VERTICAL ARCADE
These overlays (sometimes known as bezels) display art on top of the game you're playing. To use them, you need a PC or Raspberry Pi (or other compatible system) running some version of MAME and the associated game software, as well as a widescreen (16x9) monitor mounted vertically. To display the overlay while playing a game, download the artwork file for that game overlay (it must have the same filename as the game), place it in the Artwork folder within your MAME directory and launch the game. (For instance, the software for the game Magic Sword is called msword.zip, so it requires a file in the Artwork directory also called msword.zip.)
All overlays are 4K resolution (2160 x 3840), and listed dimensions are for the game screen, relative to a 4K vertical monitor. The actual game screen size will depend on the resolution of your monitor.
Most of the overlays include multiple presets that let you choose the size of the game screen, access a "dark" version designed to look more like a dark arcade, and sometimes other options. To choose a preset, press Tab while running the game to bring up the MAME menu, select Video Options, and select a preset from the list.
Some overlays include Curved presets designed with a curved screen port, to better simulate the look of a CRT monitor. These presets work best if you are using a geometry shader that adds a curved look to the game screen. For an optimal experience, you may need to adjust your shaders to match the curvature of the screen shape in the overlay. If you are not using a geometry shader, you are using a shader that adds a curved bezel, or if you prefer a rectangular screen port, choose a Straight preset where applicable.
Developed by Taito and released in the US by Romstar, Kageki is a surprisingly twitchy arcade brawler that requires extremely fast button mashing more than Street Fighter-esque strategy and timing. Taking place in the Japanese underground, the game challenges players to fight their way up the chain of a local gang in a series of bare-fisted fights. The combatants have a minimal range of fighting abilities but at least can move in two axes, which adds another level of tactics. The cartoony, superdeformed style of the characters and its odd touches (the losing fighter is unceremoniously dumped down a manhole) make it a quirky and very Japanese entry in the pre-Street Fighter II fighting landscape.
Developed by Toaplan and released in North America by Romstar and Toaplan/Tecmo globally, Out Zone combines the vertically scrolling run-and-gun mechanics of games like Ikari Warriors with many of the conventions of shoot-em-ups like Truxton: weapon power-ups add more powerful shots and 3-way shooting, and you face waves of similar enemies in formations as well as a variety of mini-bosses and stage bosses. However, the conventions of run-and-gun games such as directional aiming and ground-based obstacles make Out Zone a very different experience, with a faster pace and more intense encounters than most of its run-and-gun contemporaries.
Sky Soldiers combines serviceable shoot-em-up mechanics with a storyline reminiscent of Time Pilot, sending players back in time from the year 2110 to stop a supercomputer-turned-supervillain whose time-traveling minions are wreaking havoc in the past. Each stage represents a major conflict of the past, featuring both conventional combatants and massive robotic future machines, giving the game something of a steampunk vibe. Sky Soldiers is more challenging than it looks, thanks to plentiful fast-moving enemies and a relatively slow ship, with a weapon power-up system that requires more tactical thinking than many shoot-em-ups (you are given a limited number of powerful missiles or other weapons per level and no screen-clearing bombs).