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Wanted MAME Style Real Arcade Fruit Machine Build?

robotgreg

robotgreg

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Aug 11, 2011
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Swanage, Dorset
Having been an avid arcade visitor in the 80s, aside from the love of pins and classic videos I also used to play the fruit machines so have a fondness for revisiting playing these. I know you can play these on the PC using emulators (and I have some) but wanted a more authentic feel.



So had the idea of a virtual fruit machine cab very similar to the full size visual pinball tables but using a real fruit machine cabinet and using the original buttons from the machine to control the inputs but with two monitors, one on the bottom, one on the top part to show what would have been displayed on the original fruit machines



Would probably have to use an old fruit machine cabinet from 90s/00s one for cost although a Line Up type size would be best.



I have posted my idea on one of the fruit machine forums and someone has done something similar but not quite what I had in mind as they didn't use the machine buttons for input and was not dissimilar enough to just playing on PC.



https://www.fruitemu.co.uk/ib/index.php?/topic/18831-real-fruit-machine-emulating-old-machines/



Way beyond my skills so I was wondering if anyone technically inclined was interested in this type of challenge and fancied taking on such a project. Would of course be willing to pay for the project and wanting to buy the finished machine. Please PM me to discuss further.



Cheers

Greg
 
The buttons shouldn't be a particular problem, an I-PAC or similar should allow you to convert them to an emulated keyboard or gamepad input which should be then mapable in the emulator.
(Edit - in the first video in the link the guy seems to be using the buttons?)
 
Ok that sounds promising BUT as I say way beyond my skills. Other challenge I think would be to get the display so it show s on two screens to.mirror how it would have looked on an original machine.
 
I have been working on a virtual fruit machine...still a work in progress though...got jackpot third time round though
 

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Vinaigrette and a salad bowl, it’s all I could reach from my chair....BUT, it’s still more than you would win on a virtual fruitie....!

PS, but the design opportunities are almost endless.....three elephants will be interesting one to crack...
 
Done a little research and I reckon the machine would probably be do-able, the trickier bit would be if you want it to actually payout from a hopper
 
ChrisH said:
Done a little research and I reckon the machine would probably be do-able, the trickier bit would be if you want it to actually payout from a hopper
Click to expand...

Payout in bitcoins?

Sadly, my project has derailed slightly due to minor badly thought out external design issues (kids just ate an orange) I have had to edit the code.....still, another winning line comes up!
 

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Like the idea of this also will be following this thread closely fruit machines were my addiction when I was younger owned a good few through the years but always ended up selling or giving them away getting to play all the old machines in one machine would be great.
 
I owned 3
Monty Pytom Flying Circus
Month Holy Grail
Money Mad Martians

Put them in my mates flat, he had epic parties often.
Bought my first Arcade Cab & pinball machines from the money they made
 
Fruits have a very sqewed value curve. 99% near worthless 1% desirable. Unfortunately its the 80s stuff that makes up the 1% so the cabs wont be easy to get. club machines are less popular . See if this seller here decides to split this . the circuit board is worth up to £70 so the cab might be going begging if he gets no love for the whole thing. 3 reel games in this cab like grab the bank can reach 4 figures


Look at this on eBay http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/263582879614
 
Thanks Steve

It's actually the smaller Line Up shape cab I'm ideally after but realistically anticipating using a modern scrapper as donor.
 
Wayne J said:
@Telboy has exactly what you're looking for @robotgreg
Don't know where it came from, how much it's worth etc.etc. but they are out there to buy as is.
Click to expand...

Greg have an original fruit machine cab oonly has one monitor but has about 13 proper games on it with £100 jackpots etc
Got this working and my thoughts were to put another pic in it and switch between mame and original
It's work in progress at the mo but I my be able to get another
No coin mech in it but maybe able to get one will put pic up later


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
 
Telboy said:
Greg have an original fruit machine cab oonly has one monitor but has about 13 proper games on it with £100 jackpots etc
Got this working and my thoughts were to put another pic in it and switch between mame and original
It's work in progress at the mo but I my be able to get another
No coin mech in it but maybe able to get one will put pic up later


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

Forgot to mention got a joystick panel with it also


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
 
Thanks Wayne and Terry. Sounds good although in an ideal world I'd like to have the top glass as a monitor so it looks as close as possible to the original machine. Using Line Up as my example/base but of course want to have lots of other classics. Be interested to see pics when you get a chance. Assume this was a self build?
 
This is an interesting thread...

Is absolutely in the realms of possibility.... not that I’m technically savvy enough to pull it off.

The button to pc input but surely is simple enough, the fruit machine emu’s must have button presses, that can corrspond to buttons, your issue might be on games that have “special” buttons such as DOND, or each way nudges, HOWEVER, the emu software must be able to internalise this, so buttons can be located on the cab somewhere and act as buttons for this, you just can’t specify what does what on a game specific basis... which may be an issue.

If you put to minitord in a cab, one for reels, one for “play field” it would be possible, what you’d need to do is send pixels XYZ (reels) to monitor one, and abc (play field) to monitor 2, I don’t know if that’s how VPINX works, but as a dedicated bit of kit, I’d imagine it has in-built output selectors for each element (PF,backbox, DMD) - if not then some people on here (@Pick Holder etc.) will be one step closer to this kind of setup, however as I say, I’m sure VPINX probably pre codes it and sends each element to defined screen.

As for a coin mech, payout calculator, pffffft... no idea and the question there is, without money... is a fruit machine worth playing, because the ultimate con is to make you think your in control, once money is off the cards (as in emu) I’ve found them to be quite a bore and transparent.
 
Thanks Nick. Looking again at the fruit emu thread, their builds aren't quite what I'm trying to achieve but along the right lines.

More concerned over whether it can be done how I envisage than cost at mo!!
 
Sounds like an interesting project! Certainly one I'd be interested in contributing to.

What are some examples of the original machines you're going to emulate? I only know and have experience with the Barcrest type cabinets; Ooh Ahh Dracula being one of my favourites.
 
Genesis mpu 5 about the most used cab of all time but none of the games are collectable . ooh ahh was one of the first lapper board games and was featured in Shaun of the Dead as was carry on screaming which I have but again not collectable being crappy epoch the worst fruit tech known to mankind. I think Greg is keen to relive the early 80s barcrest's which used true gamble and are now very desirable. A nice snappy viper sold £1100 last week. Maybe get a cab made in that style and source the rectangular buttons including the revolutionary at the time autonudge
 
I was always fond of the sound/music package on Ooh Ahh, there was always one we played at the local when I was much younger!

My main thought was that these machines usually had buttons in the top glass, which of course would be in the screen on a virtual. However if the older ones didn't that would work out, you could make a cab in that style and design it to snugly fit available LCD panels to minimise the 'bezel' and get a more realistic look. Might have to do a ColorDMD style mounting where the LCD is masked to get the right aspect ratio. Happ do nice LCD buttons as well which might be good depending on how fancy you want to get!
 
ChriX said:
Sounds like an interesting project! Certainly one I'd be interested in contributing to.

What are some examples of the original machines you're going to emulate? I only know and have experience with the Barcrest type cabinets; Ooh Ahh Dracula being one of my favourites.
Click to expand...

Yes Steve is right, early 80s Barcrest is the main motivation like the classic 4 : Line Up, Exchanges Unlimited, Snappy Viper and Adders and Ladders but would like most ones from £1.50 to £4 jackpots especially some of the conversions of these games just mentioned along with other Barcrest eg Clockpot etc. eg

40218.jpg


Also as Steve rightly says, these original cabs go for big money so maybe even finding a shell of this style might be tricky so happy to have a more modern style as long as can have top and bottom sections eg

The button positions varied, some were all just at the bottom, some also had buttons below the top glass.
 
I have a chances unlimited Barcrest MPU3 as said they go for big money. But the club versions don't seem to fetch much, likes of Royal exchange (which I also have) could be cut down to the size of lineup easily to make an emulation machine.

DSC03702.JPG
 
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