Fix orientation of joystick to buttons on Jakks Pacific Retro Arcade Pac-Man?

[snorpmeister]

Recently purchased a Jakks Pacific Retro Arcade pacman "TV Games" unit. Unfortunately it has the buttons on the left but not the right. In that configuration I won't be able to enjoyably play any game on it requiring a button.

Can I open it up and rotate the joystick portion so that the button controls are at least at the bottom of the unit? That would be helpful. A few more questions:

1) Has anyone been able to mod this Retro Arcade pacman to work with an XArcade or other pre-built controls unit? I have basic soldering skills--but *verrrry* basic. Beginner level.

2) What is the games engine on this unit? Read somewhere that it was an NES, so it's just playing NES emulations of the games. Major bummer if so. I was hoping it was based on the original cab chips--or at least emulated to look and play as close to the originals as possible.

3) If not 2, do other units more faithfully emulate the games? I know there are several different Jakks units out there that have Galaga, etc. Any variation in the games engine between them?

4) Is the Retro Arcade Pac-man unit an 8 or a 4 way stick? I really want good action for Pacman. With an 8 way stick, I'm going to miss turns and be gobbled by ghosts. If 8 way, can the thing be purposely crippled to make it 4 way? e.g. disconnecting the diagonal connections in some way? Or would that still not give me what I'm after?

[Well Fed Games]

These units have definitely been used with arcade controls- search for "Jakks" and you will find some cool examples. I have one in the queue to make a bartop out of.

They are not the arcade ROMs, instead fairly good emulations, for horizontal screens. The emulation varies, though... the Xevious on the 12-in-1 unit is a little wonky. It is better on the original Ms. Pac Stick.

[snorpmeister]

These units have definitely been used with arcade controls- search for "Jakks" and you will find some cool examples. I have one in the queue to make a bartop out of.

They are not the arcade ROMs, instead fairly good emulations, for horizontal screens. The emulation varies, though... the Xevious on the 12-in-1 unit is a little wonky. It is better on the original Ms. Pac Stick.

Thanks Fearsome. That's the idea--to make a "MAME" machine that's as simple as possible. When you say emulation, do you mean the original ROM code being emulated in MAME-like software? Or do you mean the games are knock-offs / recreations of the originals (like how the NES and SNES systems, if I recall correctly, had versions of Ms Pacman, Galaga, etc)?

[Well Fed Games]

These units have definitely been used with arcade controls- search for "Jakks" and you will find some cool examples. I have one in the queue to make a bartop out of.

They are not the arcade ROMs, instead fairly good emulations, for horizontal screens. The emulation varies, though... the Xevious on the 12-in-1 unit is a little wonky. It is better on the original Ms. Pac Stick.

Thanks Fearsome. That's the idea--to make a "MAME" machine that's as simple as possible. When you say emulation, do you mean the original ROM code being emulated in MAME-like software? Or do you mean the games are knock-offs / recreations of the originals (like how the NES and SNES systems, if I recall correctly, had versions of Ms Pacman, Galaga, etc)?

I believe, NES- style recreations. I've seen some discussion about it here and at the atari age forums.

[snorpmeister]

These units have definitely been used with arcade controls- search for "Jakks" and you will find some cool examples. I have one in the queue to make a bartop out of.

They are not the arcade ROMs, instead fairly good emulations, for horizontal screens. The emulation varies, though... the Xevious on the 12-in-1 unit is a little wonky. It is better on the original Ms. Pac Stick.

Thanks Fearsome. That's the idea--to make a "MAME" machine that's as simple as possible. When you say emulation, do you mean the original ROM code being emulated in MAME-like software? Or do you mean the games are knock-offs / recreations of the originals (like how the NES and SNES systems, if I recall correctly, had versions of Ms Pacman, Galaga, etc)?

I believe, NES- style recreations. I've seen some discussion about it here and at the atari age forums.

Thanks Fearsome. Blech, NES! Oh well, nice idea to use the Jakks as a super-cheap MAME but that's out now. I want something more authentic.

[snorpmeister]

If the Jakks Pacific games all use NES emulations (blech), what about the retro games collections for the PS2 (Playstation 2), Original Xbox, etc? e.g. Namco museum, the various Midway and Taito collections, etc?

Are these what I call recreations (like NES or SNES) or are they the original game code being emulated on the console?

And what about classic games collections like Namco Museum on the latest consoles like Xbox 360 and PS3? I've been looking at various JAMMA X-in-one boards but:

1) Probably beyond my present capabilities to incorporate
2) I've read a lot of complaints about them online

Seems like using a console might be the easiest path to classic games--but I want them to be as close to the real classics as possible.

Or what about using an old Pocket PC having a VGA output with legally purchased MAME roms? Presuming I can legally purchase ROM images of MS Pacman, Track and Field, Galaga, Jungle Hunt, Satan's Hollow, etc.

Snorpmeister

[Well Fed Games]

Seems like using a console might be the easiest path to classic games--but I want them to be as close to the real classics as possible.

If you have a console on hand, the emulation is usually pretty good with these modern arcade ports. Of course, I learned Pac Man on an Atari 5200, so when someone tells me MAME is accurate emulation, I have to take their word for it. I've played way more emulations than actual machines, due to my age and where I grew up.

One problem is that many classics are vertically oriented games, but the console ports will almost always be made for normal horizontal TVs, so there is empty space on the screen. Also, some games (Satan's Hollow, which you mention, for example) have never been ported to a modern system, as far as I know (I have a thing for console ports of arcade games).

All that said, if you have say, an old TV and a Gamecube lying around, grabbing a copy of http://www.metacritic.com/game/gamecube/namco-museum-50th-anniversary and hacking a pad to some arcade controls is a quick way to get a multi-game cabinet.

There are also several good collections (namco, SNK, Capcom, Metal Slug) for the PS2.

[snorpmeister]

If you have a console on hand, the emulation is usually pretty good with these modern arcade ports. Of course, I learned Pac Man on an Atari 5200, so when someone tells me MAME is accurate emulation, I have to take their word for it. I've played way more emulations than actual machines, due to my age and where I grew up.

One problem is that many classics are vertically oriented games, but the console ports will almost always be made for normal horizontal TVs, so there is empty space on the screen. Also, some games (Satan's Hollow, which you mention, for example) have never been ported to a modern system, as far as I know (I have a thing for console ports of arcade games).

All that said, if you have say, an old TV and a Gamecube lying around, grabbing a copy of http://www.metacritic.com/game/gamecube/namco-museum-50th-anniversary and hacking a pad to some arcade controls is a quick way to get a multi-game cabinet.

There are also several good collections (namco, SNK, Capcom, Metal Slug) for the PS2.

Thanks Fearsome. I picked up Midway Treasures volume 1 for the PS2 and it has a pretty good rendition of Satan's Hollow. If it ain't from the original ROM, it's as close as I need it to be:
http://www.amazon.com/Midway-Arcade-Treasures-Playstation-2/dp/B0000AHOYR/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1311713211&sr=8-1

Can I hook-up an Xarcade stick to a PS2? Or some sort of 4 way joystick? Because I also have Namco Museum for the PS2. I have an old original Xbox laying around and an old Dreamcast as well. Didn't think about the GameCube. Thanks for the link. Will check that out.

Still confused about 8 way vs. 4 way joysticks. Because I mostly only care about 4 way control, can I disconnect / burn connects to the diagonals in an 8 way stick?

[BobA]

Still confused about 8 way vs. 4 way joysticks. Because I mostly only care about 4 way control, can I disconnect / burn connects to the diagonals in an 8 way stick?

4 ways and 8 ways have only 4 switches.  It is the physical arrangement of the actuator and or restrictor that makes the difference.  The only other way is a stick such as the ultrastick 360 that is electronically controlled. Or a magstik plus that can be switched from 4 way to 8 way from the top of the panel.

Either that or put in and 8 way and a 4 way connected to the same inputs and switch the ground to activate the stick.

[Well Fed Games]

I had forgotten Satan's Hollow was on there. I think that was one that required an analog controller (PS2 Dual Shock) to work some or all of the games (i.e., not compatible with my Hori Tekken 5 stick for PS2), so I sold it. Taito Volume 1 Wouldn't even start with an arcade stick attached (but Volume 2 does, and it rocks.)

That Namco Collection was on PS2, as well.

[snorpmeister]

I had forgotten Satan's Hollow was on there. I think that was one that required an analog controller (PS2 Dual Shock) to work some or all of the games (i.e., not compatible with my Hori Tekken 5 stick for PS2), so I sold it. Taito Volume 1 Wouldn't even start with an arcade stick attached (but Volume 2 does, and it rocks.)

That Namco Collection was on PS2, as well.

Were there any other arcade sticks made specifically for the PS2 that I could look at for a classic gaming experience? Esp. one with a 4/8 way switcher. Wish they made Track and Field for the PS2 or original Xbox. Was browsing on Amazon the other day for other PS2 class games collections. Saw Konami Classics Volume 2 for the Xbox 360 has Track and Field on it. Anyone here played that? If so, how does it compare to the original? It also has Rush 'N Attack, which is another one of my favorites. If I'm remembering correctly it's a side-scroller similar to Rolling Thunder.

If I wanted to go for a PS3 or an Xbox 360 as a platform for classic gaming, which is better and why? (assuming the collections I want are made for both platforms). With these consoles, do they allow you to copy purchased games to the hard drives? Or are the hard drives just for audio, game saves, online gaming, etc? The disadvantage of one of these consoles would be having to swap out DVDs when wanting to play different games collections vs. having MAME and a front-end for it.

[snorpmeister]

Any ideas?