advancemame 3.3 not saving control config for one game

[paulace55]

I looked around and didn't see this particular problem, so I hope I'm not repeating anything here. I'm running RetroPie 4.2 on a Pi3 in a bartop arcade cab with zero delay USB encoders and for most games, I'm running lr-mame2003. But of course, there are the vector games, so I'm running 23 or so of those on advancemame 3.3 (?). The games look great, and I'm able to save my controller configs by just entering the "tab" menu, assigning my buttons/joysticks and exiting out. Those assignments are saved by every game but one: Space Wars. Or to be more accurate, I should say, the buttons that control ship turning, thrust, shooting and hyperspace (buttons 1, 2 and 3) are saved. But when I try to assign buttons to the various "Options" (options 0 through 9) that determine the physics of the playfield, the "tab" menu will let me assign those options to my controller buttons, and will react to the button presses properly until I quit and re-start the game, at which point those option button assignments are not remembered.
I've looked in the .rc file and see the buttons that are remembered there (joystick movement and buttons 1, 2 and 3. But there's no sign of the other buttons I'm trying to assign to the options that start the game. I've tried to add a line there about the buttons that aren't being recorded, but as sensitive as advancemame is to tinkering with the .rc file, the game won't even start when I manually try to add button presses, so I've obviously doing something wrong there.
I hope I've explained that clearly, and that someone can point me in the right direction. Perhaps it's just a quirk of that particular rom?
Those vector games do look fantastic in advancemame!