea of building my own arcade machine came to me after an episode of Stranger Things.

I no longer remember which episode it was, but I remember the atmosphere: neon lights, a room full of arcade cabinets, large screens, noisy buttons, and people gathering around a game. I wanted to return to that era for a moment—or at least to the version of it I knew from films, TV shows, and old games.

Buying a finished cabinet would not have been nearly as interesting, so I decided to build one myself.

I started with an old computer and monitor. I cut the cabinet parts from templates I had prepared, installed the display, and built a control panel for two players, with two joysticks and two sets of buttons.

The electronics may look like the most difficult part, but there is no need to design a custom controller board. AliExpress sells ready-made arcade button kits with USB controllers. The buttons and joystick connect to the board, the board plugs into the computer over USB, and then each control can be assigned exactly as needed.

I use RetroBat to run the games. It brings multiple retro platforms together in one interface, so games can be selected and launched directly from the arcade controls, without reaching for a keyboard or mouse.

The decoration became a project of its own. I printed a collection of stickers and applied them by hand across the edges and panels of the cabinet. I did not want to make an exact replica of a classic machine. Building something personal—a little bright, a little chaotic, and full of character—was much more interesting.

The result is a fully working tabletop arcade machine for two players. The project brought together cabinet design and fabrication, computer hardware, control installation, wiring, software configuration, and the hand-finished exterior.

What I enjoy most is the transformation itself. At first, there are only separate panels, wires, buttons, and old computer parts. Then they become a finished machine: press a button, choose a game, take hold of the joystick, and for a while you really are back in the arcade era.

Most importantly, a machine like this is entirely possible to build at home. With an old computer, a monitor, some basic tools, and a little persistence, the rest can be designed, ordered, and configured one step at a time.

PRESS START.