Aww hell yeah.... Nemesis on big screen with Ps3 controller...

DeVore

Finally, I have managed to beat everything into playing ball with everything else. For months now I have secretly been trying to get this to work. Here's why I'm excited...

I used to play a game called Nemesis in the arcades. You might remember it, a side scroller which was like Defender (or a precursor to R-Type) but on acid. Anyway, I loved it.

Arcade closed and I never saw it again. So, a while back I got into MAME stuff for a giggle. (you can find it here: http://mamedev.org/ Its lots of fun and a big blast from the past.) Almost every arcade game I know is out there and I know just about all of them (huge arcade rat here!)

But playing it on a laptop, with keys, just aint the same. I want Joystick goodness!!!!

So, I figured maybe the PS3 or Xbox controller would work but surprisingly neither really wanted to play ball with Vista and for once, it wasnt Vistas fault. (both SHOULD work though)

So, I downloaded this: http://dl.qj.net/dl.php?fid=113518&new=1
and read this: http://dl.qj.net/playstation-3/tools-and-utilities/sixaxis-driver-for-pc.html
and managed to get the PS3 controller to work (I prefer it to the xbox controller personally)

With HDMI out, I have connected lappy to a HD tv and am planning on using it with a projector next week.

So, free arcade in a box and all from bits that you probably already have!

(I'm unbearably pleased with myself, its been 20 years since I played Nemmy in the arcade on Eden Quay )

DeV.

DeVore

Hmmm, now I dont know if this should be in Retro gaming (as its about a retro game) or here (as its about tech of how to play games this way). Mods, feel free to kick this to Retro if you think it belongs there!

DeV.

Retr0gamer

Going to move this to arcade and retro.

PS3 or Xbox 360 controller with these old games is just plain old wrong. The 360 controller in particualr for 2D games is utterly terrible, the d-pad is awful. You need an arcade stick and you won't get better than the Street Fighter 4 Tournament Edition sticks. I've the lesser model, the fight stick and it works beautifully and you can easily replace the fight stick buttons and joystick parts to bring it in line with the tournament edition stick.

DeVore

With the Ps3 controller??

I mapped everything to the thumb-joystick and it works like a charm. Up,down,left,right, fire.... what more is needed?

DeV.

o1s1n

DeVore wrote: »

what more is needed?

DeV.

A joystick and buttons on a flat surface

You'd be suprised how much it adds to the experience. As great as it is to play games on MAME with a pad, if you want that true arcade feel (short of buying a cab) then get yourself a good stick. You'll know what I mean when you get one!

djimi

Last weekend I went from using a 360 controller to using an arcade stick with MAME and believe me its a whole world of difference! The 360 controller is a decent joypad but it in no way feels authentic, and when you start using an arcade stick it just finishes off the experience. Short of getting a cabinet its the way to go.

I got my Hori stick in Gamestop for €35. Its the PS3 stick but should work fine on a PC; some games might not recognise it but for MAME and most emulators Ive tried it works. I dont know how it compares to the SF4 stick, but it does the job!

Retr0gamer

DeVore wrote: »

With the Ps3 controller??

I mapped everything to the thumb-joystick and it works like a charm. Up,down,left,right, fire.... what more is needed?

DeV.

Start getting a bit further into Nemesis. The thumb stick is going to let you down. As for playing street fighter 2, just forget about it. Not only does an arcade stick feel authentic, it offers much greater and accurate control.

MarcusFenix

MAME is like a program that lets you play old ROMS ya? How do I get it? I went on that site and can't really understand how I get it:o Also I just installed my xbox controller on my windows 7 laptop, how do I set it up for particular uses or can I?

Retr0gamer

Go to the downloads section and download the mame0139.exe file and run it.

Mame is dos based, if you want on with a windows interface get mame32.

If you can't get some roms working I'd recommend an older version of mame.

eddhorse

Legality with Roms issue coming up.....:rolleyes:

I see your view DeVore, anything is better than using the keyboard.
Good job in finally getting some nostalgia in as well.

I cant give any input on the Joystick, ive only used the PS3 controller and am happy out. Although if Retr0gamer says you need something extra id listen to him, he's R-Types bastard child....

Retr0gamer

Well it's just that if he's going all out like he is looking for the full experience then the only way for the full experience is a stick

o1s1n

I used a Playstation type pad with MAME for years.

Got a Dreamcast stick a few months ago that's modded with real arcade parts.

I then got an adapter that lets you plug a Dreamcast stick/pad into a PC.

Now I wonder how I ever used a pad. It's that big a difference.

DeVore

Retr0gamer wrote: »

Start getting a bit further into Nemesis. The thumb stick is going to let you down. As for playing street fighter 2, just forget about it. Not only does an arcade stick feel authentic, it offers much greater and accurate control.

Lol.... I've "clocked" the game twice over.... the third time round the Brain (end of game baddy) is simply impossible.

But I take your point about the authentic feel... if this were Street Fighter I would certainly agree but Nemesis wouldnt push me over the edge just yet... I do have a hairbrained idea for a self built cabinet with a new style joystick in it but thats a different project!

I'm sure I'll cave and buy one anyway... lol

DeV.

LoGiE

A classic! I played a lot of Salamander on my c64 so in true retro style I retraced it's roots back to Gradius/ Nemesis. HMmmm... interesting fact on wikipedia. The first use of the 'konami code' was on Gradius for the nes.

DeVore I've two arcade cabinets and counting you wont regret it! Take a look here to wet your appetite. MitchMagic has a shed full and has sold cabinets to a lot of regular posters here in A&R.

Joypads just dont compare to arcade controls in my humble opinion. These games are supposed to be played standing up with the player hammering the micro switch buttons to death! Case in point, I swapped out the switches in my Mortal Kombat II cabinet because most of them had been worn down about 3mm!

LoGiE

CiDeRmAn

I suppose one possible compromise is to see if you can use one of the Street Fighter IV PS3 sticks thru the PC.
You would then have an excellent, proper, arcade style stick, not to mention with 6 buttons on the console, making it perfect for just about any MAME game thrown at it.
While it wouldn't be as nice as having a real arcade stick and button setup, it'd be the next best thing.

As regards a lecture on emulation and roms, once there is no discussion of where to get roms or links to them, emulation is perfectly alright to talk about.

BrianD3

RE: Eden Quay amusments I was in there in 1999/2000 and they had a working Nemesis then, maybe the same machine that you played. They also had a Space Invaders. I think the arcade closed in around 2002 though.

DeVore

If it was on the left, in the basement, yup.... I used to play it in the 80s, like '84.... I'm old.


What I'm thinking of doing is getting a cab or ideally one of those table style ones, and sticking a laptop inside it, running linux, booting directly into MAME and connecting the joystick to it.... instant cab for any game you choose

DeV.

ebbsy

Happy days.

All those Nemesis games were great - Salamander was may favourite. I remember arcade as well - anytime I went into Dublin I went in for a few games.

o1s1n

DeVore wrote: »

or ideally one of those table style ones, and sticking a laptop inside it, running linux, booting directly into MAME and connecting the joystick to it.... instant cab for any game you choose

DeV.

If you're interested in that, you might like this project. I've been meaning to do it myself for absolutely ages. Looks gorgeous and is really easy to do -

http://gizmodo.com/5022607/ikea-%252B-apple--mamebook-cocktail

DeVore

That looks awesome! I think I'll give something like that a go and let you all know how it transpires....

DeV.