Stumbled on these in Walmart last week and thought hmm, I just don't know?. So I went home and popped to youtube to do some research, as I was interested in the 4-1 Centipede because of the track ball, cabinet art and game selection. Went back to grab one and set up was a breeze. Quality feels okay, nothing amazing but not dog biscuits either, and once built it feels very solid. Control panel buttons can be swapped out with commercial grade, which is nice.

Having owned 20+ good titled arcade games at one point (including Crystal Castles, and not saying 20 like bragging, just more of I've owned a bunch and know how much of a PITA they can be) I find these little minis scratch the itch and here's why.

Sure, nothing beats the originals, but they're expensive, take up a lot of room, are very heavy, monitors are a pita, and board repairs are a chore, especially with some. These however, are sweet looking replicas with the great art packages, easy to move around, super kid friendly and they're ready to play in 30 minutes of build time. My kids will sit and play Crystal Castles for hours, they feel right at home on it.
We liked the centipede so much, we went and bought the Rampage cabinet last night as well. Kids like Rampage and Joust, I mainly bought it for Joust myself. (I use to have an original Joust that was a pita to get working and stay working)
Right now they're just in my movie room den, as that's where we set them up, until I figure out where I want to put them in the house and moving them will be a breeze.

So- Pros: Super easy to build. We skipped the risers as they're kid friendly height and I or we, just use a chair. When you're zoned into the screen, you can't tell the difference, it just feels like you're playing an arcade game. Super cool looking (imo) be it a kids bedroom or your own gameroom, they don't feel like they're trying to own the room they're in like their big brothers. Countless hours of fun with the same style and looks as the originals for a fraction of the cost.

Cons: Quality control is hit or miss.

Bottom line: Recommended.

My local Wal-Mart has one Galaga, I'm tempted to go grab it today, think it would be a go to game in the lineup.
1493A359-8FF7-4D61-8244-47AD969EA4F1 (resized).jpeg
F762F00C-49AB-4E48-A9ED-66F7EECA6AFD (resized).jpeg

That's the thing, board sets are crazy money nowadays. A TMNT board set alone is $500, so here's hoping they make the rumored cabinet.

I'm patiently waiting for Final Fight myself, I've attempted to build one twice but gave up both times. Board set was $200+ but the art is what killed it for me, too expensive for cpo, side art, bezel, marquee, etc.

Now if only they would make a 3/4 TRON.....tell me who wouldn't buy that game.

Almost certainly.

sent arcade1up and e-mail asking for the control panel protectors, they replied back within hours, no questions asked and are sending me the three I asked for, can't beat that.

Pac-Man review

Bought one, set it up, screen had a slight jump going on that was annoying. Took the pcb out, noticed the 4 screws were all loose holding it in it's metal frame, including the groundstrap and didn't want to tighten down (I actually put the bigger screw in, that's why the color isn't shiny)

But, it was also missing a tiny microscopic soldered ''fuse'' on the backside of that board that looked like it had rattled off, which is why I suspect the screen was jumping. Didn't feel like waiting up to 6 weeks for a replacement board so returned it to Wal-Mart and bought another one, no issues with the new one.

Cabinet is sweet looking-
Gameplay feels right on-
Joystick feels good-
again, it looks sweet.

Contacted customer support via e-mail, and within an hour confirmed they are sending me the control panel protector and the upgraded pcb for Rampage, so A+ for their customer service so far, didn't even have to provide any proof.

Looking forward to Ms Pac, and Final Fight which are must buys for me, and I do still want Galaga/Galaxian (can't believe we haven't bought that one yet)

The possibilities are endless really, and Arcade1up must know this. Really hoping for a Burgertime cabinet, Tron, Dig Dug/kangaroo? Donkey Kong 1, 2 3, Mortal Kombat, etc.

And lastly, yeah, we went a little crazy buying 4 of these, but we love them and the kids play them a lot, so it's a win win.

D3DC2288-A16C-469B-9FAE-F3CE046172AF (resized).jpeg9F48E234-282D-4C80-BB4C-D3A6C45F8C12 (resized).jpegC2465632-ECA4-4297-8109-A2BEF3CF9FFB (resized).jpeg

I don’t really know him personally, but I know who he is, he’s an arcade guy/purist, which I can respect as I have had a bunch of them myself.
However, for me, it’s a little hard to balance the two worlds, space is part of the problem, and pinball always wins out. That’s where these just work for my family. Kids love them, I like to play them, win win. That’s not to say I wouldn’t buy an original Joust or Pac-Man for the right price down the road, but it’s one less thing to “hunt”
Pinball is getting damn hard to hunt in it’s own right, one less thing to bother with while we still get to enjoy these, they definitely scratch that itch for a pinball purebred.

Arcade1up confirmed Mortal Kombat (1, 2,3?) is slated to be released for March 1st.

I sent the request all at once for the 4 I have, but only have gotten SF2 by itself with the extra art, which came about 7 or 8 days later. Still waiting for the other 3.

Actually, just checked in front of my garage and the board is here for Rampage/Gauntlet. Now just waiting on three protectors

My ten year old daughter just put together the $75 Asteroids, the spinner is worse than I thought, lol. But, I like Asteroids and lunar lander, so it's all good. I'm glad I waited on this to drop.
This makes 6 arcade 1ups for our house, we enjoy them for what they are.

I would ask to speak to a manager and show them the proof on your phone. My local wal-mart had them, but they were way high up in the rafters in the stock room out back, and the employee sounded less than pleased that I wanted him to retrieve one, as he said he had to get some department guy to get it down, blah blah, but retrieve one he did. They often times don't have a clue what they're talking about in Wal-Mart, the less work they do the better, it's a total shit show.