An arcade cabinet isn't usually what you'd expect to find in an Apple auction. But RR Auction's "Steve Jobs & the Computer Revolution: The Apple 50th Anniversary Auction Part Two" has done exactly that, listing a 1973 two-player Computer Space cabinet right alongside Apple's historical artifacts. That contrast alone is what makes this lot so interesting.
Manufactured by Nutting Associates, this cabinet was the follow-up to the original 1971 single-player Computer Space, designed by Syzygy Engineering co-founders Nolan Bushnell and Ted Dabney—the same two people who would later found Atari. In other words, this machine stands at a point before the video game industry was defined by Atari, one of the few physical pieces of evidence left from that blank space in history.
The cabinet is housed in bright green fiberglass with a retro-futuristic curved silhouette, looking more like a sculpture than an arcade machine in any collector's space. The control panel still retains its original layout: a 25-cent coin slot, a coin return button, a red "Start Game" button, a green "Two Player Operation" switch, and two original rotary joysticks, each topped with a red "Fire Missile" button. Seen through 2020s eyes, these details feel less like game parts and more like fossils of industrial design.
The cabinet's current owner is David Perry, programmer of Earthworm Jim and co-founder of cloud gaming company Gaikai—a man who built his career on digital gaming, yet keeps a piece of the analog-mechanical era on display in his private collection. That contrast is worth noting more than the cabinet's rarity itself.
The cabinet is in working condition, showing only minor wear, with the original screen and internal lighting still functional. For a vintage arcade machine like this, still being able to power on is part of its collector value—not every cabinet from that era has survived to still light up today.
Bidding is now open, with an estimate exceeding $20,000. The auction closes August 20, 2026 at 7 PM ET on RR Auction's online platform.
