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iCade - Can't Wait!


MotoRacer

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You'll have to root the iPad to play MAME on it

That hasn't been true for a while - iMame4All: The Xcode Project for non-jailbroken iOS devices. You have to download the source and build it yourself, though you do need a Mac because Xcode (the compiler) doesn't run anywhere else. I'm not sure when that project started, but one of the updates on the page is from 2012. I posted a new topic about this over in the Emulation forum as I recently discovered that you no longer need the $99 developer account to build and install software on your own iOS devices.

 

I had it running on my old iPad Air, worked well. It didn't like my iPad Pro though, I suspect something changed with the latest release of iOS (likewise MAME OS X stopped working on my Mac after the update to OS 10.11, El Capitan). Xcode was also updated and iMame4All wouldn't build anymore, but I noticed this morning that the source was recently updated to fix that issue. I'm going to try to build & install it this weekend.

 

The iPad Pro just barely fits in the iCade, have to flip the top of the iCade back. It won't hold it in landscape mode though, unless you notch the sides of the iCade to allow the iPad Pro to lean farther back(else it'll tip forward and fall out).

post-3056-0-25959200-1452876406_thumb.jpg

 

Besides the iCade I have the iCade 8-Bitty that Think Geek used to sell. Nowadays I mostly use the SteelSeries Nimbus as more games support MFi controllers than the iCade controllers. I like the Nimbus so much that all my nephews received one for Xmas.

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I hope you're all playing Forget-Me-Not, the BEST classic style game that isn't actually old. Sadly, I think the Llamasoft games are no longer in the App Store, as Jeff Minter didn't make any money from them. Gridrunner was wonderful on the iCade.

It's still available and works great on iOS 9+, Forget-Me-Not is a great game!
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I have one and bought a Samsung tablet just for it a few years back, I really like it because you can rotate your screen easily to make it work for all games screen orientation. Plus, I think controlling emulators through touch screens is the easiest way. The good thing about the iPad as opposed to the Android is you can get the Vectrex emulator for it, too, which you can't get on Android and it is compatible with the iCade from what I hear. I also like the fact that the iCade doubles as a nice little stand for video poker, slot machines or basic touch games if you want to get a kind of Megatouch experience out of it. And at the very least, it looks really cool on display. I'm sure you'll really enjoy it and for a hundy, you definitely can't go wrong.

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the Vectrex emulator ... is compatible with the iCade from what I hear.

 

Yep - you even earn an "achievement pin" by using it. I don't have many achievements though as I tend to play on my actual Vectrex (I have a VecMulti cart for it).

post-3056-0-26869700-1453067825_thumb.jpg

 

The buttons line up correctly too. And both rows of buttons are useable (i.e. both red buttons are mapped as button #1).

post-3056-0-91972800-1453067820_thumb.jpg

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Yep - you even earn an "achievement pin" by using it. I don't have many achievements though as I tend to play on my actual Vectrex (I have a VecMulti cart for it).

attachicon.gifIMG_6891.jpg

 

The buttons line up correctly too. And both rows of buttons are useable (i.e. both red buttons are mapped as button #1).

attachicon.gifIMG_6890.jpg

 

WhaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaT!? Is this on the app store, or something I have to side load?? I MUST have it!

 

I used to have a Vectrex and miss it so much. It eventually got to a point where it was extremely loud and the picture was pretty messed up, so I had to sell it for parts.

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That app is the only reason I look at my iCade w/Samsung tablet with a little bit of sadness. I really, really wish they'd release an Android port or someone would release a Vectrex emulator with iCade support. I love my Vectrex but I also love the convenience of the iCade and emulators. It's the one thing that grinds my gears that I can't do on the Samsung tablet. It's a rather small deal, honestly, but when it's that last thing you want to do but can't on your little emulation station, it'll keep you awake at night once or twice. The funny thing about overlays on the Vectrex is it seems like such an outdated concept, but it's not because you forget the damn thing is even on there and the graphics/title of the game right there makes it feel like a real arcade experience with a bezel, another reason I am so jealous my Android can't do it as the physical appearance of the iCade is already so authentic looking.

Edited by bretthorror
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  • 4 weeks later...

That app is the only reason I look at my iCade w/Samsung tablet with a little bit of sadness. I really, really wish they'd release an Android port or someone would release a Vectrex emulator with iCade support. I love my Vectrex but I also love the convenience of the iCade and emulators. It's the one thing that grinds my gears that I can't do on the Samsung tablet. It's a rather small deal, honestly, but when it's that last thing you want to do but can't on your little emulation station, it'll keep you awake at night once or twice. The funny thing about overlays on the Vectrex is it seems like such an outdated concept, but it's not because you forget the damn thing is even on there and the graphics/title of the game right there makes it feel like a real arcade experience with a bezel, another reason I am so jealous my Android can't do it as the physical appearance of the iCade is already so authentic looking.

Why not get an iPad for it, then? They're quite cheap now. Alternatively, I think there's a Vectrex core in RetroArch for Android.
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Yeah, they are OK - there is some lag. You'll have to root the iPad to play MAME on it, if that was your goal.

 

 

No, there's no more inherent lag on the iCade than any other bluetooth controller. When the iCade first came out, there was input lag on several games, but that was due to poor input support by the developers.

 

Given how many times I've single credit cleared DoDonPachi using the iCade, I'm pretty confident saying that any lag is minimal.

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