I don't have five grand to spend on a arcade machine if they build for the local bowling alley that has all these games on it you can download off the internet and also for rental console and PC games also in these cabinets nice design though.
I have tried almost all console emulation but i haven't tried mame because i felt intimidated by how hard it is to set it up. Thanks for this guide, I will try it.
Seriously, I'm in the same boat on that. I remember back when MAME first came out, info on how to properly install and run it was pretty confusing since this was a time when all this information was very new to the internet at large. These launchers truly do streamline the most foreign part of the process.
Thanks a bunch, man. Always wanted to install MAME but it looked a bit daunting. It took me almost a week to download the full rom set (and I could only find version 0.232) but eventually it all worked out. Now I have around thirty thousand games in my PC. What's a bummer is that not all games could find images for their big boxes, but I'll get around to that sometime. Again, thank you very much, you were very kind with your time in order to teach us the steps.
@@dmtmediabrothers No clue, just tried various links in google search until one seemed to be the real deal. It is a bit of a leap of faith, I was affraid I was downloading malicious software but it ended up well. Maybe try doing it in a computer you don't care much about - and if it works, you can transfer the file to your main computer later.
@@pablobragacp Let's be real there, arcade games in general do not contain a fancy boxart like the console one. Even there is one, the list appearance still looks very inconsistent which doesn't help at all :3 Personally, just like the scenario with Nintendo Satellaview games, I would make an exception which I rather use title screen as Arcade boxart cover list. Every arcade game basically has it's own title screen so it would make the overall looking much more bearable :3 Also, when adding arcade playlist in Launchbox or Retroarch, DO NOT set the core as every game sometimes needs different cores to successfully boot the application.
If you're using MAME in Retroarch you'll need Finalburn Neo, MAME 2016, and MAME 2003. Not all the roms set will work with just one, you need to see which one doesn't launch and switch them accordingly. You can also setup Launchbox for these 3 category, only roms that works with 2003, 2016 and Finalburn.
Yeah, depending on your games, you may need to set different MAME versions to work with different games. Some of mine work great with 2003 Plus or 2016, and a few work with MAME generic or even MAME 2003 Midway.
None of my MAME roms are working though. I've got a roms folder shared between Hyperspin and Launchbox. MAME 0.220 identically set up but I can play them fine in HS but not in LB. Any ideas why this could happen? Cheers!
This is a fantastic guide. Worked perfectly. Thank you so much! I have struggled with this for many many years. Finally an easy solution that actually works!
*_Did you have any issue downloading the 0.240 split set? My download gets to about 99.9% and then gets stuck in a continuous download loop. Can’t seem to find a workaround to get the final two files I need._*
@@kevindie I was able to download the .240 split set with no issues. Maybe yours got to 99% and then was working to write the file to the disk? Just a guess.
Yeah, I think the Launchbox guys watched his videos and then tapped him to do theirs. I have no doubt ETA really does like LB, it is a great front end.
Been forever since I launched the program. Purchased license way back when and used it for a bit. Newer versions seem to have ton of new features. Will be setting up a fresh install this week after seeing this video!
ETA I’m just going to say it! You are in a league of your own as a content creator. I’ve been a subscriber for many years and I’m not just saying that. You have the best tutorials bar none! Thank you bro for being so awesome and Happy Holidays Christmas 🎄
Looks nice, thank you. Some sincere questions though. Even though this is by far the easiest rom import setup I have seen, 1) How do I prevent automatic full screen? I almost always play in a window to pause and go back and to other apps 2) Controller setup! This is something where Launchbox just doesn't have a patch on openemu for mac (nothing does really as far as ease of use goes). How do I set up my controller, including analog for driving games? 3) How do I access game rom settings, for example with neogeo i should be able to have control over difficulty level, lives, etc. This is really easy in RA with FBN. Thanks very much in advance!
Worked great for the most part. Just downloaded Launchbox and it's an updated version from the one in this video. Gonna have to figure out the no-nag part, it didn't work on my PC.
This is much improved. Though the created playlists still feel like they are messy. Would be nice if it gave me the option of nesting them to make it a little cleaner , but it is a minor gripe really.
Is controller setup/use simple? Any possibility on info on how that's done? Currently doing the art work download and all that before I really get into the games!
Automatic MAME confirmation sounds nice, I frequently struggle with button mappings that are gone Maybe because my stick isn’t always in the same USB port
@@neil_9000 did exactly that but still have the issue. Maybe I should delete those other config files. Maybe there is a game specific one in there as well
@@FuZZbaLLbee Yeah could well be, a game specific will override the default. I use the read only method myself and havent had mame wipe it in years. Mame wipes it when you start it without a controller plugged in/switched on.
@@neil_9000 I am wondering if MAME also wipes it if the stick is in an other USB port. Windows seems to see it as a different device. I have the same with my wireless USB dongle for the xbox360 controller. The first time i use a different USB port for the wireless dongle a driver needs to be installed.
I've been addicted to your channel for weeks now. I'm a huge retro gamer fan and my era was the Atari 5200-7800, but my true passion are arcade games. This is perfect! Thank you! However, I can't get SNK Neo Geo games to work. I'm a programmer and I have no problem cracking open files and folders and modifying as needed, but there are no tutorials or helps files on Neo Geo in Launchbox. Any ideas where I should look?
Are CHDs files needed to install with the roms? and do I need the bios too? and are they automatically downloaded onto the set up? I'm still new to this MAME set up
Most cheap encoders on Amazon are good enough and are basically plug and play. The buttons on the other hand will depend on what have you played and what you like. Some folks like buttons that light up others are more concerned about them being concave or convex. I'd suggest the simpler single color buttons without lights, they are cheaper and easier to set up. you can always get different buttons for your encoder if you want something more colorful or fancy afterwards.
@Alexis Rivera Appreciate that. I usually use the cheap ones. I've bought the led buttons once, their okay, but like you mentioned, I'd rather stick with the traditional ones.
Hello All, I have followed all the steps and downloaded onto my Windows 10 PC perfectly. THe only issue I have is that I can start up all the games but can't play it. I tried hitting every button on my keyboard and every button on my Microsoft Xbox controller but it doesn't do anything. I can't get the game to start playing. I can see all of the nag screens but still can't get the game to play. Any advice out there please?
I use Launchbox mostly because I like my emulators to be stand alone which is why I really try to avoid Retroarch. I think it's great for people who are getting into emulation to have everything set up but for us who use some emulators for 15-20 years we prefer emulators to be stand alone that's why Launchbox
You're confused on how it works, Launchbox basically requires Retroarch to run games, as it is only a frontend, a skin. Retroarch is also a frontend but it's mostly used because it's a unified way to run most systems in one place, with plenty of options to enhance your experience. The user can, of course, opt to use standalone emulators for every system, but if you visit LB forums or mess with its config, you'll see Retroarch basically being a requirement to emulate most systems, because it's easier and often the best option. If I get right what you're trying to say is that you prefer browsing and launching games from Launchbox rather than from Retroarch, if that's it, then I agree with you, as I also use a frontend to browse my games.
@@roberto1519 I love retroarch (in beginning i hated it).For me the best combination is Launchox that run almost everything trough retroarch, and for some systems use standalone emulators.For me, this is the perect mix.
@@zgboy23 Same here. I hated Retroarch at first, but that's because I needed to learn. But I also found MAME frustrating at first until I learned it and got quite comfortable using it. I'm glad I switched to Retroarch as, for me, it's easily the best solution. The way it handles the display for everything was a big improvement over some of the standalone emulators I had tried.
I hate MAME. It's the one I want to use the most, but it's the most difficult to find all the files needed to get working. Do a quick search to find roms, ya, you can find the roms but not hte CHD's which are needed for most of the good games. I got .242 roms, but none of the chd files, and i haven't the foggiest where to get them.
thanks man, i just used this guide to set up, i used to use MAME years back and launchbox looks really fun and neat compared to mame old interface i used to use if only i could give possibility to give it to myself 30 years back, who used to drop tokens which were substitute for coins in our arcades, to give myself ability to play it all... it was unimaginable back then, i wonder what will be available in 30 years from now
Love it! Please add multiple filters. Like if I wanted to play fighting games made in 1998. I know you can use the arrange option, but it displays every game in the category, so I would still have to scroll down to 1998.
Hello, I have a question that you may or may not be able to answer, what (in your opinion) is the best frontend for an arcade machine build, now to be fair the machine in question is a 4 player using ipacs. I also have 4 xbox controllers for emulators that don't really support arcade style play . I currently have a front end installed and use but I'm just curious what you might recommend as I am always looking to improve the experience
I would suggest a windows PC booting straight into BigBox for most easy customization and less hair pulling. I personally use a PC with Linux based Batocera in my arcade, its seamless from boot, very easy for my kids to start up and run, but takes a bit of time to fine tune some of the more advanced emulation like N64 and up.
Anyone know if the issue with downloading media for similarly named roms is still present? Like the confusion between Double Dragon the original arcade game and Double Dragon for the Neo Geo? It seems like Launchbox has a hard time distinguishing the two games so I always get their media mixed up.
Thank you for the excellent tutorial! Would it be possible to also do a separate video on using an Xbox controller with Launchbox? It does not seem to be preconfigured.
Not sure if your still answering questions on this post, but need some guidance, do you need to download mame separately and add some way to your Launchbox, or does it Launchbox auto install mame with the mame roms set and auto configures for you? I've been trying the past week and all I could get was one game to work using the stand alone mame latest version, then installed a couple of console emulators (Saga Genesis and Turbografx 16) managing to get them working with adding single roms, but I'd really like to get everything set up and working as you showed in your video...I'm currently dl latest mame roms set...Thanxs for any help in advance.
smh been a long day, sorry about that, read info above and answered my question...wow this should be so much easier than manually setting up mame, I did with older version years ago, but don't have it anymore and just cannot figure out how to set up mame as stand alone, no matter how many video's I've watched.
I have a question. Where do you find the games that you run on your MAME Arcade? I do want to know. Cause, I want to get some Arcade Games? I want to get some amazing games on MAME Arcade. But, I don't know where to get the games from?
MAME is the most confused emulator I have ever used. The UI doesn't look friendly for users at all. Instead, I use FB Alpha which is more easier to play Arcade games on PC.
This will be a huge load off when I do this, MAME has been a pain for me to get working. Just wish I could find where to get the 0.240 romset, not finding any good links to it yet.
the mame games aren't playing :/ I think I'm competent with technology but I just can't figure this emulation stuff out. Definitely not "Super Easy" by any means
Late to the game on this but just got into all this retrogaming. Love this, games up and running but is there away to save my highscores (my machine only, not the LB community Highscore)?
Ive a spare pc and an x-arcade tankstick..is there a standard config for the tankstick? Thanks for the video.very clear as always I JUST FOUND YOUR VIDEO....MAME HERE I COME!
I have one of the newer Atari VCS consoles. You can add memory to them through a thumbdrive or external hard drive. At which point with Windows 10 loaded to the drive, you can run the VCS in PC mode. My question is, if you had a big enough hard drive, could you get launch box and MAME to run through the VCS?
Is that also launch box allow to run MS DOS games and the amigas roms and old consoles like before nintendo like Atari? I am building with my retro computer who run 32 bits PC games. I was thinking to haft windows 32 bits in one side and other side and other side with batocera with all emulators to play 2004. Here is my laptop reference Asus G73JH Dedicated 1gb video card DDR3 16GB 2 Hard Drivers 1TB SSD 1TB HHD I am thinking because it is more easy setup and access but no sure. Any good advice?
Cool, but the box art previews aren't the best way to display the games, they're mostly mockups from the arcade flyers and show little to none of the games themselves, this frontend is better off showing in-game screenshots than custom, fan made boxes.
Super basic question, as I am terrible at MAME (only use retroarch): in an arcade cabinet that have a special wiring for standard MAME keyboard inputs, does this Launchbox option works or is it configured for pads?
Is there a way to only import games that are vertical or horizontal? I have 2 cabinets. 1 is for horizontal and the other is for vertical games. * I also have BigBox. Thanks ETA
Bless you for this. I’m going to use this for my Arcade1up machines. Can I use you 2-3 year old video for raspberry pie on Arcade1up for tutorial still? I kind of want to do the install with getting all original hardware and just throw in a computer to run this launch box.
You probably can but I'd suggest you search a video on modding the specific arcade you got because there might be some minor but potentially confusing changes between other arcade models and the panels/wiring they use.
Thanks for another great video - I Followed the video down to a button and all the cover art and things look to be in place but when i go to launch a game it acts as if it is going to play - then boots me back to the game select screen (using big box - rom set 0.240. :( just went i thought i finally had things going, any thoughts as to what could be causing this?
Hey ETA do you have a video to help config and setup Mame on Steamdeck? I’m having issues with Mame and NeoGeo. Not sure if it’s a file format or I know Roms are good. Btw.
i spend so much time before doing import of WHD. just tried to setup a new LB with WHD and it just worked within minutes. I also remember something about the PUA was not that great before, and needed to use FS-UAE instead. but looks like amiga have improved in many ways
How about non-merged sets? I tried to install a non merged set so that I could install games one by one (as i do with all games), but it imports like 4 different versions of a game, and only consolidates some of them.
If I want to replace the program with a new version, which files in the folder do I have to replace? I don't want to lose my highscores or my settings for the games.
