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By Damien McFerran
The Saturn benefitted from a 4MEG RAM cartridge which allowed developers to store more information and create arcade-perfect ports of games like X-Men vs. Street Fighter and King of Fighters '96, and ended up being one of the more unique aspects of the console's accessory library.
A decade ago, homebrew developer Tiido started work on a similar (unofficial) project for the Sega / Mega CD, and it has recently been resurrected by a new team of devs (thanks, Retro RGB).
MiGeRA recently reverse-engineered Tiido's original prototype board, and this appears to have triggered a wave of interest in reviving the project. It seems that the main focus of the cart will be to expand the possibilities of Sega CD and 32X games.
The current board was found to be incompatible with the 32X, so a second version is currently being worked on by Jimbro1000 and Viciious. Both are looking for help from the wider community to shape and test the cart.
The Genesis is being pushed in some very interesting directions by homebrew coders, so it's amazing to think what these same talented individuals would be capable of if given even more memory to play with on Sega CD and 32X.
By Damien McFerran
The SNES had several cool visual tricks up its sleeve, one of which was transparent effects, which looked nothing short of remarkable back in the early '90s.
Rival machines, like the Genesis / Mega Drive, used a technique known as dithering transparency (or screen-door transparency) to make objects appear transparent, but the SNES was capable of achieving this effect in a far more convincing manner.
Along with its Mode 7 effects, transparency was one of the key talking points when debates between Sega and Nintendo fans occurred, but in 2024, we're pleased to report that industrious homebrew coders have succeeded in replacing the same effect on the Genesis / Mega Drive.
Shannon Birt, taking a break from working on the amazing-looking shmup Lufthoheit, has been tinkering with transparency effects on Sega's console.
"Took a little side step from Lufthoheit's coding headaches thanks to @turboxray," says the developer. "He's been doing coding magic on this scene on the PC Engine, so he asked me to see what could be done on Mega Drive and kindly sent me the artwork."
The technique involves using the hardware's Shadow & Highlight modes to create "translucent objects in brighter and darker shades." According to Birt, "highlight brightens any underneath pixel several shades and Shadow conversely halves its brightness."
The end result is not one but two transparent Boo ghosts moving around the screen at 60 fps. "We still have CPU left for more logic within 60 FPS, so a boss scene with this technique will definitely be on the cards in Lufthoheit, as with all these tech demos, we'll use the tech in an actual game also," adds Birt.
By Damien McFerran
The Saturn benefitted from a 4MEG RAM cartridge which allowed developers to store more information and create arcade-perfect ports of games like X-Men vs. Street Fighter and King of Fighters '96, and ended up being one of the more unique aspects of the console's accessory library.
A decade ago, homebrew developer Tiido started work on a similar (unofficial) project for the Sega / Mega CD, and it has recently been resurrected by a new team of devs (thanks, Retro RGB).
MiGeRA recently reverse-engineered Tiido's original prototype board, and this appears to have triggered a wave of interest in reviving the project. It seems that the main focus of the cart will be to expand the possibilities of Sega CD and 32X games.
The current board was found to be incompatible with the 32X, so a second version is currently being worked on by Jimbro1000 and Viciious. Both are looking for help from the wider community to shape and test the cart.
The Genesis is being pushed in some very interesting directions by homebrew coders, so it's amazing to think what these same talented individuals would be capable of if given even more memory to play with on Sega CD and 32X.
Sega Genesis Is Finally Capable Of SNES-Style Transparency Effects Thanks To Clever Modders
L | ABy Damien McFerran
The SNES had several cool visual tricks up its sleeve, one of which was transparent effects, which looked nothing short of remarkable back in the early '90s.
Rival machines, like the Genesis / Mega Drive, used a technique known as dithering transparency (or screen-door transparency) to make objects appear transparent, but the SNES was capable of achieving this effect in a far more convincing manner.
Along with its Mode 7 effects, transparency was one of the key talking points when debates between Sega and Nintendo fans occurred, but in 2024, we're pleased to report that industrious homebrew coders have succeeded in replacing the same effect on the Genesis / Mega Drive.
Shannon Birt, taking a break from working on the amazing-looking shmup Lufthoheit, has been tinkering with transparency effects on Sega's console.
"Took a little side step from Lufthoheit's coding headaches thanks to @turboxray," says the developer. "He's been doing coding magic on this scene on the PC Engine, so he asked me to see what could be done on Mega Drive and kindly sent me the artwork."
The technique involves using the hardware's Shadow & Highlight modes to create "translucent objects in brighter and darker shades." According to Birt, "highlight brightens any underneath pixel several shades and Shadow conversely halves its brightness."
The end result is not one but two transparent Boo ghosts moving around the screen at 60 fps. "We still have CPU left for more logic within 60 FPS, so a boss scene with this technique will definitely be on the cards in Lufthoheit, as with all these tech demos, we'll use the tech in an actual game also," adds Birt.
