RetroAchievement Badges 2.3.6

@MD-Geist @DerSchlachter 

RetroAchievement Badges Version 2.0 - Back up and running!

Please read the updated file description about updating and changes.

 

As Bartels & James would say "Thank you for your support"!

Thank you so much @JoeViking245 , shall test this out in the morning and leave some feedback. Appreciated 🙏

Good day @JoeViking245 , I've had opportunity to try the revised Plugin and happy to say the installation / updates went perfectly smoothly... Unfortunately its registering achievement badges for games that don't have them and additionally not registering them for games that do . I've screen capped an example from my "Nintendo Entertainment System" ... The game '720 Degrees' has no achievements but was stamped with a badge, conversely 'The Addams Family: Pugsley's Scavenger Hunt' has achievements but was not stamped with a badge after the initial update ect... This is also the case across the different platforms. I do recall on the previous version of the Plugin some games that were supported with RetroAchievements would not always display the badge - Neo-Geo games on the 'Arcade' platform for instance, and required manually adding them - but I don't think unsupported games, as is the '720 Degrees' example was an issue i.e. unsupported games with a badge ect... I hope the feedback helps as I find this Plugin extremely useful. Thank you again.  🙏

Edit: I have also included a screen cap of the AllGames.xml in which '720 Degrees' can be seen to be supported... additionally 'Addams Family, The : Pugsley's Scavenger Hunt' though on the list by default does not register the badge in Launchbox ect...

This is all after the initial installation / update, I've made no manual additions / removals since installing the 2.0 version. Thanks.

Edited April 21, 2022 by MD-Geist

@JoeViking245Many thanks for your commitment, just great that you put your free time into it again.
Of course I tested the plugin immediately, what can I say, it works!

The notice regarding the update time put a smile on my face. I can completely understand that you gave this, there are one or the other impatient user.

Could you briefly explain your solution to us.

@MD-Geist I've also just tested one or the other game, there are still discrepancies, but maybe we can act as beta testers here
Example 720° for NES https://retroachievements.org/game/1514  

5 hours ago, MD-Geist said:

The game '720 Degrees' has no achievements but was stamped with a badge

Looks like I may need to find a different means (again) of gathering "the list".  Appears the method I'm using grabs all games for the console(s) that are in the Retro Achievements system.  Not just the ones that actually have achievements.  That is, Retro Achievements does have 720 Degrees listed under NES (and also GBC) but there are no achievements for it.  BTW, mine doesn't show a badge.  But mine is also named "720º".  

 

5 hours ago, MD-Geist said:

'The Addams Family: Pugsley's Scavenger Hunt' has achievements but was not stamped with a badge

This particular nomenclature is one that is not accounted for.  Note that it is listed in the xml as "Addams Family, The: Pugsley's Scavenger Hunt", where "The" is in the middle.  Notice also another game, "Addams Family, The" (as listed in the xml) does show a badge aside "The Addams Family".

The plugin takes into account when ", The" is at the end of the games name and 'fixes' it.  But doesn't account for it when it's in the middle.  There are 172 games that are like this (", The:" in the middle).  Whether all 172 actually have achievements remains to be seen. 😊

This isn't a new 2.0 issue (unless they recently changed their naming conventions).  I'll add that to the "Fix Me" list.

 

6 hours ago, MD-Geist said:

some games that were supported with RetroAchievements would not always display the badge - Neo-Geo games on the 'Arcade' platform for instance

Any chance the ones you're not seeing are dual named?  i.e. "Aero Fighters 2 / Sonic Wings 2".  Achievements uses a pipe ("|") instead of a slash ("/") to separate the names.  (I'll add this to the "Fix Me" list as well.)  This may not be the best example because they list it as "Aero Fighters 2 | Sonic Wings 2 (AES)".  You most likely you don't have "(AES)" in your games title to indicate the Japanese port.

Hi @JoeViking245 , thank you for your continued assistance... Yeah I figured the name discrepancies as you described may have been an issue, the Neo-Geo dual naming convention is one of the main reasons I find your Plugin so useful, its a great way to keep tabs on games that have achievements that might not show up in Launchbox directly... what seems to be a new issue in 2.0 is the addition of badges to games with no RetroAchievements, as is the case in '720 Degrees' . If I can provide any additional information / Screen caps please just say. Thank you again, It's appreciated 🙏

34 minutes ago, DerSchlachter said:

Could you briefly explain your solution to us.

It was kind explained in the updated notes on the 1st page.  Prior to 2.0 I was scraping the website for consoles/games that have achievements.  But they changed how they're listed. No longer indicating consoles and games, all on one page. 

Old web page (all on 1 page):

Current web page (broken down to 94 different pages):

 

2.0 (for the time being) uses their API to gather this information.  Unfortunately, the data provided via the API lists all games. Not just games with achievements.

 

28 minutes ago, MD-Geist said:

If I can provide any additional information / Screen caps please just say

The information you have provided was very helpful!  Thank you!!  I have on my to-do list to accommodate "The" in the middle of a games Title and also account for "|" vs "/" for Titles with dual names.  But before I mess with any of that, I want to concentrate on making it so only games that actually have achievements show badges.  Exactly "how' remains to be determined.   

Best of luck to you @JoeViking245 😎👍

@DerSchlachter @MD-Geist  Since you 'volunteered' to be testers (or were volunteered )...  this should:

• fix:  Showing badges for games that don't have achievements
• fix:  Showing badges for games that have "The" in the middle of its Title
• fix:  Showing badges for games that have dual names, separated by a "/"
• change:  Should now only take about 30-40 seconds to update rather than a whole minute 
• change:  No Retro Achievements credentials required to update and view badges

If/when you get a chance, if you could test this, that would be greatly appreciated.  But I think I resolved the noted issues.

Download and Unblock this zip file.  Delete the files located inside your /Plugins/RetroAchBadge/ folder.  Copy the 2 files in this zip to that folder.  Start LB and click Tools, then click the Updater.  Fingers crossed.

RetroAchBadge 2.0.1(beta).zip

Thanks!

Heya @JoeViking245 , I've just installed / Updated with the 2.0.1 (Beta) version and straight away I could tell there were definite improvements in the update time, was quick and smooth. I opened up my "Nintendo Entertainment System" and looked once more at the '720 Degrees' and 'The Addams Family : Pugsley's Scavenger Hunt' section since it contains the "Badge on unsupported game" issue and the 'The' Mid-name issue, I'm happy to say that '720 Degrees' no longer has an associated badge at launch, I've had a quick browse at other games that had this problem and they all seem fine also... 'The Addams Family : Pugsley's Scavenger Hunt' still regrettably had no badge at launch, in addition I noticed '1943 : The Battle of Midway' & 'Abadox : The Deadly Inner War' also had no badge even though they have RetroAchievements, which I assume is due to the same issue of "The" mid title ect...

I checked some of the dual named Neo-Geo games within my 'Arcade' also... 'Aero Fighters 2 / Sonic Wings 2' and 'Neo Turf Masters / Big Tournament Golf' specifically, neither of which had badges... I did see on the RetroAchievements website that 'Aero Fighters 2 / Sonic Wings 2' also had ' (AES) ' in the title and thought the problem might be my side as my set does not have it named as such on Launchbox... unfortunately 'Neo Turf Masters / Big Tournament Golf' has no such additional naming convention on the website but still displays the same issue on Launchbox ect...

That is all I have noticed, I just had a cursory look but will definitely check more in-depth in the morning and report if I see anything else. Thank you so much for the fixes you did implement today, amazing work 🙏

I have included some screen caps additionally.

3 hours ago, MD-Geist said:

The Addams Family : Pugsley's Scavenger Hunt' still regrettably had no badge

 

3 hours ago, MD-Geist said:

'Aero Fighters 2 / Sonic Wings 2' and 'Neo Turf Masters / Big Tournament Golf' specifically, neither of which had badges

Oops.  I fixed it in one part and forgot to change the other part.   Fixed in 2.0.2-beta.  RetroAchBadge 2.0.2(beta).zip  Well, except for "Aero Fighters 2 / Sonic Wings 2".  For that I defer to: 

Known Issues:
Game titles are taken directly from RetroAchievements and may differ (slightly or a lot) from yours.

In this case, the additional "(AES)".

 

Thanks for all your testing.  Unfortunately, when I get a 'volunteer' for testing, for some reason I'm not as diligent about 'checking my work before turning it in.  😊Lazy? lol

Good Morning @JoeViking245 , I hope this day finds you well. You sir are a gentleman and a scholar... I'm very happy to say that the "The" mid name issue is no longer prevalent and seems perfectly fine now, fantastic work.

Additionally the Neo-Geo games seem to be mostly fixed... I'm fairly sure the (AES) addition to some of the Neo-Geo games on the RetroAchievements website is the likely culprit, as those without (AES) in the title are correctly picking up Badges now, as is the case with 'Art of Fighting / Ryuuko no Ken' 1 & 2 & 'Neo Turf Masters / Big Tournament Golf'. I know the naming conventions of Neo-Geo is a hassle even in native Launchbox, I think a separate forum once made mention because of discrepancies between the Launchbox Games Database website vs. RetroAchievements website but I don't know for sure.

Either way fantastic work, I'd say functionality is on par with the original release prior to the Retroachievements website changing how they listed the names and most likely even better, as is the case of 'Neo Turf Masters / Big Tournament Golf' which now had default badge listing after the update (I recall this one I manually added a badge to originally) .

Thank you so much for all the work you have put into this, I definitely would not call you lazy lol. It really is greatly appreciated 🙏

As a small separate enquiry I wanted to ask if perhaps in future versions there might be support for the newly added 'Sega Dreamcast' platform in addition to the new 'Arcade' games (Sammy Atomiswave & Naomi).

Thank you again for all your work sir 🙏 

EDIT: I looked into the AllGames.xml and saw that the 'Sega Dreamcast' is supported and listed under 'Dreamcast'... Thank you for that, though I think 'Sega Dreamcast' would fit the naming conventions better as other platforms on the list usually show the Company / Console i.e 'Nintendo Entertainment System' , 'Microsoft MSX' & 'Sega Saturn' and conforms to the listings as shown on RetroAchievements ect... I also checked for the new supported Naomi / Atomiswave games and see they are listed under 'Arcade' on the .xml... Thanks for that also. I do think I noticed one issue though which is the absence of '3DO Interactive Multiplayer' which if I recall correctly was supported? But I might be completely wrong 😜. Thank you so much.

Edited April 22, 2022 by MD-Geist

3 hours ago, MD-Geist said:

'Sega Dreamcast' is supported and listed under 'Dreamcast'

The console names are taken from headers (after you click the respective console link) on their site.  

Here, it shows Sega Dreamcast, but when you click it, the console 'header' says Dreamcast. (never paid attention to notice that change)  NES/Famicon, the header changes to NES, and via the plugin, gets converted to Nintendo Entertainment System.  I've added Dreamcast --> Sega Dreamcast to the 'change the console name' list.

 

3 hours ago, MD-Geist said:

absence of '3DO Interactive Multiplayer'

Oops. oversite on my part.

 

• Fixed:  Sega Dreamcast
• (re)Added: 3DO Interactive Multiplayer

RetroAchBadge 2.0.3(beta).zip

I'll post an official update a little later after some (a lot of) code cleanup.  Functionally it will be the exact same as this attachment.  Unless there's something else I glossed over. 😊

Thanks a ton for all your time and help MD-Geist!!!  

@JoeViking245 I'm very glad I could be of assistance, thank you again for all the work on this, really appreciated 🙏

This is wonderful. Thank you very much for your work. Is incredible. 👌
I have some questions. My "Nintendo Entertainment System system" platform is called "Nintendo NES". I would like to know if I change the name of the console in AllGames.xml file will it go back to its original name when I update?

4 minutes ago, Mongu said:

if I change the name of the console in AllGames.xml file will it go back to its original name when I update?

Yes.  Console names are imported (and converted as necessary) to keep in-line with LaunchBox's default naming conventions.  (Though I have an idea that may be able to alleviate this issue.  I'll run it past my team.  Just don't hold your breath. )

Out of curiosity, how frequently are new games added to Retro Achievements?  Daily? Weekly? Monthly?  (Personally, I don't even use the plugin or look at the achievements. So I really have no idea.)  Or do people update frequently "because they can"? (I probably would. lol)

Update 2.1.0 released

( @Mongu ) Improvement:  When checking for badges, will now look at the Platform name and the Platforms Scrape-As name
              (if your Platform is called "Game Boy", and it's set to scrape-as "Nintendo Game Boy", badges will now show)
Fixed:  Wasn't showing badges for games with "The" in the middle of its Title
Fixed:  Wasn't showing badges for games with a "/" in their Title
Fixed:  Sega Dreamcast was being retrieved as Dreamcast
Fixed:  3DO Interactive Multiplayer wasn't being added
Change: Retro Achievement credentials are once again no longer required to update and view badges

5 hours ago, JoeViking245 said:

Yes.  Console names are imported (and converted as necessary) to keep in-line with LaunchBox's default naming conventions.  (Though I have an idea that may be able to alleviate this issue.  I'll run it past my team.  Just don't hold your breath. )

Out of curiosity, how frequently are new games added to Retro Achievements?  Daily? Weekly? Monthly?  (Personally, I don't even use the plugin or look at the achievements. So I really have no idea.)  Or do people update frequently "because they can"? (I probably would. lol)

They are quite active. They create various achievements for two or three games in a day. I think you should allow the plugin to update once every 12 hours instead of once every 24 hours.
By the way, excellent work. One of the best LB plugins. we should pay you 😁

I have "NEC PC-Engine CD" known as "NEC TurboGrafx CD"

How to add it?

9 minutes ago, Sbaby said:

I have "NEC PC-Engine CD" known as "NEC TurboGrafx CD"

How to add it?

The plugin detects the platform your custom platform scrapes from. You shouldn't do anything.

4 minutes ago, Mongu said:

Il plug-in rileva la piattaforma da cui preleva la tua piattaforma personalizzata. Non dovresti fare niente.

AllGames.xml

 

<console name="PC Engine">
<title>Ai Chou Aniki (CD)</title>
<title>Akumajou Dracula X: Chi no Rondo (CD)</title>
<title>Aldynes: The Mission Code for Rage Crisis</title>
<title>Alien Crush</title>
<title>Andre Panza: Kickboxing</title>
<title>Batman</title>
<title>Beyond Shadowgate (CD)</title>
<title>Blazing Lazers | Gunhed</title>
<title>Bloody Wolf</title>
<title>Bomberman</title>
<title>Bomberman '93</title>
<title>Bomberman '94</title>
<title>Bonk's Adventure</title>
<title>Bonk's Revenge</title>
<title>Buster Bros. (CD)</title>
<title>Cadash</title>
<title>China Warrior</title>
<title>Cho Aniki (CD)</title>
<title>Columns</title>
<title>Cotton: Fantastic Night Dreams (CD)</title>
<title>Daimakaimura</title>
<title>Darkwing Duck</title>
<title>Devil's Crush: Naxat Pinball</title>
<title>Die Hard</title>
<title>Double Dragon II: The Revenge (CD)</title>
<title>Download</title>
<title>Dragon Spirit</title>
<title>Dragon's Curse</title>
<title>Druaga no Tou | Tower of Druaga, The</title>
<title>Dungeon Explorer</title>
<title>Final Match Tennis</title>
<title>Galaga '88 | Galaga '90</title>
<title>Gate of Thunder (CD)</title>
<title>G&ouml;tzendiener (CD)</title>
<title>Genji Tsushin Agedama</title>
<title>Gokuraku! Chuuka Taisen</title>
<title>Gradius</title>
<title>Gradius II: Gofer no Yabou (CD)</title>
<title>Jackie Chan's Action Kung Fu</title>
<title>Keith Courage in Alpha Zones</title>
<title>KiKi KaiKai</title>
<title>Legend of Hero Tonma</title>
<title>Legendary Axe II, The</title>
<title>Legendary Axe, The</title>
<title>Loom (CD)</title>
<title>Lords of Thunder (CD)</title>
<title>Magical Chase</title>
<title>Might and Magic III: Isles of Terra (CD)</title>
<title>Military Madness</title>
<title>Moto Roader</title>
<title>Neutopia</title>
<title>Neutopia II</title>
<title>New Adventure Island</title>
<title>Ninja Ryuuken Den | Ninja Gaiden</title>
<title>Ninja Spirit</title>
<title>OutRun</title>
<title>Pac-Land</title>
<title>Psychosis | Paranoia</title>
<title>Puyo Puyo CD (CD)</title>
<title>R-Type</title>
<title>Raiden</title>
<title>Salamander</title>
<title>Shinobi</title>
<title>Shiryou Sensen: War of the Dead</title>
<title>ShockMan</title>
<title>Soldier Blade</title>
<title>Space Harrier</title>
<title>Splash Lake (CD)</title>
<title>Splatterhouse</title>
<title>Star Parodier (CD)</title>
<title>Steam Heart's (CD)</title>
<title>Street Fighter II: Champion Edition</title>
<title>Super Star Soldier</title>
<title>Sylphia (CD)</title>
<title>Taito Chase H.Q.</title>
<title>Toilet Kids</title>
<title>Valis II (CD)</title>
<title>Vigilante</title>
<title>Volfied</title>
<title>World Sports Competition</title>
<title>Ys: Book I &amp; II (CD)</title>

 

 

 

I own some of these games but the badges are not shown.
The other platforms have badges retroachievments correctly

1 hour ago, Mongu said:

They are quite active. They create various achievements for two or three games in a day. I think you should allow the plugin to update once every 12 hours instead of once every 24 hours.
By the way, excellent work. One of the best LB plugins. we should pay you 😁

That's good to know. But if it's creating new achievements for existing games, nothing with badges will change.  They'll still be there from before.  Adding new games would be different.  

Updating has been changed to "as often as you want".  The 24 hour limit has been removed because it's not making calls to the API anymore.

Thanks Mongu!!  But I don't know how to accept $, so instead, just "pay it forward".  Do a good deed and/or help someone else.  It'll go even further if you don't know them.  And it doesn't even have to be for someone in the LaunchBox community.  

1 hour ago, Sbaby said:

I have "NEC PC-Engine CD" known as "NEC TurboGrafx CD"

How to add it?

You'll need to Right-Click the 20 TG-CD games in your collection that have achievements and manually add them.  You will also need to do them one-by-one as there is no bulk option to add badges.

Another option is the edit the console name in AllGames.xml, changing it to the [exact] name of your Platform.  The caveat of this is you will need to it anytime you run the updater.

 

Retro Achievements combined PC-Engine, TurboGrafx-16 and TurboGrafx-CD games all into one category/console/platform.  There are 86 games listed in that 'console' (PC-Engine) spread amongst those 3 listed.  Some of those 86 also happen to fit into 2 different ones.  i.e. "Alien Crush" achievements are in both TG-16 and PCE.

To make matters worse, appears I didn't even change the name PC-Engine to anything that's default in LaunchBox (NEC TurboGrafx-16, NEC TurboGrafx-CD, PC Engine SuperGrafx).  So even if you have Scrape As set correctly, it won't work.

 

WOW! You are faster than light with the updates! Thanks!

With Sega Dreamcast I discovered a few games in which the plugin does not mark the achievements with a badge, maybe it helps for "error" analysis.

Cyber Troopers Virtual-On Oratorio Tangram
Disney Donald Duck Quack Attack
Dynamite Cop!
Soul Calibur

I also tried the alternative name here and then ran an update. The label was still missing.

3DO
Alone in the Dark 2 (Japan)
Trip'd

I went through every game, ff you want me to provide detailed information let me know

@MD-Geist
How do you add the small icons in Platform view 

@DerSchlachter Good morning, The small icons come with the Launchbox theme called 'Default Plus' 😎👍