Better CPU for arcade-style gaming cabinet?

[redmachined]

I'm planning on building an arcade-style cabinet for old-school gaming, and I was surfing around the various sites looking for an appropriately-powerful processor. I have an ancient Athlon XP 3200+ box currently being used as a fileserver, but I'm not sure if it'll be enough. I'm currently looking at lower-level Pentiums, Core 2 Duos, and Atom processors. Problem is, I can't find any relevant Athlon XP benhcmarks to compare to an Atom.

I guess the question is: Is an Atom more powerful than an Athlon XP to the point that it would be better for an arcade-game PC setup?

 

[JofaMang]

It would really depend on what you want to play on the oldstyle arcade box. If you are talking PacMan and space invaders, then what you have should definitely be enough.

 

[redmachined]

I was thinking more along the lines of arcade and console homebrew stuff from, oh, 1997 and back. The most I would be playing is Street Fighter III 3rd Strike on Gametap.

edited for spelling. How did I misspell "fighter"? ffffffff.

 

[JofaMang]

I would still think that what you have should be powerful enough. Perhaps test it with the software before you build it into the cabinet to be sure. Street Fight III 3rd Strike will be more demanding, so test that one first to see if you can handle it. If not, the C2D will be your best bet, as I wouldn't trust an Atom to do that kind of work, and lower level pentiums won't be any better than your current set up anyhow.