Everything You Need to Know Before Building Your Arcade 🕹️

Absolutely! You don't need any previous arcade-building experience. Our step-by-step Digital Build Guide walks you through the entire process, with detailed instructions, measurements, diagrams and supporting videos to help you build with confidence.

Building your own arcade cabinet is a rewarding project that involves cutting and assembling the cabinet, installing the electronics and adding the finishing touches. Some basic woodworking skills and tools are helpful, but with a little patience and the right guidance, it's an achievable project for DIY enthusiasts.

Most customers tackle the project over a few weekends or spend a few hours each day working through the stages. There's no rush! Enjoy the process and build at your own pace!

Not at all! Our Starter Kits include wiring diagrams and step-by-step instructions to guide you through connecting your joysticks, buttons and arcade components. We also have detailed video tutorials on our YouTube channel, so you can follow along visually and wire your arcade controls with confidence.

Absolutely! We've seen so many fantastic father-and-son builds and entire families getting involved. Watching your arcade cabinet come to life together is an exciting and rewarding experience, creating memories that will last a lifetime!

Our comprehensive 134-page Digital Build Guide includes everything you need to plan and build your own arcade cabinet, including:

• Step-by-step instructions with hundreds of photos guiding you from start to finish
• Complete cabinet plans with metric and imperial measurements
• Printable templates for side panels and control panel drilling
• Materials and cutting lists for cabinet construction
• Complete shopping lists with direct product links and estimated costs
• Wiring diagrams and instruction booklet for wiring and starting up your machine for the first time
• Instructional video tutorials to guide you through the process

Plus, enjoy instant digital access and free lifetime updates!

Yes. It is designed to make the arcade-building process more approachable and easy to follow, even for first-time builders.

Our Build Guide is a digital download, giving you instant access after purchase! You'll receive an email with your download links, so be sure to check your inbox, junk and spam folders. We recommend downloading and saving all included files for easy access throughout your build.

You can use the Build Guide to source your own parts and materials. However, our Starter Kits take the guesswork out of finding compatible components, bringing everything included in your chosen kit together in one convenient, cost-effective package, so you don't have to source each part individually.

Yes! Our 134-page Digital Build Guide is included FREE with every Arcade Starter Kit, so there's no need to purchase it separately. You'll have everything you need to follow along with your build from start to finish!

Each Starter Kit brings together the electronics, controls and accessories for your chosen build system. Essential, Complete and Ultimate have different inclusions, so refer to the product comparison for the full breakdown.

No. You build the wooden cabinet yourself. The MDF, monitor and other construction materials are sourced separately, with plans and material information in the Build Guide.

Essential covers core components and controls. Complete adds finishing and convenience accessories including speakers, coin mechanism, marquee lighting and a backlit marquee with some other power accessories for a neater finish. Ultimate adds a Full Wrap Kit and full-size physical side-panel template. See the product page for exact inclusions.

Pandora is a preloaded arcade build system. Emulator is for builders using their own compatible PC and emulation setup. Pandora generally suits buyers who prefer a simpler starting point, while Emulator suits those who want more PC-based flexibility.

Absolutely! Depending on your kit, you can customise your button style and colour, joystick type, T-moulding colour, marquee design and cabinet wrap artwork.

You'll receive a preferences form immediately after purchase to select your options. We'll then assemble and ship your personalised Starter Kit!

You’ll generally need measuring and assembly tools, a drill, a suitable saw or jigsaw and a router. The Build Guide covers the tools and materials used during construction.

We recommend MDF (Medium Density Fibreboard) for its strength, smooth finish and ease of working with. It's ideal for painting, applying vinyl wraps and routing grooves for T-moulding, helping you achieve that solid, authentic arcade cabinet look and feel. Our Build Guide includes all the recommended thicknesses and measurements for each particular section.

Many hardware stores and timber suppliers can cut MDF to general sizes for you. However, cutting the panels yourself is all part of the fun! Our Build Guide walks you through the process step by step, with detailed measurements, cutting plans and templates to make it easier than you might expect.

Our Build Guide includes recommended materials, shopping lists and direct links to help you source your MDF. Yes, many hardware stores and timber suppliers also offer home delivery, making it easy to get everything you need delivered straight to your door!

We recommend a 24-inch monitor for optimal arcade ergonomics and the best fit within our 2-player upright cabinet design. Bigger isn't always better!

Our entire build system has been carefully designed around this size, including:

• Comfortable viewing: Ideal screen size and viewing distance for classic arcade gaming.
• Cabinet dimensions: Designed to fit perfectly within the recommended internal width.
• Artwork compatibility: Our cabinet wraps and screen surrounds are designed around these exact measurements.

Want to go bigger? Keep in mind that you'll need to modify the cabinet's internal dimensions, which will also affect  overall construction and the fitment of our artwork.

For the best results, we strongly recommend sticking with the tried-and-tested 24-inch design.

You can customise the cabinet dimensions to suit your preferences. However, as explained in our previous question about monitor size, our plans have been carefully designed and optimised for a 2-player upright arcade cabinet.

Changing the dimensions may affect monitor fitment, component placement and compatibility with our cabinet wraps and templates. For the easiest build and best results, we recommend sticking to the original plans.

Our printed wrap kits include full cabinet artwork for both the cabinet sides, front kick panel, control-panel, control panel front, screen surround and marquee, you can check the product listing for cabinet wrap placement images.

Our Full Cabinet Wrap Kits are designed exclusively for Arcade Revival upright arcade cabinets, ensuring the artwork, dimensions and individual panels align perfectly with our original cabinet plans.

If you're building a different cabinet design or modifying the dimensions, our standard wraps may not fit correctly. We recommend following our original plans for the best results and a professional, authentic arcade finish.

Not at all! We use premium 3M vinyl with air-release technology, making it easy to apply, minimise bubbles and reposition if needed. Each Wrap Kit also includes an application squeegee, and we provide step-by-step video tutorials on our product pages to guide you through the entire process for a professional finish!

We use premium 3M™ 40C Series Self-adhesive vinyl, a professional-grade material we've carefully selected for its exceptional quality, durability and ease of application. Featuring air-release technology, it helps minimise bubbles and allows repositioning during installation.

All our cabinet wraps are professionally printed in-house using HP Latex printing technology, delivering vibrant colours, sharp details and an authentic arcade finish. We're incredibly proud of the quality of our wraps and stand behind every one we produce!

Yes. We offer individual backlit marquees and control panel overlays for customers looking to customise or refresh their arcade cabinet.

Our Full Cabinet Wrap Kits are sold as complete matching sets, designed to give your entire cabinet a consistent, professional arcade finish.

Arcade Revival is a proudly Australian-owned and operated business based on the beautiful Gold Coast, Queensland. We pack and dispatch orders daily, shipping our Starter Kits, cabinet wraps and arcade parts to customers across Australia and around the world!

Absolutely! We ship internationally every day, sending our Starter Kits, cabinet wraps and arcade parts to customers around the world, including the USA, New Zealand and Canada.

International customers can view product prices and shipping costs in their local currency, so you'll know exactly what you're paying before checkout!

We dispatch orders daily from our Gold Coast location, with estimated delivery times depending on your destination and shipping method.

Estimated delivery times (business days from dispatch):

• Australia Express: 1–3 days
• Australia Standard: 2–8 days
• New Zealand: 5–8 days
• USA & Canada: 7–14 days

Delivery times are estimates only, calculated in business days from dispatch. Actual delivery times may vary depending on your location, carrier, public holidays and customs processing.

All shipped orders include tracking! You'll receive tracking details as soon as your order is dispatched, allowing you to follow its journey right to your door.

We're here to help! Our Build Guide includes detailed instructions and wiring diagrams, along with helpful step-by-step video tutorials on our YouTube channel covering everything from wiring to setting up your build system.

We encourage you to explore our video tutorials, where you can follow along visually at your own pace. And if you still need a hand, our friendly Arcade Revival team is always happy to help!

Watch Our Helpful Video Tutorials →

If anything is missing, damaged or incorrect with your order, please get in touch and we'll be happy to help!

To help us resolve your enquiry as quickly as possible, please include:

• Your order number
• A brief description of the issue
• Clear photos showing the damage, incorrect item or affected components

Providing these details in your initial email helps us investigate and resolve the issue much faster, without unnecessary back and forth.