Countless adults reminisce about their favorite “old-school” video games
and let’s be honest, who wouldn’t want to replay Metal Slug or Space Invaders with a classic arcade cabinet? We decided that would be a fun way to start our Laguna Projects, so let us go back to the 70’s with a modern take on classic arcade games! This arcade cabinet is a great beginner project and makes for a fun & nostalgic addition to any room you put it in. If you’re new to using Vectric VCarve or Aspire it’s a handy reference on how to set up 2D cuts.

Step 1: Get Your Materials

Smartcade Materials

3/4” sheet of melamine, plywood, or mdf
Raspberry Pi 3.0Arcade Kit Note: this kit is great if you’re not savvy with electronics because it comes with everything you’d need but otherwise the parts can be found cheaper separately.
Wood Screws (alternatively you could adjust the drill command for ¼” dowels if you want clean sides on your cabinet)
Monitor (This was designed for an old 3:4 ratio lcd screen but any screen will work with a little adjustment to the dimensions of interior parts)
USB Speaker

Step 2: Cut and Assemble Directions

Cut out the parts and assemble everything except the back and bottom pieces.
Attach the monitor (this is the most difficult part to get right)
Attach all the buttons and the joystick and wire everything together
Note: We bought the kit and the wires were pretty short. We needed some extra wire to connect everything together
Connect the monitor and speakers to the Raspberry Pi
Load up some games and configure the buttons