The year is 2024. Which means I’m 35 years of age. Yeah…I’m getting old.
Which is fine. I’m okay with that. Even though I think I’ve lived a fairly fulfilling life so far, there are still items on my bucket list that I want to do. And this year, I’ve decided I’m going to be ticking some of those things off. Which is why I bought myself an Arcade1Up arcade machine!
Nostalgic?
Let’s be clear – this was not a nostalgia-fueled purchase. I don’t have a lot of memories of playing arcade games. I don’t have many memories of going to an arcade at all. My most prominent ones are of me playing consoles and handhelds in the comfort of my own home. In short, going out to arcades isn’t a thing that I remember doing.
I think it’s more of a novelty for me to have a physical machine. In this era of digital downloads, having a physical cabinet in my gaming room is just something that can’t be beat. Yes, it’s kind of big and bulky, and sticks out like a sore thumb. Although I wouldn’t have it any other way. I adore having a physical thing with flashing lights and tactile buttons and all that kind of stuff.
Arcade Paradise entertained me for a long, long time. However, as much as I enjoy playing, it just isn’t the same as having a physical cabinet. A digital arcade building filled to the brim with cabinets and bright neon is amazingly cool. I’ve had so much fun, but it doesn’t compare to real-life Arcade1Up cabinet.
Ghosts in the machine
Let’s talk about the cabinet itself. I bought the Arcade1Up Ms. Pac-Man 40th anniversary edition. That means, sadly, it isn’t an original, although that means it does come with some modern-day benefits. Aside from Ms. Pac-Man, there are 9 other games included, for a total of 10. The big names titles are Galaga, Galaxian, and Dig Dug. The other, smaller games are Mappy, Rally X, King and Balloon, Rolling Thunder, Rompers and The Tower of Druaga.
In terms of pricing, it was relatively cheap. Smyth’s had it discounted to just under £250, which was a pretty steep drop down from the previous price of £350. As I said, relatively cheap. For example, in Game UK, there are tabletop cabinets for around £150 or so. For an additional £100 you can get a 3/4 size version. I think that’s a good middle ground. I’m also pretty sure it’s way cheaper than getting an original arcade cabinet and having to do maintenance and restoration work on it.
Why did I choose Ms. Pac-Man though? It was purely a matter of preference. I prefer playing it over the original Pac-Man. In the past, I’ve played Ms. Pacman in cabinet form the most. At the launch party for Arcade Paradise. At the Boneyard Arcade in Exeter. I feel like the movement is way faster and more exciting. I don’t know if this is true in comparison to the original Pac-Man game, but that’s what my brain thinks now. I’ve played for a while and I feel comfortable with playing it.
Positives and Negatives
I’ll start with the negatives. The control stick and buttons aren’t the best quality. Arcade1Up have skimped out on them for sure. Which isn’t great. Good controls are super important to any arcade machine experience. Luckily, there seems to be room for modification. Adding my own hardware and replacing the control stick and buttons as an example. I do also think the original artwork hasn’t aged particularly well. The way they portray Ms. Pac-Man and the ghosts is creepy.
On to the positives. As I mentioned previously, I do think there’s huge scope here to mod this thing. Some of them might not be the easiest of mods to do, but I do enjoy tinkering around with things. It seems like anything from upgrading the buttons and the control stick to actually adding a Raspberry Pi in there seems entirely possible. Depending on how much work I want to put in. it and you know do some emulation magic and get some other games on there as well however I’ve not really looked too much into that but it’s definitely something I’m considering in the future I’ve got the cabinet itself maybe do some I don’t know rewiring inquisitory or whatever and I’ll be able to get some more games on there
Finally, it was very easy to put together. Much like something from IKEA, it came as a flat pack package. The screen and all the electronics were in an easy plug-and-play type set-up. Just had to insert some cables in from the speakers, lights, and controls into the main screen and that was it.
A cornerstone of my collection
I don’t regret getting my new Arcade1Up machine. It’s extremely cool. It’s fun to play, and a great thing to have in a retro games collection. It isn’t quite an original machine, something of which I still want to get. Right now though, this is absolutely perfect for what I want. I’m even tempted to get myself some more, although I would need some more space. More importantly, this is one thing I’ve ticked off my bucket list.
