Level Up: Making the LEGO Arcade Better
Level up! This post is all about making it better with 4 big LEGO® arcade cabinet upgrades—light guns, storage, a coin bin door, and control panel mods.
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Arcade | Control Panel | Hardware | LEGO
A Long Hiatus, Now Progress
It’s been almost two years since I last posted about the arcade, and after a long hiatus, now progress. I’m sure you might have thought that I had given up. Sadly, shortly after my prior update, I was hit by health issues that prevented me from continuing work on the arcade for a few months….
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Arcade | Control Panel | Design | Hardware | LEGO
Wicked 80’s Flare – The Top Complete
In a rush to complete the top, I hurry to order more pieces. However, this time, I plan to finally give it some wicked 80’s flare, azure-colored tiles!
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The Finish Line is Ahead, the Last Brick
The finish line is ahead and now it’s time to work upwards, towards the back of the control panel. Most of the challenges are finally behind me.
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Arcade | Control Panel | Hardware | LEGO
The Final Expansion – Players 3 and 4, New Challengers
Players 1 and 2 are wired up, now it’s time for the final expansion. New challengers, players 3 and 4 join the party. Controls, button mapping, and more wires!
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Arcade | Control Panel | Hardware | LEGO
Building it Out – a Wiring Nightmare
Figuring out how to mount the buttons was a huge step forward. Now I can start wiring up players 1 and 2, which will be a wiring nightmare.
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Arcade | Control Panel | Hardware | LEGO
The Challenge of Mounting Buttons with LEGO
The challenge of mounting buttons with LEGO®.
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Arcade | Control Panel | Hardware | LEGO
Installation of the First Joystick
This will cover the installation of the first joystick. I also install the first circuit board, using only LEGO® brick, not screws. This controls the directional movement allowed by the joystick.
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Arcade | Control Panel | Hardware | LEGO
Beginning the Build of the Control Panel
Beginning the build is going to consist of a lot of LEGO® brick! So, I won’t go much into exactly what I order, as I’ll be ordering bits and pieces throughout this process. Instead, I’ll provide key points along the way as I attempt to build this massive structure.
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Arcade | Control Panel | Hardware | LEGO
Hope it Really Works, LEGO and Controls
The time has come to order and test the question, can we mount arcade controls into LEGO® bricks WITHOUT modifying the bricks? Likely it’s possible, but really what this will tell me is what difficulties I’ll end up potentially facing and if I need to rethink my strategy about the LEGO and controls.
