How can I control 2 players with one keyboard (RetroArch)?

TheStrayMongrel

@rbaker Dont have my config file handy but its very similar to the one you posted in this thread.

https://retropie.org.uk/forum/topic/1914/has-anyone-got-a-keyboard-working-for-player-2-in-pifba/2

[Keyboard]
#Get codes from /usr/include/SDL/SDL_keysym.h
A_1=306
B_1=32
X_1=308
Y_1=120
L_1=122
R_1=304
START_1=49
SELECT_1=53
LEFT_1=276
RIGHT_1=275
UP_1=273
DOWN_1=274
QUIT=27
#player 2 keyboard controls, disabled by default
A_2=97
B_2=115
X_2=113
Y_2=107
L_2=105
R_2=119
START_2=114
SELECT_2=102
LEFT_2=100
RIGHT_2=103
UP_2=114
DOWN_2=102

meleu

@TheStrayMongrel are you using pifba or the libretro fba?
I thought you were using the libretro one.

For pifba you need the to reinstall from source, as mentioned on the thread you linked.

TheStrayMongrel

Sorry yeah i am using Libretro, the games i want to get going dont work on piFBA. Sorry getting myself a little tied in knots here, that config i just posted is for piFBA isnt it.
edit: lr-fba-next to be exact.

meleu

@TheStrayMongrel the fba2x.cfg is for pifba only.

@rbaker said that RetroArch already works with one keyboard for 2 players. I never tried it but I think it's perfectly doable (I'm away from my raspi now to make some tests).

Is your problem with fba only? Can you play SNES games with 2 players, for example?

TheStrayMongrel

Yeah @meleu thats right, @rbaker did say that, thats why i cant work out why its not working... and if i've done something screwy with the config.

I did try Donkey Kong Country last night briefly and 2 player wasnt working on that... so guessing no. Not tested any further than that though as Mame is where i concentrate most of my time.

meleu

@TheStrayMongrel I asked that to suggest you to change the title of this thread.
Maybe "how can I control 2 players with one keyboard (RetroArch)?" fits better.

I'm at work now and can't help you at this very moment, sorry. But with a more descriptive title, maybe someone else can give a look here. It shouldn't be that much complicated.

TheStrayMongrel

@meleu Yeah no worries, I'm at work too so thats fine. Thanks for the help. Will look to change the title now.

TheStrayMongrel

This post is deleted!

meleu

@TheStrayMongrel go to the first post of the thread and edit it.

rbaker

@TheStrayMongrel It's your retroarch config that will determine the correct settings for your libretro emulations. Here is the section from mine that has 2 player working in all emulators. It is set up for a neo-geo control panel.

input_player1_a = "alt"
input_player1_b = "ctrl"
input_player1_y = "space"
input_player1_x = "x"
input_player1_start = "num1"
input_player1_select = "num5"
input_player1_l = null
input_player1_r = null
input_player1_left = "left"
input_player1_right = "right"
input_player1_up = "up"
input_player1_down = "down"

input_player2_a = "s"
input_player2_b = "a"
input_player2_y = "q"
input_player2_x = "k"
input_player2_start = "num2"
input_player2_select = "num6"
input_player2_l = null
input_player2_r = null
input_player2_left = "d"
input_player2_right = "g"
input_player2_up = "r"
input_player2_down = "f"

any changes to fba2x.cfg will do nothing as @meleu said. You must edit retroarch.cfg

meleu

@TheStrayMongrel
@rbaker said in How can I control 2 players with one keyboard (RetroArch)?:

You must edit retroarch.cfg

He meant /opt/retropie/configs/all/retroarch.cfg. ;-)

TheStrayMongrel

Thanks @rbaker. The plot thickens though, everything in my retroarch.cfg looks in order. Here is a screen grab of my key allocations and the retroarch.cfg. As mentioned they keys work fine in mame4all so its not like the arcade button pressers arent registering as keyboard strokes. Any other ideas?

dankcushions

@TheStrayMongrel said in How can I control 2 players with one keyboard (RetroArch)?:

Thanks @rbaker. The plot thickens though, everything in my retroarch.cfg looks in order. Here is a screen grab of my key allocations and the retroarch.cfg. As mentioned they keys work fine in mame4all so its not like the arcade button pressers arent registering as keyboard strokes. Any other ideas?

wrong quote symbols on at least one. all quotes in retroarch.cfg should be "" not the slanty kind. that single one is probably making it ignore the rest of the .cfg. hopefully that's the problem :)

TheStrayMongrel

@dankcushions Thanks for that. Just checked in a shell and the quotes on the "a" are consisant with the rest, must have just been a characteristic of me editing the file in filezilla. Here is a screen grab of it again in the terminal. Bugger, i was really hoping it was that.

rbaker

@TheStrayMongrel You said earlier that you were using an adafruit utility. I am not familiar with it. Does a normal keyboard work in two player?

Do this with a single keyboard connected:

1, Clean install, Plug a keyboard in and boot the lot up.
2, Configure the Keyboard using autodetect.
3, Edit retroarch.cfg with all your player 1 and 2 choices, hotkeys etc.

This will prove that you have two player functionality with a keyboard. I have just tried it and it works. It's how I configured my ipac2. Once you have proved it, you can then start using your adafruit package. In my case, I then used the ipac2 after configuration in this way. The key for me was to establish full keyboard functionality for two players first then simply replace it with an encoder.

If it fails after the keyboard has worked, the adafruit is to blame.

TheStrayMongrel

Okay so @rbaker, tried what you suggested and did a fresh install, configured the keyboard and then added 2 player controls through the retroarch.cfg... but nothing. I have actually always been running @Floob 's attract mode disk image so i guess I have to consider that a variable and the possibility that something broke (in regards to the config I'm trying to get running) when that was being created... very long shot i know with him being a guru and all.
Just downloading the 4.0 image and will see how that goes with the same procedure.

rbaker

@TheStrayMongrel I would say that it the problem. I believe that attract mode was an experimental build. You should use the fully updated version. I reckon if you had revealed that at the start, you would be up and running now. You = Adafruit + Attract Mode Build. Me = Ipac + Version 3.8.1

One final thought, have you checked that your config edits are actually being saved?

TheStrayMongrel

@rbaker Unfortunately not, just tried it on a brand spanking new 4.0 image. Install/allocate keys/retroarch.cfg config/setup wifi/transfer 2 games (using lr-fba-next)/reboot... 1 player works fine but nothing on 2... ahhh. Your suggestion really has broken it down to the most basic of fundamentals in regards to troubleshooting the issue... racking my brain to think of what else it might be.

rbaker

@TheStrayMongrel I am out of ideas now. For me, you plug in a keyboard and it is detected. It allows you to configure player 1 only. You then edit the config to add the "extra" keys you desire for player 2. You save and then you must reboot for the changes to take effect. You then have the most basic form of two player controls. I cannot think what you must be doing that is different to me. Is your syntax correct etc?

dankcushions

@TheStrayMongrel said in How can I control 2 players with one keyboard (RetroArch)?:

@rbaker Unfortunately not, just tried it on a brand spanking new 4.0 image. Install/allocate keys/retroarch.cfg config/setup wifi/transfer 2 games (using lr-fba-next)/reboot... 1 player works fine but nothing on 2... ahhh. Your suggestion really has broken it down to the most basic of fundamentals in regards to troubleshooting the issue... racking my brain to think of what else it might be.

what games? IMO you should test on a console 2 player games (snes etc) as there additional complications to consider in the arcade cores.

also you should post your entire /all/retroarch.cfg and /snes/retroarch.cfg ideally.