So I have rebuilt to use RetroPie 4RC1 with AM 2.1.0. On my new build I switched to the AM non-x build (mainly to launch Kodi and AdvMAME from AM using the runcommand). There's not too much difference from the RetroPie 4Beta2 with AM 2.1.0 but I have done a few things that might help some. Mainly, the ability to run RetroPie setup stuff from AM without needing to boot into EmulationStation. Booting into EmulationStation takes too long with 5,000+ roms and doesn't really provide any benefit to me. Being able to run Raspbian and RetroPie setup processes from AM using a gamepad makes it very convenient to adjust things like overscan and wifi passwords when bringing my Pi to other people's houses.
Here's the concept and setup. I created a new "Emulator" called "Setup".
Setup.cfg
# Generated by Attract-Mode v2.1.0
#
executable /bin/bash
args "[romfilename]"
rompath /home/pi/.attract/extras
romext .sh
system Setup
artwork snap /home/pi/.attract/extras
I don't want to people to accidentally access this setup so have set the "Displays" options for "Layout" to "Basic", "Show in Cycle" to "No" and the "Show in Menu" to "Yes" for the "Setup" emulator so it's not accessible using the left/right to go through the systems. I have also set the "Displays" gamepad controls to be a unique button combination in the AM "Controls" setup.
I then created simple batch files for these different setups in a folder called /home/pi/.attract/extras.
Raspbian.sh
sudo /home/pi/RetroPie-Setup/retropie_packages.sh retropiemenu launch /home/pi/RetroPie/retropiemenu/raspiconfig.rp
RetroArch.sh
sudo /home/pi/RetroPie-Setup/retropie_packages.sh retropiemenu launch /home/pi/RetroPie/retropiemenu/retroarch.rp
RetroPie.sh
sudo /home/pi/RetroPie-Setup/retropie_packages.sh retropiemenu launch /home/pi/RetroPie/retropiemenu/rpsetup.rp
RunCommand.sh
sudo /home/pi/RetroPie-Setup/retropie_packages.sh retropiemenu launch /home/pi/RetroPie/retropiemenu/runcommand.rp
WiFi.cfg
sudo /home/pi/RetroPie-Setup/retropie_packages.sh retropiemenu launch /home/pi/RetroPie/retropiemenu/wifi.rp
You will need to change these files to be executable for them to work.
sudo chmod +x /home/pi/.attract/extras/*.sh
That's about it and you can stop here to get all the setup functions you need right from AM. If you want to go a step further and bring some artwork over from EmulationStation to AM you can do this.
cp /home/pi/RetroPie/retropiemenu/icons/*.png /home/pi/.attract/extras/
You will then need to rename the .png files in /home/pi/.attract/extras/ to match the names of the scripts above.
I feel this process allows you to continue to get the great setup and upgrade options without having to toggle back and forth between EmulationStation and Attract-Mode.