How to rename lots of games for MAME core in RA

[flatuswalrus]

If you want to run a system on RA that requires the MAME core the games have to be named as per what MAME is looking for in a hash .xml file. This is fine for a system like the Entex Adventure Vision because it has four games and thus takes no time at all to manually do it. However, for larger systems it would be ridiculously time consuming. Not only because you would have to change them but then after you go through the import wizard in LB it will not scrape them as they are now named a name it won't recognize so you have to change them all back again in the import wizard.

Just wondering if anyone has found a convenient way of doing this or if it just is not possible without setting a day aside along with your sanity.

[neil9000]

2 minutes ago, Dane said:

If you want to run a system on RA that requires the MAME core the games have to be named as per what MAME is looking for in a hash .xml file. This is fine for a system like the Entex Adventure Vision because it has four games and thus takes no time at all to manually do it. However, for larger systems it would be ridiculously time consuming. Not only because you would have to change them but then after you go through the import wizard in LB it will not scrape them as they are now named a name it won't recognize so you have to change them all back again in the import wizard.

Just wondering if anyone has found a convenient way of doing this or if it just is not possible without setting a day aside along with your sanity.

Sounds like it would be a lot easier to just use MAME rather than Retroarch. Using Retroarch MAME core for non arcade games is a total pain in the arse.

[flatuswalrus]

1 minute ago, neil9000 said:

Sounds like it would be a lot easier to just use MAME rather than Retroarch. Using Retroarch MAME core for non arcade games is a total pain in the arse.

It definitely is a heck of a lot easier using standalone MAME but there are some things you can do with RA that MAME can't, just little minor things. It would be really cool if for whatever platforms it can be done for that the shortened MAME names be added to the LB database just like the import wizard does for MAME games themselves. I know there are higher priorities and not a lot of people would use it but surely it could be done easily because all the hash files already exist with the names. I feel like there have been quite a few people throughout the years that would like to play non-arcade games in RA through the MAME core but it is little things like this that may stop people. I am not knocking RA, LB or anything else but this feature would just be cool to have.

[sundogak]

@DaneThere is a plugin I have used for this on Software List systems.  See here:

I have only used on a couple systems (SNK Neo Geo AES MAME set for one), but it worked fine.  Was able to import with tool and scrape via LB DB.  I use standalone MAME as primary but have RA MAME Core as alternate and works with both (assuming RA MAME core setup correctly).

[flatuswalrus]

6 hours ago, sundogak said:

There is a plugin I have used for this on Software List systems.

That looks fantastic. For it to work do you have to have the files named what MAME is looking for to start with?

[sundogak]

Yes, because it uses the MAME hash files to translate the MAME zip file name to a normal text title. So you have to have a normal MAME Software List set for whatever importing.  Similar to MAME arcade for LB import wizard it is then (usually) close enough for the LB DB scraper to match. Particularly, if like Mame arcade DB entries, people have also entered in alternate titles.  The few that don't match are not the fault of the tool, just differences in way MAME folks title their names versus what is in the LB DB.  At a minimum, you have a "human" readable title versus the MAME short file name to do a manual match if LB doesn't do a fuzzy match.

I have used it for some of the "oddball" systems I hadn't tried but were in the MAME software list set, like Fairchild Channel F system.  That is a good one to test since not many games but enough you wouldn't want to do manually (~40).  There were about 4 out of the set that didn't match (a few were not in DB like Demo Cartridges), in most cases due to glitches in LB DB which updated. Definitely, far easier than putting them in manually if using the MAME sets.

Edited April 12, 2020 by sundogak

[flatuswalrus]

15 minutes ago, sundogak said:

Yes, because it uses the MAME hash files to translate the MAME zip file name to a normal text title. So you have to have a normal MAME Software List set for whatever importing.  Similar to MAME arcade for LB import wizard it is then (usually) close enough for the LB DB scraper to match. Particularly, if like Mame arcade DB entries, people have also entered in alternate titles.  The few that don't match are not the fault of the tool, just differences in way MAME folks title their names versus what is in the LB DB.  At a minimum, you have a "human" readable title versus the MAME short file name to do a manual match if LB doesn't do a fuzzy match.

I have used it for some of the "oddball" systems I hadn't tried but were in the MAME software list set, like Fairchild Channel F system.  That is a good one to test since not many games but enough you wouldn't want to do manually (~40).  There were about 4 out of the set that didn't match (a few were not in DB like Demo Cartridges), in most cases due to glitches in LB DB which updated. Definitely, far easier than putting them in manually if using the MAME sets.

Thanks very much for the detailed reply. I am downloading the MAME 0.220 Software List ROMs (split) right now and will test it when it has finished. I knew someone would have something that would aid in this. Thank you so much!

[flatuswalrus]

18 hours ago, sundogak said:

There is a plugin I have used for this on Software List systems.

I have tried your plugin and it worked very well, brilliant! Thanks very much.