[Amiga] Amiberry + WHDLoad = Holy Grail - Amiberry's official thread

Dwarfboysim

HI all,
I used to love playing this as a child. I have an LHA version but it runs too fast. Was advised to set BITTER-WAIT in the WHDLOAD_DB.XML file which has made the speed correct but now the game has a flickering effect. Particularly if a person is on the screen such as the Nurse in the Hospital or your assistant at the start.

Anyone got any further tips on how to fine tune this game?

Also would love to know all the parameters and values I can set for the individual games in the whdload.xmil to avoid have UAE’s as well for the LHA games.

Also anyone know of plans for someone to do Bone Cruncher and Starways as LHA files? Both need kick start 1.2 and minimal RAM/CPU settings otherwise they won’t load

FYI my system is:

System spec below:
Raspberry Pi 3 Model B
Raspberry Pi 2.5 amp PSU
SanDisk 64GB SD card
4 x Logitech F710 Wireless Controllers
1x 4 port USB 2 Hub
1 x Logitech Wireless Mouse and Keyboard
O.S. RetroPie 4.4 with most recent updates

Thanks,
Greg

HoraceAndSpider

@dudleydes said in [Amiga] Amiberry + WHDLoad = Holy Grail - Amiberry's official thread:

@BiZzAr721 Amiberry gets its game specific settings from whdload.xml which can be found in /opt/retropie/emulators/amiberry/whdboot/game-data/ .

The latest version available at the Amiberry github currently supports v3.2 of Banshee CD32 so v3.3 will launch with the default (non-AGA) settings. You are better off opening an issue at the Github page to let the devs know so that they can update the whdload.xml file.

In the meantime, you can create a game specific setting for v3.3 by following the instructions at: https://github.com/midwan/amiberry/wiki/WHDLoad-Auto-booting#game-specific-settings-improving-game-compatibility.

Hi mate

Just to let you know I auto-sync all of the latest WHDLoad game every few days. The Python script that generates the XML is also run in “update” mode (new entries only) every 2 days, and a full “refresh all” sync is down very week. These changes are immediately pushed to the Amiberry XML GitHub, so it should never be out of date by more than 3 days, as long as my computer stays online! (If anyone wants to host a backup, I would welcome it, please get in contact)

The XML generator actually re-uses a lot of the old Config Maker code, and so any game that is updated, provided it still has the same directory path inside the LHA, will immediately pick up the right settings even on an updated version, without anyone needing to lift a finger.

AGA, CD32 and NTSC modes should all be self-detected from the filenames. Please let me know (via the Amiberry GitHub ideally) if this is not the case.

I am working on a “download Xml” button in-emulator for this regularly updated source, as the new updated booter is using the xml to really speed up compatibility and faster loading times.

HoraceAndSpider

Also I should probably say I am surpressing the support for the .whd file as I feel this is unnecessary as the .uae files (which are far more flexible) will be loaded with the game anyway, and I would rather contributions were made for the XML to be correctly updated.

BiZzAr721

@HoraceAndSpider said in [Amiga] Amiberry + WHDLoad = Holy Grail - Amiberry's official thread:

@dudleydes said in [Amiga] Amiberry + WHDLoad = Holy Grail - Amiberry's official thread:

@BiZzAr721 Amiberry gets its game specific settings from whdload.xml which can be found in /opt/retropie/emulators/amiberry/whdboot/game-data/ .

The latest version available at the Amiberry github currently supports v3.2 of Banshee CD32 so v3.3 will launch with the default (non-AGA) settings. You are better off opening an issue at the Github page to let the devs know so that they can update the whdload.xml file.

In the meantime, you can create a game specific setting for v3.3 by following the instructions at: https://github.com/midwan/amiberry/wiki/WHDLoad-Auto-booting#game-specific-settings-improving-game-compatibility.

Hi mate

Just to let you know I auto-sync all of the latest WHDLoad game every few days. The Python script that generates the XML is also run in “update” mode (new entries only) every 2 days, and a full “refresh all” sync is down very week. These changes are immediately pushed to the Amiberry XML GitHub, so it should never be out of date by more than 3 days, as long as my computer stays online! (If anyone wants to host a backup, I would welcome it, please get in contact)

The XML generator actually re-uses a lot of the old Config Maker code, and so any game that is updated, provided it still has the same directory path inside the LHA, will immediately pick up the right settings even on an updated version, without anyone needing to lift a finger.

AGA, CD32 and NTSC modes should all be self-detected from the filenames. Please let me know (via the Amiberry GitHub ideally) if this is not the case.

I am working on a “download Xml” button in-emulator for this regularly updated source, as the new updated booter is using the xml to really speed up compatibility and faster loading times.

Thanks for your work! I love the idea of adding a "download xml" button in emulator as well.

LineOf7s

So, to be clear, should we be regularly grabbing the latest whdload.xml file from github in order to maximise Amiberry compatibility?

HoraceAndSpider

@LineOf7s absolutely, but unless you have manually installed my fork there isn’t much point in that until the main branch is updated (probably when I finish the download button - hopefully during this week)

LineOf7s

Aaah I see.

I shall await The Button. :)

HoraceAndSpider

finished "the button" today :)

It's on my fork, awaiting merge into the main branch.

Apekop123

Quick question, when I try to download TinTin on the moon there are two versions, one with .files at the end and one with .image. Which one should I use? When I put them in the roms folder neither of them starts. Or should I be doing something with the .lha files?
Thanks in advance!

HoraceAndSpider

@Apekop123

It should make very litttle difference on Amiberry.

Tbh, for RetroPie the image one might load ever so slightly faster becuase it only has to cache a file for each original floppy disk.

The only difference in these, is that the original HD installer... (remember, WHDLoad was originally designed to run games that only played on disk, on our hard drives some 20 years ago, and it’s still going strong!!) ...would have had two options: one to install the game by creating “images” of the entire original disks, and one that would have extracted individual files from the disk. Not all installers do this, becuase it really depends on the way the original data was stored.

The files option is better for file space but that’s not really an issue for us here. I like files on my “power” Amiga system because I like seeing if I can make level edits or things like that, but I confess I’d use image versions for RetroPie.

Hope that helps explain

HoraceAndSpider

@Apekop123 I will have to test both to see why they don’t work - there shouldn’t be any difference

Apekop123

Thanks for the explanation. Hopefully I can get one of these to run for me. Great you're willing to look into this!

youxia

I tried to make some savegames using the native in-game save menus. They do not work in any game I tried it on (games either throw error messages or hang altogether). I suppose it may have something to do with directory permissions?

maxbeanz

@Apekop123 Tintin is probably another game that doesn't work because the Amiberry Booter doesn't detect the 'data' directory correctly. I think Jaguar XJ220 and North & South also don't work. There are quite a few games that use a 'data' directory (which apparently is the prefered tidy method with slave writers) so i'm not sure why these 3 don't work (maybe more). They all work fine on PC & Mac (WinUAE/FS-UAE) so I think the Booter needs a patch !

HoraceAndSpider

@maxbeanz said in [Amiga] Amiberry + WHDLoad = Holy Grail - Amiberry's official thread:

@Apekop123 Tintin is probably another game that doesn't work because the Amiberry Booter doesn't detect the 'data' directory correctly. I think Jaguar XJ220 and North & South also don't work. There are quite a few games that use a 'data' directory (which apparently is the prefered tidy method with slave writers) so i'm not sure why these 3 don't work (maybe more). They all work fine on PC & Mac (WinUAE/FS-UAE) so I think the Booter needs a patch

It’s not an easy fix for the booter. It’s becuase the slave (incorrectly) does not include the “data” folder in the slave header. 99% of slaves that use a data folder specify this correctly, and this is what amiberry’s xml scanner picks up.

It is an easy manual fix for the user though to adjust the auto-startup and it’s an easy permanent fix for the slave authors also (just 4 bytes need to be added tot eg slave) changing the booter would require a lot more “special case” code, and a change to the xml scanner is possible but still a comparative inconvenience

North and South was fixed by the slave author already. Jaguar was reported some time ago and I’m surprised it hasn’t been fixed yet.

youxia

@HoraceAndSpider Is it possible to save games from within the games themselves? (I do not mean save states)

maxbeanz

@HoraceAndSpider Thanks for the info. So it's just Tintin and Jaguar XJ220 that need a manual fix (that we know of) ?

Apekop123

@maxbeanz said in [Amiga] Amiberry + WHDLoad = Holy Grail - Amiberry's official thread:

So it's just Tintin and Jaguar XJ220 that need a manual fix (that we know of) ?

I believe also North and South needs it.

HoraceAndSpider

@youxia said in [Amiga] Amiberry + WHDLoad = Holy Grail - Amiberry's official thread:

@HoraceAndSpider Is it possible to save games from within the games themselves? (I do not mean save states)

If a game supports saving, (even high scores) then the WHDLoad save files are saved to the save-data/savegames folder, which on RetroPie is located in the configs share.

Here is mine, as an example:

./Savegames:
AlienBreedTowerAssault				LegendMindscape
Bloodwych					MidnightResistance
BloodwychExtendedLevels				Populous2
BubbleBobble					PuttySquad
BuggyBoy					SensibleGolf
CannonFodderCD32				SensibleWorldOfSoccer
Cybernoid					SensibleWorldOfSoccer9697
DeluxeGalaga(AGA)v2.6				SpeedballNTSC
Dune2 (1)					StuntCarRacer
Dune2_0						Switchblade
EyeOfTheBeholder				TheAttackoftheGreenSmellyAliensfromPlanet27b6
FlightOfTheAmazonQueen				TheNewZealandStory
GemX						TheSecretOfMonkeyIsland
GravityForce					Turrican
GravityPower					UFOEnemyUnknownAGA
Hammerfist					Unreal
IK+						Volfied
IndianaJones&TheFateOfAtlantis			WipeOut
IndianaJonesAtlantisAdv				WorldsOfLegend
IndyHeat					WormsDirectorsCutAGA

./Savegames/AlienBreedTowerAssault:
AlienBreedTA.highs

./Savegames/Bloodwych:
bloodsave0

./Savegames/BloodwychExtendedLevels:
bloodsave0

./Savegames/BubbleBobble:
BubbleBobble.highs

./Savegames/BuggyBoy:
BuggyBoy.highs

./Savegames/CannonFodderCD32:
savegame

./Savegames/Cybernoid:
Cybernoid.highs

./Savegames/DeluxeGalaga(AGA)v2.6:
GALAGA.PREFERENCES

./Savegames/Dune2 (1):
SAVEFAME.DAT

./Savegames/Dune2_0:
SAVEFAME.DAT

./Savegames/EyeOfTheBeholder:
EOBDATA.SAV	LEVELS.TMP

./Savegames/FlightOfTheAmazonQueen:
_aq_save.1

./Savegames/GemX:
GemX.high

./Savegames/GravityForce:
gravityforce.highs

./Savegames/GravityPower:
Logfile.Dat

./Savegames/Hammerfist:
HISC

./Savegames/IK+:
IK+.Highs

./Savegames/IndianaJones&TheFateOfAtlantis:
iq-points

./Savegames/IndianaJonesAtlantisAdv:
iq-points	savegame.001

./Savegames/IndyHeat:
Disk.1

./Savegames/LegendMindscape:
legend1	legend9

./Savegames/MidnightResistance:
MidnightResistance.highs

./Savegames/Populous2:
DOM2017.GAM

./Savegames/PuttySquad:
PuttySquad.highs

./Savegames/SensibleGolf:
DOM16.GLF	GALAHAD.ROOT	SG.OPTS

./Savegames/SensibleWorldOfSoccer:

./Savegames/SensibleWorldOfSoccer9697:
GALAHAD.ROOT	SAVE		temp

./Savegames/SensibleWorldOfSoccer9697/SAVE:
DOM-2016.CAR	DOM-D.CAR	DOM-F.CAR	DOMB2016.CAR
DOM-C.CAR	DOM-E.CAR	DOM-FB.CAR	_UAEFSDB.___

./Savegames/SensibleWorldOfSoccer9697/temp:
CUSTOMS.EDT	DOM-2016.CAR	DOM-C.CAR	DOM-C.CAR 2	DOMB2016.CAR	GALAHAD.ROOT	GILL4-3.HIL

./Savegames/SpeedballNTSC:
knockout.sav

./Savegames/StuntCarRacer:
StuntCarRacer.times

./Savegames/Switchblade:
Switchblade.highs

./Savegames/TheAttackoftheGreenSmellyAliensfromPlanet27b6:
AttackOfTheGreenSmellyAliens.highs

./Savegames/TheNewZealandStory:
NewZealandStory.highs

./Savegames/TheSecretOfMonkeyIsland:
savegame._f_

./Savegames/Turrican:
highs

./Savegames/UFOEnemyUnknownAGA:
Temp	game_1

./Savegames/UFOEnemyUnknownAGA/Temp:

./Savegames/UFOEnemyUnknownAGA/game_1:

./Savegames/Unreal:
unrealhigh

./Savegames/Volfied:
Volfied		Volfied.High

./Savegames/WipeOut:
disk.2

./Savegames/WorldsOfLegend:
EMPIRE1

./Savegames/WormsDirectorsCutAGA:
TWTEAMS

./Savegames/WormsDirectorsCutAGA/TWTEAMS:
A-TEAM		CRAIG		HORSEMEN	MAGIC		PAUL F		RICH		TBL2
ANDY		CRIS		HRH		MARK		PAUL K		SARA		THE FARM
BJORN		CRZ1		JOHN		MARTYN		PORL		STONED		WORMS
CHRIS		CRZ2		KATZ		MYSTERY		PRODIGY		TAKEAWAY
COLIN		GRAVIS		KELVIN		OH NO		RAINBOW		TBL1

HoraceAndSpider

@Apekop123 said in [Amiga] Amiberry + WHDLoad = Holy Grail - Amiberry's official thread:

@maxbeanz said in [Amiga] Amiberry + WHDLoad = Holy Grail - Amiberry's official thread:

So it's just Tintin and Jaguar XJ220 that need a manual fix (that we know of) ?

I believe also North and South needs it.

Not true, the slave author fixed it, so as long as you use version 2.0+ the issue is resolved.

http://whdload.de/games/NorthAndSouth.html

version 2.0 (28.01.2019) done by JOTD:

Game now uses "data" directory so it's consistent with install script (issue #0003880)

I updated the slave for Jaguar XJ220 also, and have submitted that to WHDLoad, so maybe that will be resolved soon also.