page_title: Arcade cabinet
section_title: Cocktail or table cabinets
hierarchical_section_title: Arcade cabinet / Types of cabinets / Cocktail or table cabinets
caption_attribution_description: English: japanese/aussie style cocktail cab. home built to run MAME
context_page_description: An arcade cabinet, also known as an arcade/coin-op machine, is the housing within which an arcade game's electronic hardware resides. Most cabinets designed since the mid-1980s conform to the Japanese Amusement Machine Manufacturers Association wiring standard. Some include additional connectors for features not included in the standard.
context_section_description: Cocktail cabinets are shaped like low, rectangular tables, with the controls usually set at either of the broad ends, or, though not as common, at the narrow ends, and the monitor inside the table, the screen facing upward. Two-player games housed in cocktails were usually alternant, each player taking turns. The monitor reverses its orientation (game software controlled) for each player, so the game display is properly oriented for each player. This requires special programming of the cocktail versions of the game (usually set by dip switches). The monitor's orientation is usually in player two's favour only in two-player games when it's player two's turn, and in player one's favour all other times. Simultaneous, 4 player games that are built as a cocktail include Warlords, and others.
  Cocktail cabinet versions were usually released alongside the upright version of the same game. They were relatively common in the 1980s, especially during the Golden Age of Arcade Games, but have since lost popularity. Their main advantage over upright cabinets was their smaller size, making them seem less obtrusive, although requiring more floor space (more so by having players seated at each end). The top of the table was covered with a piece of tempered glass, making it convenient to set drinks on (hence the name), and they were often seen in bars and pubs.
caption: A cocktail cabinet. This style is sometimes referred to as Japanese or Aussie style.
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