Couple of n00b questions (Shield TV)

RetroArch Android devices
#1

Hello everyone!

Been quite excited this past week since I (belatedly) deiscovered RetroArch and installed it on my 2017 Shield TV. Coupled with the Shield’s controllers and its power, it’s pure bliss!

After toying around, creating and deleting configs and reading stuff online, I still have a few questions. Please feel free to bash me if they’ve been answered before (I searched; I truly did). So here goes:

-I usually control RA with one of my game controllers; hoever, if I touch the Shield’s remote, that one takes over and the game controllers don’t work any more. Are there any workarounds for this?

-I’m trying to remap some keys (my SO just can’t accept the inversion between jump and punch in Alex Kidd :smiley: ) but I can’t get the codes right. Is there a list of key codes/names for the Shield controllers?

-And finally, my biggest question: I still don’t understand, is the Dreamcast not supported on Android yet? I’ve seen references to it, even a video or two IIRC, but… how?

Thanks for litsening! :slight_smile:

#2

If the remote takes over, you should be able to go into settings > input > p1 input binds and change the device from the remote back to the controller. I don’t have the remote, so there may be some other trickery going on, but that should work.

For remapping that sort of thing, the best way to handle it is to load up the core and some content, go back into the menu and go to ‘controls’. There, you can move the core’s buttons around and save it on either a per-core basis or a per-game basis.

Neither of the Dreamcast cores work on Android at this time, AFAIK. I think there is a standalone version of Reicast that works on Android, but I don’t know if it’s Android TV-compatible.

#3

Ahh I had no idea about the binding trick, will try it tonight!

About remapping, yes, you’re 100% right, I actually posed the question wrong: yes I can see what code each button I press gives, but I’m not sure I know what I’m binding it to - I tried doing it with Master System last night and I ended up losing buttons. But my initial question was just silly the way I put it, I guess the real problem is I don’t understand the multitude of buttons there are in the relevant page, even for a system so simple as the Sega MS.

As for the Dreamcast: damn :frowning: I have worked with Reicast on my Shield, but its config is… ugh. So I was hoping it would be available under RA. But, thanks for clearing that up, I’ll just have to wait I guess :slight_smile:

#4

Dreamcast standalone for Android works great…not too much configuration involved…i suggest getting the nightly…as far as controls for whatever reason anything that is connected to it can be used to move around in the menu and whatnot…that includes controllers, keyboards, remotes, etc…usually i use 1 thing at a time so I never went as far as to make 1 the dominant controller…as far as everything else good luck on the long journey of emulation and frontends…2 years in with 300+ hyperspin wheels for android and finally I think I need a break…smh

#5

A little off topic but do you have these two HS wheels by chance?

and

if you do, how can we do business lol

#6

You mean Reicast, correct? (not sure about other emus but never hurts to ask). From what I see the latest build is from 17/06, or is there something newer out there?

Thanks for the controller advice, too; indeed, I usually use a single device to control it. But the darn remote is so sensitive that I end up breathing near it and screwing things up most of the time :smiley:

#7

I don’t have these 2 systems…saturn maybe but not psx japan…its bad enuff trying to get ps1 usa set and vids and wheels…lolz…i keep the japan stuff down to smaller less demanding consoles…i may look into the ps1 japan 1 though that looks good…im also banned from his fb group…maybe u can get in and find the torrent if he has it…“shared hyperspin”…now as far as Saturn he basically used a CD psd and put the boxart image there to simulate the actual cd…thsts easy to do if u have all the boxart…i did that with psp

#8

Damn I don’t know how you got yourself banned but I doubt I’ll be joining any fb groups just to get some wheels, it’s not that serious, yet lol. But I don’t want to get too off topic in here so yes if you got the Saturn one please send me a pm on here or on HS, I might just have what you need in return :grin:

#9

So… :slight_smile:

Reicast? Which build?

#10

Get the one at the very top of this list (2017-06-17) as that seems to be the latest one

#11

Cheers, that’s the list I have;will give it another try!

Would you mind if I PM’ed you a couple of questions if I run into problems again?

Thanks again :slight_smile:

#12

Sure why not and you’re welcome

1 Like
#14

I don’t think there’s anything to be done about it, unfortunately. I also greatly miss using it for the menu :frowning:

#15

That’s a valid point… I think it would take some kind of special trickery to disable a system-wide function, I don’t think RA would do it.

That said, any other options for controllers? :slight_smile:

#16

The answer might be in this app right here, but you need to be rooted. I’ve used that to disable that annoying OTA update pop up that would appear every time I restarted my Shield TV when a new update became available. I’ve went through the app and couldn’t find which service to disable because their are many Google services in the list to go through and I haven’t come across one that could have words such as “Google Assistant” that would make it easy to find and disable it. I need to just go through every Google service in the list until I hopefully come across the right one and report back because that feature is in the way for me and a lot of other people from what I’ve been seeing.

If successful in disabling that you can then possibly use this app to remap back to the way your button originally was.

#17

Yet the problem with this is that (in the case you find the service) it disables it system-wide and not when running RA. Which is fine, I guess, if you don’t care about the Assistant, but I thought I’d mention it.

#18

Yeah that’s the one thing about it if you manage to disable it, it’s system-wide unless there’s some option in the app where you can make it disable only when you’re using a certain app of your choice that it lets you choose. For me I don’t mind it system-wide

#19

I think a lot of people have had success with dualshock 3s and 360 pads. I just switched over to a menu button combo (L+R+down+Y).

1 Like
#20

Oh darn!!! I must find where I have put my 360 :smiley: :smiley:

#21

If you’re wanting to use it wirelessly, you do need a dongle, unfortunately.