lucifershalo Posted October 1, 2009 Share Posted October 1, 2009 What is your solution for games that needs special controls like ROBOTRON 2084 (2 joysticks) TRON (joystick + "paddle") etc ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VectorGamer Posted October 1, 2009 Share Posted October 1, 2009 (edited) What is your solution for games that needs special controls like ROBOTRON 2084 (2 joysticks) TRON (joystick + "paddle") etc ? First of all, my style is restoring arcade cabinets and adding as little as possible to the existing control panel in order to maintain a respectable appearance and the classic cabinet feel instead of looking like a modern MAME cabinet. Therefore, what I do is group games that have similar controls. What I plan on doing for Robotron would be to get Robotron itself or perhaps Joust that already has two joysticks. I should then be able to add a few extra buttons on the left hand side to play Defender and Stargate as well. With either setup, you already have two joysticks to work with. Tron is a different bear and I haven't given much thought to that. I would probably lean towards actually getting the cabinet itself just for the artistic value. You may be able to double it up for Breakout type games and perhaps games like Satan's Hollow that uses a joystick with trigger found in Tron. Red Baron would probably work as well. I've been able to push my Make Trax cabinet by using combination keys for menial tasks like One or Two Player start. I added two black buttons on the left hand side. The button on the far left is wired to ESC, next to it wired to X. I then use a combination of the X button and One Player or Two Player start buttons (found on the right hand side) to start the game (by pressing the X button simultaneously with One or Two Player start buttons). This frees up the 0ne and Two Player buttons to be used, in the example of Asteroids, as Fire and Thrust buttons. I can then use the "Up" on the joystick for Hyperspace and the obvious Left and Right to rotate left and right. To exit a game I use the combination of ESC and X buttons (since it was too easy to accidentally bump the ESC button if used by itself) and then the combo of ESC and Two Player start buttons to exit the MAME front End and shutdown the computer. You can search this forum and see the Galaga cabinet and Make Trax cabinets that I worked on. Edited October 1, 2009 by rmaerz 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lucifershalo Posted October 1, 2009 Author Share Posted October 1, 2009 that seems cool but i was thinking of classic mame emulation on a pc with usb controllers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VectorGamer Posted October 2, 2009 Share Posted October 2, 2009 that seems cool but i was thinking of classic mame emulation on a pc with usb controllers Ooops - I wasn't paying attn - I was thinking the post was in Arcade/Coin-Op forum... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
user42 Posted October 2, 2009 Share Posted October 2, 2009 Well there are some games that you will prob never be able to properly play...(Arm Champs...Prop Cycle....) but for the rest just get a good control panel with a couple sticks, spinner and a trackball and you can play 85%. I have an X-Arcade 2 player control panel that I have been slowly modding. Here it is, ready to go... First thing I did was to replace the player 1 stick with a 4-way/8-way switchable stick. This was the hardest because I had to cut the slot for the switch. I then changed the "Neo-Geo" buttons to mimic the originals. Like these.. And now I've added a spinner. I dropped it into a never used button hole. 90% of the time I game alone so I don't have to worry about it being in the way, but when I do have a friend over I can just slide the top off and it's game on. (I played a few games on that side and the small shaft doesn't really get in the way.) Next I plan on putting a new overlay on it to cover the X-Arcade logo, and mabey some new T-molding to match. I also plan on on trying to hack a trackball (from a trackball mouse) into the center. I have seen this done before but the website of the guy that did it is offline now. I guess I'll figure it out on my own... Anyways, in addition to that I also have a Logitech flight stick that makes for a good trigger stick on games that use one. Also here is something I have been working on lately.I looked all over and could not find a catlist for MAME that listed the games by controller type so for the last couple weeks I have used my free time to create one. This comes in handy when you "just want to play a spinner game" or the like... This is what I have so far... I'm sure I missed some and may have dropped a game or two into the wrong folder so please feel free to post with corrections or suggestions. A few notes: I did not do basic "4-way stick" or "8-way stick" yet, there are just too many. In the "Buttons Only" folder I left out all the poker/majong/fruit machine games (I'm most likely going to remove the J-quiz games soon). I feel like the driving section still needs some work. I have to say for an emulator that prides it self on accuracy MAME sure has ALOT of controls listed wrong.. I use this in MAMEUIFX32 but I think it should work in other MAME frontends. You just unzip this and put the .ini file into your "folders" folder (inside the MAME folder). Here you go... http://sharebee.com/3ab07c59 Enjoy! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lucifershalo Posted October 2, 2009 Author Share Posted October 2, 2009 thanks for your explanations , user42 I have a 2 player x arcade (but I cant make it work properly with Mame, lol, I know I am hopeless) if I could installing a spinner like you did I could play at most of the games I like, Tron, Tempest,etc I will give it some more tries this week end according to you MAMEUIFX32, is the best Mame Frontend? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VectorGamer Posted October 2, 2009 Share Posted October 2, 2009 (edited) The control panel User42 detailed is similar to what I was going to follow-up with this morning. You could build your own custom control panel from scratch and use a Hagstrom USB Keyboard encoder. But, the $100 price tag listed on xgaming.com makes it cheaper versus building your own. Also, for a front end I use Kyamera Edited October 2, 2009 by rmaerz Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lucifershalo Posted October 2, 2009 Author Share Posted October 2, 2009 ok, I will try both Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
user42 Posted October 2, 2009 Share Posted October 2, 2009 thanks for your explanations , user42 I have a 2 player x arcade (but I cant make it work properly with Mame, lol, I know I am hopeless) No prob. I think what you are looking for is this... if I could installing a spinner like you did I could play at most of the games I like, Tron, Tempest,etc The one I used is the TurboTwist 2™ http://groovygamegear.com/webstore/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=268&zenid=b71907f14db9efe9fcde896ab873e07b Super easy to install, all you need is a button sized hole. Base price is $69.95....but you either have to buy the "Energy Storage Cylinder" (+$5.95) (it's the fly wheel weight for the bottom) or buy one of the heavy metal knobs (+$9.95). Other wise it will feel really light and not spin right. Of course if you are putting it into the X-Arcade the "E.S.C." will not fit, just get a good knob. And I also added the "Accu-Twist™ System" (+$3.49) which is a piece of felt on the bottom of the knob and an adjustment screw w/ alan wrench. It also makes knob removal a snap. I will give it some more tries this week end according to you MAMEUIFX32, is the best Mame Frontend? I play on my PC so for me MAMEUIFX32 is the best. If you want a fully immersive arcade machine front-end...I'm sure there are better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
user42 Posted October 2, 2009 Share Posted October 2, 2009 Also if you are still having trouble getting the X-Arcade to work right, be sure you haven't changed from the default button set-up. Move the slider switch (on the back) over to the side where the cord comes out. Then press the button on the back twice. First time the light should go out, second it comes back on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lucifershalo Posted October 2, 2009 Author Share Posted October 2, 2009 thanks, user42 I know all that and did those things and still the X arcade doesnt respond Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+remowilliams Posted October 2, 2009 Share Posted October 2, 2009 (edited) I kept my MAME cabinet layout as clean as possible, I have a large Kensington optical trackball mouse that gets used as a trackball and (fairly successfully) for a bunch of analog/spinner controlled games. It's normally in the cabinet and velcro mounts in the middle of the sticks when used. The sticks I use are rotaries which also is handy Edited October 2, 2009 by remowilliams Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom-Lynx Posted October 2, 2009 Share Posted October 2, 2009 I use MAME a lot with the MAMEPlus front end gui, and I have multiple controllers: - 2 x wireless Logitech D-pad controllers ("Cordless RumblePad II") - 1 x Logitech flight command stick - 2 x Kensington rollerball mouse controllers ... and I'm still trying to get paddles to work with no success (any help?) I use a master controller default configuration that assumes the Logitech D-pad controllers. Then I override the default for individual games, for example: - for GORF, I plug in the flight command stick and program the trigger button to be the main action button - for Marble Madness, it allows two simultaneous players using rollerballs, so I switch that ROM to have Mouse input - for Robotron, I assign the buttons on the right of the D-Pad to fire in the correction up / left / down / right directions What is frustrating is that I sometimes do something stupid and the default controller file is changed and it wipes out all my individual customized game control settings, so I started keeping the CTRL directory in MAME backup up somewhere else. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
user42 Posted October 3, 2009 Share Posted October 3, 2009 thanks, user42 I know all that and did those things and still the X arcade doesnt respond Hum.... The only other easy problem that I can think of is, if you are connecting thru the keyboard port you need to restart the computer with it plugged in for it to work. If you have the USB adapter it should auto recoginize. But you prob know all that anyways.... Are you the first owner of this? Did it ever work for you? X-Arcade has a lifetime warranty so if it is really broken and you are the original owner and you haven't voided the warranty (like I have), you should be able to get it fixed for free. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lucifershalo Posted October 3, 2009 Author Share Posted October 3, 2009 working now.... do you have a special settings for dual joystick games like Robotron and Crazy Climber for the moment P1 joystick doesnt respond and P2 shoots in all directions but moves the character in only 2 directions for Robotron Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+SpiceWare Posted October 4, 2009 Share Posted October 4, 2009 What is your solution for games that needs special controls like ROBOTRON 2084 (2 joysticks) I use a PS2 to USB Adapter to play 2 joystick games like Crazy Climber, I picked the adapter up at Fry's. I map the D-Pad and buttons as the 2 joysticks. You can map the left/right analog sticks instead, I just like the more accurate control of the D-Pad and buttons. I also mapped Coin and Start to the Select and Start buttons so I don't have to take my hands off the controller to start the next game. TRON (joystick + "paddle") Haven't got a solution for this. I've tried using a PowerMate, but it didn't work that well. The Powermate works fine for its intended use, just not as a spinner in MAME. For paddle games I use a Stelladaptor and a pair of Atari paddles. For simpler (1 fire button) arcade games I often use an Atari joystick with the Stelladaptor instead of the PS2 joystick. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Inky Posted October 4, 2009 Share Posted October 4, 2009 I use a good USB controller with 4 action buttons in a cross formatiion (for robotron style games) and 2 shoulder buttons (for TRon -- map the dial to them) Work like a charm. Logitech has a few good inexpensive ones. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Random Terrain Posted October 4, 2009 Share Posted October 4, 2009 ROBOTRON works for me using the two thumbsticks on my USB controller: I just had to hit Tab and change the ROBOTRON settings for the right stick so it would work. Now I can use both thumbsticks (one for moving and the other for shooting). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Inky Posted October 5, 2009 Share Posted October 5, 2009 ROBOTRON works for me using the two thumbsticks on my USB controller: I just had to hit Tab and change the ROBOTRON settings for the right stick so it would work. Now I can use both thumbsticks (one for moving and the other for shooting). Hm.. I wonder how using the right stick to emulate the spinner , while using a shoulder button to fire in Tron would be.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scotty Posted October 5, 2009 Share Posted October 5, 2009 I had one of these many years ago (when I played Mame in Dos). It is long discontinued but they are still easy to find. Worked GREAT. Bad news is it is NOT USB. if memory serves, it requires a 9 pin serial and a 15 pin joystick connector that most modern PCs do not have. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hatta Posted October 19, 2009 Share Posted October 19, 2009 How well does a trackball emulate a spinner? They both freewheel and have a bit of inertia. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom-Lynx Posted October 19, 2009 Share Posted October 19, 2009 How well does a trackball emulate a spinner? They both freewheel and have a bit of inertia. It does work but it is too sensitive. I always fiddle with the settings in MAME to make a trackball less sensitive for paddle games. Overall, it's not the ideal solution, but it is better than the D-Pad or Joystick controllers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
user42 Posted December 13, 2009 Share Posted December 13, 2009 Seeing as I had posted earlier in this thread about my X-arcade modifications, I figure I give an update now that I am done. New overlay (designed by my wife) + new buttons + new T-molding = 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brojamfootball Posted December 13, 2009 Share Posted December 13, 2009 Seeing as I had posted earlier in this thread about my X-arcade modifications, I figure I give an update now that I am done. New overlay (designed by my wife) + new buttons + new T-molding = VERY nice retro look there with the woodgrain, and the choice of colors for those graphics just makes me wanna wear striped tube socks that go up to my knees with short-shorts. The graphics on the spinner look like they could give you an acid flashback when spinning. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Master Phruby Posted April 26, 2017 Share Posted April 26, 2017 Seeing as I had posted earlier in this thread about my X-arcade modifications, I figure I give an update now that I am done. CIMG2684.JPG CIMG2686.JPG CIMG2685.JPG New overlay (designed by my wife) + new buttons + new T-molding = I'm looking at doing something similar to my x-arcade duel stick. Do you still have the template? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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