BlastZone 2 News

A new update has been released for BlastZone 2. (v1.32.7.3) The biggest update in this release is that the game executable is now built as a native 64 bit binary, eliminating the need for a 32 bit compatibility layer. Advantages of this include faster loading times and a much higher memory usage limit. To use the new 64 bit version, no special action is needed besides the usual Steam game update, it will auto detect which version is best suited for your setup. That means 32 bit systems are still compatible with the game, and those users will receive the 32 bit version of the latest game update.

This update also includes lower memory usage during loading screens and a 1-2% performance boost. More details are below.

Here are the full release notes for v1.32.7.3:

• Added native 64bit binaries for the game
  -Replaced the main game executable and all DLL files with native 64bit versions
  -32bit versions are also available for the latest version of the game for those running a 32bit OS
  -Benefits of 64bit include faster loading times, and support for greater than 1.8gb of ram
  -This allows the game to run natively in a 64bit OS without depending on a 32bit compatibility layer
  
• Fixed a rare case when the game speed could slow down when running on a low end CPU
  -This used to occur when there was a heavier load on the simulation/update thread than the render thread
  
• Optimized matrix operations across many objects; reduces update thread workload
  -Eliminates unnecessary calculations for components that don't need to be updated
  -Improves overall performance by up to 1-2%
  
• Reduced memory usage overhead when loading models by up to 25%
  -Uses 10% lower memory overall during the startup loading bar
  -When switching backgrounds with Extreme quality terrain, reduces memory usage while loading by 100mb
  --Other terrain quality settings also reduce memory usage, but the difference is proportionally less
  -This also slightly improves loading times
  

As usual, to make sure you have the latest update, launch the game and check the lower left corner for “v1.32.7.3” or higher. Enjoy!

**UPDATE** - A 64 bit compatibility issue has been reported for Windows 7, so the 64 bit version of v1.32.7.3 has been disabled while the issue is looked into. All users will use the 32 bit version for now until the issue is resolved. Apologies for any inconvenience.

**UPDATE #2** - The previously mentioned 64 bit Windows 7 compatibility issue has been fixed and update released. The native 64 bit version has been restored as well. If you have problems starting the game under Windows 7, please restart Steam to ensure you have the latest update.

A new update has been released for BlastZone 2. (v1.32.7.2) This is a maintenance release, including reduced hitching for large particle counts, and a rare multithreading crash fix. Also, this update migrates to the latest version of the LibPNG library used for texture loading.

Here are the full release notes for v1.32.7.2:

• Reduced particle update hitching when first exceeding the 20,000 particle precache size
  -Still hitches a little when this occurs, but much less than before
  
• Fixed a rare multithreading crash bug in the particle system
  
• Migrated from LibPNG 1.5.30 to 1.6.37
  

As usual, to make sure you have the latest update, launch the game and check the lower left corner for “v1.32.7.2” or higher. Enjoy!

*Hotfix - Fixed a small memory leak when displaying dialog boxes during cutscenes

A new update has been released for BlastZone 2. (v1.32.7.1) This update makes a few technical improvements, such as debug log output, reduced video memory usage, and adding more advanced options. This update also fixes a few multithreading bugs, including rare instances of game speed irregularities and crashes.

One point not listed below is that the multithreading bug fixes also fix stability issues when running BlastZone 2 under Linux using Wine. There is no official port for Linux and it is not a supported way to play the game, but these fixes should help alleviate some issues for those attempting that path. Specific testing hasn’t been done for Steam Proton under Linux, but there is potential for better compatibility there as well.

Here are the full release notes for v1.32.7.1:

• Reduced memory usage for Medium and Low texture detail settings
  -This was done by building a new texture downsampler that works for more textures
  -Reduces vram usage by up to 5-6mb for these detail levels
  -High and VeryHigh texture detail settings are not affected by this change
  
• Added debug log output for initializing the OpenGL renderer
  -Outputs to the "GLinit.log" file in the game directory
  -This can be submitted to the developer if the game crashes on launch
  
• Reduced the multithreading stack size to the default value
  -Uses less memory (~1mb)
  -Launches new threads slightly faster
  
• Fixed occasional erroneous multithreading behavior for some systems
  -Fixed rare thread timing issues that could throw off the game speed
  -Fixed rare crash issues related to thread synchronization
  -This was done by changing how thread encapsulation is handled
  
• Added new Advanced Options menu items
  -Particle Multithreading
  -Sound Multithreading
  
• Disabled large address support
  -May fix compatibility issues with some systems
  
• Adjusted particle precaching to reduce hitching in specific cases
  

As usual, to make sure you have the latest update, launch the game and check the lower left corner for “v1.32.7.1” or higher. Enjoy!

*Hotfix released 6/29/21 - Fixed a startup crash for some video cards

A new update has been released for BlastZone 2. (v1.32.7.0) This update improves particle and rendering performance, has a new sound loader, improves startup loading time, and upgrades from DirectInput 7 to 8.

Improvements made to particle thread workload balancing can improve performance by up to 1%-10%, depending on the number of particles being processed and the number of CPU cores in the system. Performance gains will be closer to 1-2% in heavier load areas. Optimizations have also been made to draw call batching. This means when there are many objects on screen, such as bullets or enemies, performance will be increased by up to 5%.

A new sound loader has been built internal to the game engine, it no longer uses the “alut.dll” external library and it has been removed Also, the game startup loading time has been reduced by up to 87%. This was done by taking the heaviest area of loading, hundreds of enemy behavior script files, and loading them in the background once the main menu starts. The most important data will be ready by the time mission mode starts, so this won’t affect gameplay at all.

The DirectInput upgrade from 7 to 8 has no effect on XInput gamepads, but improves support for some devices.

Here are the full release notes for v1.32.7.0:

• Improved particle system update performance by up to 1-10%
  -This was done by more evenly distributing the workload across CPU cores
  -The amount of performance gained depends on the number of particles on screen and number of CPU cores/threads
  --Performance gain is increased when there are more CPU cores/threads available
  --Performance gain has less of an impact when there are a greater number of particles on screen
  --For example, having a 10 core CPU running 10,000 particles, will result in up to a 1% performance gain
  ---The same CPU running 1,000 particles will reach up to a 10% performance gain
  -The amount of performance gained varies frame-to-frame, but results in more consistent performance overall
  --The lowest performance points received the greatest boost in performance, bringing them closer to the higher performance points
  
• Built a new in-engine sound loader that eliminates dependencies on alut.dll
  -Removed the alut.dll file from the game
  -This slightly reduces game installation size, and uses slightly less memory
  -General performance of the loader is similar to the old system it replaces
  
• Much faster game startup loading time
  -Startup loading time has been cut by up to 87%
  --Internal testing has shown loading times reduce from 8 seconds down to 1 second
  -Enemy behavior scripts are now loaded in the background during the main menu
  --By the time gameplay starts, the enemy data will be ready for use
  
• Improved overall rendering performance by up to 5%
  -This was done by improving draw call batching
  -This performance boost has the greatest impact when there are many objects on screen, such as bullets or enemies
  
• Migrated from DirectInput7 to DirectInput8 for non-XInput gamepads
  -This doesn't affect XInput gamepads at all
  -This improves general support for DirectInput devices, fixing potential bugs and compatibility issues
  
• Increased the deadzone area for DirectInput devices to fix drifting issues on some gamepads
  -This doesn't affect XInput gamepads
  
• Added a limit of 33 messages to the command console
  -Prevents using excessive memory in some circumstances
  -Prevents drawing offscreen messages
  

As usual, to make sure you have the latest update, launch the game and check the lower left corner for “v1.32.7.0” or higher. Enjoy!

A new update has been released for BlastZone 2. (v1.32.6.0) This update adds a new “Advanced Options” menu to the game, reorganizing existing options and adding a few new ones. The external configuration program has been updated as well with similar changes as the main game. The release notes are pretty self explanatory for this one.

Here are the full release notes for v1.32.6.0:

• Added a new "Advanced Options" menu
  -This is a submenu of the regular Options menu
  -Moved the existing "Renderer" and "Draw Call Type" options to this new menu
  -Added a few new options:
  --Game update multithreading
  ---Enabling this improves performance (default)
  ---Disabling this reduces input lag at the cost of performance
  --Particle helper threads
  ---Enabling this greatly improves particle performance (default)
  ---Disabling this can be used to test CPU core scaling performance
  --Display switch compatibility
  ---Enabling this fixes a bug for secondary displays for laptops with a discrete GPU
  ---Disabling this allows taking advantage of secondary monitors with greater than a 60hz refresh rate
  -Added in-game descriptions of each of the advanced options at the bottom of the screen
  
• Added a new "Advanced Options" menu to the external configuration program
  -All new options and options moved mirror the same changes made to the in-game advanced options menu
  -Added a new "Show Advanced Options" button to show them (hidden by default)
  
• The external configuration program now defaults to the Primary monitor when upgrading from an old version of the game
  

As usual, to make sure you have the latest update, launch the game and check the lower left corner for “v1.32.6.0” or higher. Enjoy!