Super Mario Strikers - Arcade Edition

[8BitMonk]

Super Mario Strikers - Arcade Edition

My first bartop build and first time using SketchUp. I'm a little hesitant to call it a bartop, it's quite a bit larger and heavier than I anticipated, more of a mini-cade than a bartop. 



I'm a huge soccer fan/player and Super Mario Strikers is one of my favorite games. I've wanted to build a 2-player bartop for awhile and thought it'd be cool to theme it with my take on what an arcade version of SMS might look like. My goal besides having it play SMS (in Dolphin) as perfectly as possible is to be able to play Mame games with HLSL enabled and newer arcade friendly Steam games.

** A couple of interesting facts about SMS, it was the only Mario GameCube game to support 16:9 and 480p and it was the last Mario game made for the GameCube.

Parts List
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Lumber - One 4x8’ sheet of 3/4" and one 4x8' sheet of 1/2" black melamine coated MDF
Monitor - 23" Apple Cinema Display (decased)
Bezel - Glass (dark gray tint), black matte board
Marquee - Plexiglass, black upper/lower retainer, GGG Novamatrix
Misc. - 2" piano hinge, car door edge guard 3 outlet power strip, Rubber feet, Apexstone gas springs x2, tubular cam lock
Electronic - Momentary switch (red),  marquee switch, AC outlet fused, Neutrik USB feedthroughs x2
Encoders - Kade MiniArcade x2
Joysticks - Sanwa JLF-TP-8YT (PAS Silent Mod) x2
Buttons - Seimitsu PS-15 30mm x4 (light gray), Sanwa OBSF-30 (Green, Red, Yellow, Purple x2, Black x4), Sanwa OBSF-24 (White x2)
Computer - Intel Core i3-4170, ASRock H97M-ITZX 1150, 8Gb ram, 430w PSU, 120Gb SSD GTX 750 Ti
Audio - Lepai LP-2020 Amp, Rockford Fosgate 4" Prime speakers
Control Panel - 16 gauge stainless steel
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[8BitMonk]

The one piece of hardware I knew I was going to use on this project was a 23" Apple Cinema Display. I have a couple I purchased cheap off of Craigslist lying around. SMS in 16:9 looks a little squashed to me so decided I wanted a monitor that was 16:10 and these fit the bill. The only downside is that they are comparatively heavy. They are good quality monitors though and were $3500 back in their day.


De-casing the monitor you wind up with something like the image below:



While it doesn't have a VESA mount, there are metal flanges on the sides so it's pretty easy to make a mount. As the picture shows, the monitor bottom will rest on a board with slots cut in it to support the weight while the top will lean up against another piece. The width of the cab is based off of the monitor, ~24".

With the monitor de-cased and measured I was able to do a basic mock-up in SketchUp. I didn't follow any other design exactly, I just borrowed looks from existing cabs and bartops and winged it. Once I was happy with the design I printed out some measurements to create my side piece.



I transferred the measurements to matte board and cut it out to trace on the melamine coated MDF. I decided to use 3/4" for the sides and bottom, I like the way 3/4" t-molding looks better. I cut the first side with a jigsaw and used it as a template to do the final side pieces with a router.



After doing the slot cutting for the t-molding and the square bottom and monitor support pieces I was ready for basic assembly. I like using a Kreg Jig and pocket screws, super simple, really strong and you don't have to mess with battens. Below you can see the bottom attached to the sides along with the monitor support piece which was then slot cut with a Dremel to rest the monitor in.

[two40]

Off to a flying start. 

That's one big screen for a bartop which will make a large mini-cade as you've noted. 

Good luck!

[8BitMonk]

Another small drawback to using a Cinema Display, the monitor has an ADC (Apple Display Connector) that needs to be converted to DVI which means this white box and a --saint's minion-- load of monitor cable. Oh well, the monitor was only $80 and I'm determined to use it.



Next I wanted to do a test for the metal control panel and button layout. I used matte board again to mock up something simple and tape it in place and taped on various Slagcoin layouts to find one I liked. I was initially going to do a completely custom button layout just for SMS but ended up going with something more standard so it could be more multipurpose.



I found a local metal shop that was willing to do one-off's and after discussing the project with them found out I could save money by calculating the x, y coordinates for the hole punch. This wasn't something I needed to pay them to do and could do myself. I ended up giving them the guide sheet below along with a 1" hinge I cut to width to be welded on. Below is the guide sheet I gave them along with a sample of how the hinge will attach, I decided to use wing nuts so it can be removed.



And here's the end product, they did a great job and it cost ~$100. Using the metal CP keeps it low profile plus I think it looks cool. Downside, weight.



I also added some heavy duty rubber feet.

[BorgDog]

That's a pretty awesome looking CP.     What gauge metal is that? and doe sit feel stiff enough?

[8BitMonk]

That's a pretty awesome looking CP.     What gauge metal is that? and doe sit feel stiff enough?

It's 16 gauge stainless steel which is .0625" or 1.5875mm. It's very rigid, it can flex a bit but you'd really have to torque on it to get it to bend permanently. I've added some side battens and magnets for latching which made it really solid. It's nearly as thick as an old school Xevious CP I have (below), I'd guess the original metal CP's were about 2mm thick.



Here's a better image to get a feel for the thickness

[8BitMonk]

Off to a flying start. 

That's one big screen for a bartop which will make a large mini-cade as you've noted. 

Good luck!

Thanks! Yeah it's a bit of a beast, not sure where I'm going to put it when I'm done, may have to make a rollcart or something.   

[yotsuya]

What's the actual width on the cabinet? I'm curious.

[8BitMonk]

What's the actual width on the cabinet? I'm curious.

25 5/8" - CP is 24 1/8" + two 3/4" MDF side panels

[yotsuya]

Thanks.

[opt2not]

Oh this game...

Interesting Project. I'm not sure playing Strikers how arcade controls will work out, but I'll have to keep tabs on this one regardless.

[8BitMonk]

Oh this game...

Interesting Project. I'm not sure playing Strikers how arcade controls will work out, but I'll have to keep tabs on this one regardless.

haha, yeah I tried out several button layouts before I found one I like, it takes some practice, I'll show that in a future post. It's definitely not as easy as a controller but that adds a neat twist to the game. The great thing for beginners is that they'll really only need to know the pass and shoot button which will be green and red. I'm matching the buttons colors to the games instruction menus. It's easy enough to revert back to wireless controllers too which I have to do for 4 player.

One of the great things about running this through Dolphin that I don't think a lot of people know about is that you can crank up the graphics and it looks incredible, way better than it ever did with a GameCube or Wii on a tv. There's also an in game adjustment to set the zoom level on the field so you're closer or farther from the action.

[8BitMonk]

For the CP I had initially intended to just run carriage bolts down from the top. Before I did it though I decided to do a quick web search for any kind of undermount I could find and ran across a forum post from a guy in germany who's friend hand an overrun of just the type of mount I needed. Score!

I attached the mounts to the bottom of the CP with some clear JB Weld.



You can see on the picture above where I also attached some strong cabinet magnets, these are the kind Haruman sells with his kits. I attached a couple of battens to support the CP and countersunk the other part of the magnet in the batten. The pictures below aren't entirely accurate, I had to go back and set the piece a little deeper so the top sits flush.



With the CP basically in place I moved on to putting the top, back and marquee bottom on. I used .25" black melamine coated MDF for those parts to reduce weight. I used some clamps to hold temporary battens in place while I attached the pieces with a Kreg jig and pocket screws.



Below you can see where I attached a piano hinge for the back door similar to the one attaching the CP

[8BitMonk]

Added illuminated AC outlet with toggle switch to bring power inside the cab. Props to PL1 for the wiring diagram. Also added a couple of Neutrik USB feed throughs.

[8BitMonk]

Note to self, remember to put the blade on the table saw the right way to avoid overly chipping the melamine coating. Oh well, it touches up ok with a marker. The melamine coating is still way easier than having to paint in my book.



Cut myself working on the cab so it literally has my blood in it.

[8BitMonk]

I originally thought that I'd use an AMD AM+3 motherboard and processor along with a Radeon HD 4890 vid card that I had lying around but the game was stuttering a bit and they didn't quite cut it. Since Dolphin runs better with an Intel processor I decided to bite the bullet and get a new Mini-ITX Intel board with built in wireless, an Intel CPU and Nvidia GeForce GTX 750 Ti card. The 750 Ti is small and one of the most powerful cards you can get that doesn't require separate power. With the modest power requirements I was able to use a small 430 watt psu I had on hand. A little more expensive build but it future proofs me and is better for more intensive Steam games.

I decided to mount the motherboard on the back door of the unit.



I velcro'd the psu to the inside left wall near the mobo



Since the computer was going to be on the back door and I didn't want it accidentally slamming down while being opened and I decided to add some gas springs I found cheap on Amazon. They work really well considering the cost.



Computer in place, both springs attached and Apple ADC connector velcro'd to back of monitor.



Added a latch

[8BitMonk]

I'm using a 120Gb SSD with the build and needed a way to mount it to the door. I also wanted some latitude to easily add/swap another 5.25" HD or another SSD in the future so after some looking I decided to use an Icy Dock Flex Fit and modify it to fit my needs.

The Icy Dock holds a 5.25" and 2x 2.5" drives and is light.



There's was no way to mount the Icy Dock to my door and the bottom of the 5.25" drive is exposed so you can't directly velcro it.

To cover up the bottom of the Icy Dock so I could vecro it to the door I used a letter tray I bought at Office Max and cut a square piece of the black plastic off of it.



I made screw holes in the plastic piece so I could attach it right to the hard drive



Then I put velcro on the bottom to attach the whole thing to the door beside the mobo.



I had considered L brackets but they took up more space and the velcro is easier to remove if I need to mess with the drives



I needed a place to mount the wifi antenna as well and the strip of plastic inbetween the SSD slots worked well.



Bit of a design flaw on my part, the antennae block the ssd drives from sliding out so you need to remove them to get at the ssd's. You can see how they hit in the image below. Minor inconvenience.



 

[8BitMonk]

Time for sound. I ordered up common bartop sound components and had a little mini shootout. This included the Kinter, Lepai and DROK amps along with BOSS, Pyle and Rockford Fosgate 4" speakers.

Amps



Speakers



Grilles



The sound quality of all components was very comparable, the Fosgate speakers seemed a little more clear but less full than the other speakers but all were very passable. While the BOSS speakers are cheap, the cone material looks cheaper so durability might be an issue. They don't come with speaker wire or grilles either which is a consideration.

The Kinter and Lepai amps are comparable, the Kinter is cheaper but doesn't come with a power supply and is a bit less powerful than the Lepai. This power probably wouldn't be noticable with such small speakers and both have bass/treble adjustments. The DROK was very similar in performance but no separate sound adjustments and you have to draw power from your psu. This could be good or bad depending on your build, it has a very small footprint which could be good for small builds.

The grilles on the Fosgates and Pyles were decent but they have the logos on them. I ordered some other speaker grilles to check out and didn't care for them. They typical arcade speakers look like drains to me and the other set I ordered (at right above) was nice but too big for my build.

In the end I went with the Fosgate speakers and Lepai amp for this build. I don't think you could go wrong with any of these components, all would likely work fine depending on budget and size requirements.

[8BitMonk]

For drilling holes I find this dremel attachment quicker and easier than a router. It's not quite as smooth but gets covered up anyway.



Speakers mounted



While I was at it I realized I should probably have some ventilation. Decide to add 2x 120mm fans. Covered up the mobo and cut them in place. You can see the Lepai amp mounted on the inside wall.

[dmckean]

Is there room to bottom mount the speakers? Then you could just flush mount some perforated steel spray painted black for grills.

[8BitMonk]

For the buttons and joysticks I'm trying to match the original game controller and menus as much as possible. I found some foosballs and put threads in them to make soccer balls for the ball tops which is a neat touch. The white is a bit dull and I'm sure the black would wear off so I'd like to repaint and clearcoat them which I discussed in this thread.



Soccer ball tops and buttons to see how they'll look. You can see the GC controller for color comparison.



Below is how I have the controls mapped.



Run is best in the lower left as you can hold it down with your thumb and perform other actions.

Pass and Shoot are used a lot and most natural for the fore and middle fingers.

Lobs - For more advanced play you can do Lobs by pressing Lob button in combo with Pass or Shoot so you end up hitting Lob with the middle finger and Pass or Shoot with the fore finger. It can get tricky if you're also running at the same time and pressing down with your thumb but you get used to it pretty quick.

Big Hit and Special have to be done with the pinky.

It seems a little complex but no more so than a fighting game combo. For beginners only Pass and Shoot are really needed to jump in. It's one of those games that's easy to learn and tough to master whether you use a controller or arcade controls.

 

[8BitMonk]

Is there room to bottom mount the speakers? Then you could just flush mount some perforated steel spray painted black for grills.

I had thought about that but didn't want the magnets taking up space on the floor inside. I also liked the idea of having the sound facing forward to hear voices etc. I mounted them under the marquee in the usual spot, they're a little cramped there and I had to cut the retainer around them but they seem to work out pretty well.

[8BitMonk]

A little detail item for the cab keys. All about the details right. 



I also ordered a DK one (below) from Chinabuygroup.com but I think I got ripped off, no response from them in many days and my order says 'Quality Control'. Anyone bought from them before?

[Le Chuck]

I like this, fun theme.  Super Sidekicks is one of my favs, I've never played this title so I'll have to check it out!

[8BitMonk]

I like this, fun theme.  Super Sidekicks is one of my favs, I've never played this title so I'll have to check it out!

Thanks for the feedback!  This is a fun game, definitely check it out. 

[SpaceHedgehog]

Neat looking build with a fun theme. Love the 'accessorised' approach too 

[8BitMonk]

Neat looking build with a fun theme. Love the 'accessorised' approach too 

Thanks man, your Viewlix and R-Pod builds are incredible! 

[8BitMonk]

To finish the monitor I'm using a piece of black matte board for the bezel and a dark tinted piece of glass over the top of it. I tried clear plexi as well to cut some weight but I don't like it as well. I'm a bit torn because the glass looks really nice and finished but I get some nasty glare in bright light, the display is the easiest to see when it's uncovered but the overall build doesn't look as nice.

Both the matte board and glass sit on the lip in front of the monitor and slide just behind the speaker grilles up top. You can see the glass halfway in on the pic below.



When I first placed the glass I noticed that it didn't sit completely flush with the wood above and below and there was some light leaking. I used some car door edge guard on the top and bottom which flexes just enough to fill any gaps and gives it a nice finished look.

[8BitMonk]

Next to wire up the CP.

These $10 jamma harnesses from Paradise Arcade Shop are a great source of multicolor wires and daisy chain grounds with all of the connectors aready on. Everything to wire this CP came from 1 harness.



Midway through, rats nest.



... and the finished job. Will be making the two start buttons white instead of yellow, need to order them.

[yotsuya]

Next to wire up the CP.

These $10 jamma harnesses from Paradise Arcade Shop are a great source of multicolor wires and daisy chain grounds with all of the connectors aready on.

Agreed. The power wires on a lot of those cheap harnesses are too thin, though.  I like chopping them up for all the other wires, though.

[8BitMonk]

Agreed. The power wires on a lot of those cheap harnesses are too thin, though.  I like chopping them up for all the other wires, though.

I'd agree on the power but for the others it works great and was a huge time saver. Don't know why I hadn't thought of it before! $10 is cheap for all the pre-crimped wires and they're a decent length too. I was even able to color code almost all of my wires to their button color which helped when connecting to the encoders.     

[yotsuya]

Agreed. The power wires on a lot of those cheap harnesses are too thin, though.  I like chopping them up for all the other wires, though.

I'd agree on the power but for the others it works great and was a huge time saver. Don't know why I hadn't thought of it before! $10 is cheap for all the pre-crimped wires and they're a decent length too. I was even able to color code almost all of my wires to their button color which helped when connecting to the encoders. 

Oh yeah, totally agree. I forgot who it was here initially that mentioned it, but hacking those cheap harnesses up for the regular colored wire and the ground harness is an awesome timesaver.

[8BitMonk]

Saw a great tip in another byoac thread where someone had cut a pvc pipe in half and used it as a backing for their marquee lights. Genius! I had a cardboard tube around that was the diameter I needed.

 

Using Groovy Game Gear NovaMatrix lights. Still need to add a power switch in the back for them.



Using standard marquee retainers and two pieces of plexi to sandwich the art.

[8BitMonk]

Time to start thinking about the finishing artwork. Luckily there's a good amount of hires art for Super Mario Strikers available online, a bunch of it is at mariowiki.com

The splash screen for the game is below and the menus use a similar design with light blue for the starburst so I'm thinking that's what I'll base the theme off of.



Some prelimary looks for the marquee and side art. Still need to tweak them quite a bit. I think I'll go with white t-molding like a classic nintendo cab would have.

[8BitMonk]

Playing around with ideas like adding the ball being kicked...

[05SRT4]

Really cool build!! Strikers is one of my favorite Wii games.

[reptileink]

Pardon the horrible graphics (limited to Paint here at work), but what about filling that empty middle portion with a soccer ball??

[Blackknight2000]

Amazing build! Very nice and clean!

[8BitMonk]

Really cool build!! Strikers is one of my favorite Wii games.

Thanks! Cool Micro Mortal Kombat build. 

Amazing build! Very nice and clean!

Thanks! Cool Punisher build. Did you hear Jon Bernthal (Shane from The Walking Dead) was cast to play The Punisher in the next season of Daredevil?

[8BitMonk]

Pardon the horrible graphics (limited to Paint here at work), but what about filling that empty middle portion with a soccer ball??

Thanks for the suggestion! Funny you mention it, I had already given this a try. The ball is tough to make out (since it's mostly covered up) and it ends up making the characters harder to see, think it's a little busy.



I also expirimented with darkening the background and adding a white circle and offset line when I had additional characters. I thought it ended up looking a bit cluttered as well.

[yamatetsu]

I like the one with the dark background, but I would add the kicked ball to it, which would give the bottom area a splash of color.

[reptileink]

Last one is WAY too busy.

I would use a "flatter" soccer ball and raise it up a little bit so it shows between "strikers" and "super mario" if that makes sense. The 3d ball does not fit the style of the artwork.

The darker circle I think distracts from the overall picture.

[Le Chuck]

I'd drop the game name and most of the characters from the side and enlarge Mario to make him the visual center, maybe do the logo small and in the corner or underneath him.  Might change up the dynamic a bit. 

[8BitMonk]

Last one is WAY too busy.

I would use a "flatter" soccer ball and raise it up a little bit so it shows between "strikers" and "super mario" if that makes sense. The 3d ball does not fit the style of the artwork.

The darker circle I think distracts from the overall picture.

Yeah that group shot one was very preliminary just to get a rough idea of how might combine the characters. I wasn't digging the dark circle either. I see what you're saying about the ball, even with a flatter ball and covering up Luigi a bit to make it look layered I think it seems out of place and doesn't add much. Going with a ball that matches the style exactly still looks off to me.

[8BitMonk]

I'd drop the game name and most of the characters from the side and enlarge Mario to make him the visual center, maybe do the logo small and in the corner or underneath him.  Might change up the dynamic a bit.

Interesting idea, I was emphasizing the logo because I was envisioning how this might have been designed as an actual nintendo arcade cab and you never see them without a prominent game name. I do like how clean it looks. Here's a couple examples with Mario.

[reptileink]

I think the ball should be behind all the characters, but I am LOVING the last one!

[Luigi]

Wow, this is one really nice (and big) bartop


And I'm always happy when my mounting plates are doing a good job 

[8BitMonk]

Wow, this is one really nice (and big) bartop


And I'm always happy when my mounting plates are doing a good job 

Thanks! Mounting plates were perfect for this project. 

[8BitMonk]

I think the ball should be behind all the characters, but I am LOVING the last one!

Really liking that last one too. Nintendo used that image for the European cover. Don't care for the concrete bg.



In addition to the characters I have the US hires cover art (sans logo) to work from. Also below is an image of how Nintendo combined the characters for a promo poster.

[Le Chuck]

Yeah, that's better to me, looking sharp

[yotsuya]

I like Mario kicking the soccer ball as opposed to Mario getting ready for takeoff, myself. 

[Le Chuck]

I like Mario kicking the soccer ball as opposed to Mario getting ready for takeoff, myself. 

Use both, why would both sides match? 

[yotsuya]

I like Mario kicking the soccer ball as opposed to Mario getting ready for takeoff, myself. 

Use both, why would both sides match?

Because I prefer an actual action as opposed to locked and loaded. 

[Le Chuck]

I like Mario kicking the soccer ball as opposed to Mario getting ready for takeoff, myself. 

Use both, why would both sides match?

Because I prefer an actual action as opposed to locked and loaded.

[vwalbridge]

If we are voting, I'm all for the one with Mario kicking the soccer ball. The one with Mario just "striking a pose" doesn't look soccer themed when you first look at it.

Really great artwork by the way.  And +1 for your willingness to try different layouts.

Also that 3-point landing video made me shoot milk out my nose. 

[8BitMonk]

Nice 3-point landings. 

The one with Mario just "striking a pose" doesn't look soccer themed when you first look at it.

The original had a soccer ball in it which made it look soccer themed. Looks less like he's striking a pose or flapping his wings. Forgot I had taken out the ball to add my version.



There's this as well, I think it's supposed to be an overhead view of Mario running but it looks more like an overhand volleyball smash.



Did some quick expirimenting vignetting in the Nintendo promo/cover art over the spike bg.



Still liking the clean cutout flaming ball kick over the spikes one the best. I lean towards keeping the sides uniform.

[yotsuya]

Let me just say, putting the ball back in with the first graphic makes it look MUCH better.

[8BitMonk]

Initial Control Panel concept.

[8BitMonk]

I've also recreated the 'VS.' art from the game but haven't found a good spot for it, ends up looking cluttered.



Here it is at the bottom by the characters.

[vwalbridge]

The control panel art is looking really good. Not much wrong with that. However, to avoid having your control panel looked cluttered, I'd leave out the "VS".  Less is more in this case.

But if you really want to incorporate it somewhere, maybe make the "VS" just a little smaller and put it under Donkey Kong's feet perhaps. I dunno...I'm not very good with art so I'm merely suggesting. Your artwork is already 110% more that I could ever pull off.

I'm also a bit confused withe the "Shift" buttons? That must be something specific to Strikers?

[vwalbridge]

Oh and 2 more things:

1. I like that Luigi is player #2. 
2. And I like that Luigi has that same "death stare" as he does in Mario Kart. 

[reptileink]

What about placing the "VS" in the Marquee where the game logo is? I think you have enough game logos on the whole cabinet to tell us what it is.

[8BitMonk]

I'd leave out the "VS".  Less is more in this case.

But if you really want to incorporate it somewhere, maybe make the "VS" just a little smaller and put it under Donkey Kong's feet perhaps. I dunno...I'm not very good with art so I'm merely suggesting. Your artwork is already 110% more that I could ever pull off.

What about placing the "VS" in the Marquee where the game logo is? I think you have enough game logos on the whole cabinet to tell us what it is.

Good suggestions, I had tried the 'vs.' at DK's feet but it was busy and right on the bend of the CP. I like the idea of using VS. in the marquee, reptile I think you're right about not needing the logo so many times, I removed it from the side and just have it on the CP top. I'll either just have it there or just on the sides.

I'm also a bit confused withe the "Shift" buttons? That must be something specific to Strikers?

This is the shifted function for the KADE encoder, you press it in combo with the top buttons. Wasn't crazy about 'shift' either, kind of confusing, I changed it to Start P1 and P2.

Oh and 2 more things:
1. I like that Luigi is player #2. 
2. And I like that Luigi has that same "death stare" as he does in Mario Kart. 

 

I added a couple of the sidekicks by Mario and Luigi, renamed Shift to Start P1 and P2 and added some circle/direction art around the joysticks.

[yotsuya]

The art style on the marquee doesn't match the rest of the cab.

[8BitMonk]

The art style on the marquee doesn't match the rest of the cab.

Good eye, yeah that bugs me a little too. They're from the load animations so they're from the game but differ from the printed art style. May have to come up with something more consistent or leave them out.

Character select and load animation

[/URL]

Sprite sheet

[yotsuya]

I actually have been won over by the rough sketchy look of the artwork, and I'd love to see it stay consistent throughout.

[8BitMonk]

I actually have been won over by the rough sketchy look of the artwork, and I'd love to see it stay consistent throughout.

I think you're right, it'd look better keeping it consistent. Think I can crop the 'sketchy' character versions I have left and get a good effect. I'll have to tinker with it some more.

[Toasta]

This is a fantastic looking project.  I love the use of artwork. And how many options you have looked into.  Can't wait to see finished pictures

[8BitMonk]

This is a fantastic looking project.  I love the use of artwork. And how many options you have looked into.  Can't wait to see finished pictures

Thanks! 

[reptileink]

Yea, I hav to agree that the sketch look wins out on this one. Also, I would keep the game title on the sides, as most arcades have that. The "VS" should also be in that sketch style if possible as well. Kind of gives the whole thing character.

[Vidiot]

Just wanted to jump in here to sub and say this is an awesome looking project. I also love the fact that the cab has it's own shape and it's not just a weecade clone. I also like the sketchy art style better. That's gonna be a fun bartop to play on.

[8BitMonk]

Yea, I hav to agree that the sketch look wins out on this one. Also, I would keep the game title on the sides, as most arcades have that. The "VS" should also be in that sketch style if possible as well. Kind of gives the whole thing character.

Thanks for the suggestions. Yeah, I think I'll keep the game title just on the sides. Not sure on the VS. in a sketchy font style though, it's consistent with the logo art and so I'm not totally averse to it staying as is. I'll give a couple sketchy looks a try though, always good to experiment.

Just wanted to jump in here to sub and say this is an awesome looking project. I also love the fact that the cab has it's own shape and it's not just a weecade clone. I also like the sketchy art style better. That's gonna be a fun bartop to play on.

Thanks! The fact that it's playable is one reason I haven't made a recent update. That, the 4th holiday and a little game called Rocket League which I'm loving right now. Hoping to finish up the art this weekend and send it to print.

Anyone have thoughts on the arrows and circle art around the joysticks? Think they may be too much and it might be cleaner without. Thanks to everyone for the feedback and suggestions.

[vwalbridge]

Anyone have thoughts on the arrows and circle art around the joysticks?

I'm a "less is more" kind of guy so I'd leave them off. Plus, I don't care for the right circle covering so much of DK's hand. Will you be using dust covers?

Very nice work. Your patience has paid off. 

[8BitMonk]

I'm a "less is more" kind of guy so I'd leave them off. Plus, I don't care for the right circle covering so much of DK's hand. Will you be using dust covers?

Yeah, I'm leaning towards leaving them off. They don't add much, simpler and doesn't cover up DK. The black circles in the pic represent the dust covers.

Yea, I hav to agree that the sketch look wins out on this one. Also, I would keep the game title on the sides, as most arcades have that. The "VS" should also be in that sketch style if possible as well. Kind of gives the whole thing character.

Comp'd some new marquees with the sketchy artwork and sketchy 'VS' text. I was skeptical about the sketchy 'VS' text but I kind of dig it, it does seem more cohesive. Probably needs a little tweaking to tuck the S under the V a little nicer.







A little busy with all the characters so I tried a couple with just Wario and Waluigi. I could break out any two characters. Having the evil versions of what's on the CP in the marquee seemed to make sense.

[8BitMonk]

Had some time to work on painting the soccer ball ball tops. The originals are foosballs which aren't white enough, the black had already started to come off plus I wanted a little shading on the stitching. I plan to try just a clearcoat as well as an epoxy resin to see which I like better. Think this first go around will be practice, I notice there's a mould line on the ball and some other markings I could buff out.



Stitching is a little dark, think I'll need to lighten it a bit. You can see the plain foosball in the background

[Le Chuck]

Dude, this build remains totally sick in my book.  Love the custom balltops. 

Wario and WaLuigi are stupid, do the sketchy color vs with peach and that other broad whose name escapes me. 

[8BitMonk]

Dude, this build remains totally sick in my book.  Love the custom balltops. 

Wario and WaLuigi are stupid, do the sketchy color vs with peach and that other broad whose name escapes me.

Thanks! I'm interested to see how the balltops turn out once they're epoxied. I agree on Wario and WaLuigi, not crazy about them for the marquee.

[8BitMonk]

I'm about ready to send off my artwork to Game on Grafix.

For the marquee I decided to go back to the Super Mario Strikers logo. The Vs. was cool to explore but in the end I prefer having the logo there as it would've been in an arcade. To make it more interesting I incorporated the flaming ball coming out of logo and used the most dynamic character art left including the goalie jumping at the ball.

Marquee Final
 


CP Final - Removed the logo and the directional arrows for the joysticks.



Side Panel Final



How it should all look together.

[Le Chuck]

^yes.

[Vidiot]

 
Awesome!

[8BitMonk]

No turning back now, sent the art off yesterday for printing!  Thanks to all for feedback along the way. 

Below is the final mock-up I applied just to make sure everything lined up.



Only minor change made after this was the wording for P1 and P2 to 'menu' instead of 'start' as they're not always start buttons. They're actually my 'shift' functions but that seemed confusing so I went with 'menu' which is what they'll be used for most.

[Vidiot]

Awesome! I like how it looks like Kong is holding one of the joysticks.

[vwalbridge]

I also like that you spent as much time as it took to get it right. 

[8BitMonk]

Finishing up the custom balltops. I wanted to test the epoxy coating on one of the foosballs before plopping it on my painted ones.

Probably tough to make out in the photo but I applied 1 coat to the test ball here.



There's a little yellowish color cast to it but it's not bad, the box says 'crystal clear' and you can't really notice once applied. I was a little worried it'd be sticky or feel wierd but after a day of drying it was fine, instructions say 72 hours for full cure. I'll do 2 coats on the finals.

The action shot, epoxy being applied to final balltops. 



You can see I built little tents out of painters tape at the base. I learned from the test balltop the epoxy can be a ---smurfette--- to remove if you let it pool at the bottom, even with tape around it.

No epoxy



First coat



I put a small box and a small stack of paper plates with holes cut in them for the shafts to do the poor. The box holds them in place and the paper plates are good to catch the excess you inevitably have.

[8BitMonk]

Awesome! I like how it looks like Kong is holding one of the joysticks.

Yeah I like that too. Not totally planned from the beginning, was a happy mistake while positioning the art but it's a nice little touch.

I also like that you spent as much time as it took to get it right. 

Measure twice, cut once... and then realize no matter how careful you are something will get botched along the way and roll with it. 

[megrog2]

Are you intending to relocate the volume pot from the Lepai to a more accessible area?

[8BitMonk]

I debated this early on in the build but decided against it. Instead I use a wireless keyboard to navigate around the system outside of the Hyperspin FE and control the volume.

I had thoughts of foregoing a keyboard entirely, there is an app named Controller Companion that works relatively well for typing and navigating with a controller (or joystick) but nothing is as efficient as a good old keyboard. 

At some point I asked myself why I'm trying so hard to NOT use a keyboard when it's the best tool for the job. I just made sure to pick one that is wireless, has a small/light footprint, has separate volume controls and has a trackpad built in so I don't have to worry about a separate mouse. I just set it on top of the cab when not needed, it's pretty unobtrusive.

Logitech's have a unifying receiver so it can potentially be used in multiple locations or builds. The K830 I chose also has backlit keys which I like but it's a little more expensive.The cheaper K400 works fine as well but it's grayish, isn't quite as nice looking and doesn't have the backlit keys.

Logitech K830 


Logitech K400

[8BitMonk]

Custom balltops complete, pleased with how they turned out.

Original untreated foosball



Finals painted white with shading added and 2 coats of clear epoxy.

[vwalbridge]

Very nice!

Is the epoxy thick enough to hide the texture of foosball? Does the ball top feel like one continuous surface?

[8BitMonk]

Very nice!

Is the epoxy thick enough to hide the texture of foosball? Does the ball top feel like one continuous surface?

Not quite, there's still a very slight texture to it where the ridges are. I think one or two more coats of epoxy would've smoothed it out completely but I liked the contour.   

[8BitMonk]

The eagle has landed, artwork arrived and looking good. One last look at the bare metal before applying.

[/URL]

CP overlay applied.



Close up of buttons. Sadly I mis-aligned the P1 and P2 menu box slightly right.  Oh well, it'll annoy me but not worth redoing.



Installing side art.



Cutout and adding t-molding.



All art and t-molding applied.





 

[vwalbridge]

  Well done. I like the matte finish on all the artwork. Turned out really good. It was fun to watch you experiment with all the different artwork layouts. 

So are you calling this one finished?

[8BitMonk]

Well done. I like the matte finish on all the artwork. Turned out really good. It was fun to watch you experiment with all the different artwork layouts. 

Thanks for the kudos and art feedback along the way. 

So are you calling this one finished?

I'd say 95%. I still need to add a power button for the marquee and I'd like to do a custom serial plate.

[reptileink]

Looking really great man! The artwork turned out awesome! Can't wait to see it in action!

[Vidiot]

Wow! You've gotta be happy with that turnout man! Looks fantastic. 

[8BitMonk]

Looking really great man! The artwork turned out awesome! Can't wait to see it in action!

Wow! You've gotta be happy with that turnout man! Looks fantastic. 

Thanks! I'm very happy with the end result, it's nice to see it all come together. I'll do a quick video once I finish up.

[kiel0909]

looks great, if you're ever in CA, i'd love to play strikers with you!  Its my favorite console game, i teach high school and the matches we play at lunch get pretty intense.   Peach and Toads FTW!

[thatpurplestuff]

Great cab, and those are the coolest balltops I've ever seen.  Amazing stuff!

[8BitMonk]

looks great, if you're ever in CA, i'd love to play strikers with you!  Its my favorite console game, i teach high school and the matches we play at lunch get pretty intense.   Peach and Toads FTW!

Another SMS fan! I've got decent skills but still haven't been able to win a single cup on Legendary. If you haven't tried it in Dolphin with the resolution cranked up you should give it a go, it looks fantastic. You'll never go back to playing on a Gamecube/Wii on a TV again.

Great cab, and those are the coolest balltops I've ever seen.  Amazing stuff!

Hey thanks! First time I've done custom balltops and I wasn't sure how well the painting and epoxy would go but really liked how they turned out, nice little finishing touch.

[vwalbridge]

If you haven't tried it in Dolphin with the resolution cranked up you should give it a go, it looks fantastic. You'll never go back to playing on a Gamecube/Wii on a TV again.

Man, this build really makes me want to play this game. I've never been much of a soccer game guy but this game looks like Nintendo made it fun.

On a related note, I was disappointed that when the Wii U came out, it didn't just automatically upscale gamecube/wii games. I'm obviously taking for granted the technical details required to do that but with all the old games getting HD remakes, it sure would have made sense.

[8BitMonk]

Man, this build really makes me want to play this game. I've never been much of a soccer game guy but this game looks like Nintendo made it fun.

You definitely don't have to be a soccer fan at all to enjoy this game, it's very arcady and actually more akin to hocky than soccer and has the traditional Nintendo power ups. It's very accessible, simple to pick up and play at a basic level but then there's also a meta game once you master the basics. Single player is ok but multiplayer is really where shines.

On a related note, I was disappointed that when the Wii U came out, it didn't just automatically upscale gamecube/wii games. I'm obviously taking for granted the technical details required to do that but with all the old games getting HD remakes, it sure would have made sense.

Yeah I'm not sure how that all works. When I started this project I considered just running it off an old Wii I had but I could never get it to look anywhere near as good as emulation with the resolution up'd, the difference is night and day. This was the only Mario Gamecube game to support 16:9 and 480p which maybe explains what the emulation is leveraging that the console wasn't.

[emphatic]

Looks very striking. 

[8BitMonk]

Looks very striking. 

I see what you did there, clever.   Thanks man!

[george b]

damn nice!  i have a newer style apple 23" cinema ( the aluminum one ) sitting in a closet.   how is the lag on yours??  googling around, they seem to have no lag?? 
kudos to the excellent artwork!

[8BitMonk]

damn nice!  i have a newer style apple 23" cinema ( the aluminum one ) sitting in a closet.   how is the lag on yours??  googling around, they seem to have no lag?? 
kudos to the excellent artwork!

Thanks! No lag that I've noticed on anything I've played so far, decent viewing angles too 170/170.

[tigernut]

Really like the craftsmanship and artwork here. Great job.

[Le Chuck]

I'm in love. 

[jdbailey1206]

 

Is that filled in with a pen?  I know someone who would appreciate that. 

[8BitMonk]

Thanks for the compliments!

Is that filled in with a pen?  I know someone who would appreciate that. 

I did a wash of diluted black acrylic paint over it several times and then painted back the white on the raised areas. That way you get a more muted line in the crevices, not solid black.