EmulationStation Carbon theme Controller art

Duimon · 27 July 2021 15:18

It is the only logo with a gradient. I assume ES is having a hard time with the SVG.

I will simplify it and try again. First though, let me try to export it in a different way.

This would be much easier if I had ES set up on my box.

OK I have committed the new XBOX version and a new export on the XBOX360 system graphic. Instead of “exporting” the system graphic from Illustrator I “saved” it. This gave me the option of selecting SVG v1.0 format instead of the default v1.1.

Please try it and let me know.

As a backup alternative we can try this new system graphic that has no gradients.

Edit: It looked like part of the sphere was getting clipped, I fixed it in both.

BTW. Did you want something for the Wii, WiiU, or Switch?

Edit: I missed the Wii in your original request, I will get right on that. (I’m thinking the Wii remote will be a good choice for controller.)

Here is the Wii.

I am using the “save” method in Illustrator for getting the SVGs, if it causes problems we will go back to the known working method.

(There is a “<foreignObject requiredExtensions=” tag in the SVG code that gives me cause for concern.)

George.Spiggott · 27 July 2021 16:57

I tried the updated Xbox360 logo and got the same result (black image). Clearly EmulationStation doesn’t like gradients. The Wii art is acting oddly as well. The logo is coming out black and the controller does not show at all. The only controller art I require now is the Wii U.

Sadly EmulationStation on Windows 10 can be a bit of a pain to collate all the parts. I’ll write up a quick guide/send you anything I have if you want.

Switch (Yuzu) and PS Vita (Vita3K) are a slightly different issue. I’m experimenting with Switch at the moment and I’m not sure EmulationStation fully supports Switch. I can’t get it to scrape and it brings up an error in the log as ‘switch’. I’m trying to find the correct terminology to get it to work. I’ll add to the guide when I figure it out. I can’t get Vita3k to work at all. They are AFAIK the last two remaining systems that currently have emulators that have no art available in Carbon. I’m not sure if they’re worth doing at present.

My thanks for what you have done for us so far.

Duimon · 27 July 2021 21:12

Yeah, we’ll use the system art without gradients and I’ll go back to the old method of getting the final SVG.

BTW.

I thought you might want the Wii U. I’ll get things sorted and you can test when you have time. I’ll let you know when the repo is updated.

Also, I am having a blast doing this.

Edit: Everything is updated. Let me know how it goes. (I noticed some inconsistencies in the Wii U graphic and also fixed those.)

Sure I’ll take some hints. Although I have 59 Systems emulated on my current HTPC using Kodi, Rocketlauncher, Retroarch and a slew of stand-alone emulators. (All with custom art and Splash/Pause screens.) so I can probably muddle through if I feel the need.

Unless I can find an EmulationStation launcher plugin for Kodi I will probably continue using the Kodi add-on I am currently using. I have considered using LaunchBox/BigBox since they provide a Kodi launcher plugin. Doing an Aeon MQ7 (Kodi skin) theme for BigBox is on my future projects list.

George.Spiggott · 29 July 2021 00:30

I wouldn’t describe installing it hard but it certainly isn’t straight out box. Anyhow, here’s a guide for any interested parties.

First you’ll need to install EmulationStation. Here’s a link to the download page on their website: https://emulationstation.org/#download
You’ll also need jrassa’s updated EmulationStation. This is a port of the Raspberry Pi/Retropie version. Copy this over your installation of Emulationstation.

Next you’ll need to download a theme. Here’s the link to the Github for Carbon along with Duimon’s excellent additions.

Finally you’ll need to populate your es_systems.cfg file using your text editor of choice. Repeat this process for each system and you’re done.

Name, Platform and Theme will all match the name that the theme uses for the system, note that it is case sensitive.
Fullname can be populated however you see fit.
Path is probably self explanatory. I would avoid names with spaces for your own sanity as " " don’t always work.
Extension: EmulationStation will pull any files with the given extensions from the place you specified in path. It will also search subfolders. IIRC this is not actually case sensitive but the example I followed was so I stuck with it.
Command: This is always the same text for Retroarch cores with the exception of the core you are using. See my earlier post in this thread for some of the standalone systems. Here’s my 3DO entry that uses the default installed location for Retroarch C:\RetroArch-Win64\retroarch.exe -L C:\RetroArch-Win64\cores\opera_libretro.dll “%ROM_RAW%”.

Hope this helps.

Duimon · 28 July 2021 23:44

Awesome information!

BTW. There is an existing system graphic for the Game Cube so I will be removing my system art. The xml file that exists also includes a reference to the “controller.svg” so I will only be adding that svg to the gc art folder.

This will improve the chances of getting a PR approved.

I managed to get ES to launch a Retroarch session. Boy it really doesn’t like spaces in file names. I do notice the theme options are much more sparse than on my ODROID Batocera installation. It may just be that I need to create a gamelist.xml with art paths. We’ll see. I suspect it needs the updates you were talking about.

I’ll check the source you linked to. If it needs to be compiled I can probably manage that.

I found a great guide on compiling ES for Windows.

https://retropie.org.uk/forum/topic/5202/step-by-step-how-to-build-emulationstation-on-windows/15

Edit: I had no luck, the tutorial was way too outdated. From what I gather though, a lot of the customization done on the Pi and such require Linux. I am hoping you know something I don’t because the Windows version of ES and Carbon leaves a lot to be desired.

George.Spiggott · 29 July 2021 00:02

I’ve also had no luck with compiling the new version. The version on there when I originally downloaded it was pre-compiled and I just dropped the duplicate files into my previously installed vanilla copy.

I’ll drop a message on the Github and see if we can get little help. In the mean time the app directory is less than 25MB as a zip file. I will happily send you a copy of mine.

Duimon · 29 July 2021 00:16

That would be great. Maybe you could upload it to Google Drive.

How was your latest test?

Edit. The build is there after all, you just have to click on releases then assets. I am testing it right now!

Duimon · 29 July 2021 00:21

The custom build adds everything that was missing from the Retropie version. Thanks! Looks awesome!

George.Spiggott · 29 July 2021 00:43

The link to the pre-compiled version is in jrassa’s sig in this thread:

The link:

[edit]

Took the opportunity to enquire about Switch compatibility instead.

Duimon · 29 July 2021 00:56

I am going to configure all the emulator for the systems I created graphics for, just to see them myself. Here’s hoping everything works.

Duimon · 29 July 2021 01:59

OK. Everything looks good except I don’t llike the PS3 system art. I am going to tweak it.

George.Spiggott · 29 July 2021 13:38

I will check that out. Mitu confirmed my suspicions that Switch isn’t currently supported by ES. PS Vita is though, so I’ll have another try at getting that to work.

[edit] Having looked at the compatibility list for Vita3K it’s probably not worth bothering with PS VITA at the moment.

There’s a full systems compatibility list for ES here:

github.com

RetroPie/EmulationStation/blob/master/es-app/src/PlatformId.h

#pragma once
#ifndef ES_APP_PLATFORM_ID_H
#define ES_APP_PLATFORM_ID_H

namespace PlatformIds
{
	enum PlatformId : unsigned int
	{
		PLATFORM_UNKNOWN = 0,

		THREEDO, // name can't start with a constant
		AMIGA,
		AMSTRAD_CPC,
		APPLE_II,
		ARCADE,
		ATARI_800,
		ATARI_2600,
		ATARI_5200,
		ATARI_7800,
		ATARI_LYNX,

This file has been truncated. show original

Duimon · 29 July 2021 22:39

I changed the PS3 system art. As far as I am concerned everything is done. Let me know how you feel. If it is a GO, I will try and figure out a PR on the Carbon GitHub.

BTW. I don’t know if you’ve ever seen Carbon and ES on Batocera but this build is still a long ways off. The Batocera has a “Configure Theme” section and you can select a color set, that changes the glow around the system bar and the color of the controller images. The system bar can be transparent and the logos have a cool reflection under the bar. The background can be animated etc.

I don’t know how much is ES and how much is the theme, I suspect a bit of both.

Duimon · 30 July 2021 22:55

So on the main page of the GitHub where we get the dev build of ES is a retropie fork of Carbon. I has many of the controllers I have done. 3ds, gc, ps2, ps3, & wiiu.

Download it if you wish to take a look.

The controller art is very inferior, even to the original so I may still try and get mine merged with the main fork.

George.Spiggott · 2 August 2021 19:37

Great stuff. Thanks again for your great work. My ES setup on my PC looks far superior for it.

Duimon · 2 August 2021 19:52

Cool! I am “Watching” this thread so if anything pops up, like new systems, just post a reply.

George.Spiggott · 2 August 2021 22:36

Mitu at Retropie suggested it is possible to add send an PR to ES to get try to Switch added. I may have a look at what exactly that entails this weekend. Scrape data exists on Screenscraper (maybe TheGamesDB also).

Duimon · 2 January 2022 04:48

I did a PR for the Batocera Carbon Theme and it was merged. So these will be in the wild.

George.Spiggott · 2 January 2022 19:34

Great stuff, having completely failed to send a PR for Switch support myself Mitu over on Retropie offered to do so.

Switch actually works fine at the moment if you’re prepared to manually write your own gamelist.xml for it. I’m informed that Skraper can also be used but I have not tried this myself.

George.Spiggott · 25 January 2022 18:09

The latest version of EmulationStation arrived today. ES now supports Nintendo Switch.