Relive your misspent youth with these affordable arcade cabinets

Play Street Fighter II, Asteroids and more the proper way without selling the car thanks to Arcade1Up

Arcade1Up cabinet

The idea of having an arcade cabinet at home is a nostalgic dream for a lot of people, but they've always been way too expensive for most. Arcade1Up's cabinets cost under £400, and still give you the button-mashing experience you crave.

Each cabinet is decked out in the design of its lead game, including classics such as Asteroids, Space Invaders and Rampage.

Our pick is the Street Fighter II cabinet, which actually comes loaded with three different versions of the game (Turbo, Championship Edition, and The New Challengers), so you can play whichever one you loved most.

Arcade1Up cabinets

Naturally, it has two sets of controls for going shoulder-to-shoulder with your nemesis, laid out in the original configuration for the game. The 17-inch colour screen and built in speakers, surrounded by classic artwork, complete the full experience.

Arcade1Up's cabinets actually come flat-packed, so you put them together yourself, which makes delivery a bit easier. When built, the cabinets stand four feet tall, so not quite full-size, but pull up a stool and you'll be good to go.

There are more coming this year as well, so be on the look out for Mortal Kombat (which comes with the first three games in the series) and Golden Tee if the current range doesn't push your buttons – they've been announced for the US, so we're hoping MK at least will come to the UK too.

Matthew Bolton

Matt is T3's former AV and Smart Home Editor (UK), master of all things audiovisual, overseeing our TV, speakers and headphones coverage. He also covered smart home products and large appliances, as well as our toys and games articles. He's can explain both what Dolby Vision IQ is and why the Lego you're building doesn't fit together the way the instructions say, so is truly invaluable. Matt has worked for tech publications for over 10 years, in print and online, including running T3's print magazine and launching its most recent redesign. He's also contributed to a huge number of tech and gaming titles over the years. Say hello if you see him roaming the halls at CES, IFA or Toy Fair. Matt now works for our sister title TechRadar.