General Project Screenshot/Video Thread

Spent yesterday documenting an hidden register in the Sega Dreamcast that allows for multi-target rendering on a single frame. KOS, the homebrew SDK for the Dreamcast, doesn't expose this functionality and the register was previously a magic number offset during init in another generally undocumented base register pointer.

Bit 31 at 0x005F8160 when set to 1 enables the TA_LIST_CONT register in the PVR, which tells it to continue rendering onto a second object list in the tile accelerator. This means in order to do this, you must bin an entirely second object list for these different target if the target is going to render something different from the previous target. You pass the Tile Accelerator TSP setup a parameter with a pointer location to the base of your object lists. Object lists must be back to back in memory in an array, so when the PVR finishes one list, it'll move onto the next. You can do as many of these lists as you have room for in memory.

Since KOS doesn't expose this normally, you can't do this kind of rendering using any of the KOS calls, so you have to bit bang the hardware directly through communication ports. That's what I was working on yesterday, patching KOS to expose this so anybody can use it in any homebrew application.

Example of multipass rendering to create an HDR-like bloom:

 

How did you find this register?

 

Doing reading about how the PVR itself works from various documents. There was a demo long long ago, before KOS was even a thing, which showed off multipass rendering but it was uncommented and wouldn't run with modern libraries. Rewriting the demo so itd compile again and commenting the code lead to exploring a bunch of magic numbers used in the source code, and digging through them all and the PVR manual showed how it all worked, so I could modify KOS to support the feature.

 

Someone had to do it sooner or later.

 

Finally, an actually good version of Sonic 1.

 

FINALLY! MY DREAMS HAVE COME TRUE!

 

Wow. Cool beans.

Spoiler

Well, that’s that then.

I’m gonna go make my own Sonic ROM hack, with blackjack and hookers! In fact, forget the Sonic ROM hack!

Ah, screw the whole thing.

Spoiler

This also reminds me of this post here:

https://sonicresearch.org/community/index.php?threads/a-new-68k-assembler.4179/

 

Using the power of the Sega 32X... get ready...

 

The return of Clownancy's #1 fan, holy shit!!!

 

WIP - Screen Editor / HUD - Seek Engine

In Editor:


At Runtime (In Game)

 

Another tidbit of visual flair I added to S1Fixed. Eggman's ball now adjusts its angle just like in 2013/Origins. Unsure if the rotation is 100% identical or not but I think it looks decent enough.

 

This is easily the greatest piece of art I have ever worked on. My team and I are extremely proud of this and worked really hard together to make this a reality. Those who doubted and mocked my previous works will rue the day, and see that I'm a true artist that deserves to be respected...

"Art should comfort the disturbed and disturb the comfortable" - Cesar A. Cruz

 

I have been following this project for a while now. Not only did you guys put together something cool, the platform you did it on is quite impressive!

 

Will this use interlaced mode?

 

What would I be using interlaced mode for?

 

Because there's per line scrolling effects in screenshot 4 (Which someone without knowledge of how the Mega Drive works would assume is what interlacing is).

 

Well, okay then. Interlaced mode or not, this hack will most definitely change your life... definitely give it a try once it drops during this year's contest...

 

A raw 480i image that brings the 32X to its knees

 

HUD Editor / S3K Inspired Title Card

 

I bet, the 4th screenshoot looks like it's gonna give me nightmares. xD