[RESOLVED] Bezels for dummies

[shroud]

Would it be possible to have some expert step up and explain how to setup bezels from scratch in GameEx? There are lots of threads in the forums, but they are all about specific issues and I can't wrap my head around them... I don't understand why bezels have to be so much more complicated to make them work, compared to all other features in GameEx!

 

Assume I merely downloaded some bezel zip files for a few specific games, and I just want them to be displayed around the game screen while playing:

- how do I check that the bezel files are in the correct format?

- in which folder do I need to save those files?

- how do I setup MAME to use those bezels?

- how do I setup GameEx to use those bezels?

 

I think I understood some do's and don'ts, but I'd better have a simple but complete step-by-step instruction from zero. Thanks a lot!

[Kustom Kid]

I'll give it a go.

 

1.) Place bezels in your "artwork" folder in your MAME directory. Make sure they are .zip files and match the name of the corresponding rom.

2.) In the GameEx Setup Wizard on the "MAME Settings" page under the "Advance MAME Settings" for the "Use Bezel" option select "Don't Use Bezel". (This is to use the GameEx bezel, not game specific ones through MAME.

3.) When you run MAME if the game has a bezel it should load automagically. If it's not shown hit the "TAB" key to open the options menu. Scroll down to "Video Options" and make sure Bezels are Enabled. To adjust the amount of bezel that's shown scroll down to "View" and change it to your liking. I have Cropped selected for most of my games. There might be a way to make the default setting "Cropped", but I just went through and changed the option on a game by game basis as they were loaded up for the first time.

3A.) There is an option to crop artwork from the get go. Open MAME. Go to "Configure Options" then "Advanced Options." Under "Artwork Options" go to "Artwork Crop" and turn it ON.

Edited October 1, 2016 by Kustom Kid
Updated crop information.

[shroud]

Thanks a lot!

 

So it really was easy after all...

[Kustom Kid]

No problem. It is easier than one would think, but it can still be difficult if you don't have anything to start with. It took me a while to figure out how to get everything setup properly. Let me know if you have any further issues.

[shroud]

What was actually blocking me was basically having wrong bezel files... I had them in a format for RocketLauncher (which I don't use), but now I have them in the correct PNG+LAY format.

 

Now my only issue left, is to actually find 4x3 bezels, because they always seem to be 16x9, or those few which I could find in 4x3 aspect ratio they actually go all around the game screen area, thus shrinking it to much smaller. I'd like them to be filling only the left and right sides, without making the game screen smaller.

[Kustom Kid]

They do go all around the game screen area for the most part. That's why you'll want to crop them. If you have your screen in portrait orientation you can get more on the top and bottom, including instruction cards, and less on the sides. Personally I have a 16:9 TV, so I get a little on the sides, not much, if anything, on the top, and instruction cards, if available, on the bottom. You're going to lose screen size when using bezels. That's the nature of the beast. Unless you have a gigantic monitor you'll have to find what works best for you visually.

[stigzler]

2 hours ago, Kustom Kid said:

No problem. It is easier than one would think, but it can still be difficult if you don't have anything to start with. It took me a while to figure out how to get everything setup properly. Let me know if you have any further issues.

+1 for using "one" 

[shroud]

1 hour ago, Kustom Kid said:

You're going to lose screen size when using bezels.

It doesn't seem to be inevitable to me... If I had a 16x9 screen and used the EmuMovies bezels, the loss of screen size would be zero, because those bezels only add to the left and the right. I don't see why the same couldn't be done in 4x3, but for some reason the only 4x3 bezels I have found so far add also to the top and the bottom.

[Draco1962]

I may be wrong about this, but when playing games that are formatted for display on a 4:3 screen on a 16:9 screen with a bezel, there would be no display loss. But, if playing on a 4:3 screen along with a 4:3 formatted bezel, then the display will shrink to fit within the bezel.

[Kustom Kid]

 

I'll have to take a look at the Emumovie bezels. I don't even remember where I got my bezels from, but they weren't from Emumovies surprisingly.

Edited October 2, 2016 by Kustom Kid
I actually comprehended what I read this time around.

[Kustom Kid]

Alright. So I checked Emumovies' bezels in the Official folder. Those appear to be the basic run of the mill 4:3 bezels where you will incur significant screen size loss unless you crop them. In which case you'll lose some bezel. They are accurate bezels though, so if you're going for authenticity those are the ones for you.

If you use the FTP for Emumovies and go to the "Upload Here" then to "_MAME bezels" you'll find the mother lode of bezels. They're in the proper .zip format with multiple choices. They have the authentic bezel, 4x3 bezels (sometimes multiples), 16x9 bezels (sometimes multiples), instruction cards, etc. @Krakerman even has some of his amazing bezels in there. I only checked 10 Yard Fight, Mortal Kombat II and Street Fighter Alpha 2, but they looked good, and will get you a bezel to fill your monitor with the least amount of game screen loss but they're not necessarily authentic.

[shroud]

Thank you Kustom Kid!

 

I didn't even know that there was such a thing as an "authentic bezel", do you mean that these were actually used in original arcade cabinets? That's very cool, although since I am running GameEx on a PC, in my case I will choose playability (i.e. maximized game screen) over authenticity.

 

Another thing I just discovered yesterday, is that MAME offers a "standard" mode 4:3 (3:4 for vertical games) vs a "pixel aspect" mode 8:7 (7:8 for vertical games). So now I wonder which one was actually the original aspect ratio used in arcade cabinets? Some games (e.g. "Scrambled Eggs") look remarkably better with "pixel aspect", but I always thought that arcade cabinets had 4:3/3:4 screens. I don't think there are bezels around using this 8:7 ratio.

[Kustom Kid]

10 hours ago, shroud said:

Thank you Kustom Kid!

 

I didn't even know that there was such a thing as an "authentic bezel", do you mean that these were actually used in original arcade cabinets? That's very cool, although since I am running GameEx on a PC, in my case I will choose playability (i.e. maximized game screen) over authenticity.

 

Another thing I just discovered yesterday, is that MAME offers a "standard" mode 4:3 (3:4 for vertical games) vs a "pixel aspect" mode 8:7 (7:8 for vertical games). So now I wonder which one was actually the original aspect ratio used in arcade cabinets? Some games (e.g. "Scrambled Eggs") look remarkably better with "pixel aspect", but I always thought that arcade cabinets had 4:3/3:4 screens. I don't think there are bezels around using this 8:7 ratio.

 

Yes, they are the ones used in the cabinets. I used to use the authentic bezels cropped, but after researching the bezels for you, I've decided to change it up. Thank you for that.

 

(This is simplified, and to my understanding correct. If it's not someone please correct me.)

Correct. The original aspect for most games are 4:3 or 3:4 (monitor turned on its side). Pixel aspect displays perfectly square pixels, like we have today on modern LCD screens. CRT monitor "pixels" were rectangular, so the image produced by the game had square pixels, but they were squished into rectangular "pixels" on the display.

[shroud]

On 3.10.2016 at 8:37 PM, Kustom Kid said:

 

Yes, they are the ones used in the cabinets. I used to use the authentic bezels cropped, but after researching the bezels for you, I've decided to change it up. Thank you for that.

 

Heh I am glad I've been useful, even if accidentally

 

So what kind of bezels have you decided to use from now on?

[Kustom Kid]

I'm mostly using the 16:9 bezels made by krakerman and a few others. Priority is given to ones with game instructions on them, then original artwork, and then whatever I think looks good. The John Merritt ones are really sweet with the cab sides and the scratched up plexiglass over the screen, but that would eventually drive me bananas.