Breath of Fire II (70% questions)

jdratlif · Post by **jdratlif** » Thu Sep 30, 2004 12:23 pm

Trying to play BOFII.

I found some threads that talk about setting Percent to Execute to 70%.

Well, this doesn't seem to fix the crash bug on my system. Yet I am almost positive I have played this game the entire way through on ZSNES. Though what version I have no idea. It was back when I had my Pentium II 450, which means at least 5 years.

I also heard that in the old version (1.36 or possibly even earlier than that), there was a "fix", that simply set percent to execute to 70% when you loaded BOF2.

So, I was wondering. a) What does Percent to Execute 70% mean? I gather it means less of the SNES is emulated, but what does 70% mean? How would 72% or 68% be different? Then again, why does the range in the config file say 50-150? That seems to suggest my interpreation is wrong. You can't emulate 150% of the SNES features.

And what about the old 1.36 version? Is is the same deal? If I get the bug in the WIP version with percent to execute already set, is it any different to run the 1.36 version? I tried 1.36, but it crashed just like the 0920 WIP.

I would really prefer to play this in zsnes, but if no one has any suggestions for me to try, I could grab Snes9x.

I would also like to hear others experiences with the bug? I remember playing it a few months ago and not knowing why it crashed.

It seems to crash in the same spot for me. Right around the Bridge by Coursair after you ditch Bow at Ruins. After a fight, the game simply stops. Is this the only place it happens? If I could happen to make it all the way to Coursair, might I be okay for the remainder of the game? Or should I give up now and go look at Snes9x?

I have no grudge against Snes9x, only that I prefer zsnes. Since I switched from Snes9x to zsnes, I have never had a reason to go back, until now.

It's not that I dislike Snes9x, only that I like zsnes more.

Nightcrawler · Post by **Nightcrawler** » Thu Sep 30, 2004 1:30 pm

The percentage of execution has to do with the timing of the CPU.

Setting it to 70% makes the main CPU run at 70% speed and setting it to 150% makes it run at 150% it's normal speed.

Why would you want to do this you ask? Because ZSNES does not 100% correct timing speed. Changing the percentage of execution adjusts the speed to a point where certain games will work correctly. It is just a fix for timing bugs.

You should try experimenting with various settings. You can try 72%, 80%, 90%, 110% etc.. You may get lucky and find one that crashes less often or fixes the problem altogether.

jdratlif · Post by **jdratlif** » Fri Oct 01, 2004 12:36 am

Nightcrawler wrote:The percentage of execution has to do with the timing of the CPU.

Setting it to 70% makes the main CPU run at 70% speed and setting it to 150% makes it run at 150% it's normal speed.

Why would you want to do this you ask? Because ZSNES does not 100% correct timing speed. Changing the percentage of execution adjusts the speed to a point where certain games will work correctly. It is just a fix for timing bugs.

You should try experimenting with various settings. You can try 72%, 80%, 90%, 110% etc.. You may get lucky and find one that crashes less often or fixes the problem altogether.

I take back everything I said about Snes9x. I don't like it. The video was very jumpy. And when you test any video mode, it blanks the screen, beeps, then asks me if it worked. Was it supposed to do something? I tried EVERY SINGLE video mode, and it did it on EVERY SINGLE one. So testing was useless, and some video modes didn't work. Plus it seemed like it was stretching it out of the aspect ratio. The jumpiness hurt my eyes, so I couldn't play long enough to really get a good feel, but it seemed that way. If I didn't stretch it, it would take up about 1/3 of my screen (I couldn't see it). Solution? Change to 800x600 video mode and run it there. That would have probably been fine if the video hadn't still been jumpy.

I wonder if I should go post that on the Snes9x message board. I signed up to ask about the video mode test thing, but decided the video hurt my eyes too much to play anyways, so it didn't really matter.

Fortunately, I did find out that the 1.337 zsnes version works fine, and it must have the hack in it, as I didn't have to manually change the percent of execution and I haven't had a crash yet. It seems a little odd that the hack wouldn't work in the current versions, but I know timing changes slightly with every version, so I suppose that could explain it. Or else something I haven't thought of...

Oh well...whatever...

Long story short. ZSNES 1.337 does not crash for me on BOFII (or at least has not yet).

Joe Camacho · Post by **Joe Camacho** » Fri Oct 01, 2004 2:38 am

I once played a version of BOFII that had a trainer, that version didn't crashed on me, at least not that I remember.

jdratlif · Post by **jdratlif** » Fri Oct 01, 2004 3:28 am

Joe Camacho wrote:I once played a version of BOFII that had a trainer, that version didn't crashed on me, at least not that I remember.

Sometime after I renamed all my ROMS with GoodSNES, I removed all my roms that were trained or hacked. But I think I remember something like that. I wonder if I had that also... I can't be sure now, but it seems like I did... If only I had a good memory instead of whatever kind I have.

But I've played all the way through saving Mina and it hasn't crashed yet. I couldn't even make it to Coursair before.

Kagerato · Post by **Kagerato** » Fri Oct 01, 2004 3:45 am

You have to have the fullscreen option enabled to test the video modes correctly. The tests are pretty foolish, IMO. The emulator should either probe the monitor or video card for available resolutions and color depths, or the user should be able to add modes they know their system supports manually. Having the tests makes little to no sense to a user like myself. Some individuals out there apparently find them useful, otherwise they'd have been removed a long time ago...

On something else jdratlif referenced:

The windowed modes (stretching effects, really) of SNES9x are far from adequate for me. They're more of a joke than anything, I would say. Changing the video resolution without the stretch or fullscreen options gives you exacting the same output with a larger/smaller area of blank space. The stretching effect is entirely dependent on the physical size of the window and not the selected resolution. I much, much prefer how ZSNES handles windowed modes (as in, they're actually respected). Additionally, SNES9x's double buffering does not give me flawless video output either.

Separate topic: I don't like SNES9x's "Load ROM" dialog much. It's a bit more functional than ZSNES (just barely), but it's currently buggy. You have to fix it before it displays the left-pane folder tree properly. This can be done by loading a non-ROM and then re-loading the dialog (if not the emulator), or by fooling around with the registry keys belonging to the program. Other aspects of the dialog I don't enjoy are also functionality based: The tree lists all folders, including inaccessible ones like "System Volume Information", its columns do not remember their sizes, and its tree-view does not have any function assigned to right-click. I've often heard people remark that SNES9x's interface is significantly superior to ZSNES. SNES9x's look is deceptive. It looks more like a 'standard' Windows application, but its functionality and organization do not support that.

I don't mean to only make points that bash SNES9x. The emulator is very good and has many favorable features. However, there are quite a few reasons like these here that I prefer ZSNES.

jdratlif · Post by **jdratlif** » Fri Oct 01, 2004 8:07 am

Kagerato wrote:You have to have the fullscreen option enabled to test the video modes correctly. The tests are pretty foolish, IMO. The emulator should either probe the monitor or video card for available resolutions and color depths, or the user should be able to add modes they know their system supports manually. Having the tests makes little to no sense to a user like myself. Some individuals out there apparently find them useful, otherwise they'd have been removed a long time ago...

This is what I thought at first, but it does the same thing in either window mode or full-screen. Blanks the screen, beeps, and then asks me if it's okay. Considering I tried the video mode I am running windows in, and the "standard" modes (640x480, 800x600, 1024x768), and got no output from any of them, it seems to me as though this feature doesn't work.

Kagerato wrote: On something else jdratlif referenced:

The windowed modes (stretching effects, really) of SNES9x are far from adequate for me. They're more of a joke than anything, I would say. Changing the video resolution without the stretch or fullscreen options gives you exacting the same output with a larger/smaller area of blank space. The stretching effect is entirely dependent on the physical size of the window and not the selected resolution. I much, much prefer how ZSNES handles windowed modes (as in, they're actually respected). Additionally, SNES9x's double buffering does not give me flawless video output either.

All the video modes seemed to give me the same square. I wonder if this means Snes9x lied to me about switching the video mode. I tend to think no though as one mode I switched to the monitor said it couldn't display.

I had not thought about resizing the window, then enabling stretch, but yes, I much prefer the ZSNES way of handling things as well.

Kagerato wrote: Separate topic: I don't like SNES9x's "Load ROM" dialog much. It's a bit more functional than ZSNES (just barely), but it's currently buggy. You have to fix it before it displays the left-pane folder tree properly. This can be done by loading a non-ROM and then re-loading the dialog (if not the emulator), or by fooling around with the registry keys belonging to the program. Other aspects of the dialog I don't enjoy are also functionality based: The tree lists all folders, including inaccessible ones like "System Volume Information", its columns do not remember their sizes, and its tree-view does not have any function assigned to right-click. I've often heard people remark that SNES9x's interface is significantly superior to ZSNES. SNES9x's look is deceptive. It looks more like a 'standard' Windows application, but its functionality and organization do not support that.

I forgot about this. The first time I tried it, I couldn't figure out how to switch drives. It seems I loaded the "ntldr" file several times and there was still no tree. But maybe I was scrolled to the right or something.

I often hear people tell me how "out of data" ZSNES's interface is, and how they like Snes9x because of how nice it is. I have to stifle my laughter at these statements. The Snes9x interface, from day one, has been horrible. I can't remember if it was the interface that caused my initial switch to ZSNES (Snes9x, er Snes96 at the time, was my second emulator, the first being Stella), but I do recall never liking it.

Kagerato wrote: I don't mean to only make points that bash SNES9x. The emulator is very good and has many favorable features. However, there are quite a few reasons like these here that I prefer ZSNES.

To be more accurate maybe, we both agree that the emulation is good (except for the video display), but that the interface severely hurts it.

An a happier note though, the Snes9x MAC interface is great. When I used to work for the computer centers on campus at night, (the windows machines had DX7, so no zsnesw -- and the DOS version couldn't use sound on w2k), I would play Snes9x on the macs. I never had any of these problems.

HalfShadow · Post by **HalfShadow** » Fri Oct 01, 2004 8:49 am

Actually, I've found turning the in-game music off (via the game's options, not using ZSNES' GUI) fixes the crash problem. You don't have any in-game music, but that's a minor detail.

NiteFox · Post by **NiteFox** » Sat Oct 02, 2004 8:56 pm

HalfShadow wrote:Actually, I've found turning the in-game music off (via the game's options, not using ZSNES' GUI) fixes the crash problem. You don't have any in-game music, but that's a minor detail.

A fairly big issue, really. Because the ingame music is so damned awful.

Good luck getting the Boombada spell though...

Esturk · Post by **Esturk** » Sun Oct 03, 2004 5:47 am

I got the Boombada spell.. But it sure as hell was one of the toughest most annoying things I've ever done in a video game before. It was worth it though, just to get it.

HalfShadow · Post by **HalfShadow** » Sun Oct 03, 2004 9:30 am

NiteFox wrote:
HalfShadow wrote:Actually, I've found turning the in-game music off (via the game's options, not using ZSNES' GUI) fixes the crash problem. You don't have any in-game music, but that's a minor detail.
A fairly big issue, really. Because the ingame music is so damned awful.

Good luck getting the Boombada spell though...

That shouldn't be an issue. As far as I know, the game only freezes up after battles, so you could turn the music back on if you wanted to, provided you were in a non-combat zone..