Game specific control discussion

[quicksilver]

@Riverstorm was hoping to pick your brain in regards to some game specific control setups. Though this could also be a place for others to discuss as well.

I have been having issues specifically with racing games that originally would have used a hi/lo or 4 way shifter. Do you know if this is emulated in mame? And after updating retroarch it looks like the controller mapping section has completely changed and has become more opaque.

[Riverstorm]

@quicksilver @UDb23 - There's several ways to configure input. Planning from the beginning which way to go really helps. I use a combination of RA and the MAME TAB OSD together. I've never tried to go RA only but that's the default. Doing one or the other is much much simpler than doing both together.

I do my general input setup in RA and this covers a majority of my input needs. I then use the TAB menu to fine tune. I do use the RA menus but most of the time I just edit the retroarch.cfg files directly as I don't know how to save some config levels via the RA menus.

I am not 100% sure but I don't think you'll find all MAME inputs (like shift up/down) defined in RA but the RA inputs are "generic" in purpose and label and are usually tied to a MAME TAB input. So that translates to all inputs may have a button passed via RA (so all game inputs work) but it may be in a less-than-optimal spot on the controller or cabinet. I've even seen duplicate inputs for some games.

On the other-hand the MAME TAB menu will have all the inputs defined and usually with better labels to help with setup.

I think the goal is get the core fully RA integrated but right now the TAB menu might be needed for certain games, inputs and functions.

MAME has a great "starter" input setup but it's impossible to have a single setup cover all game inputs perfectly.

To help there's a way to submit mame2003-plus PR's to add game input button labels. This makes setup much easier if using RA only. So in RA you would see Shift Up, Shift Down,Jump,Shoot, etc. That's much friendlier than seeing Input A, Input B, etc. and trying to figure out their function for every game.

Here's where I use the MAME TAB menu to override the RA inputs that aren't in a "natural" layout on the controller or cabinet. You could also use RA only too for most games and this is the default. I think using both together quickly becomes an advanced subject when inputs are not working as hoped.

I basically usually use mame2003-plus with Legacy Remapping enabled, Input Interface set to simultaneous and Control Mapping set to analog_and_digital. Different needs allow for different setups. Maybe you only use a keyboard or digital controls and could definitely simplify input controls. Using simultaneous has some serious pitfalls if you aren't careful but does allow for some good flexibility.

This setup combination allows you to use the TAB menu to setup input buttons (like shifting) on a keyboard or controller for games like Out Run or OutRunners. Also with this setup you really need to be careful of conflicting inputs. You could have RA defined one way and TAB input another and it may cause some serious in game issues with controls.

Recently analog support was added to mame2003-plus so it works great for steering in games like Out Run.

Also mame2003-plus has the ability to to use a button for an analog control which has proved to be really handy and allows for many otherwise unplayable games to be playable. Basically on my XBOX controller when playing Out Run I setup my right trigger as the gas pedal. This leaves my thumb to use the buttons for shifting up/down, brake, etc. and I steer with the left stick.

[quicksilver]

@Riverstorm I'm using an Xbox controller myself so this is definitely something to look into. Thanks for the detailed advice. I'll report back if I have any issues.