Best & worst ACDs

[nodtveidt]

How would the ACD make a game scroll more smoothly? All it has is some additional memory.

In theory...if CPU time is consumed for tile decompression, the game could...in theory...scroll slower. If the data was stored uncompressed in the ACD RAM banks, no CPU time is wasted decompressing the graphics and...in theory...it would scroll smoother.

The ACD also has a couple of math operations, but I don't know if they'd factor in here or not...but they may.

[termis]

I believe one of the folks here verified that Brandish just caches some of the dungeons on the extra ACD RAM to decrease load times, but it shouldn't do anything extra during actual game play.

And yeah, as for Strider audio, I should probably say that I like the BGM a lot better than the original.  I probably should've said the music.  I can agree with the muted sound effects compared to the original, but the music -- there's just no contest. 
http://dl.fileplanet.com/dl/dl.asp?classicgaming/contra/history/strider/Strider%20Arcade%20-%20Raid.mp3
http://dl.fileplanet.com/dl/dl.asp?classicgaming/contra/history/strider/Strider%20PCE%20-%20Raid.mp3

[Black Tiger]

How would the ACD make a game scroll more smoothly? All it has is some additional memory.

One way PCE games can "fake" parallax/layered bgs is with animated bg tiles.

Ys III's choppy bgs may be faithful to te MSX version but its thought that it didn't improve the scrolling frame rate because it was still only a 2.0 CD game. But if the game had 36 times as much space to store frames of animation, in theory it should be able to animate things as smooth as possible.

[spenoza]

But most of the background tiles are small and repeated. All it has to do is shift the tiles. I don't think jittery scrolling is a memory issue. It's a programming issue.

[runinruder]

its thought that it didn't improve the scrolling frame rate because it was still only a 2.0 CD

Tenshi no Uta II is a Super CD and has similar issues. 

[nodtveidt]

But most of the background tiles are small and repeated. All it has to do is shift the tiles. I don't think jittery scrolling is a memory issue. It's a programming issue.

That is completely correct in that case.

[Joe Redifer]

Extra memory could help, though.  Imagine if parts of the BG used animated tiles to simulate multiple layers for both up and down directions.  More memory would mean more animated tiles instead of just one or two repeated across the entire screen.  That way the screen wouldn't have to scroll one tile at a time and would be less jerky.

That would also mean a hell of a lot more artistic and programming work, though.

[Bonknuts]

I don't think jittery scrolling is a memory issue. It's a programming issue.

 The problem with that assumption is that it's too general from issues that are very specific.

 There are many ways to do dynamic tile animation. Some have emphasis on memory restrictions, others on processing cycles required, and other still on bandwidth to vram transfer. It really depends on the effect and the cost of doing it via dynamic tiles. Dynamic tiles introduce other limitations in how the display is arranged.

 If SCD memory is used, there are some methods to really decrease the choppiness of the scrolling in Ys 3. Hell - I'd even dumb the res down from 342x240 to 256x240 to further help it.
 
 A little bit of info: Lords of Thunder uses dynamic tiles to simulate the lines scrolls in the stages, not hsync scrolls as you would normally think.

 

[turbokon]

I haven't played much ACD games.  Strider doesn't do it for me and the NEO GEO ports are ok but the one that makes owning a Arcade Card worth while for me is SAPPHIRE.  Such a eye candy and music to my ears.  However from want I been reading on this topic, kabuki itouryodan is way up there.  I never played it but I would to try.  This is not in Kadamose library.  Would any body else willing to sale me a CD-R copy of kabuki itouryodan?

[Bonknuts]

Would any body else willing to sale me a CD-R copy of kabuki itouryodan?

 Why, is the game rare or something? I had bought for under $15 last year.

 Edit: Also, you can get correct dumps from CD games from the PC Engine Entity HUB on DC++

[nodtveidt]

Edit: Also, you can get correct dumps from CD games from the PC Engine Entity HUB on DC++

...when it works again, you mean...

[Tatsujin]

 Why, is the game rare or something?

no it isn't. but may be for some people still harder to get than an iso from the net.

[FM-77]

There are good ACD games?

[Tatsujin]

There are good ACD games?

is this question taken seriously?

[SignOfZeta]

No. FM-77 is kind of a troll, from what I can see.