Final Fight MD: I should be releasing another version this week, as I personally found an annoying detail at the end of the game: I forgot to change the stage when the credits roll! Even the color palettes got corrupted... In addition, some bugs were identified and are being fixed.
Now I'll delve into a more in-depth technical section to explain the new "performance" mode:
The 30 FPS mode worked like this:
- Cycles were in alternating frames
- In one cycle, 100% of the routines are processed (music, joysticks, sprites, screen, etc.)
- In the next cycle, only the content of the DMA queue is processed
- In both cycles, the timer held the game at 30 FPS
I modified the 30 FPS mode, which will now be called AUTO FPS and can be enabled for 1 or 2 players as well. See the change:
- The cycle that processes everything does not have framerate checking because it already works on finalizing the scan (maximum of 60 FPS)
- In the next cycle, the DMA queue is executed, and a timer is set to hold the frames at 60 FPS
The difference is that we are not rigidly stuck at 60 or 30 FPS; Now the game is able to run at an intermediate framerate, significantly improving performance and gameplay perception.
I even tested completely disabling the framerate control, causing the game to double in speed (it looks like SF2 Turbo) with up to 3 enemies on screen and 1 player, but the speed fluctuated from the fourth enemy onwards. That's when I had the idea to fix the limit at 60 FPS, and not 30, during the screen-free cycle. This way, the game maintains 60 FPS for as long as possible and can only drop to 30 FPS if necessary to avoid performance drops, using the screen-free cycle to help process the higher demand.
The only detail I couldn't resolve was regarding the use of controllers with a turbo button in performance mode, as the controller reading is not consistent when the framerate fluctuates, potentially causing attacks to be interrupted if out of sync (button being pressed exactly during the cycle without controller reading).
In performance mode tests, the game showed no slowdown in 1P+ and 2-player modes, with only a few moments where a lower framerate was perceived.
Remember, performance mode will be an optional feature, perfect for those bothered by some slowdowns in certain areas.
#SGDK #MegaDrive #SEGAGenesis