A new update has been released for BlastZone 2! This update fixes a bug that would start the game with sound and music volume at 0. The workaround for this was to manually raise the sound and music volume after starting the game each time, but this was not ideal. I apologize for the inconvenience, this has now been fixed. The sound code has also been optimized and reduces frame hitching.
Also for this update, the development environment migrated from Visual Studio 2010 up to Visual Studio 2017. This brings all the latest optimizations, fixes, and security improvements from compiler advancements over the years. Also, the configuration program has migrated from .NET 3.5 up to 4.5, bringing a similar advancement there as well and eliminating the need for an older .NET runtime install.
With the above two migrations and following Steam’s recent changes, this version eliminates Windows XP support. All users with Windows XP no longer have access to BlastZone 2 on Steam anyway, so this was done to better target modern hardware.
The above changes have increased the minimum and recommended system requirements, but they are still very low for modern standards. Here they are:
Minimum requirements:
OS: Windows 7, 8.1, 10 32bit or 64bit
CPU: Any SSE2 CPU (Pentium 4 or Athlon 64 or higher)
Graphics: Radeon HD 2400 128mb, Geforce 8400 128mb, Intel HD 2000 or higher supporting atleast OpenGL 1.5
Recommended for running at high detail:
OS: Windows 7, 8.1, 10 32bit or 64bit
CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo, AMD Athlon X2 at 2.4ghz, or Intel Core 2 Quad, AMD Athlon X4 at 1.8ghz or higher (can utilize >4 cores if available)
Graphics: Radeon R7 250 1gb, Geforce 750 1gb, Intel HD graphics 4600 or above supporting OpenGL 3.0 or higher
Here are the full release notes for v1.29.4.1:
- The BlastZone 2 executable is now built using Visual Studio 2017 -Takes advantage of the latest compiler optimizations and improvements -Eliminates support for Windows XP
- Migrated the Configuration program to Visual Studio 2017 and .NET Framework 4.5
- Fixed a bug that would save out the Sound and Music volume as 0 when closing the game
- Greatly improved music processing distribution over time -Would previously have a 3-4ms processing spike every second or two -This would cause hitches on some systems -Now uses a consistent 0.2-0.3ms processing time every frame without spikes -Significantly improves frame pacing
- Turning off music now completely eliminates music processing -Improves performance for low end systems when music is disabled
- Fixed enemy bullets appearing the incorrect color when only tracking the player in Z space
As usual, to make sure you have the latest update, launch the game and check the lower left corner of the title screen for “v1.29.4.1” or above. Enjoy!