Happy Pi Day! After a long wait, we are pleased to announce the release of RetroPie 4.8.

The RetroPie 4.8 images are built on the latest version of the Raspberry Pi OS Lite Buster (which is now their legacy release). This image supports the latest Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W and recent Raspberry Pi 4 boards that require a newer firmware than is available on the RetroPie 4.7.1 image.

Support for the current Bullseye version of Raspberry Pi OS is in progress.

There have been a lot of changes since the last image. RetroPie-Setup has had some visual and functionality improvements. Package management is now simpler and there have been improvements to joystick control in the dialog menus as well as the addition of an On Screen Keyboard for configuring your WiFi password. Versioning is now supported for source packages, so source packages will only update if there are new changes available. This makes updating quicker when you have many packages installed from source.

The front-end EmulationStation has had some useful changes including theming improvements, faster loading, and bug fixes. The new default theme is Carbon-2021 that uses a new theming feature to allow pixels for positioning/sizing. This should make it easier for people creating themes.

For the Raspberry Pi you can download a 4.8 image from https://retropie.org.uk/download/. For first installs please follow the Installation Instructions.

You can also install RetroPie on top of an existing Raspberry Pi OS (Buster) set up, or on top of Ubuntu on a PC/Odroid XU3/XU4. Links to the relevant instructions can be found on the download page.

If you want to support the project, donations are always appreciated and can be made on our Donation Page. The lead developer Jools Wills also has a Patreon page up at https://www.patreon.com/retropie.

Thanks to everyone who has helped with this release.

Changes since 4.7.1

• On screen keyboard for entering WiFi password in RetroPie-Setup
• Improved joystick support in RetroPie-Setup dialogs.
• Improvement to RetroPie package management and updating.
• retroarch – updated to v1.10.0
• Updates to many libretro cores – in depth details about libretro changes can be found on their site – https://www.libretro.com
• EmulationStation updated to v2.10.2
  • Better Random: Perfect shuffle of systems, games and screensaver items
  • Fixes for event handling so startup events are cleared
  • Pixel positioning/sizing support for themes
  • Added a progress bar during loading + threaded loading for systems (threaded loading is disabled by default currently)
  • Added a cache for stat checks (performance)
  • Support for new scripting events – switching systems/selecting games/screensaver videos and image switching/etc.
  • Improvements to text wrapping for CJK glyphs
  • Updated Arcade resource lists (used to hide MAME devices/bioses and to provide friendly names for zip archives)
  • Ability to use full screen paging with LB/RB
• hatari – updated to v2.3.1
• xpadneo (Xbox One Bluetooth driver) – updated to v0.9
• zesarux – updated to v9.1
• lzdoom – updated to 3.87c
• xroar – updated to 1.0.9
• srb2 – updated to 2.2.9
• ags – switch to v3.5.1 release branch
• eduke32 – fix for gameplay bug in E1L4
• scummvm – updated to 2.5.1, first release since the ResidualVM merge includes bug-fixes and new games.
• cgenius – updated to the latest stable version (Added Cosmos engine, GUI, sound and controller improvements)
• tyrquake – updated to 0.69
• yquake2 – updated to v8.00 and added add-ons game source
• vice – switch to v3.5 branch
• advmame – fixes for building on GCC 10+
• audiosettings – add PulseAudio configuration support
• esthemes – support branches, to allow multiple themes on a single repo and many new EmulationStation themes added
• bluetooth – various fixes and improvements
• kodi – scriptmodule compatibility improvements on Ubuntu
• Improvements to handling of dkms drivers.
• New modules:
  • lr-stella – added upstream / current Stella libretro core (Atari 2600 emulator)
  • lr-tic80 – TIC-80 is a free and open source fantasy computer for making, playing and sharing tiny games (see https://tic80.com)
  • lr-retro8 – retro8 is an open source re-implementation of the PICO-8 fantasy console.
  • yabasanshiro – standalone Saturn emulator based on Yabause (RPi4 only)
  • hypseus – Hyseus Singe (Daphne) SDL2 Laserdisc emulator
  • ppsspp-1.5.4 – Added old ppsspp module (performs better for some users)
  • dosbox-staging – an enhanced and modernized DosBox fork
  • lr-uae4arm – libretro core of the uae4arm Amiga emulator.

The post Happy Pi Day – RetroPie 4.8 is released appeared first on RetroPie.

Thanks very much to Vilros who are generously making a donation to the RetroPie project for every Raspberry Pi gaming kit they sell.

Vilros was founded in 2010 with the goal of helping to create a more technological society. They are passionate about promoting STEM education and making it easily accessible for all people, regardless of their economic status or educational background.

They offer a robust mix of products and bundles related to Arduino and Raspberry Pi including computer robotics hardware, starter kits, boards, components, wires, resistors, transistors, and cases.

You can visit their site at https://vilros.com/

The post Vilros sponsorship appeared first on RetroPie.

TL;DR

The ControlBlock provides

• a soft power switch and status indication functionality, as well as
• an easy-to-use interface for original and arcade game controllers.

It has been updated now with a dedicated power switch IC to provide all the power that you need for your retro project. Also, it comes with a a USB-C connector to align well with the latest Raspberry Pi connector changes.

Give Me More Information!

If you are looking for a way to connect original game or arcade controllers to your RetroPie installation together with a smart power button functionality, the ControlBlock could be your solution.

Here is why – the ControlBlock provides two core functionalities:

• For one, it provides a soft power switch and power status indication. You can choose the type of the button to your project needs: A toggle or a momentary button are both supported. Upon button presses it will take care for a safe shutdown. It will only cut the power from the Raspberry, when the system has fully shut down. So, no risk of data corruption.
• Two: A true retro-gaming project needs original or arcade gaming controllers. The ControlBlock provides an easy-to-use interface for connecting and integrating those controllers into your project: There are screw terminals that ensure a solid and lasting connection between the Raspberry Pi and the controllers. The ControlBlock driver supports various types of original gamepads and arcade controls for up to two players.

The ControlBlock has recently been updated with a dedicated power switch IC now. That thing can handle up to 7A and gives you plenty of freedom for any accessories that you would like to attach to your Raspberry Pi. Furthermore, the ControlBlock comes with a USB-C connector from now on. It now aligns well with the latest connector changes of the Raspberry Pi.

You can find more information about it at petrockblogs website.

The post More Power and USB-C for the ControlBlock appeared first on RetroPie.

RetroPie 4.7.1 images are now available from the Download Page.

Unfortunately a couple of bugs crept into the EmulationStation front-end for the 4.7 release. A performance issue causing EmulationStation to have a poor frame rate and a bug affecting its built in scrapers.

The performance issue affected Raspberry Pi 0/1/2/3 users and is related to a problem with the EmulationStation GLESv2 renderer on the legacy broadcom drivers (we have switched to the previous GLESv1 renderer for now).

The scraper issue affected all systems, and was a problem introduced recently in the development branch that we missed.

These issues are resolved in the 4.7.1 image. If you have already installed the 4.7 image you don’t need to re-download. Just choose the “update” option from the main menu in RetroPie-Setup.

The post RetroPie 4.7.1 update appeared first on RetroPie.

The Raspberry Pi 400 is released today – A Raspberry Pi 4 based system built into a compact keyboard. To find out more about the new machine please visit https://rptl.io/400.

RetroPie 4.7 is compatible with the new Raspberry Pi 400 and can be downloaded from https://retropie.org.uk/download – Press the download button named “Raspberry Pi 4/400”.

You can also find out more about the system including a tear-down and a demo of RetroPie running on it in a new video from Perifractic’s Retro Recipes.

The post Raspberry Pi 400 is released appeared first on RetroPie.

RetroPie 4.7 images are now available, and include a variety of changes and improvements. We marked RetroPie 4.6 as having beta support for the Raspberry Pi 4. We now believe it to work well enough to remove the beta label.

RetroPie 4.7 supports the new Raspberry Pi 400.

Please see below for more information on what’s changed since RetroPie 4.6.

You can download a 4.7 image from https://retropie.org.uk/download/. For first installs please follow the Installation Instructions.

You can also install RetroPie on top of an existing Raspberry Pi OS (Formerly Raspbian) set up, or on top of Ubuntu on a PC/Odroid-C1/C2/XU3/XU4. Links to the relevant instructions can be found on the Download Page.

Please note that our pre-built binary packages for Raspbian Stretch are no longer updated, and support is being dropped for this version. If you are still running a Raspbian Stretch based image you will get a warning when launching RetroPie-Setup. We recommend people update to the latest image which is currently based on Raspberry Pi OS (Buster).

If you want to support the project, donations are always appreciated and can be made on our Donation Page. The lead developer Jools Wills also has a Patreon page up at https://www.patreon.com/retropie.

Thanks to everyone who has contributed to this release.

Changes since 4.6

• Updated to the latest Raspberry Pi OS Buster image, with support for USB boot on the Pi4. The RetroPie 4.7 image can be flashed directly to an USB drive and booted directly, the Pi4 boot EEPROM should be updated first using Raspberry Pi Imager as detailed in https://github.com/raspberrypi/documentation/blob/master/hardware/raspberrypi/booteeprom.md.
• Added xpadneo – linux driver for xbox one wireless gamepad.
• retroArch – updated to v1.8.8.
• Added mame – standalone MAME emulator building from latest code.
• srb2 (Sonic Robo Blast 2) – updated to v2.2.2.
• cgenius – updated to 2.4.4.1.
• hatari (Atari ST emulator) – updated to v2.2.1.
• amiberry (Amiga emulator) – updated to v3.3.
• scummvm –  updated to 2.2.0
• xroar (Dragon 32 / CoCo emulator) – updated to v0.36
• ti99sim –  update to version 0.16.0 and switch to SDL2.
• Added ti99sim-sdl1 for older distros as new code requires GCC 8
• sdltrs –  switch to the SDL2 version, enable for KMS
• attractmode – now supports RPI4/KMS.
• lr-vecx – now includes GPU rendering support for smooth vector output.
• sdl1 / runcommand – fix aspect ratio using the dispmanx backend with sdl1 on fkms (this affects various sdl1 emulators such as dosbox, daphne, openbor and others).
• lr-gpsp – fixed crash on RaspberryPi OS Buster.
• opentyrian – updated to latest code which now uses SDL2 backend.
• darkplaces-quake – added optional gles version for RPI4 with better performance.
• gemrb – updated to v0.8.6 and switched to SDL2 backend.
• lr-bnses – updated to the current BSNES version of the libretro fork.
• vice – updated to latest version, and re-enable fastsid which got disabled by default upstream.
• Improved Aarch64 support (64bit Arm) – can be manually installed on the beta 64bit Raspberry Pi OS, but is not officially supported.
• lzdoom –  update to 3.86a (This was announced as the final lzdoom release to support GL2 rendering.)
• mupen64plus – reworking of module logic – now enabled on mali targets.
• Added recognition for Jetson Nano and Tegra X1
• Added gpg signing for pre-built binaries.
• Improvements to runcommand and RPI4 videomode detection.
• Updates to Skyscraper (Metadata scraper).
• usbromservice – fixed bug with mounting ext3/ext4 partitions.
• audiosettings –  updates for Pi4 and support for discrete internal ALSA devices.
• New esthemes added.
• Various other bug fixes and improvements.
• Added new experimental modules:
  • lr-mesen – Mesen NES/Famicom emulator.
  • lr-theodore – Thomson MO/TO system emulator.
  • lr-smsplus-gx –  Sega Master System/Game Gear emulator.
  • lr-gearsystem –  Sega Master System/Game Gear/SG-1000 emulator.

The post RetroPie 4.7 is now available appeared first on RetroPie.

We are very pleased to announce RetroPie 4.6 with beta support for the Raspberry Pi 4.

It’s been some time since we last updated our pre-built images. However development has been ongoing in the background, and a lot of changes have been made since the last release. Note that we update RetroPie constantly, and you can update your system at any time. We wanted to wait until we were happy with the Raspberry Pi 4 support before putting out some new images though, but RetroPie has been working on the Raspberry Pi 4 for some time for those wanting to manually install or try a weekly development image.

You can see what emulators are available for our supported platforms thanks to a new stats module included in RetroPie – https://retropie.org.uk/stats/pkgflags/. 

For RetroPie 4.6 we have moved to Raspbian Buster as a base for our pre-built Raspberry Pi images. Raspbian Stretch is no longer supported by Raspberry Pi Trading Ltd. We will continue to support Stretch for a while longer, but will likely stop updating binaries for it later this year.

We are marking the Raspberry Pi 4 image as beta for now – primarily as there are still some things to improve on, but most packages run well. Please do try it, and report any issues to our forum https://retropie.org.uk/forum/. If you are running a weekly Buster development build from https://files.retropie.org.uk/images/weekly/ you can just update within RetroPie-Setup – no need to start from a new image.

Please see the changelog below for more information on the changes since RetroPie 4.5.

You can download a 4.6 image from https://retropie.org.uk/download/. For first installs please follow the Installation Instructions.

You can also install RetroPie on top of an existing Raspbian Buster set up, or on top of Ubuntu on a PC/Odroid-C1/C2/XU3/XU4. Links to the relevant instructions can be found on the Download area.

If you want to support the project, donations are always appreciated and can be made on our Donation Page. The main developer Jools Wills also has a Patreon page up at https://www.patreon.com/retropie.

We hope you enjoy this update, and wish everyone the best at these difficult times. Happy gaming x.

Changes since 4.5

• Raspberry Pi 4 support! Support is labelled as beta currently as there are still things to improve, but most emulators now run well.
• The RetroPie images are now based on Raspbian Buster – Stretch is no longer supported by Raspberry Pi (Trading) ltd. RetroPie will stop updating pre-built binaries for Stretch later in the year.
• Improvements to RetroPie packaging system and core RetroPie-Setup code so package state is remembered and binary updates will only be done if an updated binary is available. Source installs won’t be overwritten by a pre-built binary when updating also. We started providing pre-built binaries for the packages in the experimental section for the supported platforms.
• RetroArch updated to v1.8.5.
  • New notification system with cheevos badges support.
  • RGUI can be themed.
  • Support for real CD ROM, with the ability to dump the disc image.
  • Improved disk control system, with support for labeling disks in .m3u files.
  • RetroAchievements support for PS1/Sega CD/PCEngine CD.
• EmulationStation updated to v2.9.1.
  • Scraper fixes for the TheGameDBNet.
  • Grid view improvements and bugfixes.
  • Theming improvements.
  • New options for “disable system name on custom collections” and “save gamelist metadata after each modification”.
• Added videomode switching support to runcommand for KMS and X11 targets. SDL2 applications only.
• Added ioquake3 module for platforms other than Raspberry Pi 1-3.
• Replaced zdoom with lzdoom as zdoom is no longer maintained.
• amiberry – updated to 3.1.3 including ipf support.
• stella – updated to 6.0.1.
• SDL updated to 2.0.10 with rpi4/kms fixes.
• solarus – lots of updates to modernise the port.
• eduke32 – major overhaul including adding package for IonFury.
• zesarux – updated to v8.0.
• cgenius – updated to v2.3.6.
• drastic – update to 2.5.0.4 with RPI4 compatibility.
• scummvm – updated to v2.1.1.
• atari800 – updated to v4.2.0 (lr-atari800 config has been moved to lr-atari800.cfg to avoid conflicting)
• lr-mupen64plus / lr-mupen64plus-next – enable GLES3 support on rpi4.
• lr-opera – renamed from lr-4do.
• Sonic Robo Blast – updated to 2.2.
• Lots of other fixes and improvements.
  • Added new experimental modules.
  • vvvvvv – Port of the popular platform / puzzle game VVVVVV.
  • lr-neocd – Neo Geo CD emulator.
  • redream – Dreamcast emulator for the Raspberry Pi 4.

Raspberry Pi 4 image from – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raspberry_Pi#/media/File:Raspberry_Pi_4_Model_B_-_Side.jpg – released under CC BY-SA 4.0

The post RetroPie 4.6 released with Raspberry Pi 4 support. appeared first on RetroPie.

• New revisions of ControlBlock and PowerBlock are fully compatible with the Raspberry Pi 4
• Safe power button functionality of both boards also supports momentary buttons now

The Raspberry Pi 4 was recently made available and provides various hardware improvements. However, due to minor changes in the boot-up behaviour the former ControlBlock and PowerBlock add-on boards do not work out-of-the-box with the Raspberry Pi 4. But that is fixed!

The firmware of the two boards was refined and even extended such that the new ControlBlock as well as the PowerBlock are both compatible with the Raspberry Pi 4 now.

In case you are looking for a simple way for adding a safe power button to your (retro-gaming) project you will probably have good time with the PowerBlock or the ControlBlock. Both add-on boards for the Raspberry Pi are well supported by RetroPie. They provide a safe power button and a dynamic power status indication via LED.

These two boards just got an update: From now on both, toggle buttons and momentary buttons, can be used with the boards to implement a safe power button. The boards automatically determine the attached button type. In case of an attached momentary button you also have a “hard-off” function: When you press the button for at least 5 seconds the power is cut off regardless of the status of the Raspberry Pi.

Further Details

You can find further details about this new feature of the PowerBlock and the ControlBlock here.

The post ControlBlock and PowerBlock Support Raspberry Pi 4 and Momentary Buttons appeared first on RetroPie.

As detailed in the last post – https://retropie.org.uk/2019/07/composite-out-broken-on-retropie-4-5/ – there were some issues in the last image due to the updated Kernel.

A newer Kernel has been released for Raspbian Stretch that resolves the composite output issue, but we also had problems reported with overscan settings and decided to implement a workaround. As the previous 4.14 Kernel was well tested, we decided to switch back to it for now, and also created a new image (this was actually uploaded on the 17th July, but due to some testing and time constraints is only being announced now).

If you have a 4.5 version of RetroPie for the Raspberry Pi you can choose the update option in RetroPie-Setup and then choose to “Update System Packages” when prompted. This will downgrade the Kernel to the one in this 4.5.1 image. The Kernel will only be downgraded if choosing to update System Packages from the RetroPie-Setup interface.

You can download a 4.5.1 image from https://retropie.org.uk/download/. For first installs please follow the Installation Instructions.

We are still working on Raspberry Pi 4 support. You may have seen some unofficial images from other people with some emulators working – but please bear with us. We also have some emulators working, but don’t want to release anything until we are able to realistically support it.

Changes since 4.5

• Downgraded to 4.14 kernel to resolve some 4.19 kernel/firmware issues
• (other rpi4/fkms changes which will be announced in a future post)

The post RetroPie 4.5.1 update appeared first on RetroPie.

It has come to our attention that composite video out is broken on the 4.5 image due to a firmware bug.

We updated the firmware/kernel to one from Raspbian Buster as the latest Raspbian Stretch kernel had an issue breaking Sony Bluetooth devices. However it seems that the more recent firmware has stopped composite output from working.

This is the upstream issue. It has been fixed, but it isn’t yet available as a Raspbian update. https://github.com/raspberrypi/firmware/issues/1166.

If you have already installed 4.5 – you can fix this by downgrading the Kernel. You can do this via SSH if you have no display output. You can enable SSH by making a file called ssh in the /boot folder using another system. See https://retropie.org.uk/docs/SSH/#enable-ssh.

Once you have access to the command line you can manually downgrade the Kernel with the following command (after running this reboot, and you should be on the older firmware and kernel).

sudo ~/RetroPie-Setup/retropie_packages.sh raspbiantools install_firmware 1.20190401-1

This older version also works with Sony Bluetooth devices. RetroPie-Setup will only try and update the kernel again if you choose to update system packages.

Sorry for the inconvenience. We will update to a newer kernel as soon as one is available.

The post Composite out broken on RetroPie 4.5 appeared first on RetroPie.

After some delays due to recent issues we are pleased to announce RetroPie 4.5.

This version does NOT work on the recently released Raspberry Pi 4. We are currently working on support for this.

IMPORTANT UPDATE: It has come to our attention that composite out is broken on this release. See https://retropie.org.uk/2019/07/composite-out-broken-on-retropie-4-5/ for further details.

RetroPie 4.5 for the Raspberry Pi is based on Raspbian Stretch. This may be our last image based on Stretch as it looks as though the Raspberry Pi foundation are now concentrating their efforts on the recently released Raspbian Buster. Some parts of RetroPie already work on Buster on the Raspberry Pi 1/2 and 3 but it’s not officially supported yet.

We held off on making this release due to a Raspbian kernel update which broke pairing of Sony Bluetooth devices. We have worked around this on the Raspberry Pi images by installing more recent firmware/kernel packages from the Buster distribution.

Please see the changelog below for more information on the changes since RetroPie 4.4.

You can download a 4.5 image from https://retropie.org.uk/download/. For first installs please follow the Installation Instructions.

You can also install RetroPie on top of an existing Raspbian Stretch set up, or on top of Ubuntu on a PC/Odroid-C1/C2/XU3/XU4. Links to the relevant instructions can be found on the Download area.

If you want to support the project, donations are always appreciated and can be made on our Donation Page. The main developer Jools Wills also has a Patreon page up at https://www.patreon.com/retropie.

Changes since 4.4

• Dropped Raspbian/Debian Jessie support
• Raspberry Pi 3 A+ support (via Stretch firmware update)
• Many new es themes added
• Added Skyscraper (Scraper for Emulation Station game lists) 
• RetroArch updated to v1.7.6
• Amiberry (Amiga emulator) updated to v2.25, including support for launching whdload and CD32 titles from ES.
• Jzintv (Intellivision emulator) updated to 20181225 release
• atari800 – updated to v4.0.0
• Mupen64plus – updated to latest version (GlideN64 stability and compatibility improved), as well as other changes.
• Fuse (ZX Spectrum emulator) updated to v1.5.7
• ZEsarUX (ZX Spectrum emulator) updated to v7
• advmame (Advance MAME arcade emulator) – updated to v3.9
• Fixed building of quake3 for RPI.
• Added love-0.10.2 (2d Game Engine) for compatibility with older games.
• Dosbox updated to SVN r4194 including joystick fix for 360 controllers.
• CGenius – updated to v2.3.1 
• lr-flycast (libretro Dreamcast emulator) – renamed from lr-reicast and enabled for arm platforms including the RPI. 
• reicast – Switched to updated upstream repository – the latest code includes bugfixes and improvements including better game compatibility as well as our RPI fixes.
• lr-ppsspp – switched to upstream repository for latest version
• lr-fbneo  (Arcade and console emulator) – renamed from lr-fblpha – lots of improvements including neo geo cd support, and optional cyclone 68k core for better performance on slower devices for some games.The emulator can now be selected as an alternate emulator for Sega Genesis/Mastersystem/SG-1000, PC-Engine, MSX, ColecoVision and ZXSpectrum.
• Fixes and updates to many libretro cores
• Kodi updated to the 18 “Leia” release (only available in Raspbian Stretch)
• Improvements/fixes to joystick control in runcommand launch menu
• Fixes / Improvements to bluetooth pairing
• Added sixaxis driver – better DualShock 3 controller support with full bluetooth coexistence
  • Third-party (Shanwan/Gasia) controller support via customhidsony & custombluez drivers
• lr-mame2014 renamed to lr-mame2015
• Emulationstation – updated to v2.8.4 which includes:
  • 2 new scrapers added for the TheGamesDB and ScreenScraper. Also many bugfixes and improvements including:
    • Gridview support now in main version
    • Hide MAME bios files by default
    • Graphical / rendering fixes
    • Loading progress
    • Allow using analog sticks for navigation
    • More flexible audio configuration
    • Lots of code refactoring, bugfixes and performance improvements, including removing boost libraries making compilation faster (and code smaller).
    • Search and load artwork based on ROM name (image and video)
    • Experimental scripting support, triggered by events.

• Added new experimental modules
  • moonlight – NVIDIA GameStream client
  • steamlink – Steam Link streaming client for Raspberry Pi 3
  • jumpnbump – multiplayer platform game
  • mysticmine – open source indie game
  • bombermaaan – Classic bomberman game
  • lr-superflappybirds – Multiplayer Flappy Bird Clone
  • lr-scummvm – libretro version of scummvm (Allows playing of many classic point and click adventures)
  • lr-x1 – Sharp X1 libretro core
  • lr-redream – Dreamcast emulator
  • lr-pokemini – Pokemon Mini emulator
  • lr-81 – Sinclair ZX81 emulator
  • lr-quasi88 – NEC PC-8801 emulator
  • splitwolf – 2-4 player split-screen Wolfenstein 3D / Spear of Destiny port
  • lr-mupen64plus-next – a new WIP Libretro core which aims to improve upon the existing lr-mupen64plus core.

The post RetroPie 4.5 is released appeared first on RetroPie.

On the 22nd March, RetroPie developer Jools Wills was interviewed on the excellent digitalSoup podcast.

Big thanks to digitalSoup for inviting us on the show. If you like geeky banter including retro gaming, their podcast is definitely worth a listen.

Interview is here: https://digitalsouppodcast.com/2019/03/22/117-retropie-interview-with-jools-wills/

The post Interview with RetroPie on the digitalSoup podcast appeared first on RetroPie.

Good news! We now own the trademark for RetroPie in the USA thanks to help and support from Eckland & Blando.

In February 2017 it came to our attention that a 3rd party had trademarked the RetroPie name in the USA. They were using the trademark to illegally sell our software and take down anyone else they saw doing the same, even those that just sold hardware and respected our software licences.

We posted asking for legal help on this site, and we were overwhelmed with all the offers of support. Thanks!

We decided to accept a very generous offer of help from Daniel Cragg at Eckland & Blando, who offered to resolve the situation for us for free, with us only covering the paperwork filing costs.

There were a few hurdles along the way, as although the person who dishonestly registered our name agreed to cancel it, they managed to make a mistake with the paperwork, so it took additional time and work from Eckland & Blando to get the situation resolved. Finally though, the trademark is now ours!

I want to say a huge thank you to Daniel, Jared and co at Eckland & Blando for all the time they put into resolving this for us. We couldn’t have done it without you. Cheers!

The post RetroPie USA trademark resolved appeared first on RetroPie.

RetroPie 4.4 is out, bringing with it Raspberry Pi 3 Model B+ support via our new Raspbian Stretch based images. Raspbian Jessie is no longer receiving firmware and kernel updates, so the move to the new version was required.

For RPI users it is recommended to start from a fresh image with this update. It is possible to upgrade the system from Jessie to Stretch but there have been reports of issues by some people when doing so.

If wanting to use WiFi on the new Raspberry Pi 3 Model B+, you will need to first configure the WiFi Country via raspi-config before it will work. It’s under menu 4 of raspi-config (Localisation options).

Initial support for the Tinker board has been added with this release. It’s a source only install on top of their default Debian image. It has only had limited testing so far, and may need further work.

Please see the changelog below for more information on the changes since RetroPie 4.3.

You can download a 4.4 image from https://retropie.org.uk/download/. For first installs please follow the Installation Instructions.

You can also install RetroPie on top of an existing Raspbian Stretch set up, or on top of Ubuntu on a PC/Odroid-C1/C2/XU3/XU4. Links to the relevant instructions can be found on the Download area.

If you want to support the project, donations are always appreciated and can be made on our Donation Page. The main developer Jools Wills also has a Patreon page up at https://www.patreon.com/retropie

Changes since 4.3

• Added support for Raspbian Stretch, and switched to it for our main images, as Raspbian Jessie is no longer receiving kernel/firmware updates. Many changes were needed around the codebase to work correctly with Raspbian Stretch.
• Added basic support for the ASUS Tinker Board.
• RetroArch updated to v1.7.1 (built with video recording support via ffmpeg on Raspbian Stretch).
• AdvanceMAME updated to v3.7
• ScummVM – updated to v2.0. This fixes the controller issues and adds support for additional games.
• Stella (Atari 2600 emulator) updated to v5.0.2
• Fuse (ZX Spectrum emulator) updated to v1.4.1
• SDL2 – updated to 2.0.8
• Dosbox – Updated to latest code, implemented software MIDI synth support, and launching via .conf files directly.
• lr-freeintv libretro Intellivision emulator
• AGS – enable DIGMID support for MIDI playback on devices with no hardware MIDI Support.
• Fixes for xarcade2jstick.
• Added customhidsony, a custom hid-sony dkms driver module patched to fix the eternal vibrate bug with third-party Shanwan controllers.
• wolf4sdl – fix spear of destiny mission support.
• Zdoom – add support for launching Hexen 1 Series, Heretic, Strife and Chex 3.
• cgenius – updated to v2.2.0.
• Amiberry – update to the new SDL2 release (still using SDL1 on the Raspberry Pi due to performance reasons).
• Emulation Station improvements including Kiosk mode, and a new experimental module emulationstation-dev for those wanting to try our the very latest Emulation Station code.
• Various mupen64plus (N64 emulator) fixes.
• Removed lr-armsnes as it’s no longer developed and has only minor changes over lr-snes9x2002.
• Fix non working xm7 (Fujitsu FM-7) emulator.
• Joy2key – input mapping improvements and fixes.
• Identify and allow installing on Linux Mint Debian Edition and Deepin.
• Added various new Emulation Station themes, installable from RetroPie-Setup.
• Added new experimental modules:
  • lr-dosbox (Dosbox port for libretro)
  • dosbox-sdl2 (DOSBox port with SDL2 & FluidSynth support)
  • mame2003-plus-libretro (mame2003 with backported fixes)
  • Update lr-desmume and split 2015 version off to lr-desume2015.
  • digger – digger remastered.
  • yquake2 – Supports Quake II and both official mission packs.
  • Abuse – port of run and gun game.

The post RetroPie 4.4 is released appeared first on RetroPie.

Many of you are building personal arcade and gaming machines. Part of those projects is to decide which type of controls should be used. Also how to connect those controls to the computer is another question. If you want to connect original controllers in an easy way things get even harder.

Starting with a Game Controller Interface for the Raspberry Pi

So far there is the ControlBlock, which is an add-on board only for the Raspberry Pi. It provides ways for easily connecting arcade and original controllers to the Raspberry Pi (besides a power switch on-off functionality). However, a lot of people  also asked for a game controller hardware interface like the ControlBlock that could be used on additional platforms other than the Raspberry Pi. Windows, Mac, and, of course, other Linux-based systems – including the huge variety of System-on-Chip (SoC) platforms like Odroid and Co should be supported. Also, installing drivers that some people stumbled over in the past, should become easier.

Get Ready for the GamepadBlock

Today petrockblock released the GamepadBlock: It is a Game Controller USB Interface for arcade and original game controllers.

GamepadBlock

It is a USB HID compatible device that works with Windows, MacOS, and Linux such that no drivers need to be installed. Besides arcade joystick and button controls also NES, SNES, Megadrive/Genesis, Master System, and Atari controllers are currently supported. In addition the GamepadBlock allows firmware updates via USB. Therefore, it is ready for future updates that, for example, extend the list of supported gamepads! And if you want to dynamically switch between various controller types on your gaming machine, it is even possible to do so via a virtual USB COM port.

You can find more details and Getting Started information about the GamepadBlock here.

We hope you enjoy their newest gadget!

The post GamepadBlock: Arcade and Original Game Controller USB Interface appeared first on RetroPie.

RetroPie 4.3 includes a lot of improvements to our default launcher Emulation Station, including Favourites/Recently Played and custom ROM collections, video and image screensavers, power saving modes, and the ability to configure your own RetroArch hotkey enable button when setting up your gamepad.

Basic support for the Odroid XU3/4 boards has been added. It’s a source only install on top of the Hardkernel Ubuntu Minimal image, but most emulators run well.

Please note that RetroPie images for the Raspberry Pi are still based on Raspbian Jessie. Raspbian Stretch is not yet supported, and will be worked on after this release.

Many emulators have received updates and fixes, including the RetroArch frontend. See below for a detailed list of changes to RetroPie.

You can download a 4.3 image from https://retropie.org.uk/download/. For first installs please follow the Installation Instructions. If updating from 4.0.x you should make a backup first then choose Update all installed packages from RetroPie-Setup main menu. Anyone upgrading from 3.x will need to update the RetroPie-Setup script first. See the upgrade instructions for more details.

You can also install RetroPie on top of an existing Raspbian Jessie set up, or on top of Ubuntu on a PC/Odroid-C1/C2/XU3/XU4. Links to the relevant instructions can be found on the Download area.

If you want to support the project, donations are always appreciated and can be made on our Donation Page.

Thanks to everyone who helped with this release.

Changes since 4.2

• Many updates to Emulation Station including:
  • Collections support including Favourite, All, Recently Played and custom collections.
  • Video and Image Screensaver support.
  • Power saving modes.
  • Many theming fixes and improvements.
  • Configuration of RetroArch hotkey enable button.
  • Allow using OMXPlayer for video playback on the RPI.
  • Many other fixes and improvements. Full changelog can be found here – https://retropie.org.uk/docs/EmulationStation-Changelog/
• Added basic Odroid-XU3/4 support.
• RetroArch updated to v1.6.7. Include minimal retroarch assets for the xmb interface by default.
• AdvanceMAME updated to v3.5
• fuse updated to v1.4.0
• zesarux updated to v5.0
• lr-fbalpha updated to 0.2.97.42
• lr-imame4all renamed to lr-imame2000 to match upstream name.
• lr-bluemsx updated to add Colecovision support.
• lr-mame2003 updated with fixed audio for the Mortal Kombat series.
• Added SDL1 version of scummvm – scummvm-sdl1 – for those with joypad and MT32 issues with the standard SDL2 version.
• gamecon_gpio_rpi and db9_gpio_rpi updated for Kernel 4.9 compatibility.
• Workaround for using PCSX2 on 64bit without our custom SDL library.
• Updates/improvements to mupen64plus and the GLideN64 plugin.
• Improved controller button mapping in the RetroPie-Setup menus.
• esthemes – Many new themes available to install from esthemes configuration. Ability to update all installed themes.
• Runcommand – user menu support.
• usbromservice – fix BIOS and configuration folders not copying.
• Enabled some additional packages on Odroid boards – hatari, zdoom, openblok, alephone and lr-ppsspp.
• Bluetooth configuration – improved interoperability with the ps3 controller driver.
• New configuration tool to change terminal font size
• New packages added to experimental section:
  • pegasus-fe – Pegasus Frontend – new launcher/frontend in development.
  • lr-vice (C64 Emulator).
  • srb2 – Sonic Robo Blast 2 port.
  • cdogs-sdl – C-Dogs SDL – Classic overhead run-and-gun game.
  • lr-px68k (x68000 emulator).
• Many other fixes and improvements.

The post RetroPie 4.3 is released appeared first on RetroPie.

A lot has happened since 4.1, with updates to EmulationStation adding video support and fixing the dreaded white screen of death. Many packages have been updated and RetroPie 4.2 includes the latest RetroArch v1.5.0 as well as Kodi 17 (installed optionally).

There are new experimental packages including lr-beetle-saturn (a Saturn emulator for x86_64 only), and DraStic (Nintendo DS emulator for RPI only) amongst others.

The pre-made Raspberry Pi 1/Zero image will now work on the new Pi Zero W. RetroPie 4.2 also includes initial support for the ODroid-C2 board (installed on top of the Odroid C2 Ubuntu minimal image).

You’ll also notice that the documentation has received a much needed update at https://retropie.org.uk/docs/.

There are many other changes, including usability improvements, and bug fixes – for more details please see the changelog below.

You can download a 4.2 image from https://retropie.org.uk/download/. For first installs please follow the Installation Instructions. If updating from 4.0.x you should make a backup first then choose Update all installed packages from RetroPie-Setup main menu. Anyone upgrading from 3.x will need to update the RetroPie-Setup script first. See the upgrade instructions for more details.

You can also install RetroPie on top of an existing Raspbian set up, or on top of Ubuntu on a PC/Odroid-C1/C2. Links to the relevant instructions can be found on the Download area.

Thanks to all those who contributed to this release with a special mention to fieldofcows for his excellent EmulationStation improvements.

Changes since 4.1:

• EmulationStation Improvements
  • Video Support
  • White Screen of Death Fix
• Support for the ODroid-C2  (on top of the Ubuntu 16.04 minimal image).
• Kodi 17 now installable from optional packages.
• AdvanceMame has been updated and split into three separate packages –  0.94, 1.4 and v3.3.
• Updated to RetroArch v1.5.0
• To match upstream changes, lr-mupen64plus has been renamed to lr-parallel-n64, and lr-glupen64 has been renamed to lr-mupen64plus.
• Fixed launching Pixel desktop and other X11 apps from Emulation Station.
• Fixed problems building Zdoom, ResidualVM and Mupen64Plus and PPSSPP.
• Doom ports will automatically add launch scripts if it finds doom1.wad, doom2.wad, tnt.wad, or plutonia.wad.
• lr-snes9x emulator added – a libretro port of the current snes9x codebase.
• Added Amiberry (an Amiga emulator), which is an updated fork of uae4arm, with more features.
• Multi disk zip support for Vice (C64 emulator), fs-uae, uae4arm and Amiberry (Amiga). You can now launch Amiga disk images directly from Emulation Station with uae4arm and Amiberry.
• Standalone version of Stella (Atari 2600 emulator) updated to v4.7.3.
• usbromservice – support mounting of usb stick over ~/RetroPie to keep roms on USB.
• Ability to set custom ES themes in configs/all/platforms.cfg (can override any setting in RetroPie-Setup/platforms.cfg).
• SDL2 updated to 2.0.5. Our patched SDL2 is now used on the PC version of RetroPie, which should resolve an issue with ps3 controller mapping.
• Sselph’s scraper updated to the latest version, and new options added. Scraper has been moved to optional packages and needs to be installed before it will show up in configuration / tools.
• Include PowerBlock and ControlBlock driver packages.
• Input configuration script for Daphne.
• RetroPie-Setup menus now works with all connected joysticks (mapping is still hardcoded).
• Updated RPI detection code to support BRANCH=next firmware/kernel.
• Overhaul of the runcommand launch script.
• Raspbian Wheezy support removed.
• Support Xbian on RPI,  and Devuan, Elementary OS, and Neon on X86.
• Added emulationstation themes: fundamental, futura, and flat.
• New packages added to experimental section:
  • lr-mrboom (an 8 player bomberman clone).
  • lr-mame2016 (Arcade emulator).
  • lr-mess2016 (Multiple omputers/console emulator).
  • DraStic (Nintendo DS Emulator – RPI only).
  • lr-beetle-saturn (Sega Saturn emulator – x86_64 only).
  • Minivmac (Macintosh Plus Emulator).
  • Quasi88 (NEC PC-8801 emulator).
  • np2pi (NEC PC-9801 emulator).
  • Xm7 (FM-7 / Fujitsu Micro 7 emulator).
  • Mehstation and Attract-Mode Frontends.
  • launchingimages (a script from Meleu to generate system launch images based on installed Emulation Station themes).
• Many other code changes and bugfixes.

The post RetroPie 4.2 is released appeared first on RetroPie.

Just a quick update to thank everyone who has contacted us with offers of advice and support after we posted https://retropie.org.uk/2017/02/legal-help-needed/.

We are currently replying to mails and reviewing all options.

Thanks again!

The post Thanks for the support appeared first on RetroPie.

RetroPie has been trademarked in the USA by a 3rd party. They are using the trademark to issue take down requests to retailers, including those who are just selling hardware listed as “compatible with RetroPie”. Meanwhile they are selling RetroPie via their website and Ebay.

There is a risk that this person may try and use the trademark against us too.

We would like to challenge the trademark – It was filed after we were using the name, and they are using it to associate themselves with our software.

If you are an attorney or think you could help – please drop us an email at retropieproject [at] gmail.com.

Many thanks.

The post Legal help needed appeared first on RetroPie.

The driver of the ControlBlock got updated! What does this mean for you? More functionalities!

New Functionalities

• 4-player support: Stack two ControlBlocks on top of each other for 4-player installation.
• Genesis/Megadrive controller support: Use Genesis/Megadrive (TM) controller with the ControlBlock for really nostalgic Sega gaming sessions.
• Custom shutdown script: Call arbitrary Bash scripts on shutdown
• Reset button for SNES gamepad mode: Building your arcade machine within an old SNES case? Connect the reset button and use it as another input signal.

Besides these driver updates there are now also driver modules for the ControlBlock and the PowerBlock as well in The RetroPie Setup. Therefore, it has become even easier for you to install the drivers for your RetroPie project. You find the drivers in the RetroPie-Setup menu at “Manage packages” ⇒ “Manage driver packages”. From there, you can easily install or remove the drivers.

Further Details

You can find further details about the new features of the ControlBlock here.

The post New Functions for the ControlBlock appeared first on RetroPie.