So you want to build a fightstick?

The Case...

component price range: $10 (aliexpress) to like, $200+... check etsy? oh and there are some neat ones out there. Certaindeth is one company whose enclosures I like.

Ah, the enclosure. The thing that gets a bunch of cool stickers, and artwork, and weighs... an amount.. depending on the one you get. Some get real heavy! Be mindful of what an enclosure is made of when you're thinkin of buying one!

Material

The material of your enclosure doesn't matter too much, it just raises a few things to consider. If you've got a metal one, get some foam pads to stick on the bottom. Playing fighting games with bare metal on cold, bare thighs isn't always fun.

A couple of nonslip pads for the bottom of a fightstick.
Some foam pads. It's like, this nonslip plastic on one side, and adhesive on the other side. Kinda like a padded sticker, y'namsain?

and if your enclosure is made of ACRYLIC!! Be careful when you're screwing ANYTHING in. Screw stuff in until the screw stops moving, and NO FURTHER! Otherwise, you'll crack and break your acrylic. It is not a fun time...

A fightstick in an acrylic enclosure.
A neat little acrylic case.

Buttons

So, here's the thing about your enclosure: the amount of holes in it determines the amount of buttons you can install. This is important because some people want to use all of L3, R3, start, select, home, touchpad, share, but that adds up to, like, seven buttons! Some enclosures available are not made with that in mind, so take that into account when buying one.