Retroarch Android (FBA Core) - CPS3 Games

General
#1

Hi,

I would like to highlight what I have encountered with the latest updated Final Burn Alpha Core (0.2.97.44) when in use with CPS3 games as there is a peculiar issue that arises when using a bluetooth gamepad with it.

The framerate fluctuates like crazy and frames drop to the range of 55-57 or even less at times making it almost unplayable because of the lag. I have tested the full spectrum of CPS3 games, and this issue doesn’t happen when using the on-screen virtual pad (no frame drops to below 59).

Would also like to add that the FBA 2012 core works perfectly with or without a bluetooth gamepad, and am not sure if it is a system issue with regards to specs not being able to keep up with the latest FBA core (Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Quad Core) or just the bluetooth interfering with the core.

Looking forward to replies, Thanks.

#2

Fact is that latest fba is a lot more accurate than fba2012 for cps3 emulation, however i don’t see a reason for a quad core @ 2.3Ghz not being able to run it full speed, while a quad core @ 1.4Ghz (rpi3b+) is able to run it full speed. At the very least it’s not an issue with the core itself, considering the core is unaware of bluetooth/on-screen controller.

When did this issue appear ? Could you give the full version of fba you are currently using (with commit) ?

#3

It happened after I updated the FBA Core recently (probably a week or so back). Am currently using FB Alpha v0.2.97.44 9c55533 and the latest version of Retroarch as downloaded from the Play Store.

Kinda weird as the core works perfectly without bluetooth, and only drops frames when using the gamepad. Have also tried increasing the overclock speed to 200 and turning threaded video off but to no avail.

#4

You are misunderstanding something about this option, emulation will use more ressources if you do that, hopefully cps3 will be unaffected iirc. Your previous fba version was old ? Like 6 months old or something ?

#5

I should think so, probably 3 to 4 months old before updating.

I did do a full reinstallation of the app and cores, and the frame drops were the same (47 at the lowest).

It only happens with bluetooth enabled for the gamepad with the latest FBA core, and am wondering if it is a system issue trying to manage both at the same time (although the same can be said for the FBA 2012 core which doesn’t give any slowdowns whatsoever, but could be a lot less taxing on the system)

I might wish to add that I am using an IPega 9087 with the keyboard connection mode (X+Home).

#6

2 possible reasons :

  • There was a huge overhaul of the cps3 driver from september to november, fixing many issues including missing sprites.
  • There was a change in the toolchain used to build the core on android 10 days ago, i heard it was supposed to improve speed but maybe not for everyone ?

It would have been nice to know what version you were running previously, however since it doesn’t seem possible i reverted the later change, let me know if it improves things in a few hours when the new core will be available on the buildbot (commit is cc7567a)

#7

A million thanks!! Will look out for the updated core and provide feedback at the soonest possible.

#8

So did you try updating your core ? I wanna revert this asap if it’s not solving your issue.

#9

Hi, yes I did and there is no change to the situation even after updating to revision cc7567a. CPS3 still lags for FBA with the bluetooth gamepad enabled.

#10

Nothing much can be done then, it appears the fixes are too much for your device when bluetooth is enabled (there might be a faulty driver or hardware if it’s taking that much ressources, you are almost 1Ghz above a rpi3b+).

I’ll give you the usual recommendations for the devices too slow to run a game :

  • Make sure read ahead and rewind are disabled
  • Set the frameskip core option to 1, it should be barely noticeable and helps a lot on slow devices

Ofc you still have the possibility to use fba2012, however i think it’s better to have proper emulation.

#11

No worries and greatly appreciate your time taken to help with resolution. Aging hardware might be the issue here as I have been using it for almost 5 years and counting.

Please proceed to revert and close the issue as I do not wish for the core to affect other Retroarch users.

#12

I was going to open a new post but I think what I wanted to mention fits with your comment here. I use a NVIDIA Shield TV (Android TV 8.0). I had a version from the FBA core dating maybe a couple of months ago. I tried SF3 3rd Strike with the settings I used to play months ago, HardSync ON and Run Ahead set to 1. I was pretty sure I was getting full speed with those but now I was just getting around 55fps average , a bit short of full speed… I assume this probably has to do with the accuracy improvements you mentioned…

I updated the core today, and I’m happy to report that testing the same game I have seen an increase of 10-12fps with the same settings, which makes it full speed… I assume this has to do with the toolchain changes… if so, they do make things faster :slight_smile:

Maybe not very informative but just wanted to let you know, sometimes is good to not only report regressions but improvements :wink:

#13

Tests for those toolchain changes were done on the cps3 driver actually, and a framerate increase of 20+ was reported to me (i didn’t test those changes myself). I’m glad to hear some confirmation from other users, thanks.

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