c-base Arcade Launcher

A fullscreen sci-fi arcade game launcher for Godot 4.7, designed for physical arcade cabinets running Ubuntu Linux with X11.

Features

• Automatic game detection from /arcade/games directory
• Fullscreen launcher with space-station OS theme
• Drop-in game support via SFTP upload
• Preview videos and screenshots for each game
• Per-game high score tracking
• Live game list refresh without restart
• Attract mode with auto-scrolling
• Boot sequence animation
• Gamepad and keyboard support

System Requirements

• Ubuntu Linux (20.04 or newer recommended)
• X11 display server (Wayland should be disabled)
• Godot 4.7 or compatible version
• inotify-tools package for live refresh

Quick Start

For detailed installation instructions, see INSTALL.md.

1. Set up Ubuntu with X11
2. Create /arcade directory structure
3. Export and install the launcher
4. Install systemd services
5. Upload games to /arcade/games

Game Upload Specification

See GAME_SPEC.md for the complete game upload specification (c-base Arcade Upload Spec v1.0).

Quick Summary

Each game folder under /arcade/games/ must contain:

Required:

• Linux executable: *.x86_64 OR *.AppImage
• Godot pack: *.pck
• Must support ui_exit input action to quit

Strongly Recommended:

• game.json - metadata (title, author, description, players, year)
• preview.mp4 or preview.ogv - gameplay clip (5-15 seconds)
• screenshot.png - fallback image
• icon.png - list entry icon

Project Structure

GD_ArcadeLauncher/
├── project.godot
├── scenes/
│   ├── Boot.tscn          # Boot sequence (optional)
│   ├── Launcher.tscn      # Main launcher UI
│   └── GameEntry.tscn     # Game list item template
├── scripts/
│   ├── Boot.gd
│   ├── Launcher.gd        # Main controller
│   ├── GameInfo.gd        # Game data model
│   ├── GameScanner.gd     # Directory scanner
│   └── ScoreStore.gd      # High score manager
├── media/
│   ├── sounds/
│   ├── fonts/
│   └── shaders/
├── tools/
│   └── watch_games.sh     # inotify watcher script
└── install/
	└── systemd/
		├── arcade-launcher.service
		└── arcade-watch.service

Development

Built with Godot 4.7 using GDScript.

Input Actions

The launcher uses standard Godot input actions:

• ui_up, ui_down - Navigate game list
• ui_accept - Launch selected game
• ui_cancel - Back/cancel
• ui_exit - Exit game (required for all games)

Building and Exporting

1. Open the project in Godot 4.7.x
2. Go to Project → Export
3. Select Linux/X11 preset
4. Export as launcher.x86_64 with embedded PCK or separate .pck file

Contributing

Contributions welcome! Please ensure:

• Code follows existing GDScript style
• New features are documented
• Game upload specification compatibility is maintained

License

[Add your license here]

Credits

Developed for the c-base space station arcade cabinet.