I'll be honest. It is a watch review, after all. Nubeo ads followed me around the internet for months before I ever pulled the trigger, and I was skeptical. The watches looked like an absolute blast, but the pricing was all over the map: some models pushing past $600, others sitting closer to $150. Nothing about that spread inspired confidence. Then one day, browsing Watches.com like the responsible adult I am, I finally caved and bought the Arcade Forest.
I'm a huge vintage video game fan, so a watch shaped like an Atari 2600 was never going to be a hard sell for my brain, even if my wallet had questions. I'll admit I didn't read the spec sheet closely before it showed up, which is a rookie move for someone who writes watch reviews and has a collection I can't put in actual numbers in case the wife reads this. So when the box landed, I got a real surprise: this thing is big. Press start and prepare to commit some serious wrist real estate.
Case on the Nubeo Atari
The case is the whole concept here: a stainless steel slab shaped to mimic the Atari 2600 console itself, right down to the proportions. It measures 42mm across, 45mm lug to lug, and a genuinely substantial 16mm thick. I've reviewed a lot of watches, and I don't think I've ever worn one this thick. It sits high off the wrist in a way that's fun in short bursts and occasionally inconvenient, since I've caught it on doorframes and cuffs more than once. Consider this the boss-level warning before you buy.
Nubeo leaned all the way into the console homage, toggle-switch-style details, wood grain paneling on the lower dial, and a squared-off silhouette that has zero interest in looking like a normal watch. That's the appeal and also, a little bit, the problem. Where the crystal meets the case, the edge is sharper than I'd like, and it's snagged a couple pieces of clothing already. Not a dealbreaker, just something to be aware of before you sleeve it under a jacket.
The 26mm green rubber strap ties the whole retro-console look together nicely, and at 95 grams the watch itself isn't heavy so much as it is simply large. Big hitbox, low weight. Being 26mm lugs, it is on the harder end to find alternative straps. But this green one hits the vintage vibes just right.
Dial on the Nubeo Atari
The dial is a 3D-patterned tribute to the Atari 2600's faceplate, done up in vintage brown and grey tones with the Atari logo tucked into the corner. It's genuinely one of the more creative dial executions I've come across, more diorama than dial. The angled, multifaceted crystal is part of that effect, though it does mean the dial can get hard to read from certain angles, the visual equivalent of a graphics glitch depending on where the light hits.
Then the lights go out, and the whole thing changes character. The lume is legitimately excellent: hands, hour markers, and even the Atari logo itself all glow bright green, like the watch just entered its own attract mode. It's the kind of detail that makes you want to turn the lights off just to check on it again.
Movement & Features
Power comes from a Seiko NH35 automatic movement with a date function, visible through an exhibition case back that's arguably my favorite part of the whole watch. The NH35 is a workhorse in this price tier: hacking seconds, hand-winding capable, 24 jewels, and reliable enough that it shows up across a huge swath of the microbrand world. Here it's dressed up with a custom Atari-branded rotor in deep red that spins into view as you move your wrist, stamped "Limited Edition XXX/100," automatic, stainless steel, 24 jewels. Water resistance sits at 5 ATM, which is plenty for daily wear, though this is very much a wear-it-and-show-it-off piece rather than a tool watch.
Packaging and the Atari Collab
The box continues the theme with the same horizontal line pattern that shows up across Atari branding, and it's a fun little unboxing moment that fits the rest of the experience. This is a limited run, 100 pieces per colorway, and Nubeo put out the Arcade Forest alongside three siblings in this same Atari 2600 case shape: Radiant Ruby, Retro Void, and Joystick Shadow, each running the same $420 price point in its own finish.
This one now sits alongside my original Atari 2600 console, my official Atari decanter, and a growing pile of other nerdy watches I probably don't need but absolutely want. It's less a watch collection at this point and more a shrine.
Final Thoughts
Is the Arcade Forest worth $420 retail? That's a genuinely tough call. If you want something fun and conversation-starting rather than something serious, this is a great answer to that question. The movement underneath is legitimate, a real Seiko automatic with a proper exhibition case back, not just a novelty shell. But I'd still file this squarely under "fun money" watch spending rather than "serious collection" spending. I have nothing like this in my collection, and that should mean something.
I got mine on sale for around $350, which softens the math a bit. At full retail, it's harder to justify unless the Atari nostalgia is doing a lot of heavy lifting for you personally, which, fair, it did for me. With the whole run sold out now, that math is somewhat academic anyway, but keep it in mind if you spot one on the resale market and the seller is asking full price or more. Insert coin accordingly.
Specifications
Brand: Nubeo
Model: Arcade Forest (NB-6123-05), Console Automatic Atari 2600 Limited Edition
Other Colorways: Radiant Ruby, Retro Void, Joystick Shadow
MSRP: $420
Availability: Limited Edition; 100 pieces per variant
Case Size: 42.0mm
Case Thickness: 16.0mm
Lug to Lug: 45.0mm
Case Material: Stainless steel
Dial Color: Grey with Atari 3D console-inspired pattern
Lume: Swiss Newlite luminous on hands and dial
Crystal: Anti-reflection coated mineral crystal
Crown Type: Push/Pull
Strap: 26mm green rubber
Movement: Seiko NH35 automatic, 3 hands plus date, 24 jewels, exhibition case back Weight: 95g
Water Resistance: 5 ATM