Finding the right build and reading a build post

Arcade Punks has thousands of builds, so the trick is knowing where to look and what to check before you download 500GB of the wrong thing. Here is how the site is laid out and how to read a build post.

How the menus are organised

The main menu groups builds by the kind of device they run on, then by the exact device or front end. The main areas are:

• Raspberry Pi and SBC images (shown as RPI & SBC Images): builds for the Pi Zero, Pi 3, Pi 4, Pi 5 and other single board computers, split by board. For example, RPI & SBC Images, then Raspberry Pi 4 Images.
• PC front ends: Windows and bootable PC builds, split by front end, such as Batocera PC builds, LaunchBox/BigBox builds and HyperSpin Attraction builds.
• Handheld: handheld devices, including the Steam Deck section and the PS Vita.
• Consoles: moddable consoles such as the original Xbox, PS2, Wii U, NES Classic and Nvidia Shield.
• Guides: how-to articles like What Size SD Card or Drive Do I Need? and How to Write a Retro Gaming Image to an SD Card, SSD or USB Drive, all in the Guides category.

Start with your device, not the front end. A brilliant Batocera build is no use if it was made for a different board to yours.

Using search

The site search works well if you include your device. Try things like “Pi 5 Batocera”, “Steam Deck”, “RetroBat” or “CoinOPS”. 8-Bit Buddy can search the site for you too: type what you are after and it will pull up matching builds and guides.

Reading a build post

Every build post is laid out a little differently, because each one is written up for that release, but these are the things to look for, in this order.

1. The device. Which exact hardware it was made for. “Pi 4” and “Pi 5” are not interchangeable, and a Windows build will not run on a Pi. If it does not match your device, stop here.
2. The front end. Batocera, RetroBat, CoinOPS, HyperSpin and so on. This tells you whether it is a bootable image or a Windows folder build. If you are unsure what that means, see Builds, images and front ends explained.
3. The size. How big the build is once unpacked, which tells you what card or drive you need. Always buy a size up: a 256GB build wants a 512GB card. See What Size SD Card or Drive Do I Need? and The image will not fit on my card.
4. The systems and features. Which consoles and arcade systems are included, and any notes about performance.
5. The video. Many posts have a preview video. Watching it is the quickest way to see whether you like the look of a build before you download it.
6. The instructions. Setup notes, such as drive letters for Windows builds, first-boot advice or extra runtimes you need to install. Read them before you start; they save a lot of head-scratching.
7. The download box. Right at the bottom of the post. This is where the download links live.

The download box at the bottom

If you are not logged in, the box says “You need to be logged in to see the download links” with Login and Register free buttons. Registering is free. Once you are logged in you will see the release name, then the NZB button (the recommended way), a short Step 1 and Step 2 with a link to the Quick Start guide, and then other options as icons: Torrent, NZB, Google Drive, Mega.nz, RapidGator, Dropbox, MediaFire, 1fichier and Other. Some builds also offer Usenet Share. Not every build has every option. The full tour is in How downloading works.

The comments

The comments under a build are gold. People post fixes, tips and questions about that exact build, and the comments are the right place to ask for help with it. The tech team answers build questions there rather than through the contact form.

Still stuck? Read Which device should I use? if you are unsure what you need, I cannot see the download links if the box is empty, or ask on our Discord.