3 questions regarding to use of ScummVM

[kaboekieman]

Hi all,

I have a couple of questions regarding the use of ScummVM (for a long-lived project I'm planning), actual 3 questions
(The project I have in mind is a new SBC handheld device (Clamshell Pocket) for playing ScummVM games on the go, where it's also possible to continue the game on the big screen with the use of a charging pad, with HDMI out + wireless keyboard and mouse for these platforms: NES/SNES/C64/Amiga/ScummVM).

1.)
I was told ScummVM is not emulation but the real deal (simulation) for the targeted game. I have a degree in electronics and for work I'm implementing a FPGA
for a use-case at our department. This raises a question: There's a MiSTer project/product (actually a Terrasic DE10-Nano FPGA Development Kit with an extra SDRAM module) that uses lots of cores, one of them is ScummVM. What advantage had this over the use of ScummVM when using it for example with a dedicated version of Linux? I don't thing a FPGA has any advantage regarding authenticity/speed, am I correct in my assumption?

2.)
SInce the beginning ScummVM was my/the go-to platform to play Point and Click adventure, like Maniac Mansion, Monkey Island, Day of the Tantacle, etc.
Now-a-days it's also possible to play more arcade style games with the use of ScummVM, like Crusaders: No Remorse (dos game).
Is it feasable to use ScummVM to play NES/SNES/C64/Amiga games? Or is this simple put not possible?

3.)
Blade Runner is one of the more modern ScummVM games that asks a 'lot' on the hardware.
What would be the sweet spot, regarding hardware specs (CPU/RAM) to play these more modern games with ScummVM?


I hope to hear from someone of this great community.
Thanks so much in advance,
All the best, Jeroen

[criezy]

I don't have all the answers, but I can at least tell you that:

• ScummVM is indeed not an emulator. It is a reimplementation of the game executables so that you can play the game using the original game dataand replacing the original executable by ScummVM.
• The focus is currently on Point and Click adventure games and RPG. Some of those may contain arcade sequences, and in some cases the same executable was also used for non-RPG and non-adventure games (there is an AGI Tetris game for example).
• We already support playing NES/C64/Apple II/Mac/Amiga games. Some of those have been supported for a long time. I am not aware of SNES games being currently supported, but that is something that would also be possible. This is related to the first point (since ScummVM is not an emulator for a specific system but a reimplementation of the original game executables).
• Currently the more demanding games might be AGS (such as The Cat Lady) and Wintermute games (for example J.U.L.I.A. Among the Stars). By comparison Blade Runner is quite old and works perfectly on my 10 years old iPad (while I get about 1 or 2 FPS for The Cat Lady on that iPad and it is unplayable). So the specs will depend on how you define modern games.

[waltervn]

There's a MiSTer project/product (actually a Terrasic DE10-Nano FPGA Development Kit with an extra SDRAM module) that uses lots of cores, one of them is ScummVM. What advantage had this over the use of ScummVM when using it for example with a dedicated version of Linux? I don't thing a FPGA has any advantage regarding authenticity/speed, am I correct in my assumption?

In general, yes. However, while ScummVM is not an emulator as such, it does contain emulators for certain hardware, mostly sound-related. An FPGA may give better results there.

[kaboekieman]

Thanks you criezy and waltervn for your reply.
I appreciate this a lot
Also thx criezy for pointing out the more demanding games in ScummVM, now I can target the right hardware (linux for the software side) for this.

In a post on the MiSTer forum I found out that ScummVM was actually run via the ARM CPU (800MHz Dual-core ARM Cortex-A9 processor), so no FPGA on this part.
but it's also possible to use the ao486 core (FPGA) to play a dos version with for example "The Secret of Monkey Island".
A major 'biggy' is the use of a Roland MT-32 synthesizer instead of the standard Adlib soundcard back in the days.
This features a major sound upgrade (also visual somewhat appealing with it's 20 character display).

I'm gonna research if it's possible to build a board (or buy, if available) that makes use a 'hefty enough' ARM processor (running ScummVM via Linux) and a FPGA (simulating the Roland MT-32). When in portable (handheld) mode, the Clamshell Pocket display displays the game. When hooked to a big TV (via a docking pad) the Clamshell Pocket display displays a VU meters + MT-32 characters (best of both worlds Should also look nice in my living-room

One more question. There are lots of interesting games on the NES/C64 and Amiga (SNES also, but for now left out).
Yes I'm that old I can actually remember when the Atari and/or C64 games where in the stores
You (criezy) said ScummVM already supports Amiga games.
As a Use-Case (PoC) is it possible to play the excellent (point and click) Amiga game: "It Came from the Desert 1" / "It Came from the Desert 2") via ScummVM?? Is there more info on this forum or on the net where I can read more info regarding this (or simular games)? I don't mind spending lots of time to accomplish this and I'm more then eager to contribute in tweaking ScummVM / helping out the community to accomplish this ask (if possible).

Jeroen

[criezy]

I should probably have written that we already support playing *some* Amiga games. As we need to reimplement the executable for each supported game, only those games will work. You can find the list of supported games on https://www.scummvm.org/compatibility/. This does not differentiate the games based on their original platform, but if you click on a game, you will see which versions are supported. For example for the very first one in the list, ...A Personal Nightmare, you can see that the Amiga, Atari ST, and DOS versions can be played with ScummVM (https://www.scummvm.org/compatibility/DEV/pn/). I don't think there is an easy way to find all Amiga games that are supported.

Since "It Came from the Desert" is not in the list, that means it cannot be played with ScummVM. Adding support for a game is a lot of work. It usually require somebody to spend months (or years) reverse engineering the game executable and reimplementing it in ScummVM. In some cases where the right holders are known and can provide the original source code this can speed up the reimplementation in ScummVM, but this is still a lot of work. Most of the information we have for developers is available on our wiki: https://wiki.scummvm.org/index.php?titl ... er_Central.