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GemRB with high quality screen scaling (BG1, BG2, IwD, etc)

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First post, by truth_deleted

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GemRB is an "open-source implementation of Bioware's Infinity Engine." It uses the SDL library for video and audio. Many users run Windows and here are the recent developmental versions of the GemRB client (mingw compiled, therefore no MS Visual C++ dependency). I used this version. A game, such as Baldur's Gate, could be copied to the GemRB directory, such as under c:\GemRB; therefore, the game would be in c:\GemRB\BG\. The GemRB.cfg file requires edits for the audio driver, so it is equal to "sdlaudio", at least for Windows. It also requires a gametype of "bg1" and additional edits to find the game data files. For the gog.com version of Baldur's Gate, it would be something like this to find the data files:

GamePath=./BG
CD1= ./BG
CD2= ./BG
CD3= ./BG
CD4= ./BG
CD5= ./BG

I added this line, too:

CaseSensitive=0

Keep the resolution at 640x480 and change fullscreen to a value of "1".

To obtain high quality scaling in GemRB, replace the SDL.dll file in GemRB\ with the attached file. It has Moe's OpenGL-HQ driver. To activate this driver, it requires this attached file in the GemRB\ directory and a variable set to openglhq; so a batch file would be prepared which would run gemrb.exe and set this variable. Create a file named gemrb.bat (used to run the game); something like this:

set SDL_VIDEODRIVER=openglhq
gemrb.exe

The quality of this scaler is vastly better than using the native built-in scaling.

Attachments

  • Filename
    SDL.zip
    File size
    160.15 KiB
    Downloads
    122 downloads
    File comment
    SDL.dll + openglhq driver
    File license
    Fair use/fair dealing exception

Reply 1 of 7, by truth_deleted

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Attached two screen captures of Baldur's Gate I inside the GemRB client. One is using the default scaler and the other with the OpenGL-HQ scaler (glhq).

Attachments

  • Filename
    bg1-glhq.png
    File size
    2.71 MiB
    Downloads
    No downloads
    File comment
    Baldur's Gate I with OpenGL-HQ scaler in GemRB
    File license
    Fair use/fair dealing exception
  • Filename
    bg1-default.png
    File size
    2.77 MiB
    Downloads
    No downloads
    File comment
    Baldur's Gate I with default scaler in GemRB
    File license
    Fair use/fair dealing exception

Reply 2 of 7, by Great Hierophant

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truth5678 wrote:

Attached two screen captures of Baldur's Gate I inside the GemRB client. One is using the default scaler and the other with the OpenGL-HQ scaler (glhq).

In my opinion, the default scaler looks better. The GLHQ scaler fiddles with the aspect ratio, while the native scaler just doubles the pixels.

http://nerdlypleasures.blogspot.com/ - Nerdly Pleasures - My Retro Gaming, Computing & Tech Blog

Reply 3 of 7, by kolano

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Looks nice, though I'd agree that the changed aspect ratio is a problem.

I presume you'll provide this back to the project since...
"opengl renderer, empty-frame-free animation system"
...remains on their todo list, though I'm unclear of what the second part of that refers to.

Eyecandy: Turn your computer into an expensive lava lamp.

Reply 4 of 7, by truth_deleted

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I set the resolution to desktop but it is possible to correct for the aspect ratio difference; however, the screenshots show the improvements by the GLHQ scaler (note the pixelated characters in the native scaler image).

Here is a sample gemrb.cfg file for use with BG1:

CaseSensitive=0 
GameType=bg1
GameName=Baldur's Gate
GamePath=./bg1
CD1=./bg1
CD2=./bg1
CD3=./bg1
CD4=./bg1
CD5=./bg1
CD6=./bg1
Width=640
Height=480
Bpp=32
Fullscreen=1
GUIEnhancements=1
CachePath=Cache
GemRBPath=.
PluginsPath=./plugins
AudioDriver=sdlaudio
IgnoreOriginalINI=1
SkipIntroVideos=1

Also, note that GemRB is not finished yet and is missing these features (at least for BG1):
1. attack "hit" sounds don't work in gemrb engine (hardcoded in exe)
2. robust pathfinding

I had game crashes, too, likely from sdlaudio setting. For use of true type fonts, default installation requires ttfimporter dll.

Reply 5 of 7, by truth_deleted

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I posted the BG1 images to provide an impression of the OHQ scaling. For accuracy sake, it would be best to view the scaling in practice with the GemRB client. Attached is another exported image of BG1 with OHQ scaling, but the pixel dimensions should be closer to integer scaling.

Note that I uninstalled GemRB, so this is the only image I have to upload. 🙁

Attachments

  • Filename
    BG1.png
    File size
    2.37 MiB
    Downloads
    No downloads
    File comment
    Baldur's Gate I with OpenGL-HQ scaler in GemRB (original pixel dimensions)
    File license
    Fair use/fair dealing exception

Reply 6 of 7, by Great Hierophant

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I defintely agree that Baldur's Gate, scaled using nearest neighbor interpolation, doesn't very look nice. I tend to gravitate toward widescreen hacks, since they give you more area with which to view. Of course, UI scaling is always a problem.

http://nerdlypleasures.blogspot.com/ - Nerdly Pleasures - My Retro Gaming, Computing & Tech Blog

Reply 7 of 7, by truth_deleted

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It can be a difficult trade-off in using a scaler and I agree that the widescreen hack, where available, is the best solution. Perhaps most users of GemRB are using iOS/Android tablets anyways, and are likely limited in their scaler choices. I also have the impression that GemRB is a work-in-progress.

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