MAME

The Internet Arcade – Online Classic Arcade Gaming

May 19, 2020 By ausretrogamer

Are you sick of mucking around with MAME to get your classic arcade gaming fix?

Well, if you didn’t know, the Internet Archive has you sorted with their Internet Arcade. The Internet Arcade is a web-based library of classic arcade (coin-operated) video games from the 1970s through to the 1990s. You can play all of these classics in your browser, with the emulation being in JSMAME, which is part of the JSMESS software package.

So no more stuffing about configurations and chasing questionable ROM files all over the net, the Internet Arcade has you sorted with well over 1,700 games! Well, don’t sit there and stare at this, go and play some classic arcade games.

Podcast: Vertical Hold – Retro Gaming In Self Isolation

April 24, 2020 By ausretrogamer

I can’t believe that we (myself and Ms. ausretrogamer) have never appeared together on a podcast! Well, I am here to tell you that we finally made our debut together in guest speaking on episode 275 of the Vertical Hold podcast!

The topic of discussion was how we were passing the time and keeping our sanity in this worldwide pandemic. We delve into the midst of nostalgia and discuss all things gaming, from retro and modern, pinball, arcade, board games to the Commodore 64, SNES, RetroPie and Nintendo’s Wii! Oh yeah, Double Dragon and Zelda came up in conversation too 😉

Thank you to Alex Kidman and Adam Turner for having us on their brilliant weekly Vertical Hold podcast, we had a blast!

Podcast: Vertical Hold – The Retro Gaming Special Episode

November 15, 2019 By ausretrogamer

Being invited to guest appear (or should that be speak?) on a podcast is always humbling, very cool and a bit nerve-racking. It is exceptionally cool when invited by two of our good friends, Alex Kidman and Adam Turner to come on their Vertical Hold: Behind The Tech News podcast.

Episode 254 of Vertical Hold goes all retro in the modern era, from revived Nintendo and Sega classic mini consoles, huge arcade control decks from Capcom that hook up to your TV, to questionable emulation and some iffy jailbreaking – this episode has it all!

Thanks again to Alex and Adam for having us on their podcast – we make a great triple AAA* team!

*Triple AAA team = Alex, Adam and Alex 😉

Title image source: Fordham IPLJ
Slider image source: Vertical Hold

The World’s Smallest MAME Arcade Cabinet

October 3, 2016 By Ms. ausretrogamer

Adafruit has made an astoundingly small MAME arcade cabinet using a Raspberry Pi Zero – adorable! Read all about how it was made here.

Source: Adafruit via Laughing Squid

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Ms. ausretrogamer
Co-founder, editor and writer at ausretrogamer – The Australian Retro Gamer E-Zine. Lover of science fiction, fashion, books, movies and TV. Player of games, old and new.

Follow Ms. ausretrogamer on Twitter

The Mini Arcade By SuperGameCo

November 26, 2015 By ausretrogamer

Have you always wanted to make your own mini arcade tabletop machine? Are you a DIY (Do-It-Yourself) hack just like me? If you answered yes to both questions, then the SuperGameCo Mini Arcade may be just what you are looking for.

Made from bamboo panels that snap together, the Mini Arcade is a breeze to setup – if you prefer (Ed: are too lazy), SuperGameCo also offer the Mini Arcade in fully assembled form.

At the heart of the Mini Arcade is a very speedy Raspberry Pi 2 Model B computer, running Emulation Station. This ensures that the emulators and games run nice and smooth. We didn’t experience any slowdown during play – which was great. The 9″ LCD screen provides great resolution, but the marquee protrudes a tad too much which tends to get in the way if you are not sitting down low.

The control deck is made up of an 8-way Sanwa/Seimitsu arcade stick and 6 concave arcade buttons. These are complimented with a single player select button and an insert coin (credit) button on the left side of the unit to provide an authentic arcade feel when playing games via MAME.

Audio on the Mini Arcade is pumped through the front facing speakers via a stereo amplifier. We did find that the sound wasn’t as beefy as we would have liked, which took away a bit from the experience when playing shoot’em ups with booming explosions.

We found the Mini Arcade to be a breeze to operate and play games. The assembly was nice and easy, and once you are all setup, it is pretty straight forward to select your favourite old game and get all nostalgic. If you are struggling to find a Christmas present for your retro gaming partner, then the Mini Arcade may be a viable option.

PROS:
– Clever snap-together kit (or you could opt for it to be fully assembled)
– Easy to get started playing games
– Latest Raspberry Pi 2 Model B internals
– Quality Sanwa/Seimitsu arcade joystick
– Inclusion of the Insert Coin button provides an authentic arcade feel
– Multiple interfaces (USB/RJ45) for additional connectivity

CONS:
– Marquee is obtrusive when playing on the 9″ LCD display
– Button layout felt a tad cramped
– Sound is reasonable, but it needs to be meatier
– Insert coin button stickiness (may have just been our unit)
– Power supply cord was too short
– Graphics on the bamboo panels would be nice

The Mini Arcade product variants and prices can be found at the SuperGameCo store here.

Love Hultén: Fusing Modern And Traditional

October 17, 2015 By Ms. ausretrogamer

We’ve written about Swedish designer and craftsman, Love Hultén’s elegant retro arcade, the R-Kaid-R, before – but that’s only the beginning. Hultén creates stunning electronic devices by fusing modern technology with traditional artisan knowledge. Everything is produced, polished, and assembled in his one-man studio in Gothenburg, Sweden.

BATTLECADEConceptual arcade console for two players, inspired by classic board games like Battleship.

Video source: Love Hultén on YouTube

PE358Pocket sized portable game system inspired by the Game Boy Advance SP console built around a Raspberry Pi A+.

R-KAID-42R-Kaid-42 (Arcade for two) is a two-player arcade/MAME machine.

Video source: Love Hultén on YouTube

R-KAID-KURBITS
R-Kaid-Kurbits is a special hand painted edition of the R-Kaid-42 unit, inspired by traditional Swedish furniture painting techniques.

R-KAID-REVELATIONTwo-player arcade/MAME machine with two wireless joypads and a wooden bluetooth keyboard/mouse.

PIXELKABINETT 42Limited edition of 50, JAMMA board of your choice, or it can be customized to run a modern computer, emulating all your favorite games through MAME (buy the Pixelkabinett 42).

700The 700 is a conceptual two-player arcade/MAME machine inspired by the Telechron Electrolarm 700 from 1929.

R-KAID-44A hexagonal four-player arcade/MAME machine.

YESTERDAY PIXELVISIONRetro enclosure for LCD/TV monitors of different sizes.

Source: Love Hultén and Laughing Squid

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Ms. ausretrogamer
Co-founder, editor and writer at ausretrogamer – The Australian Retro Gamer E-Zine. Lover of science fiction, fashion, books, movies and TV. Player of games, old and new.

Follow Ms. ausretrogamer on Twitter

The R-Kaid-R: The Elegant Retro Arcade

July 7, 2014 By ausretrogamer

Imagine being able to fold-up and carry your arcade cabinet in a safe and secure manner. The Swedish design firm, Love Hultén have created exactly that, the R-Kaid-R – an elegant retro arcade machine that you can fold up and carry around.

The R-Kaid-R (Arcader) is truly a tribute to the arcade. It is handmade from solid wood, combining yesterday’s game physics with the digital spectrum of today. Love Hultén puts it perfectly – “The R-Kaid-R is a creative link between the present and the past. It’s a game jewel to possess”.

If you do want one of these beauties, you better hurry to their shop. The R-Kaid-R comes in a limited, numbered edition of 50 handmade units. You may want to speak to your financial adviser first.

The elegant arcade machine. The lock doubles up as the joystick!