Upon delivery, our technician will have taken you through everything we'll cover in this blog post, but we understand it might not all sink in, after all, you've just just got your new machine and it looks great!
This is a step by step guide that will take you through everything you need to know about your machine.
Switching it on
There is no on/off switch on your machine, just plug it in at the mains and it'll start it's boot up sequence. It's very important to resist playing with the joystick controls during any loading, so sit back and relax for about 20 seconds until you see the main menu with the list of games.
Main menu
All the games are list alphabetically, and you simply use the joystick to navigate up and down the menu to find the game you want to play, press the first button (nearest the joystick) to select the game to load. As before, whilst the game is loading, resist playing with the controls.
Retropie Menu
If you accidentally push the joystick left or right whilst scrolling through games, it will take you to the Retropie menu, simply push the joystick left or right to get back to the games menu.
Playing the games
Once you've launched a game, your machine thinks its a real arcade machine and before you can play a game you need to 'insert a coin'. If you machine is fitted with a token slot, simply insert a token to gain a credit, if you don't have the token slot, there will be button located on the right hand side of the player 1 joystick unit, simply push this once to replicate the coin. Now you have a credit, you're ready to play, push the 1 player button, or, if you've put on more than one credit, you can select the player 2 button.
2 player games
If you have a cocktail table, not all games are ideal in 2 player mode, this was because some games were never designed for a table set up, these tend to be later 80's and 90's games and predominately fighting type games such as Street Fighter, Mortal Kombat and the likes. However, all games will work just fine in 1 player mode. For games that were written with cocktail table set up in mind, they will flip the screen for player 2. So, each person takes it in turns at playing.
Some games do work quite well with the cocktail table set up, such as Gauntlet and Super Sprint as these are top down games, so it doesn't really matter which side you look at the screen from , it's basically the same. Players play together on these games, either as a team effort in Gauntlet, or against each other like in Super Sprint. It's important to not that for these games, in the arcade, there was more than one coin slot, to replicate this, you will find another coin button on the right hand side of the player 2 joystick unit.
Exiting games
When you've finished playing your game, you'll want to return to the main menu. In order to do this, you find a secret button right under the player 1 joystick, push it and you jump straight back the main menu.
Why is this button hidden away like that I hear you scream! Well, in our early days, we used to place the button on the left of the player 1 joystick unit, but this generated lots of complaints as people would confuse this for the insert coin button, or curious users would just press to see what it did, so we moved it to be more discreet.
Turning the machine off
As you'll have read earlier, there is no on/off switch on the machine itself, so to turn it off, simply unplug from the mains. Please note, it is best to do this when the machine is not loading anything, ie, a game is loaded and playing or the main menu is visible.
Volume controls
The machine is fitted with stereo speakers, either front and back or left and right dependant on your set up. To power the speakers is a small amp which is located near the base of the unit either on the left or right. There are 5 controls on the amp:
Volume
Left/right
Bass
Treble
Power on/off
On delivery, your machine will be set up at a reasonable volume, simply adjust the control knobs to suit you.
USB inputs
Depending on your specification, you will have one or more USB inputs. If your machine is set up to only play retro arcade games, you will have a single USB input which will be discreetly hidden above and to the left of the player 1 joystick unit. This should only be used to plug in a USB keyboard for maintenance and updates and only by someone who knows what they are doing. If you have other console games on your machine such as Sega or Atari, then you may have dual or more USB inputs available to attach joypads and joysticks.
Please note, these USB inputs are not charging points and you should never plug a phone in to them.
Lifting and moving your machine
Your machine is made from high quality materials, it is sturdy and robust, so as a consequence, it is quite heavy. You should have 2 people to move the machine and only lift by the 2 side (left and right) panels. Lifting by the table top could cause this to break away from the unit, the same is true for lifting by the joystick units and you should never try to lift by the glass top alone as this will almost certainly come away from the unit and need realigning.
Cleaning
The usual household cleaning products should be fine to use, furniture polish, glass cleaner, etc. Avoid getting liquid in and around the speakers and joystick controls. The glass can be taken up and cleaned if necessary.
Moisture and damp
The main material used in the building of these machines is MDF, so we recommend the unit is kept in a warm dry place at all times. MDF will swell if it comes in to contact with moisture for long periods of time. We've been asked about using the machines outdoors and whilst it may seem like a nice idea, we don't recommend it. However, if you do, ensure the unit is not in contact with the ground as it will suck moisture up.
Errors
Occasionally it is possible for the unit to crash and either over heat or kick up a bios menu system. This normally only happens with incorrect use, usually the joystick units being tampered with during boot sequence or launching games. If this should happen, turn the machine of at the wall, give it a minute or 2 to cool down and then simply turn it back on again, reminding your users not to play with the controls during the boot sequence!
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