Adding arcade games to your bar is one of the highest-impact changes you can make for customer engagement and revenue. To put arcade games in a bar, you need to assess your space, choose games that match your crowd, decide between buying or revenue-sharing with a vendor, handle any local licensing requirements, install the machines, … Read more
How to build a home arcade cabinet is a question I get asked at least once a week from fellow retro gaming fans. After helping my brother build two cabinets in our garage and watching our team complete six more builds over the past three years, I can tell you this: building your own arcade … Read more
If you have ever wanted to play Pac-Man, Donkey Kong, or Street Fighter II exactly as they ran in a real arcade cabinet, you have probably stumbled across the word MAME. Understanding what MAME is and how it works opens the door to thousands of classic arcade games running faithfully on your own computer. Whether … Read more
I have bought, restored, and flipped more arcade cabinets than I can count over the past fifteen years. Some were gems that still run perfectly today. Others taught me expensive lessons about what a thorough used arcade machine inspection should really cover. This guide walks through every check I run before money changes hands, from … Read more
A home arcade room is more than a corner with a console. It is a dedicated space where classic arcade cabinets, pinball machines, and neon lighting recreate the magic of the golden age of gaming right inside your house. I have built arcade spaces in basements, spare bedrooms, and converted garages over the years, and … Read more
A bartop arcade machine is a compact, plug-and-play arcade system that sits on a desk, counter, or table and delivers the authentic retro gaming experience using real arcade controls. Our team has spent years testing, building, and reviewing home arcade setups, and the bartop format keeps coming up as the sweet spot for anyone short … Read more
When I first walked into a bar in the late 1990s and saw two people sitting across from each other, drinks on the table between them, mashing buttons while a tiny screen flickered between their faces, I was hooked. That was my first encounter with a cocktail arcade cabinet, and I have been fascinated by … Read more
If you have ever sat at a bar, ordered a drink, and found yourself tapping away at a colorful screen built into the counter, you have used a countertop touchscreen bar game. These compact entertainment machines sit on bar tops and tables in pubs, restaurants, and clubs, offering dozens of games ranging from trivia to … Read more
Picture a 1950s diner. Red vinyl booths, checkered floors, and the warm amber glow of a machine in the corner pulling a record from its rack, dropping it onto a turntable, and filling the room with Elvis. That machine was almost certainly a Wurlitzer jukebox, and the history behind it stretches back over three centuries … Read more
If you’ve just inherited a Wurlitzer jukebox or picked one up at an estate sale, the first question you probably have is simple: how old is it? Knowing the production year matters for insurance, restoration planning, and figuring out what your machine is actually worth on today’s collector market. I’ve spent the last few months … Read more