Polycade builds arcade machines for homes and bars: wall-mounted cabinets that run retro classics and modern indie games from one library. The company was started by Tyler Bushnell, whose dad Nolan founded Atari and Chuck E. Cheese, so the bar for “does this feel like a real arcade” was set about as high as it goes.
I worked closely with Tyler on a small team in Los Angeles, and my part covered most of the stack.
The Polycade software page, with the cabinet’s filter panel behind the headline.
What I built
- The software inside the cabinet. The interface people actually play on: one library for games from Steam, GOG, itch.io and pre-configured emulators, built to be driven entirely with a joystick and buttons.
- The connection layer. The internal software that links each cabinet back to Polycade, so accounts, scores and leaderboards follow players from machine to machine.
- polycade.com. The site that explains the machines and sells them.
- Their social media presence, alongside the product work.
polycade.com in October 2026, with the library running on the cabinet’s screen.