SDLPoP-JP : The Japanese PC Experience

[spaztron64]

This modification of SDLPoP aims to provide a feeling of playing the PC-98 and X68000 versions of the game with support for fully functional background music (this release will contain X68K tracks and sound effects, but you can record PC-98 ones yourself).

A lot more work needs to be done, like ripping the original graphical assets instead of relying on Brain's mods, but I think that the project in it's current state is ready to be released.

Special thanks to mk1994 for assisting with code and testing the project for bugs.

Video demonstration:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=5nCJuuj1GKQ

Get it here:
https://github.com/spaztron64/SDLPoP-JP ... 21jp-beta1

[Norbert]

Interesting.

Special thanks to mk1994 for assisting with code and testing the project for bugs.

And nice to read that mk is still doing PoP things now and then.

[dmitrys]

It is always great to see modifications of SDLPoP.

Background music is something I have planned to implement. The game also seems to run smoother. I am guessing it has more frames/ticks per second. I am definitely going to check out the code.

[yourantumayel69]

It is always great to see modifications of SDLPoP.

Background music is something I have planned to implement. The game also seems to run smoother. I am guessing it has more frames/ticks per second. I am definitely going to check out the code.

Go ahead

[atrueprincefanfrom18]

Background music is something I have planned to implement.

Did you get time to look at how the music is being played? I wanted to have that feature in SDLPoP too...
The game seems a bit fun then.

[dmitrys]

Yes, I did implement it. The drawback is the current implementation requires re-introducing SDL Mixer which SDLPoP has originally used but replaced in favor of the STB Vorbis library. SDL Mixer also needs the compiled version of the Vorbis. So there are 2 additional dependencies.

I am sure it is possible to implement it using the existing Vorbis library. But in order for both, OGG music and digital sounds, play at the same time it would require mixing channels which is not something I know how to do. Maybe David or Falcury know a good way of playing OGG music without affecting the game sounds without introducing SDL Mixer.

But with SDL Mixer I was also able to play certain sounds like victory, presentation and feather fall without interrupting the rest of the game sounds. Also, when I pause/quicksave during feather fall, I can resume the music at the same exact location where it had stopped. Again, that might be possible to do with the existing Vorbis library but is outside my expertise.

[Norbert]

I've never understood why SDL Mixer had to go, I think. (I'm too lazy to look up why STB Vorbis was considered an improvement.) The whole idea of using (just) SDL, I'd say, is that if it works on a platform, then most likely its SDL Mixer component will too. Now, not only SDL needs to work, but also STB Vorbis; both in and of itself, and in combination with SDL.

[dmitrys]

It most likely had to do with dependencies. SDL Mixer is a library that also requires LIBOGG and LIBVORBIS DLLs to play OGG files. The current Vorbis implementation is a stand alone .C file. But the Mixer gives you some very useful functions that you would have to implement on top STB Vorbis.

[David]

I've never understood why SDL Mixer had to go, I think. (I'm too lazy to look up why STB Vorbis was considered an improvement.)

I think I found it: viewtopic.php?p=22766#p22766

It doesn't look like the MIDI support would work well in combination with SDL_Mixer, because SDL_Mixer abstracts away the audio callback (I think). And manually programming an audio callback is needed for MIDI playback to work.
So, for now I undefined USE_MIXER to allow for adding MIDI support.

If we do want to keep supporting OGG files, how could MIDI playback be combined with SDL_Mixer, if at all? Converting whole MIDI songs to Mix_Chunks, only because SDL_Mixer doesn't allow direct access to the audio callback feels a bit like overkill. (Is there an alternative?)
(I suspect the cleanest way to have both OGG and MIDI support at the same time is to remove SDL_Mixer and use stb_vorbis.c instead for OGG support.)

[LEDStorm]

I think this mod would be perfect with Sega CD graphics... or the TurboGrafx CD graphics... I mean, the PC Engine CD version is functional, but the physics are all off.

Edit #2: I see now that the assets of those versions are way too small... wait, are they really that small?

[LEDStorm]

So... guess if no one can do this I'll just do it myself and keep you all up with the progress

[Amethyst]

I think this mod would be perfect with Sega CD graphics... or the TurboGrafx CD graphics...

I think it would be perfect with the higher-resolution FM Towns/PC-98/X68000 graphics. I hope that the ability to use higher-resolution graphics will be added to SDLPoP someday.
I also prefer the FM Towns/PC Engine music to the slightly "strangely-sounding" X68000 one. X68000's sound effects are superb though IMO.

[LEDStorm]

There's actually a mod with support for high resolution graphics somewhere, maybe that could work for this game.

[TrueElectronikaFan]

Um im new here so i dunno some things but can someone here do the fm towns version of prince of persia i tried editing sdl popj but it didnt work for me so i dunno