Clarification on Galaga 88 Joystick

MrMolding

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Can someone tell me if the Atari logo joystick in Galaga 88 is supposed to be 8-way as the manual mentions. I thought that Galaga 88 was only a 2-way (left/right) game like Galaga.

Thanks!
 
It's 2-way. What you're actually seeing on Page 4 of the manual are instructions to convert a Dragon Spirit panel (which uses an 8-way).
 
It's 2-way. What you're actually seeing on Page 4 of the manual are instructions to convert a Dragon Spirit panel (which uses an 8-way).

Ok. Thanks. So did Atari make 2-way logo sticks or does the 4-way work better than the 8-way? Does anyone with an original Galaga 88 cabinet know what came in theirs?
 
Atari made 4-way and 8-way only. Actually the stick is exactly the same for both, with just a plastic piece at the bottom that differs (referred to as a 4-way or 8-way plate).

4and8wayplates.jpg


I have an original Galaga '88 cabinet. The joystick has a 4-way plate.
 
Yuck! another reason that Atari shouldn't have gotten the licensing rights to Galaga '88. If I had a Galaga '88 I would run it in a Galaga cabinet

BTW anyone want to trade a working Gaplus board for a Galaga '88, I have an extra and can't seem to find a Galaga '88 board anywhere.
 
i put an 8-way logo joystick in my converted Dragonspirit and it actually works pretty well, better than the crappy cheap microswitch it replaced. i have though about installing a 2-way since i've got several Galaga joysticks sitting around but so far i haven't bothered to try it and see how it works.
 
i have though about installing a 2-way since i've got several Galaga joysticks sitting around but so far i haven't bothered to try it and see how it works.

I was going to do that, but found only 2 of the holes in the mounting plate on the original Galaga stick will line up. The plate itself is welded to another housing-type piece, and where those 2 pieces meet is where the other 2 holes would need to be, so drilling the 2 additional holes wasn't doable.

Using a 4-way for this title has been working well for me though. I'm improving slowly but surely. Still striving to get to Dimension 6 currently.

dimension5.jpg
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Atari made 4-way and 8-way only. Actually the stick is exactly the same for both, with just a plastic piece at the bottom that differs (referred to as a 4-way or 8-way plate).

I have an original Galaga '88 cabinet. The joystick has a 4-way plate.

Ok. So mine has a 4-way but the joystick is very sloppy and loose. The left and right positions don't really register very well or even hit the microswitch at times. The coin counter for the machine is about 55000 so I can understand why it's trashed. So, I got a 4-way from another member last night based on your posts and confirmation that what I have is original.

I can't confirm it is was a Galaga 88, Dragon Spirit or Pacmania because someone repainted the back of the cabinet and painted over the labels, so I'm very appreciative of the help!
 
I'm improving slowly but surely. Still striving to get to Dimension 6 currently.

Those little guys with the metal wings got me so frustrated that I set it to allow "continue" so I could see the end of the game. :) Wonderful feature!
 
Ok. So mine has a 4-way but the joystick is very sloppy and loose. The left and right positions don't really register very well or even hit the microswitch at times.

Cool I'm glad that you replaced the sloppy stick. By the way, the original joysticks were leaf-based, not microswitch. If the one you just installed is microswitch-based, you might want to think about replacing that one with a leaf switch-based one (either Wico 4-way or Atari). I think you'll like the action better with the leaf switch-based stick on this particular title.


Those little guys with the metal wings got me so frustrated that I set it to allow "continue" so I could see the end of the game. :) Wonderful feature!

"Continue" on mine is most definitely set to OFF. I'll make short work of the armored wing guys though eventually. Just give me a little time. ;-)
 
"Continue" on mine is most definitely set to OFF. I'll make short work of the armored wing guys though eventually. Just give me a little time. ;-)

I can run though the game no problem on the Turbo Grafx, I love it so much. I wish I could find a board!
 
the Dragonspirit and Galaga '88 conversion manuals i have both show microswitch joysticks (the same with the Pacmania on arcarc.xmission.) i have yet to see any documentation that shows a leaf joystick in G'88; by that time leaf switches were rarely used on new games. there were logo joysticks produced before that time that were leaf (Gauntlet!) so maybe some have been retrofitted in the aftermarket.
 
the Dragonspirit and Galaga '88 conversion manuals i have both show microswitch joysticks (the same with the Pacmania on arcarc.xmission.) i have yet to see any documentation that shows a leaf joystick in G'88; by that time leaf switches were rarely used on new games. there were logo joysticks produced before that time that were leaf (Gauntlet!) so maybe some have been retrofitted in the aftermarket.

Yes Todd, you're right. I'm sorry for the misinformation. The originals were microswitch. One of the previous owners of my game must have swapped the microswitch stick out in favor of the leaf switch one. I do prefer leaf switch-based sticks over microswitch sticks though, so I've been really happy with it.
 
Damn you Galaga'88 owners!! You're the reason why I can't get my Dragon Spirit!
sorry, mine came pre-converted.

too bad it'd mean drilling an extra hole or i'd pick up a DS board to swap in. i suppose if i could find a dedicated CP and a marquee.... hmmm.
 
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