Raspberry Pi Gaming thread - Cheap emulation and gaming projects

Ah thanks very much.
There's also a way to do it directly from the Terminal. Not as user friendly, but good practice for all the command line stuff you'll need to learn once you get it up and running.

Excited to see how people find the Pi Zero to work out. Could be fantastic for small builds.
 
I'm prepared to use Terminal if I have to. I'm away this weekend. Got the mag but can't do anything until after the weekend.

Just ordered the Raspberry Pi Zero adapter kit and a USB SNES controller from eBay. I think I'm also gonna have to order the wifi dongle aren't I?

Doom machine & MAME.
 
I'm using a Raspberry Pi 2 and Metroid Zero Mission won't boot for me. It just automatically cancels back to retropie. Is that game just not compatible or is something wrong on my end?

Also N64 is way more messed up than I though it'd be. A lot of games have unreadable text and the player models colors look way off. Also RE2 won't even boot. I got the impression the n64 was just going to be a bit sluggish, but didn't expect all these graphical glitches.
 
I ordered a PiCade at Pimoroni since it was 25% off - https://shop.pimoroni.com/collections/picade-and-arcade/products/picade

YOLO

Picade_e88be47c-06d6-4fe8-a914-629bd9d58e0b_1024x1024.JPG
 
Got back into the software configuration of Retropie and I have some questions:

1- How can I control the volume?
My sound comes out in a USB soundbar and is very high. I have tried setting up volume controles with these lines in the cfg file.
Code:
input_volume_up = "h0up"
input_volume_down = "h0down"
input_audio_mute = "h0left"

along with
audio_volume = -10.0

2- I have a USB controller (mapped to arcade buttons) and a NES30 Bluetooth controller. I'd like them to be both player One as I'd like to have the choice. However when I start an emulator with the USB controller, it acts as controller 2. Any tips?
 
I did post my unfinished setup recently but today I had the chance to finish it with the help of a friend.

Here is a picture of all the pieces before the assemby:



And here's the finished product.

I still need to clean up the wires inside the cabinet, wire two extra buttons (for managing purposes) and polish the software setup but it's finally here!
Oh wow! Any chance of listing the components? Did you get a USB controller interface (I think I see it in there) or direct to GPIO?

It's wonderful we get to see this sort of thing with repurposed, essentially pre-made mini cabinets like the old iCades. So easy to come by! Just a shame there's no easy way to 'tate the screen and keep it looking nice.


Edit: Oh, one of those is the video/screen controller I think. Confusion abated.
 
I did post my unfinished setup recently but today I had the chance to finish it with the help of a friend.

Here is a picture of all the pieces before the assemby:



And here's the finished product.

I still need to clean up the wires inside the cabinet, wire two extra buttons (for managing purposes) and polish the software setup but it's finally here!

What are your thoughts on the 8bitdo controller? Been thinking about picking one up but as I already have a PS3 controller I could use I'm not sure whether the expense is worth it.
 
Just ordered a Pi 2 and a 32GB memory card to house what I hope will become the perfect emulation setup for game nights with friends at my house.

Everything arrives on Wednesday, so I'll hop back in here and post my results when all is said and done.

The setup process looks to be very straightforward these days for Retropie, so a big hats off to the devs for continuing to improve it and make the initial setup increasingly intuitive. The only real serious tinkering I'll have to do it messing around with the config files for each emulator to set my preferred visual filters and control configs. When it comes to NES/SNES/Genesis, I'm all about those CRT filters that simulate the gamma, scanlines, and slight color bleed of old TV's.

Edit: I'm seeing conflicting reports everywhere. What is the best SNES core/emulator to use for maximum speed and compatibility? I want to be able to play FX-chip games like Yoshi's Island at full speed if possible. It seems like the default core (Snes 9X) has issues with more demanding games. Coming from using Bsnes on the PC for SNES emulation, I'm a stickler for emulation accuracy as well. It spoiled me.
 
What are your thoughts on the 8bitdo controller? Been thinking about picking one up but as I already have a PS3 controller I could use I'm not sure whether the expense is worth it.

I have one, and it controls very well. However, since it has a rechargeable battery for wireless bluetooth usage, every time I plug it into a Raspberry Pi, it tries to charge and eats up too much power (warning icon pops up).
 
How does one go about forcing 720p output for Retropie? Is it a value that needs to be changed in a cfg file somewhere?

I have a 1080p TV, but I want to use 720p output for performance reasons.
 
What are your thoughts on the 8bitdo controller? Been thinking about picking one up but as I already have a PS3 controller I could use I'm not sure whether the expense is worth it.

I wanted a (S)NES-like controller for old console games. I have already PS3/4/XB360 controllers but I wanted a special controller just for this one. It's a small, fine controller.

Oh wow! Any chance of listing the components? Did you get a USB controller interface (I think I see it in there) or direct to GPIO?

It's wonderful we get to see this sort of thing with repurposed, essentially pre-made mini cabinets like the old iCades. So easy to come by! Just a shame there's no easy way to 'tate the screen and keep it looking nice.

Edit: Oh, one of those is the video/screen controller I think. Confusion abated.

Quick list
  • Raspberry Pi 2
  • 10 inches LCD screen
  • iCade
  • USB joystick wired to the iCade's controls (which is *inside* the controller component)
  • Bluetooth USB dongle
  • USB speaker bar
  • (Extra) NES30 BT controller
 
I did post my unfinished setup recently but today I had the chance to finish it with the help of a friend.

Here is a picture of all the pieces before the assemby:



And here's the finished product.

I still need to clean up the wires inside the cabinet, wire two extra buttons (for managing purposes) and polish the software setup but it's finally here!

Good work! Nice to see other Raspberry Pi Arcade cabinets.
 
You guys have made some really cool stuff.
I'm probably staying simple with my current plans, but Christmas will be my first foray with raspberry pi. Put together a list of specific items needed to get started.

I've read the op, but was curious, do you provide your own emulators or are they built into Retropi.
I believe I saw someone show a screen with MAME on it, is that included?
 
Just ordered a Pi 2 and a 32GB memory card to house what I hope will become the perfect emulation setup for game nights with friends at my house.

Everything arrives on Wednesday, so I'll hop back in here and post my results when all is said and done.

The setup process looks to be very straightforward these days for Retropie, so a big hats off to the devs for continuing to improve it and make the initial setup increasingly intuitive. The only real serious tinkering I'll have to do it messing around with the config files for each emulator to set my preferred visual filters and control configs. When it comes to NES/SNES/Genesis, I'm all about those CRT filters that simulate the gamma, scanlines, and slight color bleed of old TV's.

Edit: I'm seeing conflicting reports everywhere. What is the best SNES core/emulator to use for maximum speed and compatibility? I want to be able to play FX-chip games like Yoshi's Island at full speed if possible. It seems like the default core (Snes 9X) has issues with more demanding games. Coming from using Bsnes on the PC for SNES emulation, I'm a stickler for emulation accuracy as well. It spoiled me.

Ah sounds good. Post results and components please.

I've got components ordered. I want Doom & Mame. I'm not interested in legacy console emulation.

But, I'm using a Raspberry Pi Zero. Just downloaded Noobs and Raspian and gonna transfer that over to the Micro SD when I get home from work.
 
But, I'm using a Raspberry Pi Zero.

Id be interested to see how these compared to Pi2 on speed of emulation.

You may find problems with emulation station with the 512Mb of RAM if you have a LOT of games (few thousand +), as I hit this problem on Pi2 with double the RAM.
 
Id be interested to see how these compared to Pi2 on speed of emulation.

You may find problems with emulation station with the 512Mb of RAM if you have a LOT of games (few thousand +), as I hit this problem on Pi2 with double the RAM.

How many games do you have? I have a few thousand too and was thinking SNES emulation -- which was pretty great before -- seemed a bit off...
 
Ah sounds good. Post results and components please.

I've got components ordered. I want Doom & Mame. I'm not interested in legacy console emulation.

But, I'm using a Raspberry Pi Zero. Just downloaded Noobs and Raspian and gonna transfer that over to the Micro SD when I get home from work.

There's no need to have Noobs or Raspbian on your Pi if you're not gonna tinker with programming, etc. The RetroPie installer already contains all the Raspbian OS it needs to work.

RetroPie has MAME and DOOM WAD support already built-in, and automatically boots on power up. I couldn't figure out how to get that to work when I tried having both RetroPie and Noobs on the same SD card.

(You can also go into the config files and "comment out" any consoles you don't want appearing in the launcher)
 
How many games do you have? I have a few thousand too and was thinking SNES emulation -- which was pretty great before -- seemed a bit off...

Hm, how do you mean? Emulation performance worsened after you added a bunch of ROMs to Emulation Station? I can't imagine how or why the number of ROMs on the SDCard would affect performance.
 
Does anyone have any experience with emulating dos on a Pi 2? I don't have a massive catalog, but I'm dreaming big with thoughts of playing Raptor, Call of the Shadows on the buffalo controller. I'm searchin' online for the successes of others, but always hold GAF's opinions in high regard.
 
Is there a way to "select" which controller you want to use in Retroarch?

I have a USB gamepad always connected to the Pi and a Bluetooth controller. If I start an emu with the USB, I want it to be player 1 and if I start the emu with the BT controller, I want it to be player 1.

I tried several configs without any success.

(You can also go into the config files and "comment out" any consoles you don't want appearing in the launcher)

Can I ask you please which config files you're talking about? :)
 
If someone is interested, i made this sketch for an arcade stick panel

ArcadeStickPanel-SVG

it's a six button layout with two extra buttons (start player 1 and coin), the buttons have a 30mm diametre and the screw holes are fitted for a sanwa stick

i ordered a 3mm thick plexiglass plate for less than 10€ and all the parts fitted perfectly

the sketch was made with the open source software inkspace

edit: it was less than 10 not 1 euro
 
If someone is interested, i made this sketch for an arcade stick panel

ArcadeStickPanel-SVG

it's a six button layout with two extra buttons (start player 1 and coin), the buttons have a 30mm diametre and the screw holes are fitted for a sanwa stick

i ordered a 3mm thick plexiglass plate for less than 10€ and all the parts fitted perfectly

the sketch was made with the open source software inkspace

edit: it was less than 10 not 1 euro

Thanks for sharing! This looks really tempting. Has anyone printed out two (or dare I mention it, 3 or 4?) player cabinet builds? This thread has been candy for my eyes.
 
My apologies, I'm not sure if this fits into this thread but I don't see much Lakka talk on gaf after searching. I have an old laptop with a broken keyboard, everything else works fine. I was considering a Pi retro machine but given the laptop just sits around now I might use that. Anyone have experience in Lakka? Other better options?
 
Alright, so I got my Raspberry Pi 2 last night and configured it for Retropie. Everything is working pretty great so far, but I have a few lingering questions:

  • Holding X when booting into a ROM doesn't do anything. I see people everywhere claiming that it should bring up a menu that let's you choose the emulator/core as well as setting resolution output for a given emulator. I have the controls set to the defaults for Retropie, and I'm using a Buffalo SNES controller.
  • I can't seem to access the service menu in the default lbr-fba-next emulator for Neo-Geo. People seem to be able to do it, but I'm having a hard time figuring out how. I just want to access it for things like turning blood red in Metal Slug games and setting the region.
  • When people are suggesting 720p for improved performance, do they mean setting their actual Raspberry Pi to output all the time at 720p, or would it suffice to set specific emulators (like SNES, for example) to output at 720p? I'm just asking because with everything at default games like Yoshi's Island on Snes9x-next have a few hitches here and there that I'd like to iron out.

For reference I'm running on a Raspberry Pi 2 and using the Pi 2 overclocking setting.
 
Sorry if this has been asked before, but how well do the Pi 2 and Pi Zero handle CPS3 emulation (if either of them can at all)? I'm torn between the two as an attachment to an old hotrod arcade stick. I figure the Zero probably would have issues running it, but if the Pi 2 can't handle it either, I'd just probably go for the Zero since that would otherwise handle the kind of games I'd be loading onto it.
 
Sorry if this has been asked before, but how well do the Pi 2 and Pi Zero handle CPS3 emulation (if either of them can at all)? I'm torn between the two as an attachment to an old hotrod arcade stick. I figure the Zero probably would have issues running it, but if the Pi 2 can't handle it either, I'd just probably go for the Zero since that would otherwise handle the kind of games I'd be loading onto it.

My pi2 works flawlessly with FBA cps3.
 
Took a bit, but my package arrived. Looking forward to putting this together this weekend. (Bonus cat; if there's a box, there's a cat to be found, trying to get into said box.)

20151204_1030313zr39.jpg
 
I think my Raspberry Pi Zero is coming next week hopefully, will give feedback on it.


Might be thinking of making a case for it.
 
Keen to hear how it goes speed/emu-wise. I'd assume it's not all that different from the Pi 2, given most emulators probably only use a single core anyway.

In any case, can you test the Genesis/MD and CPS stuff? Maybe Amiga as well?
 
Keen to hear how it goes speed/emu-wise. I'd assume it's not all that different from the Pi 2, given most emulators probably only use a single core anyway.

In any case, can you test the Genesis/MD and CPS stuff? Maybe Amiga as well?

Pi2 has a much higher IPC per core than pi1/zero. A 900 Mhz pi2 core is waaaay faster than a 1000 MHz pi1/core.
 
Anyone using the GPIO pins on a RPi2? I'm using two of them for emulators via the Adafruit-Retrogame program and it worked for a while but for some unknown reasons, it doesn't work now.

Is there a voltage limit linked to the USB ports? I thought that the pins might not receive enough power but after unplugging everything, it didn't do the trick.

And can I update individuals emulators? I know I can install them but can this option be used for updates as well?
 
Is this something I can get by simply walking into a store, or do I have to order online?

I'm in SF, btw.
 
Pi2 has a much higher IPC per core than pi1/zero. A 900 Mhz pi2 core is waaaay faster than a 1000 MHz pi1/core.
Ah. I don't know what that means, but I'll assume that it means there's still quite a bit of performance difference between the Zero and the 2.

Question still remains though, what's the upper limit of what the Zero will run flawlessly? I'm not thinking 3D stuff, just Neo-Geo, Megadrive, CPS2/3, Midway MK/NBA Jam-era arcade etc.

But it sucks for everything that requires a D-Pad.

The real answer is the 8bitdo nes30pro

NES30-Pro.jpg
I'm itching to get one of these, but one of my caveats was that it would work as an MFi device on iOS. I think it *did* at one stage, but now isn't supported officially :/
 
Ah. I don't know what that means, but I'll assume that it means there's still quite a bit of performance difference between the Zero and the 2.
Yep, it means that the pi2 does more work per MHz than what the zero does. IPC means Instruction Per Cycle, and it's the average number of instructions executed for each clock cycle. A 900 MHz pi2 core could easily compare to a 1400-1600 MHz Pi1/Zero. And it has four of them.

Question still remains though, what's the upper limit of what the Zero will run flawlessly? I'm not thinking 3D stuff, just Neo-Geo, Megadrive, CPS2/3, Midway MK/NBA Jam-era arcade etc.
Yes, that should be good, even some snes should play fine.
 
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