12 September 2026

 

Retro arcades are no longer merely relics of the 1980s and 1990s. They have reappeared as arcade bars, gaming cafés, museums and family entertainment centres, propelled by nostalgia, modernised machines and the appeal of playing together in the same room.

The business has become substantial. Grand View Research valued the global arcade game-centre market at about $14 billion in 2025 and expects it to reach $31.7 billion by 2033. Its explanation is telling: consumers are looking for immersive, social experiences away from home, even as much of the wider games industry moves online.

But how much of the arcade experience can you reproduce at home?

Quite a lot, as it turns out. A basic home retro gaming setup needs only four things: a screen, a computer or handheld device, a suitable controller and legally obtained games. Depending on what you already own, the transformation can cost less than a new game.

 

Under €50: use the computer you already own

 

An old laptop connected to a television through HDMI is easily powerful enough to run games from the 8-bit, 16-bit and early 3D eras. Emulation software instructs a modern processor to imitate how the original machine behaved—rather like a simultaneous interpreter working between two generations of computing.

The important purchase is a controller. Modern gamepads are designed around analogue sticks and the demands of complex 3D worlds. Classic arcade and console games often feel better with a prominent directional pad and buttons positioned where your fingers remember them.

The 8BitDo SN30 Pro Bluetooth controller combines a familiar 1990s shape with support for modern devices. The 8BitDo Ultimate 2C wired controller is another affordable option for playing retro games on a PC.

Check the precise model before ordering: similarly named 8BitDo controllers do not all support the same computers, consoles and mobile devices.

Wired controllers also avoid the slight input delay introduced by Bluetooth. That will not ruin a slow puzzle game, but it can become noticeable when a fractionally mistimed jump sends your character into a hole. The games may not have aged, but your reflexes possibly have.

For software, digital stores such as Steam and GOG sell legal retro game collections from Atari, Sega, Capcom, SNK and other publishers. Atari 50: The Anniversary Celebration, also available in physical editions for modern consoles, combines classic games with interviews and archive material.

 

Around €70 to €120: put an arcade in your pocket

 

Anyone who prefers playing immediately to configuring emulation software may be better served by a dedicated retro gaming handheld with officially licensed games.

The HyperMegaTech Super Pocket is small enough for a coat pocket and comes in editions based on publishers including Capcom, Atari and Taito. Its built-in games are properly licensed, and the device also works with Evercade cartridges if you want to expand the collection.

The larger Evercade EXP-R uses the same cartridge system. Buying games on physical cartridges may seem decidedly old-fashioned, but that is part of the attraction. Each collection has a defined selection rather than an endless scroll of anonymous files.

A handheld retro console advertising 20,000 games sounds more generous. In practice, it may simply provide 19,995 additional decisions before you return to the five games you recognise.

Handhelds also make retro gaming sociable in a surprisingly low-tech way: pass one to someone who remembers the original game. Alternatively, give it to someone born long after the arcade era and watch them discover that early platform games had no interest in protecting their feelings.

 

Around €150: build a coffee-table arcade

 

If the clicking controls are as important as the games, add an arcade stick. These replace the thumb-sized controls of a gamepad with a joystick and large buttons made for more energetic treatment.

The 8BitDo Arcade Stick works with PC and Nintendo Switch, while the company also makes a separate 8BitDo Arcade Stick for Xbox. Place one on a coffee table, connect the computer to a television and the result feels considerably closer to an original arcade cabinet.

It also works better with two people. Fighting games, puzzle competitions and high-score challenges recover some of the face-to-face quality attracting people back to physical arcades. The hardest part may be persuading everyone else that the television has temporarily become a Street Fighter II machine.

Those wanting a permanent home arcade setup can use a Raspberry Pi 5 starter kit as a compact computer. It can sit behind a television and boot directly into a controller-friendly interface. This route requires more configuration, however, and the Raspberry Pi does not solve the question of where the games come from.

 

Are retro game emulators legal?

 

An emulator is not the same thing as a pirated game. The problem is usually the ROMs: digital copies of the original games.

Many inexpensive handhelds and plug-in television sticks arrive with thousands of commercial titles installed without permission. Age does not place a game in the public domain, and describing it as “abandonware” does not make copying it legal. Nintendo explicity states that online piracy and counterfeiting of its games are illegal.

For a straightforward setup, use licensed hardware and collections bought from recognised publishers or stores. You may end up with fewer games, but you will know what they are, where they came from and whether they are worth playing.

Building a retro arcade at home is therefore not about owning every game ever made. It is about recovering a particular kind of play: simple rules, physical controls, instant restarts and another person waiting for a turn.

The glowing marquee and sticky carpet will be missing. The important parts remain: including the conviction that next time you really will get past that level.