G-Stream G2020 Sound Fix

[trap15]

I just got finished fixing G-Stream G2020's sound banking, and it feels so good!

Blog post: http://daifukkat.su/2012/08/g-stream-g2 ... ation-fix/
MAME Patch download: http://daifukkat.su/files/gstream.diff

Applies to most MAME from 146u4 and earlier. I've submitted the patch to MAMEdev, so I'd imagine it'll be in the next u release or two.

[KAI]

Nice, thanks trap15. Now we can play this game the way god intended.
Damn that OKI sound chip.

[emphatic]

Excellent work!

[BPzeBanshee]

AWWWWWWWWWWWW YEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

Cheers, trap15, And sorry if I was a pain! I'm sure the n00b questions on compiling MAME with a single game in mind must've made you facepalm a few times.

EDIT:

Code: Select all

patching file gstream.c
Assertion failed: hunk, file patch-2.5.4/patch.c, line 343

This application has requested the Runtime to terminate it in an unusual way.
Please contact the application's support team for more information.

I know I'm putting the right command in but patch.exe clearly doesn't want to co-operate. Is it just me?

[blackoak]

Thanks a lot! Did you undertake this because you like the game, or merely for the challenge? This was set up at the last shmupmeet and I was underwhelmed, but I didn't get a chance much to play it either.

[trap15]

BPze: it sounds like your patch program is broken D: I'll send you the patched file in PM.

blackoak: I did it for both actually I like the game a bunch, and I was bored, so I thought maybe I could see if it's possible to fix sanely. And it was I can understand being underwhelmed during the first few plays, but if you play it a bunch you realize it's a lot deeper than it seems at first sight. It's also loads of fun

[emphatic]

Is this a fix that can be used for an actual PCB as well? Also, is a very powerful computer needed to play this in MAME still? I can get the PCB, but I wanna make sure it's a game for me first.

[trap15]

The PCB is fine. This fix is for MAME itself. Unfortunately the sound quality will always be crap

Yes, a relatively powerful computer is needed. My several-years-old MacBook can play it, but only at like 150% max. Go ahead and play it a bit in MAME before choosing to buy the PCB

[Dave_K.]

To bad you didn't give it a proper try blackoak, its one of my favorite hidden gems. Never seen a superplay, but if you aren't producing 1000 point medal streams via your shield, you aren't playing to its full scoring potential.

[BPzeBanshee]

To bad you didn't give it a proper try blackoak, its one of my favorite hidden gems. Never seen a superplay, but if you aren't producing 1000 point medal streams via your shield, you aren't playing to its full scoring potential.

That and killing enemies quickly to activate the more expert course parts of each stage (and don't forget the alternating segments but we've got no idea how that works), and point-blanking to more particles (!) to charge your charge shot shield thingy, and wrecking individual components of bosses.

One other note for everyone: it appears there are actually two versions of this game out in the world somewhere. Left: The one in MAME, Right: the one on some Japanese website.


Combined with some of the weirdness the game exhibits (ie. credits segment plays but doesn't actually have anything for it in the ROM) it leads me to suspect what we have in MAME is a prototype dump and that there is a more complete version out there. Maybe they fixed the sound and heating problems, maybe not. We won't know until someone actually gets a board and shows vids/dumps it for MAME I suppose.

@trap15: Cheers, the sooner the better. I've downloaded the old MinGW tools, the new MinGW tools and even some random ones off Sourceforge/Google and they all exhibit the same error. Meanwhile some obscure mame version update seem to start patching fine so who knows. I just wanna play.

[Dave_K.]

One other note for everyone: it appears there are actually two versions of this game out in the world somewhere. Left: The one in MAME, Right: the one on some Japanese website.

I have the PCB, and it looks just like the Mame dump. Stickers on the PCB do not look like a prototype. I recognize the picture of the cab on the right being from Hey arcade (black lights give it away). BTW: I noticed a similar pic of this title screen on Try Tower's blog here.

I would love to know what's different in that version. Or maybe its really the same game, but the title screen is different once someone clears it or there is time released content? There is a battery that keeps scores and settings alive in NVRAM. There is also a Ketsui type switch that grounds the NVRAM and resets all scores to 0.

Combined with some of the weirdness the game exhibits (ie. credits segment plays but doesn't actually have anything for it in the ROM) it leads me to suspect what we have in MAME is a prototype dump and that there is a more complete version out there.

I don't understand what you mean here...when the credits roll it shows parts of the game that are not actually in the game? The demo sequences are all from regular stages as far as I've seen.

[Dave_K.]

Just watched Kaizer's final boss run here, and guess what happens after the credits roll? Looks like the G-Stream ship coming down over the logo, but he cut off the video at the end. So maybe I'm right in that its some kind of extra content after clearing the game.

[BPzeBanshee]

Yeah, I put it up to Kaiser to upload it. When I actually coinfed to the end though that appears as you describe
BUT
Then it stops at the spot like in the picture, and when the title logo appears, that ship isn't on it. It just disappears.

Video emulation issue? Possibly. But then nothing else has noticeable weirdness in MAME. I believe the random coloured boxes in the transition animation are deliberate, though not sure about Stage 4 boss' explosion which darkens the background. My first line of questioning was this and Haze/trap15 both seem to think a video issue is unlikely.

My main point of interest isn't actually the ship though, but the credits roll itself. There is nothing for staff listing other than what you saw in Kaiser's vid, and going by Haze and co. in this thread there's no text in the actual ROM either.

That has me very suss. It looks like it's definitely meant to have something, and the final boss himself seems a bit lacklustre in it's very last phase (blow off the caps and it just sits there? huh?). That's why I was thinking it could be an older or unfinished version board. It'd be great if you could dispel the idea with some footage though, especially with the sound issues (what actually plays on what stage). Time-delay could be possible too but we're going to need people to play it to figure that one.

Regarding the patch, I just managed to get this to compile under 0.146u4 (my SVN version didn't want to co-operate).
Stage Clear/Game Over work fine, Credits actually played something like the credits music (Stage 1 music with an end) but started off quiet then started again after I put in my name. Stage 4 plays Stage 1 music, and Stage 6 plays Stage 2. 5-A (I think) and 3-A appeared fine but I can't seem to actually play the B stages.

[trap15]

Dave_K. actually recorded 30 second snippets of each stage so I could verify. Stage 4 and stage 6 do indeed play stage 1 and stage 2 music on the actual PCB. Which means those tracks are for the A and B stages of 3 and 5

[Kaiser]

Just watched Kaizer's final boss run here, and guess what happens after the credits roll? Looks like the G-Stream ship coming down over the logo, but he cut off the video at the end. So maybe I'm right in that its some kind of extra content after clearing the game.

Not really, there are few images there then it goes back to the title screen.

[BPzeBanshee]

Dave_K. actually recorded 30 second snippets of each stage so I could verify. Stage 4 and stage 6 do indeed play stage 1 and stage 2 music on the actual PCB. Which means those tracks are for the A and B stages of 3 and 5

So we can confirm that the banking absolutely works correctly then! Excellent!

[Dave_K.]

Yeah, I put it up to Kaiser to upload it. When I actually coinfed to the end though that appears as you describe
BUT
Then it stops at the spot like in the picture, and when the title logo appears, that ship isn't on it. It just disappears.

Video emulation issue? Possibly. But then nothing else has noticeable weirdness in MAME. I believe the random coloured boxes in the transition animation are deliberate, though not sure about Stage 4 boss' explosion which darkens the background. My first line of questioning was this and Haze/trap15 both seem to think a video issue is unlikely.

Confirmed a few more things on the PCB. Random box colors at end of stages, check. Stage 4 boss explosion darkens the background, check. Credit feeding last stage and finishing the game shows the large G-Stream ship after credits, but it does disappear when the title comes on.

My guess about the title screen is you need to ALL it without continuing and the ship will stay on the title screen. I don't have this setup in mame, so if someone can try save-stating it through to the end and confirm, that would be great.

[BPzeBanshee]

My guess about the title screen is you need to ALL it without continuing and the ship will stay on the title screen. I don't have this setup in mame, so if someone can try save-stating it through to the end and confirm, that would be great.

Tried it with invincibility cheat, no dice. I doubt it checks for duration of invincibility as a factor.....?

Could be something to do with the amount of playthroughs or playtime or whatever the hell the Configrasion screen is all about. If it is a requirement-unlock it isn't very straightforward.

[rtw]

Combined with some of the weirdness the game exhibits (ie. credits segment plays but doesn't actually have anything for it in the ROM) it leads me to suspect what we have in MAME is a prototype dump and that there is a more complete version out there.

I did the g-stream dump IIRC the board had an EPROM which had one leg folded underneath it. Another thing is that the setup/test screen seems buggy.

Wasn't this game programmed by the guy from Triangle Service ? Maybe someone knows him and can ask or ask him via social media ?

[trap15]

Yeah, Fujino was the programmer. I could probably ask NAOTO (the sound artist) on twitter, but I don't think Fujino has one. I also don't know if NAOTO would respond (or if he does, if he'd remember in the first place).