Most Arcade1Up releases these days are $500-$600 Deluxe Cabinets, but the leader in the home arcade machine market recently returned to its roots with the Classic Special Edition series. Each Classic SE retails for $334 and has 13 preloaded games. There are currently three models to choose from: Pac-Man, Ms. Pac-Man, and Mortal Kombat II. All three have online leaderboards, and Mortal Kombat has an online multiplayer mode. The arcade sticks, buttons, dual speakers, and overall build quality aligns with Arcade1Up’s pricier options. When we first highlighted the lineup in September, Walmart was the only retailer carrying these cabinets, but now you can buy them on Amazon, too.
There are a few reasons why these are cheaper than the average machine from Arcade1Up. The Deluxe cabinets are just over 5-feet tall–ideal standing height for adults–whereas the Special Editions are just under 4-feet tall. The good news is you can get a universal Arcade1Up Riser for $59 that raises the height to 5 feet. If you don’t get the Riser, you will likely want an adjustable barstool–unless the cabinet is for kids, in which case the original height will likely be a better fit. These machines have 15.6-inch displays and regular marquees, whereas Deluxe Editions include larger, 17-inch screens and light-up marquees. Instead of a faux coin door, there’s a front panel with game logos.
Check out all three Arcade1Up Classic Special Edition machines below.
$334
Get ready for some Mortal Kombat! This cabinet is a treat for fans of Mortal Kombat’s classic era, as it has 13 games installed on it. You can see if you still remember how to do fatalities in games like the original Mortal Kombat, Mortal Kombat 2, Mortal Kombat 3, and Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3. For the design, the cabinet is Mortal Kombat 2-themed and it includes several symbols from the fighting franchise across its surface. This is also a two-player cabinet, so you can do some head-to-head competition from it with its dual joystick and arcade buttons layout.
Included games:
- Mortal Kombat
- Mortal Kombat 2
- Mortal Kombat 3
- Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3
- Rampage
- Joust
- Wizard of Wor
- Gauntlet
- Rootbeer Tapper
- Defender
- Bubbles
- Paperboy
- Klax
$334
The Ms.Pac-Man arcade cabinet includes 13 games in total, with five of them being Pac-themed games. You can also hop into classic Dig-Dug, Mappy, and Galaga. The cabinet also features an eye-catching design with its bright blue finish and decals that make it look like it was pulled straight from an ’80s arcade.
Included games:
$330
The Pac-Man arcade cabinet is similar in design to Ms. Pac-Man, and it offers mostly the same selection of 13 games to play on it. The only real difference with the line-up is that Tower of Druaga has been swapped out for King & Balloon. The cabinet features a vibrant yellow finish and retro-inspired Pac-Man images on it.
Included games:
- Dig Dug
- Dig Dug 2
- Galaga
- Galaxian
- Galaga ’88
- King & Balloon
- Mappy
- Pac-Man
- Pac-Man Plus
- Pac-Mania
- Pac & Pal
- Super Pac-Man
- Rompers
$59
The official Arcade1Up Riser adds an extra 14.25 inches to the Special Edition cabinets. It also adds some heft to the overall build, which is a nice perk. Out of the box, the Special Editions weight 36-38 pounds each, and the Riser weighs 17 pounds. Even with the Riser attached, these cabinets are still 10-15 pounds lighter than their Deluxe counterparts, but they still feel solid and secure.
The Classic Special Editions are the cheapest standing cabinets in Arcade1Up’s catalog, but they aren’t the cheapest machines overall. Amazon has a pair of Arcade1Up countertop arcade machines in stock right now. The Class of ’81 Countercade is themed around Ms. Pac-Man and Galaga. It has a 7-inch, vertically oriented LCD screen, full-size controls, and can be powered via Micro-USB or four AA batteries (not included). In addition to Ms. Pac-Man and Galaga, Class of ’81 includes Dig Dug.
The Pac-Man Countercade is available for only $150. It has the same technical specifications as Class of ’81 and includes three preloaded games: Pac-Man, Super Pac-Man, and Pac-Mania.
If you’re interested in checking out Arcade1Up’s Deluxe Arcade Machines, Amazon has 10 models in stock, including Pac-Man, Mortal Kombat II, and the Class of ’81 cabinet with more games than you’d get with the countercade version. Golden Tee 3D comes with six iterations of the classic golf game as well as Shuffleshot and World Class Bowling. Sports fans can also get NBA Jam, which includes the original, the Tournament Edition, and NBA Hangtime.
If you’re interested in Arcade1Up’s countercades, we’d recommend checking out the Evercade Alpha Taito Bartop Arcade. Set to launch November 12, this miniature cabinet has an 8-inch display and 10 preloaded games, but you can play hundreds of other titles on it by purchasing Evercade cartridge collections. This is the third Evercade Alpha following the launch of Mega Man and Street Fighter editions–both of which have been sold out all year in the US. Check out our Evercade Alpha review for more details on the hardware. We also created an Amazon hub filled with in-stock Evercade game collections. The Evercade Alpha Taito Bartop Arcade is available to preorder now for $260 at Amazon. All of the cartridge collections work on the Evercade EXP-R handheld and Evercade VS-R home console, both of which were recently restocked at Amazon for $130 each.
$260 | Releases November 12
Includes 10 preloaded games:
- Bubble Bobble
- Puzzle Bobble
- Space Invaders
- Cadash
- Rastan
- Elevator Action
- The FairyLand Story
- Growl
- The Legend of Kage
- The New Zealand Story
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