There is an important distinction between arcade video game cabinets. Being that they are built in two different styles: vertical or horizontal monitor orientation. For example, the computer screen you are currently viewing is oriented horizontally. Turn on the monitor and then it will orient itself vertically. But, it would be very difficult to read. Because the charts are formatted for horizontal presentation, not vertical. And the same goes for arcade video games. Therefore, there are two types of potential problems when deciding which cabinet to use for a multi-cade installation. First of all, the horizontal monitor usually won’t fit in a vertical cabinet. And second, vertical screen images will not display correctly on a horizontally mounted monitor and vice versa.

Almost all classic arcade video games, such as Ms Pac-Man, Galaga, Frogger and Donkey Kong, are played with a vertically monitor oriented (mounted). There are some horizontal exceptions, like the Williams classics: Defender, Stargate, Joust, etc. While almost all modern fighting games, such as Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat, use a horizontally monitor oriented (mounted).

It is important to note that game types (horizontal or vertical) are not immediately interchangeable between cabinet types (horizontal or vertical). This is because a horizontal gaming monitor likely won’t fit in a case designed for vertical gaming. It is possible, for example, to sometimes modify a horizontal cabinet to accept a vertical-mount monitor, but the reverse is generally not possible. Cabinets for the two types of orientation are built differently. The vertical cabinet will be a few inches narrower and shallower than the horizontal cabinet.

The point is that the style (horizontal or vertical) of a cabinet matters. Some will work for a particular multicade update and some won’t. Then there is the second issue of images not displaying correctly. Unless the multicade has planned to format a vertical game to display correctly on a horizontal monitor, there is no interchangeability. Bottom line: the multicade game orientation needs to be formatted correctly and then matched to the cabinet style.

So, in practice, what does all this mean?

1. If you want to play vertical classics only, then the iCade 60-in-1 is your best option. The cabinet would have to accept a vertically oriented monitor. And, depending on the size of the cabinet, the size of the monitor could be 19″ or 25″.
2. If you just want to play horizontal fighting classics, then the Capcom 18-in-1 would be a good choice. The cabinet would have to accept a horizontally oriented monitor. And, depending on the size of the cabinet, the size of the monitor could be 19″ or 25″.
3. If you want to play a mix of vertical and horizontal games, then the 1940-in-1 family of games is your best choice. The cabinet would have to accept a horizontally oriented monitor. And, the size of the monitor must be 25″ in order to present the images of vertical games in a size of approximately 17″ in height.