The NEW Build Your Own Arcade Controls

Front End Support => MaLa Frontend => Topic started by: Samanai on July 21, 2006, 03:25:17 pm

Title: Mala Game lists options
Post by: Samanai on July 21, 2006, 03:25:17 pm

Does anyone know if when you select the option to exclude non-working roms, that excludes even those roms that just have minor issues (to me) like flipping not being enabled for cocktail mode?

Also, when you exclude clones, how broadly is that defined?  Is it just subsequent versions of the same game and ports by other manufacturers that are called the same base name, or does it include differently branded versions and blatant rip-offs, etc. that may be called by totally different names?

I'm sure these are pretty basic questions, but I've found nothing in the search function that addresses them.

Title: Re: Mala Game lists options
Post by: unclet on July 21, 2006, 04:24:47 pm

I would believe that MALA determines which games are clones and which games are non-working by simply reading through (ie: parsing) a Mame generated file (perhaps the mame.xml file.... I do not know).   

I would believe these are MAME questions rather than MALA questions.

Title: Re: Mala Game lists options
Post by: payment_due on July 21, 2006, 04:59:45 pm

Is there anywhere to get custom gamelists from?  I'm finding it extremely timeconsuming and (honestly a bit of a pain in the rear) to set up gamelists.

I've got one for Fighters, Capcom, NeoGeo, Puzzles and a couple of others, but I know I'm missing a few in my fighters area.

Anyone know where I can find some?

Title: Re: Mala Game lists options
Post by: unclet on July 21, 2006, 05:16:36 pm

The "MalaGamelist.exe" application was built for stuff like this I believe.  It is located in the MALA install directory.   I create many Mame game genre-specific gamelists using this.   It also allows you to strip off brackets, parenthesis, etc.... from your gamelist names.   

It does not rename your actual ROM files, it just lets you edit the gamelist display.

Title: Re: Mala Game lists options
Post by: gamecreature on July 21, 2006, 05:28:14 pm

Quote from: PUNJABEE on July 21, 2006, 04:59:45 pm

Is there anywhere to get custom gamelists from?  I'm finding it extremely timeconsuming and (honestly a bit of a pain in the rear) to set up gamelists.

I've got one for Fighters, Capcom, NeoGeo, Puzzles and a couple of others, but I know I'm missing a few in my fighters area.

Anyone know where I can find some?

You can also edit directly from Mala. With a game selected, open up the menu (player 2 start) and from the gamelist option, choose add to gamelist. Then you can choose which of your lists you want to add the selected game to. (it will warn you if the game already exists on that list). I've found this method a good way to edit game lists "on the fly."

Title: Re: Mala Game lists options
Post by: payment_due on July 21, 2006, 07:00:16 pm

Yeah I've tried both MalaGamelist.exe as well as doing it within Mala and I'm really not happy with it.  Doing it within Mala is just *way* too slow, and the Gamelist.exe way doesn't allow me to pick genres for some reason, that part of the box is greyed out. :lame:

Title: Re: Mala Game lists options
Post by: loadman on July 21, 2006, 07:18:23 pm

Could it be that you played the 'lame' card too early?

Have you set the path for catver.ini and controls.ini that mala uses to filter game lists?  (see pic attached)

Title: Re: Mala Game lists options
Post by: payment_due on July 21, 2006, 08:14:17 pm

I have catver.ini, but I didnt have controls.ini so I downloaded one from somewhere on the net.  I still have a problem with the 'add selection' area in MalaGameList.exe.  Now even more of the categories are greyed out.

Title: Re: Mala Game lists options
Post by: loadman on July 21, 2006, 08:42:58 pm

Did you refresh your game List after you set the path for controls.ini in MaLa?  If not definitely do that now

Are the paths to the mala directory and rom directory set ok in MaLaGAmelist?

Title: Re: Mala Game lists options
Post by: payment_due on July 21, 2006, 08:46:40 pm

I must have failed to do so originally.  I did it once again and now I get this picture.  *sigh*

Title: Re: Mala Game lists options
Post by: loadman on July 21, 2006, 09:02:28 pm

Hmmm I only get 'genre' dimmed when catver.ini is not set

Try my files:

Rename the two files I have attached to .ini (from .txt)

Delete the files you have with these

Check path is still set in MaLa

Refresh List again

Title: Re: Mala Game lists options
Post by: unclet on July 21, 2006, 09:08:41 pm

When I double-click on the "MalaGamelist.exe" application and then under the "Gamelist" menu select "Add Selection" then the window comes up with "Genre" not greyed out ..... oh well...

Questions:

1) What version of MALA are you running?

2) In your Mame install directory do you have a "mame.xml" file?


Also you can try to access the MalaGamelist application from within MALA.  Most likely is will give you the same results, but you can try it if you want and see what happens:

1) Start MALA, right click mouse and select Options to open the Options window

2) Go to the "Gamelists" tab, select the Mame Emulator and select the "All Games" gamelist

3) Click "Edit Gamelist" button which will open the MalaGamelist application window

4) Under the "Gamelist" tab select "Add Selection" and see what it says now.