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Fan Game Sonic 3 A.I.R.

Eukaryot

Heading for Angel Island
May 1, 2018
83
59
108
@Ronald Rose
@hellothere3212
@ScropeX68

Here's an actual Sonic 3 AIR version using only the really needed graphics features:
http://85.214.142.96/sonic3air_minimalistic.zip

I'd ask you to try it out and please tell me if it works for you. In case it still won't do, please also post the error message (if any) and especially the "logfile.txt" at "C:\Users\<yourname>\AppData\Roaming\Sonic3AIR\logfile.txt"!

(Note that the version above is only a test to see if this works at all. If it does, the changes will get incorporated into the normal game version as a new option.)
 
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hellothere3212

Green Hill Zone
Feb 9, 2019
29
4
17
@Ronald Rose
@hellothere3212
@ScropeX68

Here's an actual Sonic 3 AIR version using only the really needed graphics features:
http://85.214.142.96/sonic3air_minimalistic.zip

I'd ask you to try it out and please tell me if it works for you. In case it still won't do, please also post the error message (if any) and especially the "logfile.txt" at "C:\Users\<yourname>\AppData\Roaming\Sonic3AIR\logfile.txt"!

(Note that the version above is only a test to see if this works at all. If it does, the changes will get incorporated into the normal game version as a new option.)

Ok thanks but I have alot of ideas

Servers: Only 3 people are allowed in the server and can choose the minimum of the settings: Sonic 3, Sonic & Knuckles, Sonic 3 & Knuckles, Chaotix Mode, Mystery Boxes, Difficulties like "Easy, Normal, Hard, ImPosSiblE and unbeatable which means only the sprites are there, not the background or other stuff"

Online Racing: You know the deal

Difficulties and game options like: Easy, Normal, Hard, ImPosSiblE and unbeatable as I said in "Servers" idea and game options Sonic 3, Sonic & Knuckles, Sonic 3 & Knuckles like I still said in "Servers" idea

Please do not release the full version, if it is released then it means no more updates :(
Thank you for reading this! I hope you add these in the future, goodluck

Also there is a error keep appearing saying "Couldn't create window" or yeah
 

Eukaryot

Heading for Angel Island
May 1, 2018
83
59
108
Please do not release the full version, if it is released then it means no more updates :(
Have no worries. There's still plenty of things I want to do with the game - bug fixes, improvements, new features. Development will definitely continue after the full release, and there will be updates.
 
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h3llf1re

Press Start Screen
Apr 6, 2019
1
0
6
40
Just stumbled upon this project and... WOW! Absolutely stunning work. Finally S3&K getting the treatment it deserves. Huge thanks and mad props Eukaryot!
 

Eukaryot

Heading for Angel Island
May 1, 2018
83
59
108
Finally the fully completed version of Sonic 3 A.I.R. is available for download!



The download links have changed, please use one of the following:
Download via Google Drive (recommended): http://sonic3air.org/downloadgame2.php
Direct download (can be slow): http://sonic3air.org/downloadgame.php

And as always, make sure you have the Steam version of Sonic 3 & Knuckles installed, otherwise Sonic 3 A.I.R. won't be able to run.

Have fun!
 

farmerbb

Press Start Screen
Apr 6, 2019
2
1
8
33
Hi @Eukaryot,

Were the graphics driver changes in the minimalistic test build at the top of this page incorporated into the completed version of the game? I have a very peculiar setup I'm trying to run the game on (a Samsung Chromebook Pro running Linux w/ Wine), and the minimalistic test build above is the only version of the game that has actually worked for me. (Haven't bothered reaching out about this until now, since I figured my setup wouldn't be supported at all)

Hoping to be able to play the completed game with working graphics soon. :)

EDIT: Was able to get the game working by changing "FailSafeMode" to "true" in settings.json. Thanks for the full game release!
 
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Eukaryot

Heading for Angel Island
May 1, 2018
83
59
108
Hi @Eukaryot,

Were the graphics driver changes in the minimalistic test build at the top of this page incorporated into the completed version of the game? I have a very peculiar setup I'm trying to run the game on (a Samsung Chromebook Pro running Linux w/ Wine), and the minimalistic test build above is the only version of the game that has actually worked for me. (Haven't bothered reaching out about this until now, since I figured my setup wouldn't be supported at all)

Hoping to be able to play the completed game with working graphics soon. :)

EDIT: Was able to get the game working by changing "FailSafeMode" to "true" in settings.json. Thanks for the full game release!
Whoa, I'm honestly surprised now! The FailSafeMode did not help anyone with startup problems so far, from the feedback I got. Nice that it at least helped with Linux/Wine!
 
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francis247uk

Green Hill Zone
Aug 9, 2018
6
0
12
UK
Well done Eukaryot, excellent work on getting this completed! After a well deserved rest, have you had any thoughts about what you want to do next?
 
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GerbilSoft

Administrator
Nov 3, 2017
23
18
33
gerbilsoft.com
S3AIR isn't running properly for me. Audio and input works, but video is blank. This might be a Wine-related issue (I'm running Linux), though I saw someone on Twitter say it does work, so it might be a combination of Wine and Mesa.

I ran apitrace and it's failing in glXCreateWindow(). I posted a bug report here: https://bugs.winehq.org/show_bug.cgi?id=46973

EDIT: I tested the "minimal" version at the top of this page and that one works.

EDIT 2: Log file from the version released today (and has a black screen on my system):
--- STARTUP ---
Logging started
Application version: 19.04.06.0
Command line: Z:\home\david\p\sonic3air_game\Sonic3AIR.exe
App data path: C:\users\david\Application Data\Sonic3AIR\
Loading configuration
Loading settings
System initialization...
Video initialization...
Loading application icon...
Setup of OpenGL attributes...
Creating window...
Creating OpenGL context...
Vsync setup...
Retrieving actual window size...
Setting OpenGL defaults...
GLEW initialization...
Setting window icon (Windows)...
Setting window icon from loaded bitmap...
Audio initialization...
Input initialization...
Application startup successful
Simulation startup
Startup of VideoOut
Startup of AudioOut
Startup of ControlsIn
Startup of EmulatorInterface
Loading scripts
Runtime environment ready

--- MAIN LOOP ---
Starting main application loop
Loaded shader 'data/shader/simple_rect_textured.shader' with output:
Compiling Vertex Shader...

Compiling Fragment Shader...


Loaded shader 'data/shader/upscaler_soft.shader' with output:
Compiling Vertex Shader...

Compiling Fragment Shader...


Loaded shader 'data/shader/upscaler_soft.shader' with output:
Compiling Vertex Shader...

Compiling Fragment Shader...


Loaded shader 'data/shader/upscaler_xbrz-freescale-pass0.shader' with output:
Compiling Vertex Shader...

Compiling Fragment Shader...


Loaded shader 'data/shader/upscaler_xbrz-freescale-pass1.shader' with output:
Compiling Vertex Shader...

Compiling Fragment Shader...



--- SHUTDOWN ---
Simulation shutdown
System shutdown

EDIT 3: I should probably read the thread before posting. FailSafeMode worked here too. The Samsung Chromebook likely uses a similar GPU (Intel iGPU) as my ThinkPad X230 (Intel HD 4000).
 
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farmerbb

Press Start Screen
Apr 6, 2019
2
1
8
33
S3AIR isn't running properly for me. Audio and input works, but video is blank. This might be a Wine-related issue (I'm running Linux), though I saw someone on Twitter say it does work, so it might be a combination of Wine and Mesa.

...

EDIT 3: I should probably read the thread before posting. FailSafeMode worked here too. The Samsung Chromebook likely uses a similar GPU (Intel iGPU) as my ThinkPad X230 (Intel HD 4000).
Yep, my Chromebook uses Intel HD Graphics 515. I wonder if it would be a good idea for Sonic 3 AIR to automatically enable the FailSafeMode if it detects an Intel GPU.

FYI, I was also getting some audio issues when running Sonic 3 AIR via Wine that I was able to resolve by lowering the AudioSampleRate to 22050 in config.json.
 

Triangly

Animation is fun!
Apr 7, 2019
7
19
43
Emerald Hill Zone
www.youtube.com
Hey @Eukaryot!

I followed this project since it was announced on SAGE 2018, I knew the project will make it through and... here it is. The whole S3K in HD. Remastered version we actually deserved

I am really surprised it is basically 99% accurate if compare it to the original game and... yes, only 99%. I am writing this post to tell you about the global problem of this game. Literally. It renders with the wrong colors

I am sure you should know about Full, Full w/ S&H and RAW palette variations. Only RAW and FSH (but mostly RAW) are actually the correct ones. A.I.R. renders with Full palette variation. Let me show you what I am talking about:

1. Full palette variation


2. RAW palette variation


2.1 Full w/ S&H palette variation


As you can see, the Full palette is WAY to bright. It IS the technical problem and should be solved. I don't really know it was your own choose to use the Full palette (and then it is okay), but if not... you know. If it is possible to work with HSL filter, you can do -6 to L to get FSH palette or -12 to get RAW palette (so it can be included to settings menu, I guess)

Anyway, I am ready to get any answer from you. Thank you <3
 
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SunkythePootis

Green Hill Zone
Sep 4, 2017
17
27
18
Firstly, congrats on the full launch for Sonic 3 A.I.R. I was already intrigued by the project when I first saw it here and I'm glad that you were able to do the entirety of Sonic 3 & Knuckles since then.
It has honestly given me a better appreciation for Sonic 3 & Knuckles that nether the original or even Sonic 3 Complete could do for me after revisiting the game via A.I.R.
The only suggestions I could make are more for the controller support that's currently in it, as I think it would be nice if there were options to rebind the buttons on your controller for either those who don't use a XB360/XBOne pad or for people who want to customise the button mappings to their preferred liking, along with some sort of auto-detect system that some other games use in case your controller gets disconnected mid-way through and you want to hook it back up without having to restart the game.
Other than that minor suggestion, great job on this project and I wish you the best of luck with your future projects.
 
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SilverSpireZ

Green Hill Zone
Apr 6, 2019
1
1
12
26
Congrats on the full release! I've been following this project from the beginning, and I'm excited to finally have the Sonic 3 remaster we all deserved.

I only have a few questions/suggestions for future updates.
  • Will there be a separate release of the remastered soundtrack at some point? I'd love to add it to my playlist.
  • Are you planning on adding the finished Super Sonic sprites? That's my one main complaint with the original and this remaster.
  • Maybe the competition maps could be added to the time attack mode, like in Sonic Rush.
  • Perhaps add unique zone icons for each zone, like in Sonic 3 Complete.
  • Any other QoL features from Sonic 3 Complete would also be appreciated, but I wouldn't lose sleep over them.
Anyway, that's all I got! Excellent work so far, and I'm excited to see what's added in the future!
 
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Eukaryot

Heading for Angel Island
May 1, 2018
83
59
108
Hey @Eukaryot!

I followed this project since it was announced on SAGE 2018, I knew the project will make it through and... here it is. The whole S3K in HD. Remastered version we actually deserved

I am really surprised it is basically 99% accurate if compare it to the original game and... yes, only 99%. I am writing this post to tell you about the global problem of this game. Literally. It renders with the wrong colors

I am sure you should know about Full, Full w/ S&H and RAW palette variations. Only RAW and FSH (but mostly RAW) are actually the correct ones. A.I.R. renders with Full palette variation. Let me show you what I am talking about:

1. Full palette variation


2. RAW palette variation


2.1 Full w/ S&H palette variation


As you can see, the Full palette is WAY to bright. It IS the technical problem and should be solved. I don't really know it was your own choose to use the Full palette (and then it is okay), but if not... you know. If it is possible to work with HSL filter, you can do -6 to L to get FSH palette or -12 to get RAW palette (so it can be included to settings menu, I guess)

Anyway, I am ready to get any answer from you. Thank you <3
Hi @Triangly ,

You are right, this is indeed a difference between Sonic 3 AIR and (most?) emulators.
The AIR renderer multiplies a palette entry's RGB color value between 0 to 7 with a fixed value of 36. I've seen at least Genesis Plus SX use a multiplier of 32, and RAW seems to be close to that (but not exactly the same).

The reason why I'm using the brighter colors is
1) it felt more natural to me to cover more of the spectrum of colors, with maximum bright white being (252, 252, 252) = #FCFCFC in AIR, but a less bright (224, 224, 224) = #E0E0E0 in the emulator, and
2) because I simply liked the brighter colors more.

I'm definitely open for adding an option into the game, so the players can choose for themselves.
However, the default will stay the current palette brightness, because of the reasons above and because I'd rather not make a change that leads to a sudden change of colors after an update, compared to what everyone is used to now already.

Regarding the implementation details, I did not quite understand how the value of -6 for FSH and -12 for RAW has be interpreted.
Would you say that the multiplication with 32 would do the trick? I.e. getting effective 8-bit RGB color values of 0, 32, 64, ..., 224 ?
And for FSH, I'd make the multiplier 34, so we get to 238 as highest value.

Please let me know what you think about this. Looking forward to your reply! :)