This is an old thread but I see no harm in getting you up and running.
For loading the games as content in the Retroarch menu we need to use the standard software list method. There are a few prerequisites…
You need the “hash” folder from the version of MAME that matches your core.
Copy it to Retroarch\system\mame
. (So you end up with Retroarch\system\mame\hash\
containing a bunch of XML files.)
You need the MAME software list roms for “gamecom” and they need to be in a folder with that exact name. (e.g. roms\gamecom
or Emulation\Tiger Game.com\gamecom
etc.)
You also need the “gamecom.zip” (The BIOS) from the MAME regular roms. It needs to be in the above folder where you have the roms.
Finally, you need to have software lists and auto media enabled in your MAME core options.
You “mame.opt” or “gamecom.opt” needs to look like this.
mame_alternate_renderer = "disabled"
mame_altres = "640x480"
mame_auto_save = "disabled"
mame_autoloadfastforward = "disabled"
mame_boot_from_cli = "disabled"
mame_boot_to_bios = "disabled"
mame_boot_to_osd = "disabled"
mame_buttons_profiles = "enabled"
mame_cheats_enable = "disabled"
mame_cpu_overclock = "default"
mame_joystick_deadzone = "0.20"
mame_joystick_saturation = "1.00"
mame_joystick_threshold = "0.30"
mame_lightgun_mode = "none"
mame_lightgun_offscreen_mode = "free"
mame_mame_4way_enable = "disabled"
mame_mame_paths_enable = "disabled"
mame_media_type = "rom"
mame_mouse_enable = "enabled"
mame_read_config = "disabled"
mame_rotation_mode = "internal"
mame_saves = "game"
mame_softlists_auto_media = "enabled"
mame_softlists_enable = "enabled"
mame_thread_mode = "enabled"
mame_throttle = "disabled"
mame_write_config = "disabled"
Note the…
mame_mouse_enable = "enabled"
…the mouse is the only way I have been able to start a game.
Now when you load a rom via the “Load Content” in Retroarch it will just work. (Make sure to NOT “Browse” the content.)
Alternatively, you can create a *.CMD for each game. (There are only 23.)
The advantage is you don’t have to worry about the name of the folder you have the roms in.
An example CMD file would be frogger.cmd…
frogger.cmd
gamecom -rompath "D:\roms\Tiger Game.com\;D:\roms\Tiger Game.com\bios" "D:\roms\Tiger Game.com\frogger.zip"
If your bios, roms, and cmd files are all in the same folder…
frogger.cmd
gamecom frogger
Then load the CMD file as content with the MAME core.
Once the system is running use the mouse to click on the “Cartridge” icon to start the game.
Use the MAME internal menu (“tab” key by default) to get the default controls or set up your own mapping.