need list of trackball games so i can put in command line to play?

[tyweed]

Any ideas where i can get a list of the games that use the trackball. The zip file name would be ideal because i need to put a trackball command in to command line for each trackball game in the front end game launcher....

[OSCAR]

A quick 'n dirty way would be to load up MAME32.  It has a 'trackball' heading that you can sort by.

There's also SortInfo, but if you already have MAME32 then that may be easier.

[Howard_Casto]

There isn't a way unfortunately as mame incorrectly lables many controls, especially trackball games.  

[OSCAR]

There isn't a way unfortunately as mame incorrectly lables many controls, especially trackball games.

For authenticity, this is correct.  But if MAME reports that the game is a "trackball" game, that means it supports mouse input and is playable with a trackball, correct?  For a MAME cab many people are looking for playable options, not necessarily for the most authentic control options.

[Howard_Casto]

Well that's not exactly true either....

Discs of tron, for example is listed as a trackball game because they used the trackball input to hack in a up/down spinner.  However dot is not very playable with a trackball as it's hard to aim up and down with it.  

It's little hacks like this that are annoying for finding out what you actually need to play a game.  

[u_rebelscum]

It's little hacks like this that are annoying for finding out what you actually need to play a game.

Yes.  
The big one that always gets me are the playchoice games (but there are others).  All pc games are listed as having lightguns as the input type with -listinfo, even though what, three?, games really use lightgun inputs, while the rest use joysticks. (Used to be listed as trackball until lightgun support started).

I just uploaded a list of all inputs for mame 0.67 games, but since I just used the driver info, it includes the same extra info errors as above, except the list also includes the joystick inputs.
(it's a tab delimited file, 212k zipped, 68234 lines)

Tyweed, if you have a database or spreadsheet, you could load the file and quickly search for "TRACKBALL". (or a even a decent text editor, but a database would the cleanest way.)  Not sure if you also want spinner ("DIAL") or lightgun ("LIGHTGUN") games, too.

Note you probably will find some games that don't really have trackball inputs, but listed that way in the game driver.

html file describing the data file

[paigeoliver]

I would say the majority of games labeled as trackball are not trackball games. Pretty much every game for every cart/cassette system is listed as trackball, when almost none of them are. All the Taito F-whatever games are also listed as trackball.

Basically every game that had any sort of analogue control, OR that came on hardware that had any analogue games is going to be listed as trackball.

The REAL list of trackball games would be a fraction of what Mame lists as trackball games.

[u_rebelscum]

I would say the majority of games labeled as trackball are not trackball games....

You're talking about mame32, right?  You're right Mame32 lists other analog input games (except pedal and lightgun games) as "trackball" games.  Also, I think mame32 uses the -listinfo data, which does include the errors described by Howard.  
But I think the biggest mame32 problem is that most "trackball" games are spinner games.  

Let me check... wow, I find, in the input list I linked prior:
97 games, including clones, are listed as having trackballs,
266 games have spinners (dotron + 2 clones have both trackball and spinner inputs listed in drivers),
150 games have AD stick inputs (2 games, aztrac & gtmr2 have spinner input),  
55 games have paddle inputs (9 games also have AD stick),
for a total of 554 games (97 + 266 - 3 + 150 - 2 + 55 - 9).
Mame32 lists 552 games as trackball games; the extra two in my list are probably games with an analog input, but not shown as such with -listinfo; I can't tell which two though.

97 out of 552 is ~ 3 games really have trackball inputs out of every 17 listed in mame32.  I did not know it was that bad.

-listinfo isn't that bad: 114 games listed as trackball games. Hmm, I need to check the 97 vs 114 numbers; back in a little.

[paigeoliver]

You're talking about mame32, right

Yeah. I never run command line MAME in anyway except from the command line, so I have no idea what it thinks is what. How does that even come into play? Frontends maybe?

[u_rebelscum]

I never run command line MAME in anyway except from the command line, so I have no idea what it thinks is what. How does that even come into play? Frontends maybe?

Command line mame does not "think" games as trackball games, except through the output of "mame -listinfo".  Mame knows if the game being run uses a trackball or not (actually, mame knows if the driver says if it uses a trackball).

The Mame32 "trackball" folder would be better called "almost all analog inputs".


Looked at the info, and need to make some changes to the number I listed in prior post:
My input list:
100 trackball games
263 spinners games (3 trackball + spinner),
150 AD stick games (2 spinner + AD stick),  
55 paddle games (9 games AD stick & paddle),
for a total of 554 games (100 + 263 - 3 + 150 - 2 + 55 - 9).
Mame32 lists 552 games as trackball games; one of the game missing from the mame32 list is tehkanwc (can use trackball, but mame32 does not list it).

99 games are listed as trackball games with "mame -listinfo".  The one missing TB game in -listinfo's list is tehkanwc, as mentioned above.  

This is a shame, since playing tehkanwc with a trackball is way better than playing with an 8way.

Here's the 100 TB games I found.  Zero testing, but much more accurate than the 552 listed by mame32

edit- fixed link

[paigeoliver]

How many are left after you cut out the clones?

Anyway, that is still more real trackball games than I thought there were.

[u_rebelscum]

How many are left after you cut out the clones?

Anyway, that is still more real trackball games than I thought there were.

61 non-clones.  Just looking at these games' names, I'm sure at least 45 are trackball games, and at least 1 is not a trackball game.  Not sure on the other 15.

[tyweed]

hey thanks guys for the list you made my job much easier! I did not realize setting up my cab was going to be so much work!!

[Howard_Casto]

Btw quick and dirty way (errors included) is to use the search strings on lazarus and have it generate a list for you.  I beleieve slot # 10 has input data so do a search for 10=*trackball*

[jerryjanis]

I realize I'm a bit late on this one, but recently I went through all the trackball games and tried them out.  This list is complete and accurate because I tested them all myself, but it's also very prone to human error for the same reasons.  I tried every trackball game using listinfo.  It doesn't include multiple versions of games (for example, Boot Camp has a similarly named clone that I don't mention.)  The list doesn't include lightgun games.  Lastly, I forget what version I made it for, but it was for at least .62.

Multiple Simultaneous Players
-------------------------------------
Atari Football (4)
Atari Soccer (4)

Sonic the Hedgehog (3)
Rampart (3)

Gridiron Fight (2)
Rambo III (2)
Extra Bases (2)
Pound for Pound (2)
Blades of Steel (2)
Combat School (2)
Major League (2)
Goalie Ghost (2)
Ataxx (2)
Marble Madness (2)
SDI Strategic Defense Initiative (2)
Arcade Classics (2)
Spiker (2)
Cabal (2)
Basketball (2)
Atari Baseball (2)
Boot Camp (2)

Additional Controls
-------------------
SDI Strategic Defense Initiative (two players each use 8way & trackball w/fire button)
Wacko (1 player trackball + 4way)
Snake Pit (1 player trackball + 8way + 1 button)

Don't seem to really be trackball games
---------------------------------------
*Top Secret            8      STEERING WHEEL      

Crazy swivelling monitor games (works fine with a trackball)
------------------------------------------------------------
Viper
Danger Zone

GAME               #Buttons   #Simultaneous Players
----               --------   ---------------------   
Viper               2      1
Missile Command          3      1
Centipede            1      1
Rambo III            2      2
Birdie King 2            0      1   
Birdie King            0      1
?Extra Bases            1      2
Irritating Maze            2      1
Pound for Pound            2      2
Liberator            2      1
Capcom Bowling            2      1
Beezer               1      1
Cloud 9               2      1
Shuffleshot            2      1
Blades of Steel            2      2
Shuuz               2      1
Combat School            2      2
Golden Tee Golf II         2      1
U.S. Classic            1      1
Major League            2      2
Goalie Ghost            2      2
Mini Golf            1      1
Millipede            1      1
Lemmings            2      1
Syvalion            1      1
4 player bowling alley         2      1
Sonic               1      3
Danger Zone            2      1
Sente Diagnostic Cartridge      1      1
Gimme A Break            1      1
Shuffleboard            1      1
Strata Bowling            2      1
Super Missile Attack         3      1
World Class Bowling         2      1
Ataxx               1      2
Marble Madness            0      2
Coors Light Bowling         2      1
SDI - Strategic Defense Initiative    3+2btn8way   (2)
Speed Ball            1      1
Quantum               0      1
Magic Worm            1      1
Arcade Classics            3      2
Spiker               1      2
Shoot the Bull            1      1
Cabal               2      2
Reactor               2      1
American Horseshoes         2      1
Snacks'n Jaxson            1      1
Tri-Sports            2      1
Snake Pit            1+4way      1
Wacko               0+4Way      1
Basketball            1      2
Atari Baseball            1      2
Bowl-O-Rama            2      1
Boot Camp            2      2
Krazy Bowl            3      1
Rampart               2      3
Atari Football            1      4
Gridlee               1      1
Gridiron Fight            1      1
Crystal Castles            1      1
Atari Soccer            1      4
Tee'd Off            1      1
Slither               2      1

Games That Don't seem to work properly (*Means I have a fix for it)
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Sonic the Hedgehog (3)         -- Player 3 didn't work + no start button?
*Rampart (3)            -- player 3 didn't work
Atari Soccer (4)          -- Couldn't find how to make it play 4 players

[jerryjanis]

Also, here's my similar list of lightgun games:

MULTIPLAYER GUN GAMES (REQUIRES ANALOG MAME)
--------------------------------------------
beast busters      3 --- Works Ok, but Gunfire doesn't follow trackball exactly...
revolution x      3
*night stocker      1 *driving + gun - still requires mame analog
*lucky & wild       2 *2 guns & steering wheel
*gunbuster      2 *2 player w/joysticks + 3 buttons -- 4 player/Dual Monitor/vs mode exists
zero point      2
space gun      2
police trainer      2
point blank      2
terminator 2      2
operation thunderbolt   2
under fire      2
steel gunner 2      2 --- Gunfire doesn't follow trackball - crosshairs not linked with Mame crosshairs
alien 3         2
bang!         2
golly! ghost!      2
jurassic park      2
tickee tickats      2
mechanized attack   2
one shot one kill   2
target hits      2
sharpshooter      2
zombie raid      2

SINGLE PLAYER LIGHTGUN GAMES
----------------------------
desert gun      1
who dunit      1
crackshot      1
crossbow      1
vs. duck hunt      1
*showdown      1 *nice game
combat         1
*operation wolf      1 *nice game
vs. hogan's alley   1
turkey shoot      1
hit 'n miss      1
clay pigeon      1
cheyenne      1
catch-22      1
*chiller      1 *err, nice game
triple hunt      1
ny captor      1
PChce 10:Wild Gunman   1
PChce 10:Duck Hunt   1
PChce 10:Hogan's Alley   1
vs. Gumshoe      1 -- Could not get it to work... ?

NOT YET DOWNLOADED
------------------
area 51         area51      .62
maximum force      maxforce   .62

[u_rebelscum]

I realize I'm a bit late on this one, but recently I went through all the trackball games and tried them out.

Thanks jerryjanis!

This list is complete...

You don't have tehkanwc (tehkan World Cup).  It uses a trackball even though not listed in listinfo nor in the game input menu.  Much better game with trackballs.

2 players, one button each.

Note: to show the trackballs in the in-game input menu, assign inputs to trackball x & y, p1 & p2, in a ctrlr tehkanwc.ini file.  This is not needed to play with trackballs.

Atari Soccer (4)          -- Couldn't find how to make it play 4 players

Hmm, I have opposite problem: 4 players all the time, and can't switch to 2.