You can save yourself a lot of trouble by simply following our easy MAME™  setup guides and files included. Be sure you first start with our easy MAME setup guides here: PC and Mac


TEST YOUR X-ARCADE™

If your controller doesn't work in the X-Arcade™ Test Utility Program, then it will NOT work in MAME™. 

Before attempting to play MAME games, test that your controller is fully working in our X-Arcade™ Test Utility Program

The X-Arcade works as a simple keyboard, so if it is working in the test program but not in MAME, then you have a problem with your MAME software settings, not the controller! 

  • MAME official Docs - Lots of good info here. 
  • If joystick 1 is the only thing not working, turn your NUM LOCK (NLOCK) key ON (on your keyboard). This applies to older models only. 
  • If you mess up some controls (or a screen like volume or similar is coming on when you press a button), delete the "default.cfg" file that is in the "cfg" folder in MAME™.
  • Make sure the' Multiple Keyboards' option is turned off, as it may be assigning your keyboard to controller 1 and the X-Arcade to controller 2. See image on right. 
  • The X-Arcade™ controller config file may not work with every version and revision of MAME™, If it does not work for you then you can simply manually configure MAME controls like so:
    MANUAL CONTROL MAPPING: You can change the controls for any game by simply pushing the 'Tab' key while a game is already running to access the controls menu. Input (this game) overrides the general input settings and adds custom controller settings for just the game being used. We recommend against changing the Input (general) option because these settings will be applied to all games, which overrides our config file.
  • Do not play MAME™ from a CD or DVD disk as it cannot save your controller settings this way.
  • Screen is flipping sideways or upside-down when I play?
  • Get ROMS (ROMs are games, none are included and we do not supply ROM files!) Put them in the "roms" subfolder in the "MAME Plus!" folder (do not unzip them). IMPORTANT: The versions of ROMs you use should match the version of MAME you are using, or they will not work. To see which working ROMs you have, click on the "Available Arcades" folder on the top-left. If none show up, press F5 on your keyboard to refresh.
  • Trackball: If you have another mouse/touchpad connected to the PC, you will want to be sure that the option for 'Enable multiple mice' is unchecked (see pic on right). Alternatively, you can make the X-Arcade™ Trackball the default mouse. The easiest way to do this is to disable the other mouse/touchpad in Device Manager (The X-Arcade™ Trackball shows up as "Samsung" mouse), then re-enable it. If you have a USB mouse, you can simply unplug it, reboot, and then plug it back in again. Otherwise you will need to change all of the default mouse buttons and movements to the X-Arcade™ Trackball manually.
  • If you are having any erratic controls or the controls seem to suddenly stop working at times, try disabling Multi-threading in the MAME options.
  • If you still have problems, please visit the MAME™ FAQ Page here


The MAME™ software includes a "Help" menu that can help you (press F1 on your keyboard to access). Alternatively, here are some more very helpful sites that have more in-depth MAME™ instructions, troubleshooting help, and information:


MAME official Docs

Official MAMEDev Wiki - The home page of the MAME™ developer wiki, packed with helpful information!

EasyEmu - Guides and tutorials for dummies covering only the most popular emulators.

MAMEWorld™ Forum - Get help with MAME™ here.

ArcadeControls.com Forum