Fixing the Top Gamestation Pro Problems | My Arcade, Atari, & More!

[OldSchoolRetroGamer]

 

 

This 2023 plug-and-play console brings plenty of Atari gameplay to your living room, but it's not perfect. In this video, we run through the top five problems users tend to experience with the GSP, and more importantly, how to correct those problems.

 

 

 

 

[Domeshtan]

Just moving some stuff over here because it would seem to make more sense to be able to find stuff under this topic. There have been fixes and improvements made in a more general Gamestation Pro topic area here. Easier to find it here than to go thru 25 pages of material. 

 

[fluxit]

Speaking of fixes, this is currently just a placeholder with instructional video.  ---->   Atari Gamestation Pro Firmware Upgrade

It must be running Android.

[Domeshtan]

.cfg files to fix the playability of some of the arcade games.

Shannon has been using some form of Retroarch with a 2003 core to fix some of the "Asteroids" style control games. He doesn't have a GSP but I tested them and they worked great. 

Basically he mapped the controlers so that UP is thrust and not a button. Feels much more natural playing it 2600/7800 style for control. So for those games he fixed Asteroids, Asteroids Deluxe, Gravitar and Space Duel. (Space Duel only player 1 is mapped that way). 

 

big_guitar got Battle Zone to be playable with the GSP joystick. It has controls simular to 2600 Combat now.

 

I couldn't remap controls with the menus. (I tweak stuff running Mame078b on my laptop). Controls don't map right. The GSP seems to read the controller differently somehow. Anyway, I found out I could adjust the analog sensitivity on games with the menus and it would work.

I turned down the Y-axis sensitivity on the arcade version of Basketball. Drag Race I turned down the Steering Sensitivity. I don know if I messed with a gear. I blow my engine a bit now with a GSP controller but I got a 6.6 time using my PS Classic controller. (More on that later). I also turned down the sensitivity for rotating your ship on Zektor. Also forgot to add one more before. I slowed down the paddle movement on BlockBlock. (It uses the joystick but it's more controllable now).

The final fix I did with a hex editor. All 3 game variations are playable in Super Breakout now. (arcade) It starts with progressive but the A and B buttons can select Cavity or Double after a coin drop.

GSPConfigs.zip

[Domeshtan]

9 minutes ago, fluxit said:

Speaking of fixes, this is currently just a placeholder with instructional video. 

I would wait and see if people say if it "breaks" anything first before I try upgrading anything. (Rom support or example)

[Domeshtan]

I converted some vertical game artwork for games I own but they are designed for widescreen. (16:9) The Gamestation Pro keeps forcing the aspect ratio to 4:3 on the Micro SD card side even after setting it to 16:9 in the menu. Not perfect but look better in my opinion. The Return of Invaders picture below will give you an idea how they turned out. 28MB for about 43 games.

 

https://1drv.ms/u/s!AkXglGX_EEougyGTAIi8dFp88Tr2?e=5aRcCO 

 

Another solution is the GSPvetical.zip file put up by Atari8264. Just need to unzip it, change the .art file inside to the ROM name and change the folder to the ROM name and zip it up again. No artwork on the sides but the aspect ratio looks right on a wide screen TV. I tried it running Congo Bongo below if you want to see the difference. 

GSPvertical.zip

[Domeshtan]

Alternate controllers. 

SoulBlazer put in a list saying these controllers work on the GSP...

Microsoft Xbox Elite 2 controller 

Microsoft Xbox S controller

Sony PS4 controller

8BitDo Pro 2 Bluetooth controller

These controllers need to be WIRED to work.

I managed to get my PS Classic controller to work with it. (Mostly). The controllers from that mini PlayStation.

I need the regular GSP joystick to navigate the menus and use the home button on it to exit a game. Otherwise the PS Classic controller works in a game once it is detected. I need to press the select and directional buttons a fee times for a few seconds. When I see the credit count go up I know it's working. The only game that gave me issues so far was Space Duel. Need both controllers at first to enter coins, select game variation and start game first. I mentioned Drag Race in another post. It seems a 4th button is used on some games. I shift low to high pressing O then Triangle then L2.

 

The Genesis Mini 2 controller almost worked. (6 button). Directions worked but only the Y button worked out of the others. Also it seemed to act as coin drop, start, A, B and C all being pressed at the same time!

 

The first Genesis Mini controller (3 button) only the directions worked.

Edited December 5, 2023 by Domeshtan

[Avenger75]

5 hours ago, fluxit said:

Speaking of fixes, this is currently just a placeholder with instructional video.  ---->   Atari Gamestation Pro Firmware Upgrade

It must be running Android.

IT seems that driver inside this page :

https://www.myarcadegaming.com/pages/atari-gamestation-firmware-upgrade-to-v-1-3-only

have been removed so that no one can download them 🤥

[fluxit]

52 minutes ago, Avenger75 said:

IT seems that driver inside this page :

https://www.myarcadegaming.com/pages/atari-gamestation-firmware-upgrade-to-v-1-3-only

have been removed so that no one can download them 🤥

I don't think that they've put it up yet.

[Avenger75]

OK, let's wait for them 🙂

[Atari8264]

The firmware 1.3 update is now available on my arcade's web page.  

https://www.myarcadegaming.com/pages/atari-gamestation-firmware-upgrade-to-v-1-3-only

[+Mocotechprfl]

45 minutes ago, Atari8264 said:

The firmware 1.3 update is now available on my arcade's web page.  

https://www.myarcadegaming.com/pages/atari-gamestation-firmware-upgrade-to-v-1-3-only

Video won't play, as it's just an image of a video player. And the PDF link is still a placeholder.

YouTuber GenxGrownUp stated he would put  a video together eventually and I plan to wait until he publishes something. 

 

---- Mocotechprfl ----

[Atari8264]

The new 1.3 firmware is available today Friday and the youtube video link works. See the Gamestation Pro topic. 

[Domeshtan]

I'm getting the hang of altering .cfg files with a hex editor. Some new .cfg files to try out... 

 

Space Fury - Thrust is mapped to UP on the joystick now like 2600/7800 Asteroids.

 

Super Breakout - I have all 3 game variations mapped to the buttons now before you start a game. 

 

Monte Carlo - Fixed the track select feature. You can now select your track with the A button before starting a race. I also mapped 2nd gear to UP on the joystick and 4th gear mapped to DOWN on the joystick so it works kinda like the shifter on Pole Position.

 

 

 

spacfury.cfg sbrkout.cfg montecar.cfg

Edited December 13, 2023 by Domeshtan

[Domeshtan]

These 2 .cfg files are designed to be used with PlayStation Classic controllers on the Gamestation Pro. (So other PlayStation compatable controllers will probably work with them.)

 

Battle Zone is configured as Up/Down for the left tank tread. Triangle and X buttons control the right tank tread. O button fires. 

 

Ultra Tank has the same controls as described for Battle Zone above for both players. The extra options have been mapped in as well. Player 1 Left selects Open Field/Walls and Mines. Player 1 Right selects Steerable Shells/Bouncing Shells. Player 2 Left selects Visible Tanks/Invisible Tanks but it doesn't change anything. I guess they didn't figure out that feature fully yet.

 

bzone.cfg ultratnk.cfg

Edited December 15, 2023 by Domeshtan

[Domeshtan]

This .cfg should fix the missing D button for NeoGeo games. It's mapped for the PlayStation Classic controller again so it probably works with other PlayStation compatable controllers. It probably maps out to an Xbox controller button too but I have no clue which one. 

 

X=NeoGeo A

O=NeoGeo B

Triangle=NeoGeo C

R2=NeoGeo D (Best I could do)

 

The .cfg file is designed for World Hero's Perfect but looking at it with a hex editor other NeoGeo games looked identical. I tested 3 other games and the 4th button worked on all of them. So it looks like all NeoGeo .cfg files are the same. Just rename the .cfg to the ROM name the game uses.

whp.cfg

[Domeshtan]

.cfg files for dual joystick games. Robotron, Smash TV, Total Carnage, Black Widow, Vindicators Part 2, Battle Zone and Wacko (trackball and joystick but works fine).

DualGSPSticks.zip

[Domeshtan]

A few .cfgs for Video Pinball. Someone was having problems configuring it so I made 3. First one is how he wanted it. A and C buttons for flippers, down to launch, up to nudge. (Doesn't seem to do anything.) Another has left and right for the flippers. A 3rd is for PS Classic and Xbox controllers that use L2 and R2 for the flippers. (Bumpers on Xbox). Hopefully you have the old artwork file for it or it won't make sense how the ball is bouncing around.

VidPinCFG.zip

Edited December 30, 2023 by Domeshtan

[ComputerSpaceFan]

4 hours ago, Domeshtan said:

A few .cfgs for Video Pinball. Someone was having problems configuring it so I made 3. First one is how he wanted it. A and C buttons for flippers, down to launch, up to nudge. (Doesn't seem to do anything.) Another has left and right for the flippers. A 3rd is for PS Classic and Xbox controllers that use L2 and R2 for the flippers. (Bumpers on Xbox). Hopefully you have the old artwork file for it or it won't make sense how the ball is bouncing around.

VidPinCFG.zip 1.42 kB · 0 downloads

Awesome stuff man, thanks! (this is Down the Rabbit Hole by the way)

[bran479]

Can someone do a mapping for black window and Robotron with an xbox controller using l1 or r1 in place of y?  I cant figure it out. 

[Airwolfman]

On 12/5/2023 at 12:02 PM, Domeshtan said:

Another solution is the GSPvetical.zip file put up by Atari8264. Just need to unzip it, change the .art file inside to the ROM name and change the folder to the ROM name and zip it up again. No artwork on the sides but the aspect ratio looks right on a wide screen TV. I tried it running Congo Bongo below if you want to see the difference. 

Did you know that you can set the game's last line to vertical=1 in the games.ini file and achieve the same result?

[Atari8264]

On 3/27/2024 at 12:02 AM, Airwolfman said:

Did you know that you can set the game's last line to vertical=1 in the games.ini file and achieve the same result?

If you installed the customized version 1.3c software over the 1.3 software you can.  The GSPVertical was created before Brad's customized software came out.  What happens when version 1.4 software is released?