"Bust A Groove" on the PCSX_ReARMed core

Libretro Cores
#1

Hello there,

I have been trying latest RetroArch + PCSX_ReARMed core on 32bit ARM (Raspberry PI3b+), and most games run well, but then there is “Bust A Groove”, the well known dancing classic that relies on precise input timing: its totally unplayable since it (almost) never registers input in time. In other games, I can not see much input lag: I can even enable max_swapchain=2 on the Pi3b+, but it does not do much for “Bust A Groove”, and my TVs “game mode” is enabled. So I was wondering if the cause for this could be PCSX_ReARMed “inaccuracy” regarding internal system timings instead of “external” input lag (RetroArch, TV, input…).

Have you tried Bust A Groove on PCSX_ReARMed? It seems to be an otherwise good core, and 3D renderer based on NEON is specially spectacular because of its fidelity to PSX GTE results. Is the game playable on the Beetle_PSX core? (I have no machine capable of running that well for now).

#2

Dont know about PCSX-ReARMed but the only emulators thar I know works for this game and Parappa the Rapper are mednafen/beetle PSX and Xebra, both of them are “cycle accurate” so they can run the game at the “exact·timing” required,

Bust a Groove and its sequel runs on Beetle PSX HW and SW or at least they used to, had not tested these games since the dynarec was implemented on the core on PC.

Here Its my video testing Bust a Groove on Retroarch on PC 2 years ago.

#3

@cuyo01 Thanks for your response!

What video buffer settings do you use with RetroArch to play BAG or Parappa? Do you use double or triple buffering? What OS and video API (important, please!) do you run RetroArch on?

#4

My Pc for the video had a phenom ii 960t and a graphic card gtx 550ti running on win10 64bit. used triple buffering and opengl.

Tested the game today it runs fine as long as the dynarec is disabled, but the updated beetle core is slighty slower than the one used on my video; in my video it run at 4x internal resolution practically without issues but now there is some slowdown during certain camera angles using the same options on the core.

I have now a gtx 760 and can finally test vulkan and it runs too but its even a bit slower than opengl, if press fast fordward got more fps on opengl than vulkan.

And finally back 2 years ago when capoeira used his attack there were a severe slowdown but even then was possible to input the command correctly without missing the timming; to my knowledge it was because the opengl implementation was/is incomplete, back then the bitmask bit and other things I dont remember were absent from the opengl implementation on the beetle hw core meaning the core for example was unable to draw james correctly on silent hill or manage the deformation effect of the heat generated of an engine in a race game that I dont remember; i tought it was the same case with capoeira attack but now with vulkan it happens too but in the case of vulkan im pretty sure it is because I need a more powerful cpu since the beetle core its much more cpu demanding that other PS1 emulators.