A message to DotEmu regarding Metal Slug 3

[Issen]

Metal Slug 3 Steam was essentially a proprietary NeoGeo emulator made by DotEmu (as evidenced by the fact that it is possible to switch its bios).

So, the development process of Metal Slug X should be extremely simple: They no longer have to make an emulator from scratch, only improve the one they already had.

The emulator used in Metal Slug 3 is serviceable, but it has EXTREMELY obvious issues with sound emulation, even as of the date of the latest patch. It also has a few issues with frame pacing, which creates microstuttering in the game, but that is admittedly a minor issue.

The message is this: DotEmu, if you are using the Metal Slug X development time to make your NeoGeo emulator better (and PLEASE do because the crappy sound is killing me), release a patch to include all of the emulator enhancemements into the Metal Slug 3 Steam release.

If you are not focusing development time on fixing the sound issues of your NeoGeo emulator, PLEASE make it a priority, and then include the fixes in both MSX and MS3 Steam.

Hopefully Metal Slug 3 Steam can be made into the release it should have been in the first place.

[Florence]

Now this is a constructive thread I can get behind. If the small issues that still exist in MS3 are fixed in MSX, I would love to see said fixes retroactively applied to MS3.

[Issen]

Originally posted by Flotilla:

Now this is a constructive thread I can get behind. If the small issues that still exist in MS3 are fixed in MSX, I would love to see said fixes retroactively applied to MS3.

The thing I'm afraid of is that SNK is probably the one calling the shots. If DotEmu actually fix their NeoGeo emulator but SNK doesn't get behind patching MS3, then it'll remain borked. SNK has a tendency of not really caring that much.

[Batman]

Can you be a bit more specific about these issues you encountered with 3?

[Fupa]

Originally posted by Batman:

Can you be a bit more specific about these issues you encountered with 3?

the game doesn't have sound levels, trying to play Co-op online is a freakin' nightmare, you'll only hear shots

and since this game do not have an option to buy 2 copies for online multiplayer... it seems it'll remain the same as MS3

[Issen]

Originally posted by Batman:

Can you be a bit more specific about these issues you encountered with 3?

Sound effects (such as the GO! arrow sound) slow up and down constantly generating a pitch distorsion that bends the pitch to be higher and lower continuously, it is very jarring. It is more noticeable in certain sound effects: For instance, gunfire is not affected much.

Then, the music experiences slight increases and decreases in tempo intermittently, causing the tune to go out of rythm pretty much all the time if you pay attention. It does not seem to cause noticeable changes in pitch, though.

I think these issues are related to the fact that the ENTIRE game undergoes miniature speedups-slowdowns that, even though the game is running at 30 frames per second (the original NeoGeo speed of Metal Slug 3), some frames come sooner than they should, and others come later than they should, creating a microstuttering effect (if you have good eyes, you will notice that the game varies in smoothness, sometimes having miniature skips).

The frame timing issue is not very jarring visually, but the audio is extremely bothersome (ESPECIALLY on the pitch-bent sound effects), and I think the issues are probably related.

[TheCoopX]

Originally posted by Rukumouru:

SNK has a tendency of not really caring that much.

And DotEmu does? Their releases for the Irem arcade pack and the Raiden pack show they're not interested in fixing broken emulation issues. If they can't be bothered to make their emulated games stop crashing repeatedly, or actually run properly on systems that exceed the minimum specs, they aren't going to fix a sound issue.

[Issen]

Originally posted by TheCoopX:

Originally posted by Rukumouru:

SNK has a tendency of not really caring that much.

And DotEmu does? Their releases for the Irem arcade pack and the Raiden pack show they're not interested in fixing broken emulation issues. If they can't be bothered to make their emulated games stop crashing repeatedly, or actually run properly on systems that exceed the minimum specs, they aren't going to fix a sound issue.

I know man, I know. I've been saying that DotEmu makes crappy ports for a while, but pointing out facts on the internet is trolling.

[TheCoopX]

Originally posted by Rukumouru:

Originally posted by TheCoopX:

And DotEmu does? Their releases for the Irem arcade pack and the Raiden pack show they're not interested in fixing broken emulation issues. If they can't be bothered to make their emulated games stop crashing repeatedly, or actually run properly on systems that exceed the minimum specs, they aren't going to fix a sound issue.

I know man, I know. I've been saying that DotEmu makes crappy ports for a while, but pointing out facts on the internet is trolling.

I saw that in one of the other threads *lol*

But yeah, as much as I'd love to get the MS X game when it releases (Metal Slug is probably my favorite Neo-Geo series), I'm having a hard time convincing myself to do so. It's almost a given that it'll have emulation issues that likely won't get fixed by the Dot-eh that's good enough-Emu folks. They'll pull an EA and slap a patch or two on it, then call it a day like they have with their other emulation-based releases.

[Batman]

Except for the no sound levels i didn't have any other trouble and their other ports (raiden legacy and irem arcade hits) work fine for me.

[MrSands]

If DotEmu do what the op says I will buy this full price no hesitation. Otherwise, I'm not touching it.

[Issen]

Originally posted by MrSands:

If DotEmu do what the op says I will buy this full price no hesitation. Otherwise, I'm not touching it.

It really is a shame. I want to buy this game with all my might, but I will not stand for sub-par ports.

Hopefully they will prove me wrong on release, and fix MS3 to go with that too.

[Issen]

Originally posted by #sixtyeight:

You forgot to mention the horrid multiplayer that constantly desynced and lagged.

I didn't have the chance to try MS3 over online co-op, as I've only played it in local co-op at a friend's house. I mainly mentioned issues I have actually experienced myself while playing.

[daicon]

Thanks OP. It would be awesome if DotEmu did these things.

[info_paradox]

I didn't even realize these were emulated DotEmu ports.
It seems like DotEmu releases tend to have issues.
I picked up the Irem Arcade collection from their site several years ago, and it still hasn't been updated to fix the sound and choppy frame rate.
No reason for these games to run so poorly on a modern PC.

[Issen]

So just like MS3, I got to play-test this at a friend's before making my purchase.

It has literally the exact same flaws as MS3: Uneven frame timing, horrible sound emulation (where the music and sfx experiences continuous small speedups and slowdowns that also change the pitch) and more slowdowns than the original game.

We played locally, so I can't comment on anything related to netcode.

So yeah, not buying this one. Sorry DotEmu, but I can't get behind shoddy ports. However, if you DO get around to fixing the innards of your emulator through patches this time around, please do include the fixes in MS3 (see OP in this thread) and I will gladly support the game and urge others to buy it.

As of right now: NeoGeo/MS purists, stay away.