RetroArch playlist order
|
Playlists are the lists of games displayed under each joypad icon in the Lakka graphical interface. Playlists can be generated automatically by the ROM scanning process or be created by users and uploaded to the Lakka device. Playlists are located within the playlists folder which is accessible via SAMBA. Show
Automatic playlist generationLakka includes an internal database that can be used to scan ROMs from many kinds of systems in order to automatically generate playlists. In order for the playlist scanner to recognize the ROMs from these systems, they must be formatted according to a standard which varies from system to system. Manually setting the Core for a playlistGenerally speaking, Lakka will detect and use the correct core for use with the ROMs that are used as part of a playlist. Under some circumstances, it may be useful to manually set Lakka to use a particular core for one of its playlists. This can be accomplished within the Playlists submenu in the Lakka settings. Playlist file formatEach playlist is a plain text file, and each entry in a playlist must be composed of 6 lines. Example playlist entry: /storage/roms/n64/Legend of Zelda, The - Ocarina of Time (USA).n64 Legend of Zelda, The - Ocarina of Time (USA) /tmp/cores/mupen64plus_libretro.so Nintendo 64 (Mupen64Plus) EC95702D|crc Nintendo - Nintendo 64.lpl
Zipped ROMsIf you use zipped ROMs (other than arcade ROMs), your ROM path will have to look like this: /storage/roms/NEC - Super Grafx/Madou King Granzort (Japan).zip#Madou King Granzort (Japan).pceNote the # in the path. ScriptingCustom playlists can be generated by some simple scripts. This is particularly useful to generate playlists for systems not supported by our scanning process yet. You can use this example bash script: #!/bin/bash for fullpath in $1; do echo $fullpath filename=$(basename "$fullpath") echo "${filename%.*}" echo $2 echo $3 echo "DETECT" echo $4 doneAnd invoke it like this: ./scan.sh "/storage/roms/arcade/*.zip" "/tmp/cores/fba_libretro.so" "Arcade (FB Alpha - SVN)" "FB Alpha - Arcade Games.lpl" > "/storage/playlists/FB Alpha - Arcade Games.lpl"Result: You can also use this script which will test if the ROM has already added to the playlist, to not add it twice: #!/bin/bash # # Libretro playlist builder # # Usage: # scan.sh "Files path" "Core" "Core name" "Playlist filename" ["Playlists path"] # # Example: #./scan.sh "/storage/roms/arcade/*.zip" "/tmp/cores/fba_libretro.so" "Arcade (FB Alpha - SVN)" "FB Alpha - Arcade Games.lpl" "/storage/playlists/" # SAVEIFS=$IFS IFS=$(echo -en "\n\b") CA=0 CS=0 echo " Scaning \"$1\" for \"$3\" ROMs and adding to \"$5$4\"... " for fullpath in $1; do touch "$4" filename=$(basename "$fullpath") if [ `grep -c "$fullpath" "$4"` -lt 1 ]; then CA=$(($CA+1)) echo "$CA - Adding $filename" echo $fullpath >> "$5$4" echo "${filename%.*}" >> "$5$4" echo $2 >> "$5$4" echo $3 >> "$5$4" echo "DETECT" >> "$5$4" echo $4 >> "$5$4" else CS=$(($CS+1)) echo "$CS - Skipping $filename" fi done echo " Added $CA and skipped $CS \"$3\" ROMs out of $(($CA+$CS)) scanned files to \"$4\" " IFS=$SAVEIFSIconsIf you want your playlist to be displayed with the appropriate icons, you have to name your lpl file like one of the no-intro DAT. See our icons here: ls /usr/share/retroarch-assets/xmb/monochrome/png/Adding your own icons is also possible, there is an overlay system in Lakka that allows you to override the content of /usr/share/retroarch-assets by placing files in /storage/assets . You have to replicate the same folder hierarchy.
Game ROMs should be placed within the roms folder as configured in RetroArch. Many users sort their ROMs into subfolders named after the system which the ROMs belong to, which results in a folder arrangement such as:
This arrangement is not required and you are free to organize your ROMs as you prefer. Working with Playlists¶Playlists (or Collections as they are sometimes referred to) are the lists of games and other content that can be generated automatically by the RetroArch playlist scanner, generated by a third-party playlist utility or script, or edited by hand in a text editor. RetroArch Playlist Scanner¶RetroArch incorporates a ROM scanning system to automatically produce playlists. Each ROM that is scanned by the playlist generator is checked against a database of ROMs that are known to be good copies. In order for content to be correctly scanned, you must:
Finally, the content must match existing databases from the libretro-database README. If those conditions are met but content is still not being added automatically to a playlist, consider submitting an issue report on github. Designating which core to use¶RetroArch will attempt to detect and use the correct core for use with the ROMs that are used as part of a playlist. Under some circumstances, it may be useful to manually set a particular core for one of its playlists. This can be accomplished within the Playlists submenu in the RetroArch settings. Playlist File Overview¶Each playlist is a plain text file with an extension of .lpl. RetroArch 1.7.5 and later uses a JSON playlist format, although the backwards compatibility remains for the deprecated "6-Line" playlist format. Note: The paths in playlist files need to use the correct 'slash' character for the user's platform. Linux, OS X, and Android systems including Lakka and LudOS require forward slashes /, while Windows and DOS systems require backslashes \.
Hint for Windows Users The built-in Notepad editor cannot work with cross-platform text files such as RetroArch playlist files. Many users and developers recommend the free Notepad++ as a replacement although most alternative text editors will also work. JSON Playlist Format¶The following example is a single-entry MAME 2003-Plus playlist for Alien Arena -- the silent version of this game is available through the RetroArch Content Downloader found in the Online Updater menu. The romset with the label Alien Arena is located at path being C:\retroarch\downloads\alienar.zip; note that the backslashes are doubled in JSON-formatted playlist entries so that the value of the path entry is C:\\retroarch\\downloads\\alienar.zip. The ROM's corresponding db_name is MAME 2003-Plus.lpl which tells the menu driver which ROM database to use for looking up the game's metadata, thumbnails and game-system-specific icon-type. Menu drivers which implement playlist icons will use it to display it next to the ROM's name. MAME 2003-Plus.lpl¶{ "version": "1.0", "items": [ { "path": "C:\\retroarch\\downloads\\alienar.zip", "label": "Alien Arena", "core_path": "DETECT", "core_name": "DETECT", "crc32": "01ACE2AB|crc", "db_name": "MAME 2003-Plus.lpl" } ] }
Alert You can omit the CRC or Serial for a manually created playlist entry by using the word DETECT instead, although it may limit your ability to use netplay for this playlist entry. 6-Line Playlist Format (Deprecated)¶
Warning This playlist format is deprecated and may not always be supported by RetroArch in the future. New playlists should be created in the JSON format. Each entry in a playlist must be composed of 6 lines: MAME 2003-Plus.lpl¶C:\retroarch\downloads\alienar.zip" Alien Arena /tmp/cores/mame2003_plus_libretro.so DETECT 01ACE2AB|crc MAME 2003-Plus.lpl
Creating custom playlists (cross-platform, cross-folders)¶The standard playlists in RetroArch are usually platform-specific, i.e. Nintendo - Game Boy.lpl or Sony - PlayStation.lpl. Maybe you want to create custom playlists not limited within game-platforms or ROM-folders, e.g. "Multiplayer Racing Games" or "Medieval Themed Games". content_favorites.lpl and content_history.lpl are examples of default playlists which have this cross-platform behavior. So study them as an example first. To create a custom playlist¶
Customize how/where your playlists are shown¶
How to set up custom playlists (Screenshots)¶ Third-Party Applications¶Since playlists are managed in text-only JSON format, there are a few third-party applications to help manage your playlists.
Thumbnails¶RetroArch can display three types of thumbnails for games in playlists, depending on the specific RetroArch menu driver in use:
RetroArch thumbnail packs¶RetroArch provides packs of thumbnails suitable for use with many emulated systems. These thumbnail packs are recommended for most users and can be installed connecting to the internet and using the built-in thumbnails updater, available from the online update menu within the RetroArch settings interface. These packs can be downloaded manually from http://thumbnailpacks.libretro.com and individual thumbnails from within the packs can be downloaded from http://thumbnails.libretro.com. Custom thumbnails¶Users who wish to use their own thumbnails can do so by naming PNG image files according to the RetroArch naming convention. Thumbnail paths and filenames¶Thumbnails should be stored in subfolders within the configured RetroArch thumbnails directory within a subfolder named exactly the same as the playlist, except without .lpl at the end. Example: If your playlist is named Atari - 2600.lpl, then your Atari 2600 root thumbnail folder should be called thumbnails/Atari - 2600/. Within this root thumbnail folder called Atari - 2600, you should then create subfolders named Named_Boxarts, Named_Snaps, or Named_Titles for boxart/cover art, in-game snapshots, and title screens, respectively. The thumbnail filename should exactly match the game's title as listed in the playlist with an important exception. The following characters in playlist titles must be replaced with _ in the corresponding thumbnail filename: &*/:`<>?\| Example: If your content is named Q*bert's Qubes in the playlist, then its thumbnails should be named Q_bert's Qubes.png and stored at these paths: thumbnails/ Atari - 2600/ Named_Boxarts/ Q_bert's Qubes.png Named_Snaps/ Q_bert's Qubes.png Named_Titles/ Q_bert's Qubes.png Changing the displayed thumbnail type¶Regardless of whether you download the RetroArch thumbnail packs or use your own custom thumbnails, you can use the RetroArch GUI to set which type of thumbnail to display. In order to change this setting, go to Menu Settings, and change the Thumbnails option to reflect the type of thumbnail you wish to display. |
