Guide: Advanced Controller Mappings

Rion

@BuZz Having this kind of functionality build in to the Retropie setup would be very useful.

mediamogul

Your idea should work. Give it a try and see how it goes.

Mayki

@mediamogul said in Guide: Advanced Controller Mappings:
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The foundation has been laid. Controller's have been fine-tuned. Next, we'll take a look at how to map keyboard keys and mouse movements to a controller's analog sticks and buttons for use in emulators that lack native controller support and how to launch and maintain multiple mappings accordingly.
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Hi, what's the continuation of the manual? I can hardly wait ... :-)

mediamogul

@Mayki

It's coming. There are just a few things I want to test to make the multiple mappings as easy as possible.

--spoiler rosebud=sled \

Jon_Ge

@mediamogul Hi! Your guide is very interesting.
I was wondering if it is possible to map the configuration you are describing outside of /etc/rc.local and instead use a .cfg file like one described in the Retropie Wiki . I would like to be able to switch between left-analog and D-Pad easily, and it seams to be a right way to do it. Any clue? Thanks again!

mediamogul

@Jon_Ge

You can launch a config file along with an xboxdrv instance for any controller. However, if you're referencing the ability to switch between config files with a designated toggle button, I believe that function is only available for actual XBox 360 controllers. I seem to remember trying it, but I might be mistaken. Give it a shot and see.

If it doesn't work, in theory you could create a single map that switches between the two control schemes when a button is pressed. This would mean that the button must remain pressed for it to work, but you could then set that button to remain active once pressed and then to release when pressed again. I'm not able confirm that it would work at the moment, but it would look something like the last two lines here if it did, using the 'Guide' button as the toggle:

sudo /opt/retropie/supplementary/xboxdrv/bin/xboxdrv \
	--evdev /dev/input/by-id/* \
	--silent \
	--detach-kernel-driver \
	--force-feedback \
	--deadzone-trigger 15% \
	--deadzone 4000 \
	--mimic-xpad \
	--evdev-absmap ABS_*=x1,ABS_*=y1,ABS_*=x2,ABS_*=y2,ABS_*=lt,ABS_*=rt,ABS_*=dpad_x,ABS_*=dpad_y \
	--evdev-keymap BTN_*=a,BTN_*=b,BTN_*=x,BTN_*=y,BTN_*=lb,BTN_*=rb,BTN_*=tl,BTN_*=tr,BTN_*=guide,BTN_*=back,BTN_*=start \
	--buttonmap guide=guide:toggle \
	--axismap guide+x1=dpad_x,guide+y1=dpad_y,guide+dpad_x=x1,guide+dpad_y=y1 \
	&

Jon_Ge

@mediamogul Thank you Mediamogul for the quick reply.
Actually I have a genuine Xbox 360 controller. And the Toggle Button is working pretty well in order to switch between configurations files. I am just looking for the basic config file, in order to change it to match my needs. In last resort I think that what you are describing might be useful in order to create a basic config file, from scratch. But I need to know how to map it from /etc/rc.local to a xboxdrv cfg file. Do you know any documentation about it ? I did'nt find anything. Thanks again!

Jon_Ge

@Jon_Ge Well. I think I got it https://github.com/xboxdrv/xboxdrv/tree/stable/examples I will try that this weekend. Thank you anyway.

mediamogul

@Jon_Ge

No problem. I hope it works out.

mediamogul

I added a section on key-mapping. This includes:

Mapping keyboard keys to the controller buttons
Mapping mouse movement to the analog sticks
Mapping keyboard keys to the analog sticks
Launching specific mappings alongside a specific emulator
Managing global and individual mappings

I used ScummVM as the example, which should also help those suffering through the current control issues found in the native joystick support. I just beat 'Monkey Island 2' the other night using these controls and it was a joy to play.

Sevik

@mediamogul said in Guide: Advanced Controller Mappings:

I added a section on key-mapping. This includes:

Mapping keyboard keys to the controller buttons

Mapping mouse movement to the analog sticks

Mapping keyboard keys to the analog sticks

Launching specific mappings alongside a specific emulator

Managing global and individual mappings

I used ScummVM as the example, which should also help those suffering through the current control issues found in the native joystick support. I just beat 'Monkey Island 2' the other night using these controls and it was a joy to play.

Thank you very much. I used the scummvm part. Now I can finally play again!
Also thanks @Mayki for asking some questions for the ps3 controller. I used your configuration and it worked fine.

Now I will create some settings for dosbox. With this tutorial it is much easier using xboxdrv than the mapper from dosbox.

dudleydes

Thank you for this guide. The Intellivision emulator maps the numeric keypad to the hat axes. The PS3 controllers has no hats so I was able to use xboxdrv to make use of the XBox controller's hat axes.

Thanks @Mayki for the PS3 configuration, saving me a heap of time. I did find that the left analog stick axes were inverted so I had to add --axismap -y1=y1,-y2=y2 \ to my configuration to fix this.

mediamogul

@Sevik, @dudleydes

I'm glad the guide has helped and that this space has been used to share ideas. I made a mapping for DOSBox just the other day specifically for 'Chex Quest' that's a lot of fun to control. Also, speaking of Intellivision, I thought I'd share my own mapping for jzintv that I'm particularly proud of:

sudo /opt/retropie/supplementary/xboxdrv/bin/xboxdrv \
	--evdev /dev/input/by-path/platform-3f980000.usb-usb-0:1.2:1.0-event-joystick \
	--detach-kernel-driver \
	--force-feedback \
	--dpad-as-button \
	--trigger-as-button \
	--deadzone-trigger 15% \
	--deadzone 4000 \
	--device-name "Logitech Rumblepad 2 (xboxdrv)" \
	--silent \
	--axismap -Y1=Y1,-Y2=Y2 \
	--evdev-absmap ABS_X=x1,ABS_Y=y1,ABS_Z=x2,ABS_RZ=y2,ABS_HAT0X=dpad_x,ABS_HAT0Y=dpad_y \
	--evdev-keymap BTN_THUMB2=a,BTN_THUMB=b,BTN_TOP=x,BTN_TRIGGER=y,BTN_BASE3=back,BTN_BASE4=start,BTN_TOP2=lb,BTN_PINKIE=rb,BTN_BASE5=tl,BTN_BASE6=tr,BTN_BASE=lt,BTN_BASE2=rt \
	--ui-axismap X1=KEY_S:KEY_D,Y1=KEY_E:KEY_X,X2=KEY_1:KEY_2,Y2=KEY_3:KEY_4,lt+X2=KEY_5:KEY_6,lt+Y2=KEY_7:KEY_8,rt+X2=KEY_9:KEY_0,rt+Y2=KEY_MINUS:KEY_EQUAL \
	--ui-buttonmap a=KEY_LEFTSHIFT,b=KEY_HOME,x=KEY_LEFTCTRL,y=KEY_LEFTALT,lb=KEY_F1,rb=KEY_F12,lt=KEY_HOME,rt=KEY_HOME,tl=KEY_HOME,tr=KEY_HOME,du=KEY_E,dd=KEY_X,dl=KEY_S,dr=KEY_D,start=KEY_PAUSE \
	--ui-buttonmap back=cycle-key:KEY_F6:KEY_F5 \
	--ui-buttonmap guide=void

Notice that with the use of 'lt' and 'rt' modifier keys applied to the --ui-axismap variable, I was able to map the entire twelve button keypad to the right joystick without changing any of jzintv's default settings:
--ui-axismap X2=KEY_1:KEY_2,Y2=KEY_3:KEY_4,lt+X2=KEY_5:KEY_6,lt+Y2=KEY_7:KEY_8,rt+X2=KEY_9:KEY_0,rt+Y2=KEY_MINUS:KEY_EQUAL

Also, using the 'cycle-key' variable, I can make use of the emulator's ability to switch controller mappings on the fly for games that require player one to be using the second controller, without taking up two keys to do it:
--ui-buttonmap back=cycle-key:KEY_F6:KEY_F5

I could geek out on this stuff all day and there's still a lot more that xboxdrv allows for. I want to add a smaller section about adding rapid fire capabilities to any button sometime soon. Anyone who might find the Intellivision mapping of interest, below is a similar example for player 2 that also conforms to jvintv's default settings.

sudo /opt/retropie/supplementary/xboxdrv/bin/xboxdrv \
	--evdev /dev/input/by-path/platform-3f980000.usb-usb-0:1.4:1.0-event-joystick \
	--detach-kernel-driver \
	--force-feedback \
	--dpad-as-button \
	--trigger-as-button \
	--deadzone-trigger 15% \
	--deadzone 4000 \
	--device-name "Logitech Rumblepad 2 (xboxdrv)" \
	--silent \
	--axismap -Y1=Y1,-Y2=Y2 \
	--evdev-absmap ABS_X=x1,ABS_Y=y1,ABS_Z=x2,ABS_RZ=y2,ABS_HAT0X=dpad_x,ABS_HAT0Y=dpad_y \
	--evdev-keymap BTN_THUMB2=a,BTN_THUMB=b,BTN_TOP=x,BTN_TRIGGER=y,BTN_BASE3=back,BTN_BASE4=start,BTN_TOP2=lb,BTN_PINKIE=rb,BTN_BASE5=tl,BTN_BASE6=tr,BTN_BASE=lt,BTN_BASE2=rt \
	--ui-axismap X1=KEY_J:KEY_K,Y1=KEY_I:KEY_M,X2=KEY_KP1:KEY_KP2,Y2=KEY_KP3:KEY_KP4,lt+X2=KEY_KP5:KEY_KP6,lt+Y2=KEY_KP7:KEY_KP8,rt+X2=KEY_KP9:KEY_DOT,rt+Y2=KEY_0:KEY_ENTER \
	--ui-buttonmap a=KEY_RIGHTSHIFT,b=KEY_HOME,x=KEY_RIGHTCTRL,y=KEY_RIGHTALT,lb=KEY_F1,rb=KEY_F12,lt=KEY_HOME,rt=KEY_HOME,tl=KEY_HOME,tr=KEY_HOME,du=KEY_I,dd=KEY_M,dl=KEY_J,dr=KEY_K,back=KEY_HOME,start=KEY_PAUSE \
	--ui-buttonmap guide=void

dudleydes

@mediamogul That's pretty impressive stuff. My approach was more straightforward as I wanted to take advantage of jzIntv's default mappings to play Deadly Discs. I swapped the hat with the right analog stick and created a keyboard hack file for JS1.

I have only tested the PS3 controller by USB for 1 player games so I may be taking a closer look at your configs later.

It may be an idea to create a repo on Github, like the one @Jon_Ge posted above, to collect configurations specific to RetroPie, maybe by controller and by emulator.

mediamogul

@dudleydes said in Guide: Advanced Controller Mappings:

It may be an idea to create a repo on Github, like the one @Jon_Ge posted above, to collect configurations specific to RetroPie, maybe by controller and by emulator.

That would be most keen.

MadHorse

Hi mediamogul,
first thing, WOW, what an amazing guide, i was fine tuning my retropie to make it work the way i want, but i wasn't able to configure scummVM to use the joypad in a correct way.
With your guide i was able make it work correctly like it work with my mouse and keyboard.
But, there is always a but,
when i start scummVM the joypad is recognized correctly and it's working very well, but it seems it doesen't load the scummvm.ini, because all the configuration i have made and my game list are disappeared.
I'm using Retropie 4.0.2 with ScummVM ver 1.8.1pre
My +Start ScummVM.sh look like this:

#!/bin/bash
game="$1"
pushd "/home/pi/RetroPie/roms/scummvm" >/dev/null
sudo killall >/dev/null xboxdrv
sudo /opt/retropie/supplementary/xboxdrv/bin/xboxdrv \
       >/dev/null \
       --evdev /dev/input/event2 \
       --silent \
       --detach-kernel-driver \
       --force-feedback \
       --deadzone-trigger 15% \
       --deadzone 4000 \
       --mimic-xpad \
       --dpad-as-button \
       --evdev-absmap ABS_X=x1,ABS_Y=y1,ABS_Z=x2,ABS_RZ=y2,ABS_#48=lt,ABS_#49=rt \
       --evdev-keymap KEY_#302=a,KEY_#301=b,BTN_DEAD=x,KEY_#300=y,BTN_THUMB=tl,BTN_THUMB2=tr,BTN_BASE5=lb,BTN_BASE6=rb,BTN_TRIGGER=back,KEY_#720=guide,BTN_TOP=start,BTN_TOP2=du,BTN_PINKIE=dr,BTN_BASE=dd,BTN_BASE2=dl \
       --calibration x1=-32767:0:32767,y1=-32767:0:32767,x2=-32767:0:32767,y2=-32767:0:32767 \
       --ui-axismap x1=REL_X:10,y1=REL_Y:-10 \
       --ui-buttonmap b=BTN_LEFT,a=BTN_RIGHT,start=KEY_F5 \
       --ui-buttonmap guide=void,x=void,y=void,lb=void,rb=void,tl=void,tr=void,lt=void,rt=void,back=void \
       --ui-axismap x2=void \
       -- \
/opt/retropie/emulators/scummvm/bin/scummvm --fullscreen --joystick=0 --extrapath="/opt/retropie/emulators/scummvm/extra" $game
while read line; do
   id=($line);
   touch "/home/pi/RetroPie/roms/scummvm/$id.svm"
done < <(/opt/retropie/emulators/scummvm/bin/scummvm --list-targets | tail -n +3)
popd >/dev/null

If instead of -- \ i use -- & , ScummVM start with the correct configuration and game list, the joypad is working correctly, but when i quit ScummVM, the Joypad isn't working anymore in Emulationstation.
I solved adding sudo killall >/dev/null xboxdrv as last line but i don't know if it's a good way.
What do you think i made it wrong in my configuration ?
Thank you for any help.

mediamogul

@MadHorse

By adding the &, you have separated the command in two. First it launches your xboxdrv configuration and then it launches ScummVM as a separate process. For xboxdrv to tear itself down after the emulator quits, it all has to be in the same command, meaning that your xboxdrv config launches ScummVM as a part of itself and is therefore aware when it quits.

I believe I know where the problem is. I think you may have either skipped over the step that allows uninput to run at the user lever, or you still have sudo attached to the beginning of your xboxdrv command. Either way, it's important that the command run at the user level and not the root user, which has no config preferences for any of the emulators.

MadHorse

Thank you very much, you were absolutely right, i've made the step that allows uninput to run at user level but i forgot to remove sudo at the beginning of the command.
Now it works perfectly.
Thank you very much.

mediamogul

@MadHorse

I'm glad it's working. Tell Threepwood he fights like a dairy farmer.

MadHorse

How appropriate! I fight like a cow! :D

Thank you again.