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Project Arcade: Build Your Own Arcade Machine
You can go back, and here's howRemember the days--and quarters--you spent pursuing aliens, fleeing ghosts, and gobbling dots in that beloved arcade? They're hiding in these pages, along with diagrams, directions, plans, and materials lists that will enable you to build your very own arcade game. Construct joysticks, buttons, and trackballs; build the console and cabinet; install and configure the software; crank up the speakers; and wham! Step across the time-space continuum and enjoy all those classic games, plus dozens of new ones, whenever you like.
Start Here
1. Plan for your space and budget
2. Design and build the cabinet
3. Construct the controllers
4. Build the console
5. Pick an old game's brain
6. Install the emulator
7. Convince a PC it's a game
8. Connect a monitor and speakers
9. Add a marquee
10. GO PLAY!
Includes diagrams, detailed instructions, essential software, and more
CD-ROM Includes
* Complete cabinet plans and diagrams
* MAME32 software
* Paint Shop Pro? evaluation version
* Links to hundreds of arcade cabinet projects
Start Here
1. Plan for your space and budget
2. Design and build the cabinet
3. Construct the controllers
4. Build the console
5. Pick an old game's brain
6. Install the emulator
7. Convince a PC it's a game
8. Connect a monitor and speakers
9. Add a marquee
10. GO PLAY!
Includes diagrams, detailed instructions, essential software, and more
CD-ROM Includes
* Complete cabinet plans and diagrams
* MAME32 software
* Paint Shop Pro? evaluation version
* Links to hundreds of arcade cabinet projects
- GenresNonfictionHow ToGames
504 pages, Paperback
First published May 7, 2004
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45 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
October 10, 2012
John St. Clair, Project Arcade (Wiley, 2011)
Full disclosure: this book was provided to me free of charge by Amazon Vine.
If you were a teenager any time between 1974—the introduction of the first Pong console—and 1990, the year the home console industry really took off with the introduction of the Super NES (at the same time the pinball and video game industries started getting greedy and charing fifty, seventy-five, even a dollar per game), you probably spent some time in coin-op arcades. Okay, “some” is an understatement. Legions of us pumped millions of dollars' worth of quarters per year into arcade consoles (Pac-Man, the highest-grossing arcade console of all time, raked in three and a half billion dollars between 1980 and 1999. That's billion with a B. And that's one game. Perhaps more impressive: in just two years, from 1991 through 1993, Street Fighter II took in a billion and a half.) And many of us—I don't know about all of us, but I moved around a lot, so I hung out at a lot of different arcades in a lot of different cities in the mid-Atlantic, and one of the common denominators among all of us was some variant on this conversation happening at least once a month—had, as one of our most fundamental dreams, the idea of owning a real-life honest-to-pete arcade console that we could play in our own basements. To this day, a quarter-century later, I want one. (Though I now have the problem of lacking a basement.) Enter John St. Clair, the author of Project Arcade. (Note: this is a review of the second edition of the book, which features different console plans; the first edition was published in 2004.) The idea behind the book: arcade consoles are increasingly rare—and expensive—these days, so for a smaller outlay, you can construct the console yourself, power it with an old desktop computer, run an emulator instead of soldering EPROM chips all night, and have a console capable of playing not one game, but dozens. Maybe hundreds.
How cool is that?
I give you that this is a vertical-market book. It's only going to appeal to a certain subset of us who are of a certain age, as the old saying goes, but for those of us who understand the appeal without having to think about it, this book is a goldmine—first off, St. Clair gives us a pretty standard console pattern along with basic ideas for the control layout (which games you're going to be running will determine where you put stuff—Tempest has always been my drug of choice, for example, so when I get round to building one, the spinner will be front. and. center.), but perhaps even better than that is the book's last appendix, which showcases a number of other fantastic designs from the arcade construction message board St. Clair represents here, which range from mini-bartops (hey, I actually have room for one of those!) to massiv driving-game consoles, all homemade, all with inventive, and sometimes extensive, control panels (the steampunk rolltop desk console will absolutely wow you—I guarantee it).
In other words, you want this. It's a little advanced for someone like me, who has a problem driving a nail in a straight line, and as I said before it's a vertical market book anyway, but if you're one of us, trust me, you want this. *** ½
Full disclosure: this book was provided to me free of charge by Amazon Vine.
If you were a teenager any time between 1974—the introduction of the first Pong console—and 1990, the year the home console industry really took off with the introduction of the Super NES (at the same time the pinball and video game industries started getting greedy and charing fifty, seventy-five, even a dollar per game), you probably spent some time in coin-op arcades. Okay, “some” is an understatement. Legions of us pumped millions of dollars' worth of quarters per year into arcade consoles (Pac-Man, the highest-grossing arcade console of all time, raked in three and a half billion dollars between 1980 and 1999. That's billion with a B. And that's one game. Perhaps more impressive: in just two years, from 1991 through 1993, Street Fighter II took in a billion and a half.) And many of us—I don't know about all of us, but I moved around a lot, so I hung out at a lot of different arcades in a lot of different cities in the mid-Atlantic, and one of the common denominators among all of us was some variant on this conversation happening at least once a month—had, as one of our most fundamental dreams, the idea of owning a real-life honest-to-pete arcade console that we could play in our own basements. To this day, a quarter-century later, I want one. (Though I now have the problem of lacking a basement.) Enter John St. Clair, the author of Project Arcade. (Note: this is a review of the second edition of the book, which features different console plans; the first edition was published in 2004.) The idea behind the book: arcade consoles are increasingly rare—and expensive—these days, so for a smaller outlay, you can construct the console yourself, power it with an old desktop computer, run an emulator instead of soldering EPROM chips all night, and have a console capable of playing not one game, but dozens. Maybe hundreds.
How cool is that?
I give you that this is a vertical-market book. It's only going to appeal to a certain subset of us who are of a certain age, as the old saying goes, but for those of us who understand the appeal without having to think about it, this book is a goldmine—first off, St. Clair gives us a pretty standard console pattern along with basic ideas for the control layout (which games you're going to be running will determine where you put stuff—Tempest has always been my drug of choice, for example, so when I get round to building one, the spinner will be front. and. center.), but perhaps even better than that is the book's last appendix, which showcases a number of other fantastic designs from the arcade construction message board St. Clair represents here, which range from mini-bartops (hey, I actually have room for one of those!) to massiv driving-game consoles, all homemade, all with inventive, and sometimes extensive, control panels (the steampunk rolltop desk console will absolutely wow you—I guarantee it).
In other words, you want this. It's a little advanced for someone like me, who has a problem driving a nail in a straight line, and as I said before it's a vertical market book anyway, but if you're one of us, trust me, you want this. *** ½
June 23, 2015
Several years ago I stumbled upon a software online called MAME and a number of video games I remembered from my youth. I grew up (late 70s to mid 80s) with the Atari at home and quarter Arcade games at the mall - and those Arcades sure ate a lot of my quarters earned from mowing lawns. But seeing those old games again was a lot of fun, and my kids actually enjoyed playing video games where you had a limited number of "lives" as opposed to the Playstation and Wii games of today (which I simply don't understand). And I've thought it might be fun to install those games on a computer that could be hooked up to the television with some joysticks or paddles instead of using the keyboard, but finding a simple joystick that doesn't resemble something from an F-22 fighter jet (and cost almost as much) hasn't been so easy.
That's where I thought Project Arcade might be useful, but the focus is geared toward making your own Arcade machine for your home. And that's an idea that sounds really cool - it could be loaded with and configured for all the old favorites from your youth - and no quarters! Of course, that's assuming the wife doesn't mind, right? In that case John St. Clair has ideas and plans for "desktop" Arcades, which are smaller but still not the simple setup I had envisioned. And unfortunately this book doesn't really consider such a basic idea, but it's still loaded with tons of great information for those with willing spouses. It goes into quite a bit of detail on construction and the various options out there for joysticks, trackballs, spinners, and buttons. It also includes a CD with art to customize the finished cabinet. I thought the legal discussion on the software and ROM files (the actual games) was good to know as well. So, if you're looking to spend some time and money to build your dream Home Arcade, this is the book you want. But if you just want to plug an old computer into the TV you probably don't need it.
That's where I thought Project Arcade might be useful, but the focus is geared toward making your own Arcade machine for your home. And that's an idea that sounds really cool - it could be loaded with and configured for all the old favorites from your youth - and no quarters! Of course, that's assuming the wife doesn't mind, right? In that case John St. Clair has ideas and plans for "desktop" Arcades, which are smaller but still not the simple setup I had envisioned. And unfortunately this book doesn't really consider such a basic idea, but it's still loaded with tons of great information for those with willing spouses. It goes into quite a bit of detail on construction and the various options out there for joysticks, trackballs, spinners, and buttons. It also includes a CD with art to customize the finished cabinet. I thought the legal discussion on the software and ROM files (the actual games) was good to know as well. So, if you're looking to spend some time and money to build your dream Home Arcade, this is the book you want. But if you just want to plug an old computer into the TV you probably don't need it.
September 17, 2017
I bought the original version of this book several years ago and used it to build my own arcade system, and I was excited to see this updated version: I was not disappointed.
The author explains the building process in easy-to-understand language, and the instructions are pretty clear for the novice woodworker: if you are an experienced woodworker you may be a little insulted but in my opinion nothing beats shop safety - plus, I like having all of my digits connected to my hand!
The author gives numerous examples with photos as well as references to third-party websites to give you more ideas and what the "latest and greatest" is, which is very helpful. There is also a good section on the copyright and legal requirements for some of the shareware, emulator software, as well as what is flat-out a copyright violation with the usual wording of obeying the law.
Also included is a companion CD with plans, links to external resources, and more detailed photos of the items in the book - great addition, and the links and plans are worth the purchase price in itself.
As someone who has built my own arcade machine, if you are interested in building your own, I strongly recommend purchasing this guide as it will save you literally hundreds of hours of trial and error.
The author explains the building process in easy-to-understand language, and the instructions are pretty clear for the novice woodworker: if you are an experienced woodworker you may be a little insulted but in my opinion nothing beats shop safety - plus, I like having all of my digits connected to my hand!
The author gives numerous examples with photos as well as references to third-party websites to give you more ideas and what the "latest and greatest" is, which is very helpful. There is also a good section on the copyright and legal requirements for some of the shareware, emulator software, as well as what is flat-out a copyright violation with the usual wording of obeying the law.
Also included is a companion CD with plans, links to external resources, and more detailed photos of the items in the book - great addition, and the links and plans are worth the purchase price in itself.
As someone who has built my own arcade machine, if you are interested in building your own, I strongly recommend purchasing this guide as it will save you literally hundreds of hours of trial and error.
June 23, 2013
This is a great book if you're considering building an arcade machine. As a beginner woodworker, I was able to follow along and built my very own arcade many years ago that is still working today.
Not only gives great advice on the cabinet, but also everything you need to know about the electronics for the controls and integration with a computer.
Highly recommended.
Not only gives great advice on the cabinet, but also everything you need to know about the electronics for the controls and integration with a computer.
Highly recommended.
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July 16, 2022I like how this book explains complete mechanism of building an arcade machine. Anyone interested in building his own arcade machine can read this book. Arcade Cabinet Machines are a great way to bring back classic era of tabletop arcade machine games.
January 31, 2012
When I build my arcade, you're all invited.
November 13, 2011
very in depth
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews