Mini Consoles Theme - RetroSai Nostalgia - Form over Function 2.2.5

19 hours ago, Saieno said:

I'm working on 1.0.12 and it'll include this as the Sega Mega Drive JP Game Details Screen and the finalized PS2 Animated Background.

That's perfect! Now each Region is properly distinct fantastic work! Also, the PS2 is great! I have noticed that a few views such as the NES and Famicom are kinda slow but it's not to bad it does depend on your system specs as well as how many games are present.

Love this theme! Could we add Amiga (A500 Mini), Commodore 64 (The C64 Mini) and MS-DOS (Exodos)? 

Edited August 20, 2023 by NOMAD0P

11 minutes ago, NOMAD0P said:

Love this theme! Could we add Amiga (A500 Mini), Commodore 64 (The C64 mini and DOS (Exodos)? 

Heya @NOMAD0P and thanks for the great review! I'll look into adding the A500 Mini and C64 Mini, I'm not sure about Exodos tho, and I am working on a number of other platforms as well. I won't have any ETA but I want to make sure they are all good to add them as a batch instead of individually. Thanks again!

Super awesome work! Love it a lot

Good work, unfortunately the newest version don't show up background fanart in the ps3 weel, only game start background, is there a way to fix it?
 

8 minutes ago, diNessuno said:

Good work, unfortunately the newest version don't show up background fanart in the ps3 weel, only game start background, is there a way to fix it?
 

Hi @diNessuno I didn't actually make any changes to how the PS3 background images work since the initial release. I can look into having both implemented but there are limitations unfortunately. You could potentially take fanart you like and set it with the Game Start Screen metadata in LaunchBox so it shows up as expected. You have way more control over how you have your images assigned via metadata than I do with specifying sources of metadata to populate the background. I'll still look into it and make adjustments if I can, but hopefully this helps either way.

Edited August 20, 2023 by Saieno

How do I turn off the music from browsing the platforms/categories? I tried all options and they didnt work out

Edited August 21, 2023 by Jota1918

15 minutes ago, Jota1918 said:

How do I turn off the music from browsing the platforms/categories? I tried all options and they didnt work out

This is a limitation that I can't work around directly. I can provide a silence patch to replace all of the music if you require.

9 minutes ago, Saieno said:

This is a limitation that I can't work around directly. I can provide a silence patch to replace all of the music if you require.

Well.. I wanted to keep the music from inside the platforms but if thats the case I would like the patch

4 hours ago, Jota1918 said:

Well.. I wanted to keep the music from inside the platforms but if thats the case I would like the patch

Try to go to your Launchbox Themes directory .../Mini Console Theme/Media/BGM and delete the file "8 Bit Chillout[...].mp3" file. Havn't had any issues with this solution as I changed the platform category sound to my personal preference. Hope this will help

6 hours ago, Jota1918 said:

Well.. I wanted to keep the music from inside the platforms but if thats the case I would like the patch

As @Jackdefjam mentioned that should work for your request if needed. The silent patch is just a collection of 'empty' files with the same name as replacements as I wasn't sure if the application would act up if the file wasn't found.

I'm loving exploring all of the little nuances of this theme. A couple questions:

1. Am I able to improve performance of the horizontal scroll? I have my coverflow box art set to medium quality in hopes that that would affect the horizontal view box art too. I was hoping that would make scrolling through games more responsive. I currently have all of my content on a very responsive SSD storage device on a powerful pc. 

2. What do the dots and the cartridge icons mean under the game box art? I thought that the 4 circles were analogous to the 5 star rating system but after setting some favorites and setting some star ratings, nothing changed. I assumed the cart icon meant something about the game supporting something but I can't figure it out. I noticed these icons in various platforms. 

 

Thank you!

4 minutes ago, EggBirds8432 said:

I'm loving exploring all of the little nuances of this theme. A couple questions:

1. Am I able to improve performance of the horizontal scroll? I have my coverflow box art set to medium quality in hopes that that would affect the horizontal view box art too. I was hoping that would make scrolling through games more responsive. I currently have all of my content on a very responsive SSD storage device on a powerful pc. 

2. What do the dots and the cartridge icons mean under the game box art? I thought that the 4 circles were analogous to the 5 star rating system but after setting some favorites and setting some star ratings, nothing changed. I assumed the cart icon meant something about the game supporting something but I can't figure it out. I noticed these icons in various platforms. 

 

Thank you!

Hey @EggBirds8432! Thanks for the great review and hopefully I can answer your questions!
 

1. The performance can take a hit if you have a ton of games in the specific library. Caching all images can help with this, but even if I trim things down to their core components things can still slow down some. I'm working to improve performance with a new code base but this will take time while I'm also working to add more platforms.

2. Ah these might be specifically for the Nintendo platforms you're mentioning. In the original Nintendo Mini consoles those dots and carts were for save states, but they serve no function within the theme (There's no real way for me to pull that metadata to make it reflective within the theme, and the performance would be impacted further). It's purely decorative to more closely match the original presentation from the Mini Consoles.

Hope that helps!

 

22 minutes ago, Saieno said:

Hey @EggBirds8432! Thanks for the great review and hopefully I can answer your questions!
 

1. The performance can take a hit if you have a ton of games in the specific library. Caching all images can help with this, but even if I trim things down to their core components things can still slow down some. I'm working to improve performance with a new code base but this will take time while I'm also working to add more platforms.

2. Ah these might be specifically for the Nintendo platforms you're mentioning. In the original Nintendo Mini consoles those dots and carts were for save states, but they serve no function within the theme (There's no real way for me to pull that metadata to make it reflective within the theme, and the performance would be impacted further). It's purely decorative to more closely match the original presentation from the Mini Consoles.

Hope that helps!

I had a hunch that the code base is still being worked on so that makes sense with performance! Thank you! 

I also had a hunch that the dots and such were for decoration. Have a good day!

Hello.

First of all this is really a great Theme and I love it.

But there is a small request about Super Nintendo EU. I read the Comments, where someone requested with the EU, but I´m also from the EU but I don´t want to have it on. I just want to have it as Super Nintendo.

I know it´s nitpicky and I´m really sorry for that. If it´s easyier for you If I can change it in the Files. Thank you in Advance.

Edited August 26, 2023 by okamigen108

2 hours ago, okamigen108 said:

Hello.

First of all this is really a great Theme and I love it.

But there is a small request about Super Nintendo EU. I read the Comments, where someone requested with the EU, but I´m also from the EU but I don´t want to have it on. I just want to have it as Super Nintendo.

I know it´s nitpicky and I´m really sorry for that. If it´s easyier for you If I can change it in the Files. Thank you in Advance.

Hello @okamigen108, glad you're enjoying the theme! I can understand that having the "EU" or "JP" in a system title can be annoying, especially if you're from Europe or Japan. I myself am from America so apologies if those are the variants that I put priority on. But as you stated, you should be able to rename the Super Nintendo EU file to Super Nintendo Entertainment System and have it show the European version of the view instead while having the name you prefer. Hopefully that's okay, as I'm not sure of another way around that particular issue.

2 hours ago, Saieno said:

Hello @okamigen108, glad you're enjoying the theme! I can understand that having the "EU" or "JP" in a system title can be annoying, especially if you're from Europe or Japan. I myself am from America so apologies if those are the variants that I put priority on. But as you stated, you should be able to rename the Super Nintendo EU file to Super Nintendo Entertainment System and have it show the European version of the view instead while having the name you prefer. Hopefully that's okay, as I'm not sure of another way around that particular issue.

Thank you very much, that helped.

Posted a progress update on the forums.
 

 

Looks good! Always happy to see more platforms! What are your long-term plans?

5 hours ago, vahn65 said:

Looks good! Always happy to see more platforms! What are your long-term plans?

That's a great question. When it comes to the long-term vision for the theme, I've got a clear roadmap in mind. First and foremost, I'm committed to adding regional variations to the existing platform views. This is to ensure that users from different parts of the world can get a more personalized and relevant experience.

Alongside this, a key objective is to continuously refine and optimize the performance of the UI. I believe that a seamless user experience is crucial, so I'm always on the lookout for ways to enhance its speed and responsiveness.

Now, zooming out a bit to the broader ideas, I've got some long term changes planned. I really want to breathe new life into the Platform view. The goal is not just to tweak it, but to completely revamp it so that it has a distinctive identity that stands out. Parallel to that, there's the Arcade view. Rather than using just recycled elements from the Unified design, I'm aiming to create an Arcade view that truly feels original and nostalgic, something I'd be genuinely proud to present.

So, to wrap things up, my immediate priorities revolve around optimizing performance, integrating more platforms, and introducing regional variants. However, in the longer run, my sights are set on entirely redesigning both the Platform and Arcade views to with a unique charm, identity, and nostalgia.

New version is released. Full release notes on the file, but here's a summary:

• Performance: Enhanced navigation performance, especially for NES, SNES, N64, GB, GBC, etc.
• Optimizations: Updated code-base and optimized views for all platforms.
• Sprites: Transitioned to Launchbox sprites in Platform View.
• New Platform Themes: Added for Atari Jaguar CD, Commodore 64, Commodore Amiga, Commodore Amiga CD32, and SNK Neo Geo CD.
  
• New Regional View: Introduced Sega Mark III (Japanese version of Sega Master System).
  

Note: Version updated to 1.1.0 due to optimizations and improvements. Feedback and suggestions are always welcome!

On 8/26/2023 at 10:44 PM, Saieno said:

That's a great question. When it comes to the long-term vision for the theme, I've got a clear roadmap in mind. First and foremost, I'm committed to adding regional variations to the existing platform views. This is to ensure that users from different parts of the world can get a more personalized and relevant experience.

Alongside this, a key objective is to continuously refine and optimize the performance of the UI. I believe that a seamless user experience is crucial, so I'm always on the lookout for ways to enhance its speed and responsiveness.

Now, zooming out a bit to the broader ideas, I've got some long term changes planned. I really want to breathe new life into the Platform view. The goal is not just to tweak it, but to completely revamp it so that it has a distinctive identity that stands out. Parallel to that, there's the Arcade view. Rather than using just recycled elements from the Unified design, I'm aiming to create an Arcade view that truly feels original and nostalgic, something I'd be genuinely proud to present.

So, to wrap things up, my immediate priorities revolve around optimizing performance, integrating more platforms, and introducing regional variants. However, in the longer run, my sights are set on entirely redesigning both the Platform and Arcade views to with a unique charm, identity, and nostalgia.

Absolutely brilliant, You really seem to have a good eye for this stuff. I'm excited with every update you post. I'm really looking forward to seeing all this and more! Congrats on making it to the first page on the highest-rated creations in the community by the way!   This is an ambitious project so I'm sure I speak for everyone what I say we really appreciate the work you do and how responsive you are to feedback! Thanks for all your work on this really makes my collection and others pop and I'm sure others agree.

 

 

 

Edited August 28, 2023 by vahn65

7 hours ago, Saieno said:

New version is released. Full release notes on the file, but here's a summary:

• Performance: Enhanced navigation performance, especially for NES, SNES, N64, GB, GBC, etc.
• Optimizations: Updated code-base and optimized views for all platforms.
• Sprites: Transitioned to Launchbox sprites in Platform View.
• New Platform Themes: Added for Atari Jaguar CD, Commodore 64, Commodore Amiga, Commodore Amiga CD32, and SNK Neo Geo CD.
  
• New Regional View: Introduced Sega Mark III (Japanese version of Sega Master System).
  

Note: Version updated to 1.1.0 due to optimizations and improvements. Feedback and suggestions are always welcome!

@SaienoEnjoying the new update so far! Impressed with the SNK CD view. Still in the middle of testing. I have noticed issues with the Famicom and Super Famicom views so far. The boxes aren't showing up only the carts.

Edited August 28, 2023 by vahn65

24 minutes ago, vahn65 said:

@SaienoEnjoying the new update so far! Imprseed wity the SNK CD view. Still in the middle of testing. I have noticed issues with the Famicom and Super Famicom views so far. The boxes aren't showing up only the carts.

Thanks for reporting the issue! I’ll go through and double check the views and release an update shortly if needed. Let me know if you come across any other issues. Thanks!

1 hour ago, vahn65 said:

@SaienoEnjoying the new update so far! Imprseed wity the SNK CD view. Still in the middle of testing. I have noticed issues with the Famicom and Super Famicom views so far. The boxes aren't showing up only the carts.

This should be resolved in v1.1.1, just released.