Pfff, 20 grand? For 20 grand you could pick up something that would inspire WAY more envy in your friends...a IIDX cab for 12k, a Pop'n'music cab for 8k, or even InitialD Arcade Stage cab for 14k...

...or you know, go the oldschool route and grab an "OutRun!" cab from the dump and load mame onto it :P

So if the rest of Ford is any indication, can I expect the buttons to break a year after I get it? Will the seat stop sliding back and forth? Will people point and laugh at me, and call me a hick?

Oh I hope so. I also hope it comes with a Southern Cross flag on the back.

What a worthless piece.

This gives me an idea: why doesn't a person/arcade have PS3s, networked to play games and charge to play at the same rates as other machines that cost far more?

For 20 grand you could buy a PS3 off eBay, then take out an ad on every single local TV channel and gloat over your friends with it. You would get much more gloatin' out of that than having a freaking Ford arcade machine in your basement.

If you need to impress your friends THAT much, why not just bribe them with the 20 grand?

you could make one yourself for under 2000$ me thinks...

Why buy that when you can pick up a Ford for 20 grand.

Koy: Yes, you COULD, but you wouldn't have that find Ford Craftsmanship that we've all come to know and avoid like the plague.

$20k is actually probably on the midrange for arcade machines. Pinball machines range anywhere from $5k-$10k easily, and standard arcade machines (JAMMA connectors, so game hardware not included) also run $5k or so for the enclosure and TV tube. Then you still need the "guts" of the machine. (This is a bog-standard standup arcade machine). If you wanted one that has a larger screen and the player console is separate from the display, price goes up.

The DDR machines are often $15k by themselves, too. Arcade machines are often built by hand, and shipping's expensive. Plus there's no economy of scale.