MAME X- and Y-Board Link W.I.P.

[SailorSat]

You would not believe how hard it is to get an actual image of a X-Board Link-PCB...

"soon (tm)"

[buttersoft]

ooooh! Amazing work, and I'll be watching this one keenly

[MrThunderwing]

Well, this has just blown my mind! I had no idea those 2 old Sega classic games even had any multiplayer link-up functionality. Incredible!

[baritonomarchetto]

Powerdrift is one of my favourite racing games 

[SailorSat]

PowerDrift proofs to be a hard one - I cannot get them synced up "reliable".
Sometimes the game runs smooth as butter, then on the next try, the game keeps glitching out *sighs*

[baritonomarchetto]

We already know that you will fix it, Arianne

[Nuexzz]

PowerDrift proofs to be a hard one - I cannot get them synced up "reliable".
Sometimes the game runs smooth as butter, then on the next try, the game keeps glitching out *sighs*

I have no idea of ​​the addresses that you have manipulated, perhaps one is the wrong one and it only ignores the address as a consequence, for example, it changes to master only because you select ID 1, I know the case that the value of an address changes the value of another.

 

to find it I remember to put a non-existent value and then look for the correct address with a real value.

[MrThunderwing]

So, is this a publicly available MAME build or a still WIP private one?

[SailorSat]

I can share them, but it still is kinda glitchy.

[MrThunderwing]

No worries SailorS, I'm interested to try some link-up in those 2, but not in any kinda desperate hurry to do so if it still needs a bit of fine tuning.

[SailorSat]

Please setup the dip switches before trying anything else! - Also take note DIP-Switches are stored in the CFG folder.

Consider it still W.I.P. - (64-bit windows only)


Super Monaco GP [smgp]
http://files.arianchen.de/cabmame/xbd.zip




Power-Drift (Link) [pdriftl]
http://files.arianchen.de/cabmame/ybd.zip
( comm_framesync should be set to 1 )




smgp-1to4.bat

Code: [Select]

@echo off
start xbd.exe smgp -nvram_directory nvram1 -cfg_directory cfg1 -comm_localport 15112 -comm_remoteport 15113 %1 %2 %3
start xbd.exe smgp -nvram_directory nvram2 -cfg_directory cfg2 -comm_localport 15113 -comm_remoteport 15114 %1 %2 %3
start xbd.exe smgp -nvram_directory nvram3 -cfg_directory cfg3 -comm_localport 15114 -comm_remoteport 15115 %1 %2 %3
start xbd.exe smgp -nvram_directory nvram4 -cfg_directory cfg4 -comm_localport 15115 -comm_remoteport 15112 %1 %2 %3

pdriftl-1to4.bat

Code: [Select]

@echo off
start ybd.exe pdriftl -cfg_directory cfg1 -nvram_directory nvram1 -comm_localport 15112 -comm_remoteport 15113 %1 %2 %3
start ybd.exe pdriftl -cfg_directory cfg2 -nvram_directory nvram2 -comm_localport 15113 -comm_remoteport 15114 %1 %2 %3
start ybd.exe pdriftl -cfg_directory cfg3 -nvram_directory nvram3 -comm_localport 15114 -comm_remoteport 15115 %1 %2 %3
start ybd.exe pdriftl -cfg_directory cfg4 -nvram_directory nvram4 -comm_localport 15115 -comm_remoteport 15112 %1 %2 %3

[SailorSat]

To actually see each other in Super Monaco GP you have to complete the qualifing lap with each participating player.

[SailorSat]

So Power Drift will run until 6 cars have reached the finish line.
However - there are 12 cars on the track, so if 8 players are human controlled but nobody actually finished the race, the game will never end.

Player 0 actually is a live spectator mode.
Player 9 and 10 actually have unique car colors, but will overwrite data for player 1 and 2.

Now to hack the game rom to "fix" players 9, 10 and maybe even beyond

[MrThunderwing]

Please setup the dip switches before trying anything else! - Also take note DIP-Switches are stored in the CFG folder.

Consider it still W.I.P. - (64-bit windows only)


Super Monaco GP [smgp]
http://files.arianchen.de/cabmame/xbd.zip



Thanks SailorS, I've been able to get the 4 way Super Monaco GP link-up workining without issue (thanks for sharing all the info to stick in the batch file to launch simultaneously). I've run into a bit of hitch with Power Drift though, in that I cannot for the life of me finding a working Power Drift


Power-Drift (Link) [pdriftl]
http://files.arianchen.de/cabmame/ybd.zip
( comm_framesync should be set to 1 )




smgp-1to4.bat

Code: [Select]

@echo off
start xbd.exe smgp -nvram_directory nvram1 -cfg_directory cfg1 -comm_localport 15112 -comm_remoteport 15113 %1 %2 %3
start xbd.exe smgp -nvram_directory nvram2 -cfg_directory cfg2 -comm_localport 15113 -comm_remoteport 15114 %1 %2 %3
start xbd.exe smgp -nvram_directory nvram3 -cfg_directory cfg3 -comm_localport 15114 -comm_remoteport 15115 %1 %2 %3
start xbd.exe smgp -nvram_directory nvram4 -cfg_directory cfg4 -comm_localport 15115 -comm_remoteport 15112 %1 %2 %3

pdriftl-1to4.bat

Code: [Select]

@echo off
start ybd.exe pdriftl -cfg_directory cfg1 -nvram_directory nvram1 -comm_localport 15112 -comm_remoteport 15113 %1 %2 %3
start ybd.exe pdriftl -cfg_directory cfg2 -nvram_directory nvram2 -comm_localport 15113 -comm_remoteport 15114 %1 %2 %3
start ybd.exe pdriftl -cfg_directory cfg3 -nvram_directory nvram3 -comm_localport 15114 -comm_remoteport 15115 %1 %2 %3
start ybd.exe pdriftl -cfg_directory cfg4 -nvram_directory nvram4 -comm_localport 15115 -comm_remoteport 15112 %1 %2 %3

Thanks for this Sailor S, I've managed to get Super Monaco GP running in a 4 Player link-up with no problems at all - thanks for sharing the info to easily launch them in a batch file too, very handy!

Edited: Both games working in both a 4 player and 2 Player link-up now, thanks for this Sailor S, great to see these classics in multiplayer.

[SailorSat]

i doubt it, as the link version appears to have a nearly unique rom set.

[MrThunderwing]

Managed to get a mate over to test out the 2 player mode in Super Monaco GP.

[buttersoft]

hah, that's great. I'm loving the progress of this, Sailorsat!

[MrThunderwing]

Some Power Drift 2 Player.. sort of

[buttersoft]

Hi Sailorsat, I'm curious as to where things are up to now

[SailorSat]

Nothing new at all. I still can't figure out some details.
But to be honest, having played a few 8 player sessions with Powerdrift, I'm kinda "okay" with the current state.

Still trying to get hands on a X-Board or Y-Board Comm-PCB, though

[buttersoft]

righto, thanks for the info. I should probably just give things a go in 2-player with the current versions then

[xga]

You would not believe how hard it is to get an actual image of a X-Board Link-PCB...

"soon (tm)"

Hi SailorSat.  Please excuse my very poor stitching together in MSPaint.  Is this the X-Board Link-PCB you are looking for?

[SailorSat]

That apears to a GP-Rider Link-PCB, which is not the one I am searching for

[Goldbricker]

Hi, new member here. I'd love to give this a try I've got a (currently unworking) Powerdrift arcade sitting in my garage and I would love to try 2 player.
From reading the thread I think I need:

1. A copy of Mame (does this need to be a custom build for the netcode and is it available to download? Or does ybd.exe contain all the necessary files?).
2. A copy of ybd.exe which I downloaded from SailorSat
3. A copy of the pdriftl rom (is a specific version of this needed)

I can run pdriftl in Mame 0.257 but it's missing the Sega YBoard section in the settings.

I try to run just to start one instance of ybd with:
ybd.exe pdriftl -cfg_directory cfg1 -nvram_directory nvram1 -comm_localport 15112 -comm_remoteport 15

but I get the error:
Error running plugin bootstrap script : runtime error
plugins/data/init.lua:30: attempt to call a nil value (field 'add_machine_reset_notifier')

Not sure if we're supposed to discuss in this level of detail in the thread so happy to do it via PM if that's preferred.

[buttersoft]

I'd say discussing here is best, that way anyone else with the same probs can benefit

I would imagine the ybd.exe is just the mame/exe with vital changes. You probably need the rest of mame, then you dump the ybd.exe in the directory and run from it. If you have trouble with that, i would look to source a version on MAME from when Sailorsat dropped the pdrift version.

I'm also not sure, but a lot of times with mame linked games you need to be running both instances before either mame.exe (here ybd.exe) will actually start.

[MrThunderwing]

Yeah, like Butter said, you can't run the emulator in a single instance - it'll just hang. The example SailorSat was using in her post, with the download link is for a 4 player setup. For a two player (on a single PC) use this code (using Super Monaco as an example)

Code: [Select]

@echo off
start xbd.exe smgp -nvram_directory nvram1 -cfg_directory cfg1 -comm_localport 15112 -comm_remoteport 15113 %1 %2 %3
start xbd.exe smgp -nvram_directory nvram2 -cfg_directory cfg2 -comm_localport 15113 -comm_remoteport 15112 %1 %2 %3
This is with a regular copy of MAME in the folder, plus the xbd.exe, and an smgp rom in your roms folder.
Edit: Oh, and don't forget to change the dipswitches in the game like in SailorS's picture.

[Goldbricker]

Appreciate the responses guys I'm just on holiday but I'll pick this up when I get back.

[Goldbricker]

I got powerdrift running with 4 players - Fantastic! The dipswitch settings was what I'd missed before I still can't believe this game even has a link up mode.

I had some follow up questions:

1. Is it possible play the game over LAN with another PC in this set up? From reading it seems that MAME needs OpenVPN set up to work properly.
2. I see SailorSat's videos where she's got the game running on on separate clients on what looks like Daytona cabs - how does that set up work?
3. What's the status of being able to control multiple instances of MAME running on one PC? Is it still the case that you have to have one player use the joypad and the rest on keys or is there a better solution?

Respect to SailorSat for your work on this and also Mr Thunderwing whose videos have been really helpful.

[MrThunderwing]

No worries, glad you found them helpful. with regards to your other questions:
I haven't tried running SMGP or Power Drift over a 2 PC LAN (the info in the batch file is a little different to when I've done an actual multi PC link with Virtua Racing and Outrunners) but, based on the way I did those, I'd imagine you just change the -comm_localport and  -comm_remoteport to the IP address of the PC you're on and the PC you're linking to and then do the same on the other PC to create the loop network. You only need the info to launch a single instance of MAME on each PC - make sure your Firewall doesn't block the emulators from 'seeing' one another. If there's more to it than that you might need to speak to SailorS herself.

In the videos of Power Drift and SMGP I uploaded I was still restricted to only being able to use one joypad on the 'in-focus' game window and the other player having to use the keyboard. It seems though that there might be a solution for that now... I haven't actually tried this out myself, but you might want to check out the video below (Big Blue Frontend should really start paying me a commission of some sort, the amount of people I've directed to one of his older MAME how-to-get-a LAN-working video's )
https://youtu.be/NHWBGoa2UJo?si=YBhF5sKUadntwSST

[Goldbricker]

It works! I got a 2 player game going across 2 PCs. 



Steps needed:
1. In mame.ini

#
# CORE COMM OPTIONS
#
comm_localhost            <pc1_ip>
comm_localport            15112
comm_remotehost           <pc2_ip>
comm_remoteport           15113
comm_framesync            1

and the same settings reversed on the other PC (pc1_ip is remotehost on pc2 / remoteport on pc2 is 15112).

It works really well - some sync issues on a few of the races but overall was great.