Retro Video Gamer

Saw this posted by StarForcePilot over on Atari Age and thought it would be of interest here as well.  I'm quoting this directly from there:

[font=georgia:3qk37yzb]Ola Retrogamers,
 
A month ago I finished my second prototype of a cool little mini-arcade, powered by a Raspberry Pi, housed in a reimagined 1980's tabletop, with fullsized arcade buttons and joystick: the STAR FORCE PI. I'm currently exploring the possibility to bring this system to a crowdfunding platform, and could use some feedback from some old-school gaming enthusiasts. Check out the attached picture of the finished Star Force Pi prototype, dubbed 'Stormtrooper', and read on:
 
WHY I MADE THIS:
I was tired of playing emulated games on the PC with a inappropriate controller, and I was disappointed with options like the NeoGeoX. If you get an arcade mod bartop, they're usually 9inch screen models, expensive, pretty bulky and not portable at all, and a full-sized arcade is just not an option for me. Those iCade's are crap, and handhelds don't quite deliver the same experience. So, I bought a 1984 GrandStand Star Force game, and I stared at it for a month before I decided to go ahead and build my own mini-arcade. I bought an Arcade Kit from hdhardsoft.de, added fullsized arcade controls to it, and it worked! Very well actually. To finish it, I made a video, a poster, a box and a quickguide for good measure and put it onto Facebook and people seem to love it. Originally I was going to make an how-to instructable, but it would mean sacrificing perfectly good tabletop machines for the shell, and that seems such a shame. So, I thought maybe I can build it into something that people could buy via Kickstarter.
 
WHAT'S MY PLAN:
I first made a prototype to see if I could do it, then I made a second one to see if I could make it more functional and desirable, and I just finished a third one to send off to the engineer (Hartmut @ hdhardsoft.de) of the internal arcade kit I used so he can develop a custom shield to sit onto the Raspberry Pi inside the mini-arcade (he's on-board, getit). This production piece will be the model for eventual tooling. I've also asked a 3D animator to make some mock-ups of custom housing and started emailing with a production company to get a per-unit-price estimate, so I can have all the elements ready before I go to Kickstarter and detail the plan: a modular mini-arcade that's portable, easy to use and easy to develop for. It's focused on emulation classic systems first of all, but if it gains a decent-sized backing, I want to extend into gamedevelopment (not personally, but in support of developers):
The first focus is a solid device, with off-the-shelf components, built into a customizable shell, with full microswitch arcade feedback, good video and stereo sound.
The second focus will be to regain the cartridge culture, by approaching developers (NV-DEV:TEAM specifically) and asking if they'd like to bring their game to the Star Force Pi in SD-card form. Of course, this will include cases, manuals, decals etc, in much the same spirit of the TurboGrafX HuCard.
The third focus would be on connecting two Star Force Pi's together and play two player games on two devices. Street Fighter II. Head-to-Head. Awesome.

WHAT WILL IT DO:
Anything it is able to do on the current Raspberry Pi really, we just add the peripherals, put it into an attractive package and at the very least allow you to make your own magic. Actually, that's a bit simplistic, we'll be discussing with the engineer and the creator of PiPlay for a Star Force Pi specific emulator package, who's already providing support for Hartmut's arcade kits. The nice thing is that software is entirely on the SDcard, which means developers control their own content and upgrades, as do you. We'd just be supplying templates for the casing and artwork. Additionally, there's HDMI-out and USB-in on there as well, so for multiplayer, or ScummVM games that need a larger screen sometimes, you can connect it to a monitor and use any USB controller/mouse/keyboard on it.
 
PRICE:
I think a fully functional Star Force Pi with power adapter, in packaging, pretty box and fun manual should not exceed 199 euro. It's a psychological pricepoint, anything beyond that would just feel like a rip-off. I spent between 250 - 300 euro on the build, but this can be brought down with a production series.
 
YOUR FEEDBACK:
So that's why I'm here! I'm a guy that grew up with Sega, wishing he had a NeoGeo, and am now at the age I can afford one, but can't have 12 systems hooked up and hijack the TV or PC everytime I want a quick game of Splatterhouse! With the Star Force Pi I have my own little desk unit to game directly: no fuss. What do you think? Would you want one? What could we do better? What should I look out for and take care off? I'm just a guy with a screwdriver that wanted to play Metal Slug with proper arcade controls and was small enough to carry around - how can I best share this with other retrogamers?
 
Check out the first video I made showing the 'Stormtrooper' prototype:[/font:3qk37yzb]

[align=center:3qk37yzb]http://youtu.be/VKEX2oyV_t0[/align:3qk37yzb]

[font=georgia:3qk37yzb]Check out this different video to give a size context of the STARFORCE PI (also features using the SFP as an arcade controller when using HDMI out):[/font:3qk37yzb]

[align=center:3qk37yzb]http://youtu.be/YD8RV7pS5go[/align:3qk37yzb]


I'll see if Star Force Pilot can come over here and keep us updated on this project.  Here's the original thread:  The STAR FORCE PI - Electronic Tabletop Mini-Arcade (//http)

Just wet my pants, that looks awesome beyond awesome lol.

Cheers TrekMD, nice to be here.

I've been getting some solid feedback over at Atariage, and also via twitter/facebook, like keeping to 4:3 aspect ratio screen, putting together press-kits, and exploring the modularity of the system. I'm currently rendering 3D models for an injection mold tooling company, to get a good per-unit cost estimation, but as soon as I have more on this, I will share it here. I have also finished a third iteration of the STARFORCE PI last week, so that the engineer can start building his custom arcade interface shield for the Raspberry Pi. All-in-all, things are going well, and we won't be bringing this to a Kickstarter platform until we have production agreements, a fair cost estimation for us and backers, and a final version of the prototype to stand as example for production & assembly.

So! Your feedback is welcome! Especially beyond the hardware development. Once a solid piece of kit is built, I want to put any financial excess into game development/licencing, and good emulation support. The ultimate goal would be original 16-bit arcade work for the STARFORCE PI.

Welcome to RVG, starforce! 

Looks like a cracking idea and welcome..

Keeping the price as reasonable as possible will be your biggest chance of success i would say.

Thanks guys, and I must emphasize that the pricepoint is capped at 199 euro, but I'm striving to be below this price. If the per-unit price is beyond 199 euro, then I will abandon the idea of an all-in system, and perhaps sell it as kits.

Great idea, and welcome to the site Like Zapiy I think price is key and just make sure you have it all planned out very well. Good luck, looking forward to seeing more.

Thanks again And it's a good moment to show the 3D renders I finished for the preliminary cost estimation of tooling, case development & production. Check it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oDGV4leAfQM (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oDGV4leAfQM)

I'll keep you updated on the progress, and I'll prepare a presskit & website update after we've confirmed the viability of the project as Kickstarter appropriate.

Additionally, following someone's comment on Twitter, I thought I'd make an internet-appropriate decal option on the render. Size comparison & customization:

Got to love it, so are you going do the KS route do you think?

That looks really cool.  BTW, I fixed your post so the video embeds. 

Cheers for fixing the vid

Yeah, I've only had experience with buying from Kickstarter once (The ToeJam & Earl reboot), but they seem the more solid choice, higher succesrate, more emphasis on hardware, and the fact that they only take the money when a project is successfully funded should make it more approachable for people. And with that whole Retro VGS fiasco on Indiegogo, it seems to me that people 'trust' KS more. But we'll see, I've sent all the 3D models to the tooling company, now I'm waiting on an estimate. And the project engineer should be back from MakerFaire Berlin this week, so we can discuss a bit more.

I'll letcha know how things progress.

I have an addendum on the original thread post actually. I was thinking a little beyond the STARFORCE PI as a simple emulator system, and posted it on facebook. I thought you guys may have some insights on this as well:

"Dreaming BIG: brace yourselves, this is a long post. Our primary focus with the STARFORCE PI will be to bring you an attractive, modular design, with good arcade feedback and solid internals. Play it wherever you want, and access the multiplayer options of classic arcade games. Rather than developing our own emulator suite, we'd support existing ones to bring you a great experience, tailor-made for the SFP and easy to use. It seems attainable, so we're doing everything we can to make it a reality!

But beyond bringing you a glorified emulator system (and we are going for Glory here), we're hoping to extend the platform into licensed and original arcade games. One could argue that the confounding nature of having every SEGA game ever made on a cheap 2gb USB stick practically means that we attribute little value to the games, and the overwhelming choice keeps us from exploring them. As those impressive rows of cartridge cases with cool artwork have been replaced with a single, daunting list of titles, some of us are left with a nostalgic longing to an attractive, simple physical medium.

So besides preparing custom SD card trays, stickers, inlays, booklets, decals for existing arcade games that have been forgotten by time and publishers (see mockup below), we'd like to focus our stretchgoals to SOFTWARE! Specifically, original 16-bit style games or licensed older games adapted for the SFP. And because the RaspberryPi runs entirely off an SD card, a developer would be able to determine their own content and protection of their SFP Game Card, and even publish it themselves. It wouldn't be exclusive to this console, but if it wants our 'Nintendo Seal of Quality' sticker on there, it would have to be a cool game in a nice package at a fair price - just like the STARFORCE PI."

Wow that looks awesome! 

I totally love the look!  It's like one of those old Candy cabs that are all over the eastern world.  I would scoop one up right away, sure! 

Quote from: "zapiy"Just wet my pants, that looks awesome beyond awesome lol. :69:

Really impressive ideas. Looking forward to the final Kickstarter details.

Alright, we've got a handle on construction cost now, and it is damn expensive to build something from the ground up! I mean, I knew it wasn't going to be cheap, but dayamn. Nevertheless, I've made a preliminary layout on how to finance the campaign, and keep this 199 euro cap in in place.

But this means that preliminary research & development is done, and it's looking good! We have a few things more to discuss, but I think we will be able to bring our development plan and project platform to KickStarter pretty soon. In the meantime; if you have arcade insights or feedback, we'd really appreciate it. We're bringing some very cool extra features to the system, so it's time to put your Xmas money aside to pledge for some Ultimate Arcade Gaming

So, you think you can pull it off for under your max price?

Only just seeing this thread now and reading through, truly incredible stuff here, a fantastic concept and design. I think you've cracked the gap in the Arcade market place, your packaging is spot on, your execution of delivery is that of a quality sales person. And I'm very sure ....no I'm positive this will be highly successful for you in what your attempting to deliver. Its perfect for an arcade lover in the office place, he can take this and play the classics on their lunch time, or someone wanting to have a blast at a classic in their lap. It's all good!!

If things fit into place for me in the next few weeks, you can guarantee my support and backing on this fantastic project.

Cheers

Quote from: "starforcepilot"Alright, we've got a handle on construction cost now, and it is damn expensive to build something from the ground up! I mean, I knew it wasn't going to be cheap, but dayamn. Nevertheless, I've made a preliminary layout on how to finance the campaign, and keep this 199 euro cap in in place.

But this means that preliminary research & development is done, and it's looking good! We have a few things more to discuss, but I think we will be able to bring our development plan and project platform to KickStarter pretty soon. In the meantime; if you have arcade insights or feedback, we'd really appreciate it. We're bringing some very cool extra features to the system, so it's time to put your Xmas money aside to pledge for some Ultimate Arcade Gaming

This is awesome news chap, whats the cool extra features?

TrekMD: it's actually more difficult than I thought, but I think we could offer the system in a few different variations, with 199 euro being the Core System as it were; no fancy packaging or pretty manuals, just a good, solid device. Then we move up a few tiers to a Custom Edition (choose your own colors) and Collectors Edition (limited edition, artwork, the whole fanfare). And, we'll probably also sell the Case & Arcade Shield loose to people that want to mod and design their own system, so that could work out a little cheaper for some people if they have parts laying around.

And I can't really tell much about the extra features, zapiy, as I still have to hear back of its feasability (don't want to promise something, and then go back on it), but one thing I am working on is a modular screen mount. With this, the user can open up the case and change the orientation of the screen, fixing it in vertical/tate or horizontal position. It's actually a relatively easy addition, but could be very meaningful for gamers.

Thanks for your response, Greyfox, it really cheered me up We'll do our best to get this thing out there, so stay tuned!

Hmm, at least if you go with KS you'll have the ability to offer additional packages for more money. 

Exactly, case/arcade shield for the modder, core & custom SFP for the gamer, collector's edition SFP for the collector, that's the plan

One of the best things I've seen for a long time.
I'll be honest, might be too expensive for a purchase but I do appreciate the time/costs involved. 

You're right, I'm a little bit concerned people might think it will be a bit too expensive as well, but we'll be offering base components as well. Then at least people that don't want an all in one system can just get the SFP case to build their own game device, or just buy the arcade shield and connect their own screen/speakers/rasPi/joystick/buttons etc. Hell, if you don't need the battery in there, and you have your own rasPi, that's 40-50 euro you've already saved. So we'll add some flexibility to the reward tiers, but our primary concern is an all-in-one gaming platform.

I've mentioned this on AtariAge as well, that I'm loosely designing the system along the lines of Gameboy creator Gunpei Yokoi's philosophy of Lateral Thinking of Withered Technology: 'take mature technology which is cheap and well understood, and find new ways of using it. Toys and games do not necessarily require cutting edge technology: novel and fun gameplay are more important'.  Hence the use of relatively cheap, replaceable, off-the-shelf components and building the case and arcade shield around it.

But yeah, developing stuff from the ground up is crazy expensive

I have to say I am really impressed with your thinking here.. When do you envisage the KS going live?

I've built several arcade cabinets (9 total) and modded a couple as well.  I would stay away from SFII in advertisement as it is a six button game (or more).  There are plenty of great (possibly better?) games out there that would shine on this system.  Neo Geo games are generally four buttons or less and that would be great.  A lot of their shooters are graphical powerhouses and would make the system look great.  Of course any popular old school console game is gonna be attractive to the retro enthused.  I don't think that a couple of hundred bucks is too much if the system is very high quality.  A couple of small arcade systems have come out lately to lackluster reviews.  One has very poor emulation (some games have no sound while others play poorly) and others lack the real hardware as they are usually just touchscreen adapters with controller software.  A great screen with real arcade controls would make all the difference.   

We're only going for a 4-button configuration, I played with the idea of adding perhaps two small buttons somewhere on there, but it'll just be cramped and unwieldly. As you mentioned, NeoGeo is primarily the system I used to model the SFP on, and I hope I can convince the people of NG:DEV-Team to license a Neo Geo game or two of theirs to us, but I haven't heard back from them yet. However, we'll add 6-button support to the internal Arcade shield that fits on top of the RasPi though, so people can buy it separately and use it for their own projects or mod their STARFORCE PI, or just mod and hack their own SFP to their liking. There should be quite a bit of versatility in the system, without needing to be too tech savvy.

The arcade controls are going to be good; they're components that come straight from a full sized arcade cabinet, so it's excellent, even in the first iteration of the SFP. With the video screen we have a problem: we can't get a decent 4:3 ratio screen for our system for less than 50 euro, and that's just too expensive. This ratio is just not popular anymore, so we have to be clever. Firstly, we're going with a 16:9 screen that's cheap, and configure the emulator suite we're using right now (PiPlay) to 4:3 ratio, running at 320x240 resolution. The unused part of the screen will likely have some light bleed through, giving these distracting black bars on the side. I hate these. So we'll cover them up with a 4:3 plastic window that sits on top of the screen. Secondly, the screen will be relatively deep behind the magnified window, and will be slightly tinted, so it deepens the black on the screen, without affecting the colors too much. The magnified, sunken effect also goes a long way with the arcade vibe, it's really a nice feature that seems slight, but during gameplay is very enjoyable.

But, as I mentioned before, if you're a purist, and you own or have built your own arcade, this may only be interesting due to its portability. I will announce the Kickstarter date on the 21st of October: when Marty McFly returns to us 

Great stuff, I really hope you can get the NG:DEV guys on board, certainly be good be both parties.

That is incredible and I'll be in for at least one, or even the kit if the max is exceeded.
Either way, count on my support

Excellent, cheers guys. I don't know if I mentioned this, but I'm working on building the screen mount in such a way, that users can open up the SFP and fix the screen into either vertical/tate or horizontal position, so topdown and side scrollers can be played in the correct orientation. Should be good!

You did indeed chap. I like that feature, what about a Jamma connection? or a slot that enables a bespoke connection to Jamma?

You mean making it able to connect to a JAMMA cabinet, or allowing a JAMMA PCB to connect to the SFP? There are some options I found, like PiJamma and Project Kajitsu, but I can't think how the SFP fits into this.

Update time: while I'm preparing a website and the presskit for the KS announcement on the 21st of October, I'm also reaching out to a few developers I've admired, like NG:DEV-Team, the guys behind EmulationStation, Shea Silverman of PiPlay, but perhaps you guys have some other developers in mind that may be interested in a console like the STARFORCE PI?

The premise is to dedicate a Kickstarter stretchgoal to new 8/16-bit games, and specifically to one good, solid game we can bundle with the system. If we have one good piece of original work, licensed and supported by a developer, we can show the potential of our system and motivate other people to put some of their work onto the STARFORCE PI. By no means do we expect exclusivity, but we do expect a plug-and-play experience of the game on our console. So! If you have any one in mind, I'd appreciate it immensely.

Sounds like it's all coming together. Not sure if they would be interested, but for suggestions there's this new arcade game in development http://www.retrovideogamer.co.uk/http:/ ... 2#msg81082 (http://www.retrovideogamer.co.uk/http://www.retrovideogamer.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?t=2.msg81082#msg81082)

That will never be happen sadly these guys are determined to stay exclusive to the arcade. I would suggest contacting Duranik and maybe Senile Team, both have created high quality Dreamcast games so you never know.

Skycurser is gorgeous, but they seem to be going into an exclusive direction. Maybe they need someone to design a case for a portable version though... anyway, that is the type of game I would love to have on the SFP. I haven't contacted Duranik and Senile Team yet, but I had them in my list, especially Duranik's Native for Jaguar seems perfect. I like Beats of Rage as well, so both these would be great representations for the system. Well, I'll keep you updated on that, if you have more suggestions, do let me know.

Happy Back to the Future Day! We'll start our STARFORCE PI Kickstarter on 15th of November - Welcome back, Marty!

Check out our little tribute:
http://youtu.be/rwTlB_ydF8g (http://youtu.be/rwTlB_ydF8g)

Absolutely brilliant as a video editor myself, this has knocked it out of the ball park, fantastic editing and a great execution on the games, the music, outstanding work fella

Did notice your Lens making a guess appearance panning over the vintage handhelds, but it's a great teaser video, Hollywood would be proud.

Aw no! the lens is all I can see now :D

Love the video!  Very nicely done!

Flipping fantastic work pal..

And the website is LIVE! Check out http://www.starforcepi.com (http://www.starforcepi.com) and see what this little device is all about. I've incorperated many suggestions made here and over at Atariage in improving the upcoming development, and hope this is reflected well in the STARFORCE PI website. But do let me know if there's some errors, if anything is unclear, or if something should be added/removed. Your suggestions have so far been very helpful:

http://www.starforcepi.com (http://www.starforcepi.com)

Nice work fella.

Its ramping up that's for sure.

Nice looking page! 

Cheers! And I even plugged you guys on the contact page Now all attention will go to the KS campaign and presentation.

Loved the website, directive and beautifully presented in its presentation, I don't think at this point there is anything stopping you reaching your goals, every step of the way so far has proven to be exceptional in all avenues.

Great stuff really

Thanks for the RVG plug! 

Yeah thanks for the mention chap..

Are you looking at doing this before or after xmas now?

The Campaign will run from mid November until mid December, a few weeks before Christmas, and we'll start development after the holidays. First 2-4 months will be dedicated to case development and injeciton molding tools, after that we start production and then it's a question of volume, assembly and testing. But it should be fairly straightforward

Ok have you considered people might hold of pledging due to XMAS?

Good point! That's a lot of money to spend right before Xmas, hate to see this fail just because of timing.

My initial instinct was exactly the same. But after reading up on spending behavior of people, it seems that it dips significantly after Xmas, and only picks up again around April, May. And Christmas seems to predominantly affect sales the final few weeks leading up to the 25th, so we're taking a gamble and will run the campaign for 30 days from 15 November to roughly 13 December, giving a slight buffer between the end of the Campaign and the holidays.

I would have started the campaign earlier, but one thing that seems important after looking at failed Kickstarters is to get your production & financial plan in order before going into any campaign. And we've done that now, right down to the packaging and shipping :D

Valid points actually fella..

Look forward to this video revealing more info.

For a cool €199 (£145/$220) you're entering the Ultimate Dimension in Portable Arcade Gaming! Pretty over the top, I know, but that's how they did it in the 90s, so that's how we're doing it now . But how do we justify this pricepoint? Check our little infographic:

That's a nice way to break out where the money goes for these.  And the launch date is getting closer...

Nice work pal, makes sense to put something like that out.. Nice and easy to understand.

Yeah, it's exciting and terrifying at the same time :D

Oh, I can certainly see how something like this would both excite you and scare you at the same time!  Here's hoping for the best! 

Good News Everybody: NG:DEV-TEAM is on-board! This means that if we reach our stretchgoal, everyone gets a FREE GAME! We still have to negotiate which one, but all their games are winners

(https://strangelinguistics.files.wordpress.com/2013/08/lasthope.jpg)

This is incredible news fella, simply amazing, delighted that this massive Gaming Dev is now apart of your wonderful Campaign!

Awesome news

Great news! This has even more of my interest now!

Bloody huge news indeed.. WOW.

That's excellent news indeed!  Congrats!

That's outstanding! Congrats

Tonight at 19:00 (7pm) CET our Kickstarter will go LIVE! http://tinyurl.com/op3ka34 (http://tinyurl.com/op3ka34)

Awesome news sir. Good luck with it matey.

The day is finally here! Good luck, will be watching :113:

Excellent!  I have the timer set on my browser. 

And STARFORCE PI has gone LIVE on Kickstarter! Get your now -> https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/34 ... ini-arcade (https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/34683765/the-starforce-pi-electronic-tabletop-mini-arcade)

Hi, am slightly disappointed the free game stretch isnt the original stretch goal, its more than twice the total needed, the original ng dev games a major selling point for me, so will wait it out if/when the needed stretch goal is reached before i put any money down.

Good luck with the campaign either way!

The free game comes from the very slight profit margin we make on the system, which means we need to clear double the amount of systems to aqcuire the licence (50k), port it to SFP GameCard, then add cases and artwork. We don't just get 200.000 euro for free, and then throw in a free game, no, we need to sell 200.000 euro worth of systems. And then cumulitively with what is left with the original funding goal, we are just about able to give everyone a free game.

This means that about 1950 people need to spend 1/3 of the original Gunlord NeoGeo AES game (600 euro) to get a full STARFORCE PI system + SFP optimized Emulation Suite on SDcard + the NGDEV game 'Gunlord' on SFP GameCard. A pretty sweet deal in general.

I agree its a good deal that i will buy into as i said if/when that target gets met, i was just stating that originally it sounded last week if the original stretch goal was met everyone would get a free game that bought a system, now i could put my money in and that stretch doesnt get met then the main point selling point for me wouldnt come a reality thats all i was saying, not disregarding the maths of it all.

But again i appreciate not everyone would want to miss out for the sake of a game, just my pennies worth thats all, as i said i will keep my eye out later in the campaign.

That's fair enough AmigaJay, we hope we can shoot as far as the NG:DEV-TEAM stretchgoal, because that will give this system a huge legitimacy with a killer app. We shall see, fingers crossed!

Very cool.  Best of luck!

Best of luck with this bad boy and a huge thanks for mentioning us on your Campaign video, it's bad enough your product is to die for, but you rock fella! kudos. Will try and raise funds to support this as I'm in the process of getting a Starwars Battlefront PS4 this week, which means I'm off the radar for a bit on backing exceptional stuff.

Cheers guys, these forums helped us a lot

Thanks for saying that. Just wished we had a bigger reach to help you succeeded. Going to be a close run thing. Have you approached all the communities?

Well, I've written quite a few online tech journals and blogs, and a few other arcade forums like RLLMUK, Bartopmania, arcadeinfo, but it's difficult to engage in all of them, and engage with people on Kickstarter - there's just not enough hours in the day :D And of course if you guys have any suggestions, I'd love to hear them. And also tell yer friends! But you've already plugged us very nicely on twitter an suchs, so thanks for that

No worries, one suggestion is to edit your twitter profile so you link to the KS rather than the YouTube link. 

I Have to say I am gobsmacked this has not done much better.. 15 Days left is more than enough to turn it around but I guess its spreading the word.

Agreed, it is shocking, people funded that in the office arcade machine thing which I thought was completely over priced and will probably end up causing more people to get into trouble or been caught gaming, when they should be working.

I've tweeted this and Facebook'ed too under the vidgameartistry Twitter page, and with all the high production values and presentation explain nation is all fantastic, I just don't understand folk, I hope this does get pushed or even better it gets outside backing. Fingers being crossed  and prays being spoken.

Hey guys, cheers for the support. It's true that it's been stalling a bit on Kickstarter at the moment, and this is in part because marketing has been a bit limited. We'll try to add more content, and I'm making a magazine style press-kit this week together with a video which I hope will increase exposure a bit. Regardless, we're up to 32k and that's still pretty awesome, and it definately tells us there's a market for our little device. So even if we do not hit our funding goal, relax. Whatever the outcome of our campaign, we've done way too much work to just abandon the STARFORCE PI.

Fantastic to here chap.. Lets see what that new push does.

well if there is anything we can do here, please don't hesitate to let us know.

Only 3 Days Left! So with that in mind, I made a small bit of blatant advertisement for the SFP, with the SFP Backer Magazine. Check it out, it's pretty gratuitous -> https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B_nF0C ... RkdEk/view (https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B_nF0C3A_fMSUzN6NlBJMFRkdEk/view)

Brilliant stuff fella, I've created a magazine page preview out of the images you've posted (hope you don't mind) and tweeted it on my Twitter page and sent you a direct message over there to it too.

Keep it real

That looks great! 

Great stuff chap.

And so we finish our Kickstarter campaign with a phenomenal 49.000 euro backing from 171 awesome individuals! Unfortunately, our funding goal of 190k was not met, so this iteration of the STARFORCE PI project is over, and we look forward to bringing a reimagined production plan to you next year! One thing is clear, there is a huge support for our little device, and with the increased visibility and international interest, from consumers and retailers, I'm sure we'll do well in a second round geared towards a smaller production volume. Check the blog for a little more information on this -> https://starforcepi.wordpress.com/2015/ ... -continue/ (https://starforcepi.wordpress.com/2015/12/13/game-over-continue/)

Thanks for your feedback and interactions here, and we'll open a new thread when we have a new plan.

Cheers!
Marcel

Really sorry to hear and see this news, but I feel this will only make you stronger for the future en-devour on this wonderful little machine. We will continue to support what ever plans you have in the future here at RVG and take what has been learned from this experience and possible go down the licensing route to a manufacturer, there are lots of avenue to which to sell the product, like Fun-stock and the likes, Think Geek is another, they were the guys who made I-cade a reality from an April fools joke... so anything is possible.

Again my best wishes are with you for the future.

take care.

I also believe personally that running it so close to Xmas would have played a part. I for one would have pledged last min if it was close but the fact remains the money would have impacted my Xmas festivities hence I wanted to wait and I bet many others did the same. I really wished I tried to convince you to wait until Feb. Anyway like you said, the extra coverage will surely help you succeed with a smaller campaign sometime next year.

Good luck on the future plan. I too would have pledged but Christmas and time of year is killing most external plans for the $ atm. Will be keeping an eye out and can hopefully contribute in the future. Hoping for the best

Cheers guys, this forum certainly helped a lot, and yeah Christmas may have contributed. so we'll see how far we can get with alternative production avenues more appropriate for smaller volumes. Good thing is that we've been approached by online retailers a lot to stock their webstores thinking we were already selling this, so we've made some traction Anyway, I'll keep you guys updated!

Sorry this did not pan out but I'm glad to see it is not dead.  Best of luck!

A Most Triumphant Return or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the STARFORCE PI. Before we put this thread to bed, check out a video in which I reflect a little on our first Kickstarter campaign, its motivation and discuss a little what tomorrow will hold -> http://youtu.be/HLB_yTYBBq0  (http://youtu.be/HLB_yTYBBq0 )
 
Merry Xmas Everyone!

Oh and here's a little Christmas present, from one nerd to all of you: here's the Marcel J. de Haan original poster 'Epic Landscape of Heroes' from the Kickstarter support tier, in glorious 5k resolution. Merry Xmas everyone, from all of us at STARFORCE PI -> http://tinyurl.com/hjk56bn (http://tinyurl.com/hjk56bn)

That is incredible, thank you!

Good video and that poster is just awesome! 

Great video, that poster is awesome..

Look forward to what you come up with in 2016.

Another update from @starforcepilot

(https://starforcepi.files.wordpress.com/2016/01/sfpvader_small.png?w=700&h=486)


This year the STARFORCE PI Awakens!

With your help of course – our plan in the next few months will involve designing and prototyping the 3D models necessary for production, giving you a more rounded impression of the finished product. Afterwards, a pre-ordering campaign of 100 STARFORCE PI units will start! This pilot batch will also include some review and dev units, for tech journals and blogs, which allow us to showcase the system. People can try it out themselves, and generally gain a more concrete impression of the system. We'll also be able to give early versions to our software partners, so we can start solid optimization of emulation platforms to release with the system.

There will be some practical changes made with this STARFORCE PI compared to those presented in the Kickstarter Campaign:

Case:
Injection Molding will be replaced by Laser Sintering (more appropriate for small volume, but higher per-unit cost).

RasPi:
Rather than offering RasPi B+ or 2, we want to switch to RasPi Zero, to offset increased per-unit case costs. Its performance ranks between the B+ and 2, so a good compromise.

Controls:
It was clear most backers preferred the SANWA Joystick option, so we'll put SANWA controls in as standard!

Some benefits of a smaller volume means we don't have the rather large overhead and initial investment that comes from large volume production, assembly and testing. This should save us some money, but it does mean we have to switch to Laser Sintering, which generally makes the case 3-4 times more expensive than an injection mold case. Also, with the reduction of overhead and using the RasPi Zero, we should be able to switch from generic controls to SANWA controls without raising the pricepoint. This is a very preliminary estimate though; please don't see this as a hard promise just yet. Our priorities are to keep the general function and esthetic of the console the same, as well as the price.

(https://starforcepi.files.wordpress.com/2016/01/raspberry-pi-zero-480px-320px.png?w=700)
The STARFORCE NEO – A Neo Geo Mini Videogame System

So how much would it cost to have original arcade hardware with a portable formfactor?

As I've mentioned in one of my videos, Bartop mods can be bulky and expensive. During the coming months we'll be in the 3D model development stage of the SFP production prototype, so there's little for me to build. I thought it'd be good to compare a decent portable arcade system that emulates several consoles (STARFORCE PI) versus a decent portable arcade mod with original hardware from the Neo Geo MVS. So I'm going to build the STARFORCE NEO – A Neo Geo Mini Videogame System.

I won't give you too many spoilers, but I can tell you it'll be quite a bit bigger than the SFP and that it's built around an original Neo Geo MV1C board, and it will be... Glorious.

(https://starforcepi.files.wordpress.com/2016/01/51ttxk2jdvl-_sx522_.jpg?w=700)

Nice to see they're still going ahead with this, and the Starforce Neo sounds awesome! Looking forward to more info

Very nice indeed and good to see it still going!

This is great news! Thanks for the update

Cheers everyone, sorry I haven't visited in a while, it's been a busy deadline-time at work, but the good news is we're still going ahead with it! Bad news is, it's difficult finding an economical solution for case production in small volumes. But as I'm waiting for estimates of production companies, we've been covered by Retro Gamer!

(https://scontent-cdg2-1.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xft1/v/t1.0-9/12651052_660451597430752_4563368332382483843_n.jpg?oh=69445602e9c56cc65ec189fd60b118f8&oe=57416DF7)

So pick one up if you can, I'll see if I share the piece online and try to get a physical copy myself. It's a nice two-page piece, so I'm glad about that.

Furthermore, I've received all the parts I need to start building the STARFORCE NEO - A Neo Geo Mini Videogame System. It's gonna blow your mind, especially for the purists out there. I won't say much, but it'll have a scanline generator in there somewhere

Anyway, I'll keep you guys informed, and I'll post a hardware test of the STARFORCE NEO soon, maybe a picture or movie or something. Should be good!

Cheers for reposting guys, I've been a bit busy. I've been contacting a lot of production companies for estimates, and it's quite difficult to research who's legit in Manderin or Serbian

On the plus side, I've collected all the parts I need to start building the STARFORCE NEO. I've done a hardware test and it's all running very smoothly, now I need to cram it into one console and make it pretty.

Also, a nice little 2-page feature came out in Retro Gamer Magazine.

Check out the story here: http://tinyurl.com/sfp-retrogame (http://tinyurl.com/sfp-retrogame)

Pick up a physical copy of Retro Gamer Magazine here: https://www.imagineshop.co.uk/magazines/retrogamer.html (https://www.imagineshop.co.uk/magazines/retrogamer.html)

Thanks for the update  I'm really looking forward to seeing your Starforce Neo!

I have the mag, look forward to reading the article and seeing more of the Neo system.

Cool, I'll be checking that out.  Thanks!

(https://scontent-cdg2-1.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xap1/v/t1.0-9/12936661_694738020668776_6443611261207806773_n.jpg?oh=a54f450776ebe6d3087a99a126477b85&oe=57BC86CB)
(https://scontent-cdg2-1.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xfp1/v/t1.0-9/12651055_665626383579940_7375572266968524478_n.png?oh=73ba4b85005b3f1af7c242f2f746b7cb&oe=577B71FD)

And the STARFORCE NEO is finished!

In parallel to working on a small-volume limited release run of the STARFORCE PI, I decided to explore the possibility of building a Neo Geo MVS into the smallest and lightest form factor possible. This was to compare actual Neo Geo games on original hardware with the more budget friendly emulated experience of the SFP. After roughly 4 months of working, tinkering, cutting, thinking and cursing I finished a fully functional mini Neo Geo MVS system: The STARFORCE NEO All-in-One System.
 
The entire build cost around €600, using original and premium components, with a further €150 euro for the extra controller and multicart (161-in-1 MVS to AES shell conversion + box).
 
Check out the STARFORCE PI blog for more pictures and a little more information on the system:
https://starforcepi.wordpress.com/2016/ ... me-system/ (https://starforcepi.wordpress.com/2016/04/10/the-starforce-neo-a-neo-geo-mini-videogame-system/)

SPECS:
 
·         Authentic SNK Neo Geo MV-1B hardware
·         Neo Geo MVS Cartridge Compatible
·         2x Neo Geo Controller Inputs (Player 1 & 2)
·         Integrated SEIMITSU Joystick & 6 buttons (Player 1)
·         Integrated 8" 480p LCD Screen (4:3) + HDMI Output
·         SmallCab SuperGun to SCART-to-HDMI
·         SGL3000 Scanline Generator
·         Logitech Z120 Internal 1.2Watt Stereo Speakers
·         3.5mm Headphone Stereo Jack
·         BeQuiet! Silent PSU SFW Power 2 400W
·         Vintage 1982 Minitel 1 Converted Case
·         Dimensions: 23 x 25 x 26 cm
 
 
I'll post some pictures and a video of it working with the multicart soon, and I will prepare a build report for the blog so you can have a look at the internals, and how I made certain features. I'd appreciate any feedback, questions and insights you can offer.
 
Enjoy!
 
Marcel
SFP Development Team

That looks great!  Thanks for the update!

Expensive but it looks great! Are you going to try and get the cost down and make more?

No this really was a one-off, it's way to labour intensive to do again. But you could definately do this cheaper, I went for quite expensive parts (the PSU alone was 65 euro) so it can be more economical. The focus is more on producing a small volume of the STARFORCE PI, which should be a lot more approachable for most people. I'll add a components list to the build report that I'm preparing for my blog, so you can have a closer look at the build process.

Cheers all!

Looks amazing fella, you have a proper talent at this stuff.

Gaming on the STARFORCE NEO

(https://starforcepi.files.wordpress.com/2016/04/sfneo_neogeo.png?w=900)

Neo Geo MVS (1990) was the one system to beat them all! I grew up with SEGA's Master System and Mega Drive, but my cousin had a Neo Geo AES with Magician Lord. I played that game only six minutes when I was 10 years old, and that memory has stuck with me forever. Now, to relive that time with the STARFORCE NEO (2016)!

Allright, so the STARFORCE NEO works – let's play some games!

(https://starforcepi.files.wordpress.com/2016/04/sfneo_metalslug3.png?w=900)

Metal Slug (1996) No one quite does Run & Gun games like Nazca does, specifically through their excellent Metal Slug series. The first episode of the franchise still stands as the most shining example of the 16-bit platformer era, and will remain my favorite game of the system.

(https://starforcepi.files.wordpress.com/2016/04/sfneo_tophunter2.png?w=900)

Top Hunter (1994) I bought an MVS in my 20s and this game was one of four games I had for it, and easily my favorite, second only to Metal Slug. The graphics are beautiful and the two-player mode is so much fun, it's a bit of a goofy concept to get into, but really worth it.

(https://starforcepi.files.wordpress.com/2016/04/sfneo_samuraishowdown2_3.png?w=900)

Samurai Showdown II (1994) Extremely popular fighting series often remarked as one of the best games of all times just left me frustrated as I got my ass handed to me over and over again. Still, can't deny it awesomeness.

(https://starforcepi.files.wordpress.com/2016/04/sfneo_8man2.png?w=900)

Eightman (1991) Based on a 1963 manga, you are a quick-running cyborg superhero that has to blast his way through beat'm up mayhem! It's a bit stale, but I enjoyed it.

(https://starforcepi.files.wordpress.com/2016/04/sfneo_shocktroopers2nd2.png?w=900)

Shock Trooper 2nd Squad (1998) Not really like the first version of the game, still a great mix of destruction and cartoon run & gun violence. Just a solid bit of fun!

(https://starforcepi.files.wordpress.com/2016/04/sfneo_mutationnation2.png?w=900)

Mutation Nation (1991) Neo Geo is classically known for its fighting games, but I've always been more interested in the platformer games. Mutation Nation is another beat'em up game that is great fun with some sweet action!

(https://starforcepi.files.wordpress.com/2016/04/sfneo_viewpoint.png?w=900)

Viewpoint (1992) An isometric shooter game that I actually only got into with the STARFORCE NEO. It's really challenging, but really quite spectacular, and the music is amazing!

Amazing!  Those look great!

Can I have it please lol.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

People are digging the SFNeo so much that I'm getting daily requests asking me to build and sell more! That's very cool, and I'm flattered, but no. Building a system like this is kind of insane, costly and timeconsuming. I've made a build blog that covers the motivation behind the system, the components used, how I made the curved screen with vacuumforming, a walkthrough of the initial hardware test, and the rational behind a rather convoluted video-signal transformation scheme.
 
Check the STARFORCE PI Development blog on the full story: https://starforcepi.wordpress.com/2016/05/01/building-a-starforce-neo/
 
Blog excerpt:
 
'I kept the general L-shape of the MV-1B board with the black ABS plastic cartridge holder, removed the casing of the scart-to-HDMI converter & power supply and screwed them to the back of the ABS cover. I stacked the scanline generator and SuperGun on the top of the MV-1B board, and made sure it had some space between them. The audio came from two small Logitech speakers that I ripped apart and placed right behind the screen.'

(https://starforcepi.files.wordpress.com/2016/04/sfneo_blog.png?w=700)

You can't blame people though mate, its a work of art.. You could possibly do 100 ONLY builds at a premium price that helps fun your real passion???

Worth thinking about.

Cheers, yeah I wish I could make these by the dozen, but maybe I can approach it with the SFP Or if we can find someone that can make NeoGeo MVS clones!

I'm not surprised you've had requests for more.  It is a piece of art.  

I'm absolutely blown away by your SFNeo. That is truly amazing!
Kudos for the excellent and extremely unique work of art. Respect

That means a lot, thanks :)

Let's see this bad-boy handle some choice NeoGeo Arcade Gaming Action:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KWIQfs6IdbQ (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KWIQfs6IdbQ)

Just awesome..

Excellent, just excellent!

It's amazing watching the machine run in real time. An absolutely gorgeous creation

Allright, time to switch back to the SFP development and some of the new features! We're adding a big videoscreen upgrade to the STARFORCE PI, from 4.2 inch 16:9 aspect ratio at 320×240 resolution, to a vivid 5 inch 4:3 aspect ratio screen with 640×480 resolution. Also, we're adding Switchable Button Plates so users can customize their own button configuration, supporting up to 6x Arcade Buttons. These upgrades are a direct result of community feedback, so cheers everyone! Check out the video to see it all in action:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FN1UQSUr7T8 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FN1UQSUr7T8)

(https://starforcepi.files.wordpress.com/2016/05/13323692_715716545237590_7281161282949672393_o.jpg?w=700)

(https://starforcepi.files.wordpress.com/2016/05/sfpturbo.png?w=700)

That looks awesome.  Very nice!

Incredible! The design and buttons are very eye catching, to say the least. Great stuff 8)  

Awesome. How does this tie into getting this reality though mate?


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Quote from: zapiy on May 31, 2016, 16:13:51 PM
Awesome. How does this tie into getting this reality though mate?

Sorry for the late reply. The production hinges on a reliable, realistic estimate of the Chinese production company we have, and their ability to produce these cases. We won't go into pre-order before we have a clear understanding of the cost, and we are confident the small production volume is attainable, within time and budget. Of course, there are always unforseen risks involved, but we'll do our best to be as prepared as possible.

Great stuff, look forward to seeing how things pan out.

In the meanwhile, I made a video showing arcade games from Konami, Capcom and SNK on this device, and I'll do a later video featuring console gaming, HDMI out and gamepads connected. Enjoy!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aJlI-OMqfng

That looks fantastic!  Thanks for the update! 

Can't wait to buy one of these !!

Looks more and more amazing each and every update.

Cheers all! Last video of the STARFORCE PI I'm gonna make, next video should be about pre-ordering and production details. But in this video you can see how well consoles play on this system, with 2-player controls and HDMI-out :)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3rL-6BL330w

That is really fantastic!  Very well done.

This is outstanding. That baby can do it all.

You are a genius mate.. awesome.

I see you can sign up for a newsletter for this, and through that they will be announcing when the pre-order starts for a limited run of 100 units.


Here's the site for those who want to make sure they get in on this. http://starforcepi.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=2da672442f585a52db71be3fe&id=3870cf12e8

Quote from: Shadowrunner on August 12, 2016, 17:13:47 PM
I see you can sign up for a newsletter for this, and through that they will be announcing when the pre-order starts for a limited run of 100 units.


Here's the site for those who want to make sure they get in on this. http://starforcepi.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=2da672442f585a52db71be3fe&id=3870cf12e8 (http://starforcepi.us14.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=2da672442f585a52db71be3fe&id=3870cf12e8)

Thanks a million for this. Invaluable imo and I just subscribed.
Liked the 'Confirm your humanity' part :P

Signed up as well!

Signed up. Boom.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Signed up as well, thanx

Cheers guys, I won't overspam too much, but the last newsletter kind of explains where we are: https://t.co/rgwxeyQLGn


Currently I'm waiting on the production company in Serbia to come back with their plans, and from then on it should accelerate a bit.

Quote from: starforcepilot on August 24, 2016, 12:04:26 PM
Cheers guys, I won't overspam too much, but the last newsletter kind of explains where we are: https://t.co/rgwxeyQLGn (https://t.co/rgwxeyQLGn)


Currently I'm waiting on the production company in Serbia to come back with their plans, and from then on it should accelerate a bit.

I hope the wait isn't too long, but in the meantime please spam away! I don't mind one bit (http://i1308.photobucket.com/albums/s603/SaturnRVG/Misc/Emoticons/tongue_zpsgfwfalkc.png)

(https://i2.wp.com/starforcepi.files.wordpress.com/2017/05/segaod2.jpg?ssl=1&w=2000)

Check out some new systems I build
Sega Omega Drive: https://starforcepi.wordpress.com/2017/05/01/the-sega-omega-drive/
PC Engine SD: https://starforcepi.wordpress.com/2017/04/19/the-pc-engine-sd/

So it has been nearly a YEAR since my last post. I've been making some of my new build (see above) as well as pursuing the STARFORCE PI development. Time goes fast when things progress slowly. There have been some changes, and I thought I'd share progress as it stands in a summarized way:

2016-07-23: Last teaser video, showing removable button plate (allowing up to 6 arcade buttons) and a magnified window were back in the design. I vowed to only post again with production details and pre-order date. Prototype 1 was at the CAD designer, Arcade shield was still in development with the Engineer.

2016-07-29: My first child was born.

2016-09-01: Contacted Watermelon Games for licensing possibility of their games for the STARFORCE PI. NG-DEV:TEAM was on board against a heft licensing fee, I figured perhaps WG would be more accessible, but alas they weren’t looking to license. Cool guys though, very interested in our gear, specifically the Starforce Neo conversion of the Minitel (they’re French, so they were digging it).

2016-09-14: Prototype 2 arrives at CAD designer, first version was lacking internals and could not be fully realized in CAD.

2016-10-28: Finished workflow on options to include into the Arcade Shield for our engineer. This would include VGA output via the GPIOs to a scanline generator before reaching the 5” screen. We discussed the inclusion of 2 stereo speakers and a dedicated amp to manage 2watt output. We discussed making the battery optional to press the per-unit cost.

2016-11-03: First meeting with a French-Chinese production company on getting small volume production runs. CAD designs would be delivered as soon as our designer delivered them to us

2016-11-12: First CAD draft of housing is delivered. Questions of the design were answered, and the changes would be made.

2016-11-17: Non-disclosure forms were signed with the production company. Packaging options were discussed.

2016-11-30: Second CAD draft of housing is delivered forwarded to production company.

2016-12-16: First attempt to send STARFORCE PI prototype to production company was tried, failed (La Poste did not accept address).

2016-12-18 until 2017-04-01: Xmas Holiday â€" Get PC Engine + everdrive, start new parallel project: the PC Engine SD

2017-01-18: Second attempt to send STARFORCE PI prototype to production company was tried,successful!

2017-02-08: The engineer leaves the project. No prototype of the PCB was made by him at this time, nor was an attempt made at a design, unfortunately. New plans are made to simplify the design so the PCB could be made without the engineer.

2017-02-11: Prototype was returned to sender, this time China post did not understand the addressing.

2017-02-27: Third attempt to send STARFORCE PI prototype to the production company was tried, successful again.

2017-03-29: Package arrived at the production company. CAD design, boxart and prototype of the case are now in China, Shenzhen. Request for PCB development was made.

2017-04-21: Met with the production company, moving forward in getting production quotes from them, and working with the same company Ubisoft hired for their injection mold figurines. Exciting, but no promises yet, as ever.

2017-05-05: Try seperate off-the-shelf components in conjuction with each other rather than creating a bespoke PCB, introducing the solution in a new prototype for production company in China.

So that’s as far as we are now. I’ve spent a few thousand euros since the original Kickstarter campaign, mostly for custom or limited available parts and prototypes, each prototype costing around 200-300 to build. As I mentioned, to keep up morale I’ve been working on side projects, such as the recently finished Sega Omega Drive and the PC Engine SD:

Sega Omega Drive: https://starforcepi.wordpress.com/2017/05/01/the-sega-omega-drive/
PC Engine SD: https://starforcepi.wordpress.com/2017/04/19/the-pc-engine-sd/

Wow, nice stuff.  That Omega Drive looks like something from Star Wars!

Those both look awesome! Great job :)

That looks incredible 8)

Pretty amazing modding there..truly breath taking

I am gobsmacked at your talents fella.. Congrats on the baby btw.

Cheers guys, yeah it's got a real 80s tech vibe over it :) Once I made the video I'll be sure to post it together with some more pics as a seperate post!

(https://starforcepi.files.wordpress.com/2017/05/gaming.png)

Are you selling any of these to collectors to help you financially mate. Really really impressive stuff.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Not yet, but I might do at some point, lotta work and time goes into these things. Only thing I'm working towards to get produced is the STARFORCE PI, but that's certainly gonna have a solid level of quality to it :)

I can only imaging the time and effort that goes into building those fella. Premium prices for them then.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

You know what's the most time-consuming with these build though? Thinking and problem solving, not even the building itself. Thinking about how to make certain functions work, thinking the best way to do something, how things will fit, placement of ports and such. I think I must've spent a month on the Omega Drive control panel alone, just to make sure everything fits and had enough spacing. With the Starforce Neo I had to think of the easiest home-DIY way to make a curved bezel, and I finally made a mini vacuumforming construction to vacuumform plastic over the original monitor. That was a week right there :P But it's also the most satisfying, when that 19" monitor fit exactly into the After Burner bezel with only several mm spacing, that's very pleasing.

Anyway, I'm gonna focus back on some new features of the Starforce Pi, our engineer quit so I had to find a solution that works on my own, which is tough cuz I'm not an engineer. BUT, I did find some cheaper solutions and figured a way to link 2 Starforce Pis together for head-to-head 2player gaming, so that'll be interesting! I'm still testing though.

I can see that taking the most time.  These are not simple devices to make.

Very interesting details on the work. I'll bet it IS satisfying to have success after thinking ways through like that.
Stoked about info on linking 2 units too. Thanks for the insight :)

Really must give you such a buzz..

Alright guys, another small treat, check the Sega Omega Drive in action!:

https://youtu.be/mPmshntRQsw

Well, that looks just awesome!

I just flipping love it.

Outstanding 8)