This is MAME build for Android phones/tables. If you have Android device with TV-out port you could use it as a replacement for multi-game boards like 60-in-1. You will get simplicity and reliably of 60in1, more games, much better sound and global scoreboard built-in, only I have not tried it myself yet so not sure how it all looks on CRT, but as far as input goes any standard USB adapters should work. One more advantage would be that you could take this "PCB" out of the cabinet any time and use it normally as tablet/phone.
Pre-release build of "Classic Arcade Crazy Tilt Challenge" for Android devices is ready for testing. Before it gets published on Android Market I'm looking for people to play some games and report back their critical opinion and eventual bugs. Only about 100 games are supported at this time (classics) since each game requires individual attention to fully utilize all the features of this build. Only 7-8 games (mentioned below) will be available in this test-build since this will be the first time for the server to manage multiple accounts and games in progress, if it all goes well more games will be added. And the features are....
--- CRAZY SCOREBOARD (tm) ---
On-line world wide scoreboard, for all. For the first time in the history of MAME one of the most important characteristics of arcade games will come alive (online) and you will be able to compete for the top scores with everyone else just like we used to in the arcades. Crazy Scoreboard reads, writes and merges *.hi files with server database, which means all the scores are shown in-game, if the game has scorebaord, but it also maintains extended scoreboards you can access via menu, so for the games that only store one high-score like Pac-Man, they now have full (15 places) scoreboard all together with initials.
There are tokens, there is ranking. There are daily scoreboards with "Today's Far Out Players" list and there is "Hall of Fame" scoreboard for each game. If this app becomes popular there could also be various tournaments, special challenges, things to unlock, things to achieve, things to collect and brag about.
One game costs $1 token. When the game gets played all tokens from all the players stay in these on-line virtual machines until they reset, which happens every 12 or 24 hours. Whoever has the highest score after reset wins all the tokens and also gets entry to the Hall of Fame scoreboard. The number of tokens you have is related to your global ranking. You start with $57 tokens, you can not run out of tokens and you will always have at least $1 (attached to string), but if you have only $1 token that also means you are at the bottom of the global ranking list.
Whoever breaks top score on a daily scoreboard can write some message that will be shown together with the current standings. This feature can be used to taunt the other players down below on the list, write poems, jokes, or whatever. When the machine resets it clears up daily high score table, pays the winner all the tokes that got in the machine by that time from all the players that played it, and begins a new 12 hours round with a new starting $10 tokens for win. Hall of Fame scoreboard never resets, the best records go there to stay. How high can you try?
--- CRAZY TILT (tm) ---
This is the reason why all this exists. It came out of frustration from using touchscreen controls, but it turned out so nice that it deserved special MAME build and scoreboard add-on. It's a new input method for mobile devices utilizing accelerometer (G-sensor). It's unlike sensor input you may have tried with some other mobile games or emulators. If you think sensor control is clumsy, unresponsive and completely unsuited for arcade games, prepare to be surprised.
Of course there are games that fit this controller better than the other, but overall I think its beats touchscreen controls by far, more of a challenge you need to master, rather than frustration and constant struggle. There is a learning curve, but once you get it starts to feel natural and almost like playing with mind control since it's pretty precise and responsive and kind of goes where you "want it", so you can control it with minimal movement, which in turn makes it easier to perform quicker change in direction.
Star Wars for example is a perfect fit, it's like the game was made for this. Gyruss the same, it feels so intuitive doesn't need any getting used to, like by some instinct those movements come natural and I couldn't stop playing until I broke the record I have on my cabinet. Pac-Man, Donkey Kong, Elevator Action, Crush Roller, Popeye, Moon Patrol, Out Run, Super Hang-On, Commando, Sinistar, Time Pilot... fun, fun, fun! Track and Field, you run by shaking the phone! (See video below)
The interface is modeled like actual arcade joystick, with virtual restriction-plates and virtual micro switches with their push-in and pull-out travel distance, but is not a gimmick, it's what makes it work and is necessary to "guide" and help with the movement, just like with real joysticks, kind of. There is analogue mode for games like Star Wars, Missile Command, Marble Maddens, Out Run and such, and there is digital mode for 2-way vertical, 2-way horizontal, 4-way, 4-way diagonal (Q*bert), and 8-way games. There is also vibration feedback that cues when the joystick has pushed a micro-switch or released, which helps in the beginning to get a feel of where and how much to move/lean the phone for it do what you want it to do. Just don't forget, practice makes it perfect!
--- CRAZY SLO-MO-TIME --- (practice mode)
This is slowdown option to play at 75% or 50% of the real game speed. It's surprisingly fun, it's like bullet-time in Matrix, all in slow-motion, it makes it easy for example to go through Commando 1st stage killing everyone, yet it doesn't feel too slow, to me it felt like I was playing Cannon Fodder, cool! I also used it to pass elevators stage in Donkey Kong at first, but with some practice that now turns to be one of the easier levels, after I perfected how to stop on a dime without going in opposite direction.
The rest is based on MAME4droid, that is MAME4all, that is MAME 0.37ish, with some optimizations and improvements, namely no more visual glitches and audio hiccups or crackling. You only need one hand and couple fingers to play with Crazy Tilt, and if you have that extra hand you don't have to pause anymore just to pick your nose or scratch your bum, you can now even eat an ice-cream while playing! The possibilities are endless.
Classic Arcade Crazy Tilt Challenge,
grandma says Pac-Man has never been so fun!
http://youtu.be/kJBcou5ZjEo
I think Google would not want me to post public link outside Android Market, so whoever is interested I'll send them download link to .apk in a private message. Feel free to share with your friends and enemies alike, the more the merrier, just please do not upload it on the internet. Unless unexpected amount of bugs shows up in the testing period it should be available for download on Android Market pretty soon.
Pre-release build of "Classic Arcade Crazy Tilt Challenge" for Android devices is ready for testing. Before it gets published on Android Market I'm looking for people to play some games and report back their critical opinion and eventual bugs. Only about 100 games are supported at this time (classics) since each game requires individual attention to fully utilize all the features of this build. Only 7-8 games (mentioned below) will be available in this test-build since this will be the first time for the server to manage multiple accounts and games in progress, if it all goes well more games will be added. And the features are....
--- CRAZY SCOREBOARD (tm) ---
On-line world wide scoreboard, for all. For the first time in the history of MAME one of the most important characteristics of arcade games will come alive (online) and you will be able to compete for the top scores with everyone else just like we used to in the arcades. Crazy Scoreboard reads, writes and merges *.hi files with server database, which means all the scores are shown in-game, if the game has scorebaord, but it also maintains extended scoreboards you can access via menu, so for the games that only store one high-score like Pac-Man, they now have full (15 places) scoreboard all together with initials.
There are tokens, there is ranking. There are daily scoreboards with "Today's Far Out Players" list and there is "Hall of Fame" scoreboard for each game. If this app becomes popular there could also be various tournaments, special challenges, things to unlock, things to achieve, things to collect and brag about.
One game costs $1 token. When the game gets played all tokens from all the players stay in these on-line virtual machines until they reset, which happens every 12 or 24 hours. Whoever has the highest score after reset wins all the tokens and also gets entry to the Hall of Fame scoreboard. The number of tokens you have is related to your global ranking. You start with $57 tokens, you can not run out of tokens and you will always have at least $1 (attached to string), but if you have only $1 token that also means you are at the bottom of the global ranking list.
Whoever breaks top score on a daily scoreboard can write some message that will be shown together with the current standings. This feature can be used to taunt the other players down below on the list, write poems, jokes, or whatever. When the machine resets it clears up daily high score table, pays the winner all the tokes that got in the machine by that time from all the players that played it, and begins a new 12 hours round with a new starting $10 tokens for win. Hall of Fame scoreboard never resets, the best records go there to stay. How high can you try?
--- CRAZY TILT (tm) ---
This is the reason why all this exists. It came out of frustration from using touchscreen controls, but it turned out so nice that it deserved special MAME build and scoreboard add-on. It's a new input method for mobile devices utilizing accelerometer (G-sensor). It's unlike sensor input you may have tried with some other mobile games or emulators. If you think sensor control is clumsy, unresponsive and completely unsuited for arcade games, prepare to be surprised.
Of course there are games that fit this controller better than the other, but overall I think its beats touchscreen controls by far, more of a challenge you need to master, rather than frustration and constant struggle. There is a learning curve, but once you get it starts to feel natural and almost like playing with mind control since it's pretty precise and responsive and kind of goes where you "want it", so you can control it with minimal movement, which in turn makes it easier to perform quicker change in direction.
Star Wars for example is a perfect fit, it's like the game was made for this. Gyruss the same, it feels so intuitive doesn't need any getting used to, like by some instinct those movements come natural and I couldn't stop playing until I broke the record I have on my cabinet. Pac-Man, Donkey Kong, Elevator Action, Crush Roller, Popeye, Moon Patrol, Out Run, Super Hang-On, Commando, Sinistar, Time Pilot... fun, fun, fun! Track and Field, you run by shaking the phone! (See video below)
The interface is modeled like actual arcade joystick, with virtual restriction-plates and virtual micro switches with their push-in and pull-out travel distance, but is not a gimmick, it's what makes it work and is necessary to "guide" and help with the movement, just like with real joysticks, kind of. There is analogue mode for games like Star Wars, Missile Command, Marble Maddens, Out Run and such, and there is digital mode for 2-way vertical, 2-way horizontal, 4-way, 4-way diagonal (Q*bert), and 8-way games. There is also vibration feedback that cues when the joystick has pushed a micro-switch or released, which helps in the beginning to get a feel of where and how much to move/lean the phone for it do what you want it to do. Just don't forget, practice makes it perfect!
--- CRAZY SLO-MO-TIME --- (practice mode)
This is slowdown option to play at 75% or 50% of the real game speed. It's surprisingly fun, it's like bullet-time in Matrix, all in slow-motion, it makes it easy for example to go through Commando 1st stage killing everyone, yet it doesn't feel too slow, to me it felt like I was playing Cannon Fodder, cool! I also used it to pass elevators stage in Donkey Kong at first, but with some practice that now turns to be one of the easier levels, after I perfected how to stop on a dime without going in opposite direction.
The rest is based on MAME4droid, that is MAME4all, that is MAME 0.37ish, with some optimizations and improvements, namely no more visual glitches and audio hiccups or crackling. You only need one hand and couple fingers to play with Crazy Tilt, and if you have that extra hand you don't have to pause anymore just to pick your nose or scratch your bum, you can now even eat an ice-cream while playing! The possibilities are endless.
Classic Arcade Crazy Tilt Challenge,
grandma says Pac-Man has never been so fun!
http://youtu.be/kJBcou5ZjEo
I think Google would not want me to post public link outside Android Market, so whoever is interested I'll send them download link to .apk in a private message. Feel free to share with your friends and enemies alike, the more the merrier, just please do not upload it on the internet. Unless unexpected amount of bugs shows up in the testing period it should be available for download on Android Market pretty soon.
