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Gamate

Gamate icon Gamate logo

Overview

Bitcorp released the Gamate handheld in 1990. It surfaced under several aliases worldwide (Super Boy, Super Child, Watara Gamate, etc.), but the hardware stayed consistent: a Z80-based design with a monochrome 160×144 LCD sporting dithering for richer shades. REG-Linux scrapes metadata for the gamate system group and will load the matching theme set when one exists.

Technical specifications

  • CPU: Zilog Z80A at 4 MHz
  • Memory: 16 KB RAM, 8 KB video RAM
  • Display: 160×144 monochrome LCD with dithering for more colors
  • Sound: SN76489-style PSG with three channels plus noise

Supported ROM extensions

bin, zip, 7z

Quick reference

  • Emulator: MAME
  • ROM folder: /userdata/roms/gamate
  • Accepted formats: .bin, .zip, .7z
  • System group: gamate

BIOS

Place gamate.zip (or .7z) inside /userdata/bios/gamate or the global BIOS share so MAME can find the required package. Filenames must remain untouched.

ROMs

Store zipped or raw Gamate ROMs in /userdata/roms/gamate. Leave archives zipped—MAME expects .zip or .7z containers rather than extracted folders.

Emulators

MAME

MAME reproduces the Gamate hardware. Use the in-game menu ([HOTKEY] + the south face button or Tab) to adjust inputs, DIP switches or other game settings. Visit the MAMEdev FAQ for the title if a specific ROM misbehaves.

Standardized options for this system include gamate.videomode, gamate.decoration and gamate.padtokeyboard, and EmulationStation exposes the following settings:

ES setting name REG-Linux.conf_key Description & values
VIDEO MODE gamate.video Choose BGFX, Accel or OpenGL rendering.
BGFX GRAPHICS API gamate.bgfxbackend Pick BGFX backend (automatic/opengl/gles/vulkan).
BGFX VIDEO FILTER gamate.bgfxshaders Apply shaders such as crt-geom, hq2x, eagle, etc.
CRT SWITCHRES gamate.switchres Enable SwitchRes profiles (0 Off, 1 On).
TATE MODE gamate.rotation Rotate for vertical displays (autoror, autorol).
ALT DPAD MODE gamate.altdpad Reorient the d-pad for unusual controllers (DS3/X360).

Controls

The default mapping follows the REG-Linux Retropad overlay. You can customize input per game through MAME’s configuration menu.

Gamate controller overlay

Troubleshooting

  • Confirm gamate.zip is installed under bios/ or roms/gamate.
  • Try a different ROM dump if one fails to boot (some sets are incomplete).
  • Consult the MAME troubleshooting section for driver-specific guidance.