Chalo Chalo WiFi Controller

This app is a virtual controller for the game Chalo Chalo that runs on a desktop machine.

Chalo Chalo supports up to eight players, but it might be tricky to gather that many hardware controllers for a play session. We've published this virtual controller for Chalo Chalo that runs on mobile devices, so that more of your friends can race together.

Instructions

Make sure that the desktop machine that Chalo Chalo will run on is connected to the same WiFi network as the phone that you will use as a controller. Launch a game of Chalo Chalo on your desktop machine. Open the Chalo Chalo WiFi Controller app on your phone. Most phones will automatically detect the running Chalo Chalo game and bring you to a screen with a 'Join Game' button within a second or two. Some phones won't connect automatically. To manually connect, press A on the Desktop Machine to display a connect code on screen (press A again to hide the code). Enter that connect code into the input field on your mobile device, click the Connect button.

Once your mobile shows a screen confirming that you're connected to a Chalo Chalo game you can press the 'Join Game' button during either the Join Screen or during a race to join in. When you've successfully joined, your mobile screen will display an interface with a joystick on the left and an action button on the right. The background colour of this screen will match the colour of your dot in the Chalo Chalo game.

Limitations and known issues

If you use VPN software it should be disabled on both the server (the computer running Chalo Chalo) as well as on any phone you intend to run the WiFi controller app on. If your phone can't find the server, make sure no VPN is active.

All phones have some touchscreen lag. On some phones the lag is particularly noticeable. On especially laggy touch screens you might notice some jerkiness in how your dot turns, and some delay between pressing the action button and the effect of that press in the game.

Data gathering

When you successfully join a Chalo Chalo game, the WiFi Controller app sends us the following information: The model name of your device, the screen resolution, whether or not your device supports vibration. We hope to use this information to help fix problems you might experience and to help guide our future development of the WiFi Controller.