Pre-Launch Screen Options for Games

📋 Summary

Introduce a pre-launch screen in both LaunchBox and Big Box that allows users to quickly configure display enhancements such as bezels, filters, shaders, and upscalers before starting a game—similar to the interface used in the NES/SNES Classic menus.

❗ Problem

• Currently, display enhancements (bezels, shaders, filters, upscalers) must be set globally or configured individually within emulator settings.

• Changing these settings requires digging through menus or editing configs, which is disruptive if you only want to adjust them occasionally.

• Users who want to tailor the visual experience on a game-by-game basis (e.g., widescreen hacks, scanline filters, or pixel-perfect scaling) lack a convenient way to do so.

💡 Proposal

• Add an optional pre-launch screen that appears when starting a game in LaunchBox or Big Box.

• From this screen, users can quickly select:

  • Bezels/Overlays (on/off or choose from available sets).

  • Shaders/Filters (CRT scanlines, smoothing, LCD effects, etc.).

  • Upscalers/Resolution Enhancements (integer scaling, 2x/4x, widescreen modes).

• Allow users to set default values globally but override them on a per-game basis at launch.

• Provide a simple UI toggle so users who don’t want the extra step can disable the pre-launch screen entirely.

🧩 Use Cases

• A user loads Sonic the Hedgehog and quickly enables a CRT filter for an authentic look, while keeping Mario 64 with a widescreen upscale.

• Someone playing on a large TV wants bezels turned on for handheld systems but off for arcade titles, selectable at launch.

• A player testing different shaders doesn’t have to constantly exit the game and edit configs—they can switch before boot.

📦 Benefits

• Simplifies access to visual enhancements without digging into emulator menus.

• Provides more flexibility and personalization for game presentation.

• Aligns LaunchBox/Big Box with modern retro re-release systems (NES Classic, Sega Genesis Mini, etc.).

• Gives users fine-grained control without sacrificing ease of use.