Trivia Games for my Cabinet, PC, console, mame or otherwise. ?

[Timoe]

Can anyone recommend some good trivia games for my wife and I?  I'm looking for something that would be fun to play on a cab.  It can be PC, console, MAME or otherwise.

What is "You Dont Know Jack"  Is that for the PC?

thanks

[gamecreature]

You Don't Know Jack is indeed a PC series. I think there are at least 7 titles in the series. It was created by the same folks that made After Dark software and has the same irreverence. It plays like a gameshow and the questions (and delivery by the host) are hillarious (though not entirely suitable for younger folks - he frequently gets suggestive.) There's no fancy graphics, it's all text and audio. It's the audio that really sells it. Input is all from the keyboard. If you're a fan of trivia games and like to have a good time with a couple of friends (up to three people can play), then you really should give it a try.

[papaschtroumpf]

unfortunately it's not very cab friendly. I tried to install one of them on my cab and ended up deleting it. I can't remember what the exact issues were though.

[Howard_Casto]

the issues are that all of the keys in the game are hardcoded


also some questions require you to type an answer in a few versions.

[Timoe]

My wife is already addicted to YouDontKnowJack.  

Now I have to make it work.

The only issue I have is that some questions require that you type your answer.

I do have a keyboard drawer though.  

The majority of the questions require number keys 1, 2, 3 and 4 which I have for player start buttons.  But they are not in order, they go 3, 1, 2, 4  I dont know if that will or will not trip us up yet.

I wont know until my cab is fully operational.

[Howard_Casto]

Well you can remap the keys via ahk script, but there's no way to fix the type an answr issue.

[NIVO]

someone on the forums here made a YDKJ dedicated control system. I cant recall who it was, and it was several years ago, but it indeed was built.
*** after doing some BYOAC search checking, here is something ive found http://www.arcadeparadise.org/console/ydkj/index.html  and this one http://www.wrongcrowd.com/arcade/

[Howard_Casto]

hmm.. i was thinking that more keys were needed than that..

It's also odd that there are 4 selection buttons, but only 3 buzzers. 

Bottom line don't take that one at face value, we better research.  It looks like a great idea though, I might have to do something similar. 

[Howard_Casto]

Fired up ydkj6 just to confirm.  Right off the bat you need a full keyboard to type in the players names, as well as the enter key to confirm the name.  After that you need the spacebar to skip instructions.  And there are a few instances where you need the keyboard to type in other stuff. 

I'm sure it would be possible to write a script that typed in names for the players when you select the number, but man, that'd be a pain in the butt to do. 

There's also the option of starting a game, setting all of that up and then saving.  Then you can simply load an existing game each time to want to play, but then you can't change the number of players. 

[DaveMMR]

I've always been toying with the idea of making a dedicated YDKJ panel: three over sized buttons for the buzzer, the five answer buttons (1, 2, 3, 4, Screw) and a small membrane keyboard.  You just have to map the B,P,Q,S, and 1~4 keys, but it shouldn't be too hard.

BTW, of all the Jacks, "The Ride" (a/k/a 4) is my least favorite.  Having the questions in a predetermined order kills replay, especially if you find yourself having to reinstall.

[shardian]

It's also odd that there are 4 selection buttons, but only 3 buzzers. 

That is because the game has four possible answers, and three players. 

I have all the stuff to make the arcade paradise ydkj controller, and I'll verify that the hand buzzers are neat. I've never finished it though...I made a box and then decided to use it as a single player mame controller.

My advice, build a box yourself for it.

[Howard_Casto]

I've always been toying with the idea of making a dedicated YDKJ panel: three over sized buttons for the buzzer, the five answer buttons (1, 2, 3, 4, Screw) and a small membrane keyboard.  You just have to map the B,P,Q,S, and 1~4 keys, but it shouldn't be too hard.

Well yeah, but if you have to also use a keyboard then that kind of defeats the purpose of the whole thing.  You know, jellyvision is a really small company.  they might be willing to make us patches if we asked real nice. 

I was thinking of writing a script, but I've ran into yet another complication.  When you are playing a 3 player game letters q and p and used for buzzers.  When it's a one player game, letter b is used for player 1 instead of q  When it's a 3 player game, b is player 2's buzzer.  I never really paid any attention to that while playing. 

This means that the buzzer keys aren't constant. 

The only way I can think of writing a script would be to have a dedicated start button.  When the number of players selection comes up, press the right number and then the start button.  The script would automatically remap all the buzzers and do a simulated keys routine when the player names are filled in as "Player 1" "Player 2" and "Player 3" respectively. 

[DaveMMR]

I've always been toying with the idea of making a dedicated YDKJ panel: three over sized buttons for the buzzer, the five answer buttons (1, 2, 3, 4, Screw) and a small membrane keyboard.  You just have to map the B,P,Q,S, and 1~4 keys, but it shouldn't be too hard.

Well yeah, but if you have to also use a keyboard then that kind of defeats the purpose of the whole thing.  You know, jellyvision is a really small company.  they might be willing to make us patches if we asked real nice. 

I was thinking of writing a script, but I've ran into yet another complication.  When you are playing a 3 player game letters q and p and used for buzzers.  When it's a one player game, letter b is used for player 1 instead of q  When it's a 3 player game, b is player 2's buzzer.  I never really paid any attention to that while playing. 

This means that the buzzer keys aren't constant. 

The only way I can think of writing a script would be to have a dedicated start button.  When the number of players selection comes up, press the right number and then the start button.  The script would automatically remap all the buzzers and do a simulated keys routine when the player names are filled in as "Player 1" "Player 2" and "Player 3" respectively. 

Well the keyboard wouldn't be your run-of-the-mill, full featured, 101 key garden-variety style keyboard.  Think about those 'console' keyboards for those online RPG's (Dreamcast's Phantasy Star Online comes to mind) where a very tiny QWERTY keyset was placed in the middle on a standard controller.   YDKJ, on a good day, only requires the keyboard (not including the buzz/answers) maybe 5 ~ 10% of the time.  That kind of keyboard would suit nicely.  You wouldn't want to type your term paper on it, but it'll work for the name entry/fill-in-the-blank/gibberish question. 

I think if I were to ever make a YDKJ panel - I'd just go with a dedicated bartop where it plays nothing but YDKJ games (but not Headrush).  I think that'll be my next project, whenever I finish this one (and recover from it financially). 

Also, the PS version of YDKJ (which is based on Volume 3) and the exclusive "Mock 2" don't require any keyboard input.  Unfortunately, it also pales in comparison to the PC versions and is not recommended (unless you really, really hate Gibberish questions and don't mind that the graphics look like crap). 

[Howard_Casto]

Well yeah I knew what you meant, but still, you shouldn't have to use a keyboard of any kind to play a gameshow game.  That is the key flaw in the ydkj games and why they pretty much fell off the face of the earth.   It's a shame too because they are fun games,  but nothing is a bigger buzzkill in a party situation than people that aren't computer literate trying to use a keyboard. 

[NIVO]

agreed, be sweet if a trackball could be used to enter initials. Like you said howard, perhaps a interface patch could be made by the company.

[Howard_Casto]

I had a thought, but it's a bad one. 

Anyone think of trying voice recogniton to type stuff?  Mind you I figure the spelling would be horrible, but ydkj titles don't count spelling anyway.  If we could find some v/r software to make it work that'd be totally authentic, just speak the answer into the mic. 

[papaschtroumpf]

there are a couple of onscreen keyboard programs, I think I remember one that was not too windows-ish in appearance. I suppose wtih a trackball you could use that?
by the wya it was the keyboard issue that made me give up altogether on integrating it in my cab, now that you mention it.