Vision
The idea started out with the vision of using the GP2X screen as the cabinet's actual screen. This would make things simple from a construction point of view, and would mean a very high quality image, as the GP2X's LCD is very good indeed. To try to visualise this properly, I found some arcade artwork files on the web, then knocked up a quick printout of a 1943 banner, bezel and control panel onto some thick paper, to an appropriate size, with the GP2X screen showing through in the middle, running 1943 of course.
Cardboard Prototype
Already this looked pretty funky, and I hadn't even started yet! The next thing to do was to work out the approximate shape and size for the cabinet. As I was already using the rather attractive 1943 artwork, I found some pictures of the 1943 cabinet, and made a cardboard prototype of the approximate shape, just to see how it 'felt'.
Masking-Tape
Now we're talking. After a couple of attempts, I had sculpted quite a reasonable looking cabinet shape, that was just large enough for the GP2X to fit inside. Once I had punched a hole in the cardboard control panel, for a joystick, then masking-taped the GP2X in place inside and booted it up, things were starting to look almost authentic.
Sqeeze
I wanted to keep the cabinet as small as humanly possible but still use proper arcade controls. This was really going to be a squeeze. With two buttons next to the joystick I had to turn the joystick round by 90 degrees so that the mounting plate had any chance of fitting, and even then everything was wedged up hard together and only just fitted. This was gonna get interesting once all the mounting nuts and wiring had to go in.
The Woodwork Begins
The next step, now I was happy with the dimensions, was to make up some pieces of MDF (5mm, as thin as I could practically go) and get to work constructing the cabinet, and the control-panel.
Possibly the smallest and simplest custom arcade control panel ever seen!
