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Newbie saying Hi and a couple of questions. :-)

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TroyO:

Heya all. I just figured I'd introduce myself, say Hi and whatnot.

I've actually read and learned a lot reading the boards, so hopefully this won't be too painful a flurry of "Read the FAQ!"

I've started collecting stuff to make my first arcade cabinet, concentrating on the games I liked most (Joystick, Trackball and Driving... never went much for crazy controls.. spinners, yokes, etc.)

Anyway... first question out of the chute... what's everyone's experience playing games with the "wrong" controls? I understand driving games and the 270/360 difference, but what about using a trackball for a spinner? Or for a yoke? Are games just unplayable, or just feel different?

I want to make the arcade cab because I never got to play much when I was younger (35 now) so I missed the arcade experience. I always loved when I did get to play, but I don't have any games that have such an ingrained memory that I would miss the "feel" of them, so if my controls are off but playable it would be fine.

Anyway... plans for the machine...

I want a standup cab that I can pop the top off of and have it be luggable to parties, etc. (Detachable bartop?) The base will pretty much just hold extra controllers and such, and maybe the sub.

I have a X-Arcade 2 player CP and will be getting the trackball soon. All are USB, so I'm hoping it will be hot swappable.

I have a USB steering wheel on the way (analogue) and I plan to use a ezarcade solutions spinner to make a pop-out 360 steering wheel on the same panel. Again, hoping for hot swappable.

This may be of interest to someone; I haven't seen this idea floating around (though it may be). I'm going to get some bearings (Maybe just plastic bushings) sized so a 1/2" shaft steering wheel can drop (next to the analogue wheel) in the CP so that a rubber wheel on the shaft rubs against the spinner top so that it friction drives the spinner. The spinner will go the wrong way, but I understand that's easily addressed in software. I'm also going to try and mount contacts on the analogue pedals for games that require digital pedal inputs. One driving panel, both types of driving games... if it works, LOL!

The other idea was one steering wheel with a gear drive at the end, and a sliding mechanism that would engage either the 270 control (Hacked from the analogue wheel) or the spinner (ezarcadesoloutions) so with a throw of the lever you change from one to the other. The first method is simpler, the second would be more fiddly (But cooler) Which one I try has a lot to do with actually getting my mitts on the analogue wheel and peeking inside.

Has anyone seen a wheel done either of those ways? If so, how'd it work out?

Ohh, and as to things I may be able to add to the community, I do a lot of prop and costume making, so I have experience with moldmaking and resin casting, and I have my own vacuum forming machine which could maybe be turned to making bezels or if there are 3D plastic displays or sideart or something?

Anyway, that's about it. Back to spending too much money......


javeryh:

Welcome! 

In my experience (which isn't much at all), the original game designers went with certain controls for a reason so I'd try to stick to that when planning your build.  A trackball can be used for a spinner but to me it just isn't the same.  Same thing with using a spinner as a steering wheel.  YMMV though - there is no "right" answer.

When I first started building my cab I wish someone would have told me to pick a basic control scheme to play a certain group of games and build it well.  Any controls left off now will make for a great second cabinet.

Good luck!

Tiger-Heli:

Kindof an over-simplification, but your biggest problem with incorrect controls will be digital interfaces for analog controls.

In other words -

Trackball for Yoke - Not good.
Analog joystick or 270-degree wheel for Yoke - Different but acceptable.
Yoke for 270-degree wheel - Not too bad.

Hope this helps.

NightGod:


--- Quote from: TroyO on August 17, 2006, 11:29:23 am ---Ohh, and as to things I may be able to add to the community, I do a lot of prop and costume making, so I have experience with moldmaking and resin casting, and I have my own vacuum forming machine which could maybe be turned to making bezels or if there are 3D plastic displays or sideart or something?
--- End quote ---
Tron Joysticks.

That's all I have to say.

Boz:

Welcome TroyO.

You will get lots of advice from lots of people. When posting your questions and getting your answers, keep in mind that there's always more than one way to skin a cat. Pick the suggestion that sounds the easiest for you to implement.

As far as controls go, it's a completely subjective call. Javeryh is 100% right on the money though. The goal for most Mamers is to build a control panel for the games you will play the most. Some people played a lot of drivers in their youth, some played fighting games and nothing else. The point is that you have to choose the games YOU PLAYED the most and then design your CP in such a way that the controls are layed out well for ***MOST*** of them. Before starting on my own cabinet, I fired up Mame32 and identified a good group of games that I remember playing with some regularity. That list was about 250 in count. From that, I thought long and hard about the games that would get the most play time. That cut the list down to 50 or so. Once I had the list, I reviewed the control panel layouts and began cementing my control panel layout. That sure helped me with controller selection.

I haven't finished my own cab yet, but here's a couple of things that I've learned that you may benefit from:

o   A well-thought-out cabinet does NOT equal a well-planned cabinet. Put as many of the details as possible DOWN ON PAPER as you can. It will save time and headaches when faced with inevitable choices you WILL encounter as you go.
o   Build a full-sized cardboard mockup. I built one and ended up make some pretty major measurement changes prior to cutting my first piece of wood. Had I moved forward with just the dimensions in my head or on paper, I would have been very disappointed with the outcome on expensive wood.
o   Don't bite off more than you can chew. I found this to be pretty important. Dream big, but don't over-estimate your own personal motivation for completing the project. Unless you are Tony Robbins, recognize that you will have days where you don't want to do anything with the cabinet due to frustration.
o   Finally. Don't put a time-frame on your finished work. Many guys here have cabinets that are in "perpetual" states of work. Many rip their first cab apart and build something entirely different. A time-frame may only frustrate you if the inevitable delay pops into your life. Set a goal of making progress each day you work on it. Even on days where nothing seems to go right, you still make progress.

For what it's worth.

Now... go read the F***ING FAQ.   ;D



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