Caine’s Arcade

Woke up too early this morning, it’s dark, raining and pretty cold. Flipped on my iPad to catch up with the news and came across this heartwarming film. Not so cold now

Caine’s cardboard arcade.

Apr 10 2012

Gold Leaf buttons for iCade

The chaps at Ultimarc have confirmed that their leaf switch arcade buttons will fit a 28mm hole so have ordered a set for my iCade. Being leaf switch, they should be all but silent, not as robust at micro switches but for my occasional iCade use they should perfect.

I’ll post more about this when they arrive.

Apr 9 2012

Sanwa push button in iCade?

Whilst on holidays a few weeks back I had the opportunity to go visit my mate JT and sample some of his games via his rather nice Capcom Impress cabinet.

JT’s impressive collection of Capcom boards including the highly impressive Pro Gear.

I can see why people love Sanwa arcade buttons, they’re perfect for schmups and high action games that requiring multiple rapid contacts. A set of these would be great in my iCade!

Remembering that JT has kindly given me a couple of buttons to test, I’ve once again taken my iCade apart for a poke around inside and to see if it’s possible to swap out the stock buttons. I’ve tried with Happs microswitches which, despite being quieter, are but still quite ‘Clicky’

Here’s the two Sanwa Snap-in buttons.

Bugger! They don’t fit. These buttons are 29.5mm wide whereas the iCade button holes are 28mm. I could make them fit using my Dremel to sand out the holes but before I go down that route I want to see if there’s any thing else that’s suitable first.

Maybe should have read this before undoing the ga-zillion iCade screws

http://www.myglasseye.net/news/2012/01/how-to-customise-your-icade-stick-and-buttons/

Apr 2 2012

Retro gaming books (free)

Here’s a great link courtesy of the equally great Retroist website – not one, but two retro gaming books to get stuck into.

Both have been released in whole host of digital formats including online reading, .pdf, epub, txt, .mobi etc etc and for a limited time are completely free!

The first book, ANESthetized (great title btw) is a personal look at Nintendo’s NES console and it’s games and peripherals and the second, called Arcadian, and is an insight into the authors experiences growing up in the golden age of arcades halls and the, now classic, games he used to play.

Both are dripping in wonderfully nostalgic goodness and should be sampled whilst they’re available.

If you can, please leave a review at smash books as way of thanks to the author for releasing these free of charge.

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/144646

To the Kindle app!

Mar 18 2012

Happy Mothers Day

Happy Mothers Day to all mums out there, pixellated or not

Feb 26 2012

iOS gaming: Midway Arcade

If you missed the opportunity of grabbing the ultimate arcade emulator ‘MAME’ for your iPhone/iPad during its very brief appearance on the Apple app store, then Warner Bros’ release of Midway Arcade might be just what you need?

Midway Arcade is currently on offer for 69p/$0.99 and for that you get access to six classic arcade games with options to buy more via the in app store.

The available games are -

Defender
Spy Hunter
Joust
Arch Rivals
Root beer Tapper
Rampage

Further purchases can unlock-

Gauntlet 1and 2
A.P.B
Total Carnage
Narc
Wizards of Wor

What makes Midway Arcade such a great app though is the presentation of these games by recreating a digital version of a typical arcade from the 80′s. If you’re of the era, then prepare to go back in time!

Dodgy patterned and worn carpets, neon signs, symphony of digital beeps, game posters, change machines, it’s all here. You can almost smell the stale popcorn, smoke and under topped Pizza’s.

Let take a tour of our arcade.

Starting on the first floor we see the highly detailed Defender and Spy Hunter cabinets. You. N pan around and look at them from any angle. Gotta love that funky steering wheel.

On past Arch Rivals and Root Beer tapper and we stop by Joust for a minute or too…actually, I’ll catch up with you later, I’ll be some be some time with Joust.

Downstairs and before hitting the cabinets again, grab a drink and a few rounds of touch screen Pool.

Never was an APB fan but always like the side art.

Stopped by the Rampage cabinet for some monster mayhem with George and co. before shooting some balls.

Yay, won some tickets so headed over to the prize desk to cash them in. Damn it, only enough tickets to get this izzy doll, got my heart set on a 720″ skateboard

So how do the games play? Well, emulation is spot on and as far as touch screen controls go they actually work pretty well. Defender, Joust and Tapper in particular transform quite well and the added options of multiple control type/buttons for Spy Hunter means that you can pick one to suit.

Tilt, d-pad or funky virtual wheel..your choice.

Sadly Rampage suffers as the eight-way virtual stick is not precise enough to handle the diagonals required to scale the buildings and so gameplay is a tad frustrating. To be honest, even the original arcade cabinet with real joysticks was always a bit hit and miss.

Games can be played in either landscape or portrait mode. The latter giving non portrait oriented games a splash of marque and control panel artwork.

Of the titles I’ll be unlocking, Total Carnage is on the top of my list. Here’s hoping for virtual dual stick controls. Gauntlet is ok but the original was fun because it could be played with up to three other mates, its doubtful this emulated version can replicate that.

I think WB/Midway have got it spot on with the presentation of this app. O.k so so the mini games aren’t actually that good but they compliment the digital arcade very well. Add in the ability to play your own iTunes music in the background (preferably something from the 80′s) whilst smacking away on a quick round of Air Hockey will no doubt bring back all those happy gaming memories. Taito, Capcom, Atari, take note, this is how to present your arcade games!

Oh and Warner Bros’, two things.

Where’s the flippin iCade support! How can you present these classic games and omit the one great device that was built for such apps? Sort it out!

Secondly, can you bring this to my digital arcade please?

Feb 15 2012

Mame32 guides

If you’re a retro gamer then it’s probably a safe bet to say that you’re sampled the wonderful world of MAME – Multiple – Arcade – Machine – Emulator.

But if you haven’t, then it all might seem a little complicated with all of those options and configurations etc. The guys at RacketBoy have released a concise guide to the popular Mame32 frontend which will walk you through the setup to get you gaming in no time.

http://www.racketboy.com/retro/emulation/introductory-guide-to-mame32mameui

Feb 15 2012

Retro Gaming: Lunar Rescue – Arcade

Lunar Rescue – Taito.

Here’s a classic game from way back in 1979 that’s been on the top of my play list just lately.

It seems that your fellow astronauts have become somewhat stranded on the surface of the moon and it’s your mission to go rescue them.

As you can see from the screenshot below, this particular moon has it’s own local asteroid belt and so it’s going to be a tricky descent down the the surface. ‘Collision’ is not an option here people

You’ve got a limited amount of fuel onboard so go easy on the manuvering jets as you steer your way to one of the three landing platforms below. Each are numbered to reflect the score you’ll receive upon a safe landing, the trickier ones providing the higher points of course.

On touchdown, one of downed astronauts will want to hitch a lift back with you to your mothership obiting high above the moons surface.

..but wait what’s this? Those asteroids are actually alien invaders in disguise! The sneaky buggers. Better fire up your guns and blast a clear path before those alien lasers hit you. If you make it through unscathed, aim your craft towards your Mothership who will open her cargo doors allowing you to dock. With thanks from your passenger, it’s time to head on back down to the surface, you’ve got another five astronauts to rescue.

If Lunar Rescue was a bug budget sci-fi movie, them surely it would be a prequel to Taito’s Space Invaders?

Mashing an arcade shooter with a hint of Lunar Lander is always going to be a hit in my book and this simple yet fun little game is well worth a look via MAME – even if it’s just to hear those wonderfully nostalgic Taito sound FX.

Arcade Flyer

It looks like Lunar Rescue was housed in Taito’s standard cabinet design used in the late 70′s to mid 80′s. I’ve always like this design, but a believe me, they’re flipping heavy to lug about!

Interestingly, the rather excellent cover artwork for a ZX Spectrum clone looks rather familiar, maybe i have this in my collection somewhere…further investigation i think!

Jan 5 2012

Retro gaming: Depth Charge – Arcade/Mame.

It might not look much but this vintage black and white arcade game from 1977 is proving to be quite addictive little game that i keep returning back to beat my previous score. as you rain death from above on the high seas to unsuspecting submariners lurking below. It’s similar to an very old Apple II game i used to play but it’s been so long i’ve plain forgotten what is was called.

The aim is simply to use your warship to rain death from above with with depth charges on the unsuspecting submariners lurking in deep sea below. I must say, it’s very sporting of them to paint score numbers on their hulls! You have just 90 seconds to destroy as many subs as you can although scoring above 500 points will grant you an extra 45 second bonus.

Steering of your ship is via left,right control and two fire buttons are use to launch your depth charges from either aft or stern – or starboard and port depending on how you interpret your ship sprite! Your ship is equipped with an unlimited supply of depth charges but you can only release six in one go until they either hit a sub or the seabed below.

Submarines swim under the water at various speeds and at different depths therefore you have to use your judgement to guess when to release a depth charge to score a hit. Submarines at greater depths reward with a greater score but of course are harder to hit.

Those subs drivers aren’t going to give up without a fight though and will launch mines that will float up to the surface and explode making Swiss cheese of your hull. Sinking you ship will loose precious seconds as the next boat is readied for you.

Scrolling is very smooth and I love how the depth charges rotate as they slowly sink to the sea bed below and the implosion animation on the submarines.

Can you beat my iMame score above?

Simply, addictive, fun and well worth taking a look.

Dec 3 2011

DIY Retro Dual Stick Controller – PART 2

Right time to put the sticks into a case and as I mentioned yesterday, I’ve found the perfect item to use for it.

Behold!

Yep, it might look like a standard office box file, but you’d be wrong,this is actually a custom dual stick case….honest

Firstly we have the custom camouflage paintwork which perfectly suits our tank busting antics with Atari’s Battlezone.

We then have the sturdy plastic side panels to keep everything from crumpling into a cardboard mess when the action intensifies. Also note the smooth curved edging for comfort whilst playing

We also have the prefabricated ‘service hole’ where one can poke ones USB cable through.

…and to top it off, we have a flip lid giving instant access to the components inside and easy maintenance as well as a push button lock for security…..em?

O.k, so it’s a box file, but with all the ‘features’ listed above, you can kinda imagine what I was thinking when I saw it.

First job, cut to holes for the joysticks to poke through. A sharp craft knife was used here as the cardboard was thicker than I thought and way too much for my poor old scissors.

Joysticks positioned and loose cables tie wrapped out of the way. The Keyrah interface will sit inside the case with the USB cable threaded though the hole in the front.

I needed something inside the case for the joysticks to rest on as the case was a little too deep for them. For this, I’ve used one of my heavy gardening books which not provides weight and stability, it also a smooth glossy surface for the joystick sucker pads to attach to and stops them from slipping around. I was still about 1cm short so, keeping it Retro, a copy of Amiga Format magazine from January 1993 filled the gap quite nicely.