ULTIMARC
32 inch Deluxe Arcade
Client
Daniel
Project Duration
3 months
Context of the Project
I wanted to build an arcade cabinet for myself—a dream machine with RGB lights, a beautiful screen, and features that had never been done before.
With this build, I was the first to incorporate an Elgato Stream Deck, which I inlaid directly into the control panel. I wrote the initial scripts to launch games, operate the servosticks, and more. It was also the first cabinet to feature laser-engraved plexiglass and dimmable spotlights—something I still include in my builds to this day.
One fun addition: there's a mini fridge (stocked with beer!) built into the lower part of the cabinet.
Problem to Solve
I needed to find an artist who could bring my vision to life. I wanted colorful, adventure-themed artwork in shades of blue, featuring some of my favorite games—including the owl from King’s Quest V and Guybrush Threepwood from Monkey Island.
Sahaj Joshi accepted the challenge and delivered some truly stunning artwork!
A fun (and slightly quirky) problem was figuring out how to keep the light inside the mini fridge on when the door was closed. Normally, fridges do the exact opposite. After some tinkering, I discovered that this particular fridge used a magnetic switch hidden in the door. By removing the switch, the light stayed on—problem solved.
Design Process
I designed the entire cabinet in Fusion 360, which made it much easier to assemble the panels later in the workshop.
The material I used was white-painted MDF—though I’m not exactly sure why, since I ended up repainting the entire cabinet in black anyway… haha.
Result
The end result was absolutely amazing. I don’t own the cabinet anymore—I sold it—but I still think about it regularly.
It had everything you could imagine: RGB-animated buttons, spotlights, great stereo sound, custom artwork, a cupholder, a beer fridge, perfect airflow, and ultra-high-quality parts from Ultimarc.
You can still find the video on YouTube:
And the two upgrades:
