4 arcade controllers (8-direction joystick + 2 buttons) to arduino

Projects General Guidance
1

This is a bit of a chicken or the egg problem (post on these forums first, or send email to gameduino's creator?) .

I want to create a programmable retro games console. I will use a Gameduino + Arduino stack, connect a VGA display to the gameduino, and... 4 homemade game controllers. Each controller will sport an 8-direction arcade-style joystick and 2 big buttons.

A lot of inputs that is.

How would you proceed to convert all these inputs into something the gameduino could use?

Thanks in advance
Alex

2

The creator of the Gameduino, James Bowman, was kind enough to send me a prompt answer clarifying the role that the Gameduino plays in this setup: graphics and sound only.

So, the game loop, input checks included, is handled by the Arduino.

Any advice as to how to go about channeling inputs from 4 joysticks and 8 buttons onto 1 Arduino & sketch much appreciated.