Not the most exciting piece, but even boring control panel overlays have a place in arcade history. If you hung out at the arcade back in the late 80′s or early 90′s, you probably saw more than your fair share of generic control panel overlays.

This one is a standard space theme overlay, meant to be used with any number of space conversion kits or simply as a cheaper alternative to the pricey OEM* replacement parts. Operators were always looking for ways to save money and cheap, generic overlays were just one of those ways. Why spend $60 plus on a new overlay when you could by something generic for half the price. Even with declining profits, the games still required maintenance and cheap was the way to go.

Luckily this overlay was not used to convert a classic into some jamma abomination or other un-classic concoction. It has been made with quality materials, but with just two colors and no die cuts. Button hole locations would have been cut after application. I’ll archive this one before it tries to attach itself to some classic cp. Happy gaming.

*original equipment manufacturer

Tags: arcade game artwork, control panel overlay, cpo, NOS, space theme, video game artwork

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