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To me, Prime Day is a prime opportunity to finish my retro gaming room, and I bet I'm not the only one. While it's easy to throw a bunch of old consoles and games into a space and call it a day, it's those finishing touches that make all the difference. Adding furniture, décor, merch, and accessories into the mix can be an expensive endeavour, so using Amazon's Big Deal Days to your advantage will help stretch your pennies.
Yes, I know having a collection of the best retro consoles is what ultimately makes a gaming cave, and you might be able to find a few of those among other Prime Day gaming deals. However, as someone who covers vintage tech for a living, I find that the real challenge is finding discounts on everything else. That's especially true when it comes to avoiding garish gamer gear tropes and the same old Swedish flatpack bits. No offence, Billy, but you don't help my space feel special when you serve as a bookcase in 99% of rooms out there.
Admittedly, my retro gaming cave project has been going on for a while, and it's also ever-changing. I'm also somewhat restricted when it comes to some additions, as I'm working with a loft space with minimal vertical height to work with. You could say this humbles me in a way that will benefit most players, as it means my setup won't be ultra ambitious. That said, I've still been digging through Amazon for the best deals for the job, and I'm honestly surprised with how much you can get from the retailer.
Neon lighting
I'm being ultra careful here not to dip too far into ultra flashy RGB lighting territory, but neon-style LED lights are a big retro vibe. I've been looking for something that hits that classic arcade note while avoiding looking tacky, and Prime Day understands the assignment with this Mario-inspired Bob-omb sign. I showed it to the rest of the team and they confirmed it's stinkin' cute, and the fact it's got 30% off means I'm already hovering over the buy button.
There are seemingly endless Neon light options included in Big Deal Days, including lots of animals on skateboards doing ludicrous things like eating pizza. For those of you looking for something more high-spec, I'd recommend something like the Nanoleaf Lines kit, as I have it above my gaming desk in a rough Pac-Man shape. Seeing as it's down to $159.99 from $199.99, it's still $10 away from its lowest price at Amazon right now, so I am a little salty at that, but it definitely gives off a vibrant bright glow that could work in a retro-themed room.
Shelving
Look, I get it, furniture is never exciting, but you'll need something to sit your old consoles and games on. Trust me, I tried piling stacks of carts and cases on the floor for a while and was woken twice in the night by a Jenga tower toppling. For my specific attic space, I'm eyeing up these 3-tier open bookcases, as I'm planning to line them up where the roof starts to slope. They're down from $29.99 to $25.48, so not massively reduced, but still a nice cheap option for housing your physical collection.
I'm also heavily considering a much larger abstract 4-Tier shelving unit with a rustic vibe, as with a 45% discount kicking it to $87.99 from $159.99, it looks like it'll hold a bunch of retro consoles and microcomputers. My vision is that the middle shelf could hold one of my CRT TVs, allowing for each surrounding system to be connected while on display. I'm still trying to work out spacing, but if you're starting from scratch, it could be ideal.
Chairs
I'm currently rocking an old sofa bed I used to sleep on when I was between houses, and honestly? I could do with an upgrade. You'd think that I'd go for one of the best gaming chairs since they'd provide ergonomic support. But, I view the retro cave as an anti-work space, and the child in me wants a bean bag.
Specifically, I'm temped by this extra-large "Lazy Floor Sofa Couch" that's down to $159.19 (was $209.99), and the 24% Prime Day discount makes a huge difference here. If you're keeping things extra authentic like me and playing on an old CRT, you'll want to get close enough to the TV that you can hear your mom shout about ruining your eyes. It also feels a bit less permanent than buying an expensive suite, leaving you with a bit of room for future furniture ambitions.
Decorations
I'm going to pretend to be our Tabletop and Merch editor Benjamin Abbot and dive into the world of nerdy retro shenanigans. Sadly, my dream Lego set, the Mario 64 Question Block, has jumped back up in price, but there are still plenty of other building block offers. As a backup, I'm now considering the Super Mario Piranha Plant, as it's now going for $47.95 thanks to a 20% discount.
I've also been watching the Divoom Ditoo, as it doubles up as a decorative piece of pixel art and a Bluetooth speaker. It's currently sitting at $79.90, which is its lowest ever price. However, there's a sneaky extra 30% off coupon currently live on the page, meaning you can grab this retro-PC inspired gadget for $55.93.
Arcade machines
I've kept this roundup to mostly retro gaming room adjacent stuff until now, but companies like Arcade1up make arcade cabinet replicas that can completely transform your cave. I've actually been dreaming about the same Mortal Kombat Head-to-Head machine since July's Prime Day event, so I've added it back into my cart now that it's down to $299.99 from $399.99 again.
Arcade1Up knows how to do Prime Day, and you'll find numerous Arcade machines included in Amazon's Big Deal Days event. The key here is to gravitate towards the game, style, and size that best fits your specific space, but I'd honestly be happy with any of them.
Additional accessories
This roundup could go on forever if I dived into everything I'd buy for my retro gaming cave, so I've largely stuck with things that impact the room rather than consoles themselves. That said, there are some accessories I wouldn't sleep on if you're using a modern gaming TV like the OSSC. Short for "Open Source Scan Converter", the gadget will help bridge the gap between your old RGB-compatible systems with HDMI out, doubling each line of pixels to suit higher resolutions. It's currently down to $111.92 from $139.90 and well worth considering with 20% off.
I'll also include some other retro goodies down below, as Prime Day does work its magic on mini consoles, controllers, and more. Hopefully, my cart roundup will help provide some inspiration when putting together your own nostalgic room, whether you use Big Deal Days to save some cash or hold off till a later date.
