How do you set up Battle Shark controls in MAME?

[jasonbar]

[moved from Main forum to Software forum...duh on me... ]

Howdy-

I'm having trouble setting up Battle Shark in MAME .115 (ROM name bshark or bsharkj--I tried both & got the same results...).

The arcade game uses a funky periscope for a controller.  According to the MAME notes, it's essentially a Star Wars yoke (2 pots), so it should be played with an analog stick on MAME...should...

BUT!  It displays some weird, sensitive behavior.  If you move the analog stick slightly, the crosshairs respond normally.  But, if you push the analog stick farther, the direction of the crosshairs reverses.  Weird.  As if you're pushing too far & the signal is "wrapping around" to the opposite direction...

I tried knocking the analog sensitivity down to 1%, but that didn't change anything.


Oddly, the crosshairs don't *look* as if they're moving analogly (OK, not a word, but you know what I mean...).  The crosshair movement still seems to follow the 8 cardinal directions & always moves @ the same velocity, as if you were really just using a normal 8-way stick...


I tried using an 8-way stick & messing with the digital speed, but the crosshair motion is choppy & inconsistent.

I see that MAME .125u9 added 2 dipswitches called "Adjust Stick H (Variable Register)" & "Adjust Stick V (Variable Register)".  Does this MAME update address this issue?


Anybody got this tuned in to play?  I remember really liking this game & I'd really like to set it up to be playable (without feathering the analog stick gingerly...).


Thanks!
-Jason

[CheffoJeffo]

I've never tried to play it in MAME as I have one dedicated and I've always found the periscope rather sensitive compared to, say, a Star Wars yoke.

Doesn't help you, but at least you know that somebody read the question ... 

[u_rebelscum]

If you go into the text screens (the blue and red one), the input acts funny, too.  (tested with 0.128u3 with mouse.)  The crosshairs not only jumps from one side to the other, but part of it is slower than the other, for both X and Y axes.  I could keep the crosshairs as centered as possible with x adjustment of -35, and y adjustment of -2F, but...

The game still had pretty much the same symptoms.   Hard to tell how much is valid with only a mouse, though; there's no center reference (testing at work isn't as complete as at home).  Do you mind installing a more current mame in a different folder, and testing with your joystick?  I'll see if I have time tonight, but.... :shrug


As to the digital feel, there are two factors. 

First is a "speed of sight" dipswitch; I think this sets the fastest speed the sight can move.  If the control moves faster than this, the game limits the speed, and stops when the slowed sight "catches up" with the joystick's position.  (It acted that way with a mouse.)  Gives a very "digital" 8-way feel, but still is really analog.

Second is mame's default mapping.  By default, joysticks are mapped to both the analog part and the digital2analog part of analog inputs; not too bad default since windows doesn't tell apps if the joystick is analog or digital.  However, you should unmap what it is not:  for analog joysticks, unmap from the inc & dec inputs leaving only the analog input, while for digital joysticks unmap from the analog input leaving only the d2a inputs (inc/dec).  Unmapping digital joystick isn't required, but unmapping analog sticks from the dec/inc is needed for true analog control with analog joysticks in mame.  (Hint, use "Input (general) or ctrlr file so you only have to unmap once for all games.)


FWIW, there's a bug at mametesters that looks on this problem, but a min/max is currently in there now, so the guessed problem doesn't seem to be the problem.