Special K - v 0.8.65 [Legacy Release] - (1/15/18)

[Kaldaien]

Release Note History (in lieu of documentation)

I am too busy experimenting to write proper long-term documentation...

You may find useful pseudo-documentation here[gitlab.com]

Releases

Branch=Latest

1/15/18	v 0.8.65 [github.com] Improved Startup Performance
1/14/18	v 0.8.64 [github.com] Fix missing overlay in D3D11
1/13/18	v 0.8.62 [github.com] DirectInput 7 Support + More OpenGL stuff
1/9/18	v 0.8.61 [github.com] More OpenGL Improvements
1/5/18	v 0.8.60 [github.com] Improved OpenGL and Global Injection Support
1/2/18	v 0.8.59 [github.com] Steam Common Redistributable Disposal
1/1/18	v 0.8.58 [github.com] Happy New Year
12/21/17	v 0.8.57 [github.com] Improved Steam Controller Support
12/19/17	v 0.8.56 [github.com] Fix Handle Leak in Applications Blacklisted from Injection
12/18/17	v 0.8.55 [github.com] RivaTuner Statistics Server Compatibility
12/15/17	v 0.8.54 [github.com] Improved OKAMI HD / 大神 絶景版 shader modding
12/2/17	v 0.8.52 [github.com] 32-bit Injection Compat Fix
11/3/17	v 0.8.50.4 [github.com] Enhanced Framerate Limiter + D3D11 Texture Reload
10/2/17	v 0.8.46 [github.com] Fix config for Steam games with non-Latin names
9/29/17	v 0.8.45 [github.com] D3D9 Texture Injection Optimization
9/23/17	v 0.8.44 [github.com] Denuvo Activation Management (Steamworks only)
9/18/17	v 0.8.43 [github.com] Divinity: Original Sin 2 Optimizations
9/5/17	v 0.8.41 [github.com] File | Exit
9/3/17	v 0.8.39 [github.com] D3D9 Shader Mod Tools + Clothing Optional
8/31/17	v 0.8.37 [github.com] Preliminary Native Steam Controller Support
8/27/17	v 0.8.36 [github.com] First Anniversary Release
8/7/17	v 0.8.33 [github.com] Multi-colored graph widgets
7/23/17	v 0.8.26 [github.com] G-Sync Status in OSD
7/20/17	v 0.8.25 [github.com] Many fixes for Mouse Effect: Agh! and ReShade.
7/15/17	v 0.8.24.3 [github.com] Multi-threaded Rendering / TexCache Fixes
7/11/17	v 0.8.24 [github.com] Final Fantasy 8 (Preliminary DirectInput 7 Support)
7/9/17	v 0.8.23.1 [github.com] Streamlined SKIM64 Experience
7/8/17	v 0.8.22.8 [github.com] Fairy Fencer AD Middleware License Fix
7/2/17	v 0.8.21.3 [github.com] SKIM Replaces inject.bat / uninject.bat
7/1/17	v 0.8.20 [github.com] Compatibility Updates
6/21/17	v 0.8.19 [github.com] Compatibility Updates
6/21/17	v 0.8.18 [github.com] Improved Version Management
6/20/17	v 0.8.17 [github.com] Auto-Update
6/19/17	v 0.8.16 [github.com] In-game fullscreen toggle added to D3D11
6/18/17	v 0.8.15 [github.com] Compatibility Menu (HOLD Ctrl + Shift at game start)
6/16/17	v 0.8.14 [github.com] DirectDraw Support + New Injection Menu
6/11/17	v 0.8.13 [github.com] D3D11 Texture / Shader Modding
5/16/17	v 0.8.12 [gitlab.com] { No Auto-Update Support Yet }

http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=933337066

Test Releases

Branch=Testing

12/13/17	v 0.8.53.6 [github.com] Dbghelp.dll changes for League of Legends Compat
11/29/17	v 0.8.52.1 [github.com] Global Keyboard Macros
11/23/17	v 0.8.51 [github.com] World of Final Fantasy Compatibility
10/28/17	v 0.8.49.2 [github.com] Custom ReShade supports wrapper DLLs + Global Injection Whitelist
10/5/17	v 0.8.47.5 [github.com] D3D11 Shader State Profiles
9/3/17	v 0.8.40 [github.com] XInput Slot Reassignment
8/14/17	v 0.8.35 [github.com] Improved D3D11 Texture Mod Support
8/10/17	v 0.8.34 [github.com] Custom ReShade Support
8/6/17	v 0.8.32 [github.com] Steam Game Profiles No Longer use <appname.exe>
8/5/17	v 0.8.31 [github.com] Added Gamepad Input Support to Widgets
8/2/17	v 0.8.30 [github.com] Fixed DDRAW and D3D8 API Wrapping
8/1/17	v 0.8.29 [github.com] Improved UI Widgets
7/29/17	v 0.8.28 [github.com] Increased Log/Config/Startup Performance
7/27/17	v 0.8.27 [github.com] OSD Widgets

[JBeckman]

Shouldn't XAudio be more robust? ...It's just that broken or untested in-game isn't it? Figures. But at least having a warning message or similar should help alleviate the problem a bit. :)


EDIT: Cri Engine? That's what it's called? Like it doesn't make you cry (Like that *other* engine.) instead it leaves a little mess and causes a crisis. :P

[Kaldaien]

Well, I frankly don't even know what that code in XAudio is or does. About all I can tell from looking at the crash dump there is that a function returned 0, and I'm pretty sure it wasn't supposed to :)

There are no debug symbols for that DLL for some reason. I just know that in x64, rax is the return value and rcx is the first parameter

This will fly over everyone's head, but whatever, I find it interesting :)

https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/9z1stfyw.aspx

[Draken/Eitan]

Originally posted by JBeckman:

EDIT: Cri Engine? That's what it's called? Like it doesn't make you cry (Like that *other* engine.) instead it leaves a little mess and causes a crisis. :P

Looks like it's the most popular amongst JRPG devs at the moment which is the common factor for the window issues in woff and so, and it makes me cry.

I think a comparison between how the port perform vs ps3 emulation would be nice. Except I left most of my ps3 games in storage at my parents when I moved country so I can't test that. :-/

[Kaldaien]

Not at the moment, more like for the past 20+ years :) CriWare is the same group responsible for the ADX auido codec whose logo you have probably saw plastered all over many PS2, Dreamcast and GameCube cames at startup.

[JBeckman]

Heh so almost as much history as RAD/BIK then, that's interesting.

I think I might remember some CriWare logo for somewhere come to think of it.


EDIT: As for XAudio well it looks like you set some flag from what I assume is the Windows SDK?
https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/windows/desktop/ee415752%28v=vs.85%29.aspx?f=255&MSPPError=-2147217396

Eh probably not very important here, game crashes for whatever reason if you use a audio frequency above 48.000 so lowering it back should work.

Most game audio is probably still using 44100 anyway so not too much of a benefit from setting it higher unless you work with audio on a more professional level, no idea if there's any game using 48000 let alone 96000 but there's probably a limit to natural hearing from the ear too and perhaps technical challenges or limitations such as file size or just compatibility or performance concerns?


EDIT: Though the comparison isn't all that meaningful, Unreal Engine has a lot of history to it too and Epic probably knows what they're doing, devs licensing said engine can still mess up pretty badly.
(Not too sure what the best comparison is here, perhaps it's just inexperience or lack of time and resources? Probably experience.)

[Kaldaien]

I cannot reproduce the sawtooth framerate limiting issues, but man does Star Ocean 4 need a lot of window management fixes. From the window that won't loose focus to incorrect border dimensions, I've never seen this many problems with window management in one game.

[TrowGundam]

The sawtooth actually smoothed out once in-engine scenes started (instead of the Menu or a Cutscene). Became almost entirely flat.

[TrowGundam]

I've gone to a dark place. I'm messing with the MMDevice API (what you need to see and manipulate audio devices). Unfortunatley this all unmanged code. So, I'm having to write a CLR Class Library so that I can make calls from .Net. This will not end well for me. I haven't touched Unmanged code in forever (10+ years).

[Draken/Eitan]

I just tried DSR, 4k to 1080p. Just like in WoFF, the rendering is on 1/4 of the screen, but unlike WoFF, it includes 3D graphics. In essence, DSR fails, it renders at 1080p on a quarter of the screen.

Edit: 2k and 4k resolutions introduce black borders that remind me of the EU ports of FF games. Like 10% of the screen on left and right of the image (total 20%) and about 10% from the bottom ,with the top of the game lined to the top edge. Not so good :P

Edit: Agh. Aliasing is bad again. Some of the uniforms are nicely designed with details carbon fibre texture and zips and etc, which all shimmer like sunlight over water xD

[Kaldaien]

Originally posted by TrowGundam:

I've gone to a dark place. I'm messing with the MMDevice API (what you need to see and manipulate audio devices). Unfortunatley this all unmanged code. So, I'm having to write a CLR Class Library so that I can make calls from .Net. This will not end well for me. I haven't touched Unmanged code in forever (10+ years).

Ah, I had fun working with that. "Core Audio" (WASAPI, MMDevice, etc.) has inconsistent documentation quality.

Some parts are way over-documented, other parts have zero documentation at all and if you look at say this code[gitlab.com], you will find a lot of collaboration between COM Interfaces that Microsoft's documentation never explains.

There's something really satisfying about working with those APIs because you will not find a lot of code examples online, yet it's an underlying part of Windows and everything is using it. XAudio2, for example, just wraps those APIs. It's the road less often taken, with everyone else resorting to XAudio2 =P

[TrowGundam]

My bigger problem is getting hte freaking Linker to pull in the darn lib. It is acting like it can't find it, even though I know it is there. It's something do with it being a C++/CLI Class Library. It's not able to resolve the Interfaces. I'm done fighting with it for now. I need to sleep, I've got work in ~7 hours.

[Kaldaien]

That's unfortunate. The thing I've always liked about COM in straight C code is that you don't need to link to anything :) At a lower level, these COM interfaces are just a big old bag of function pointers and if you have the factory function (i.e. CoCreateInstance (...)), you can create just about any COM object you want without adding immediate dependencies to DLLs or libraries.

But I guess like everything I've ever seen in C++/CLI, Microsoft had to make it stupidly complicated.

[Kaldaien]

By the way .... when did 3 lousy songs suddenly constitute a game's soundtrack? I don't think Square Enix has been very forthright advertising anything about Star Ocean 4. In fact, the native render target resolution for most of this supposedly 4K / Full HD remastered game is ... you guessed it ... 1280x720.

God I hate to sound negative, but this is silly. The price is right, but they're promising more than they are actually delivering.

[Draken/Eitan]

Originally posted by Kaldaien:

By the way .... when did 3 lousy songs suddenly constitute a game's soundtrack? I don't think Square Enix has been very forthright advertising anything about Star Ocean 4. In fact, the native render target resolution for most of this supposedly 4K / Full HD remastered game is ... you guessed it ... 1280x720.

God I hate to sound negative, but this is silly. The price is right, but they're promising more than they are actually delivering.

Soooooooooo, that shimmering artifacting is due to ridiculously low res because they put about as much effort into porting as a dodo puts into survival?

[Fayaine]

Originally posted by Kaldaien:

By the way .... when did 3 lousy songs suddenly constitute a game's soundtrack? I don't think Square Enix has been very forthright advertising anything about Star Ocean 4. In fact, the native render target resolution for most of this supposedly 4K / Full HD remastered game is ... you guessed it ... 1280x720.

God I hate to sound negative, but this is silly. The price is right, but they're promising more than they are actually delivering.

You mean graphically 720p or the Videos being 720 ?