Messages

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AGI Development Tools / Re: IT2AGI sound converter script - some fixes

« on: July 12, 2025, 04:45:32 PM »

Oh, I would like nothing more than to see the AGI scene take off! Sadly, the AGI heap limits are terribly tight, so anything more complex would be limited to a minute tops.
I took a bit of a break on other projects (and life), but I'll pick up soon-ish. Destination: IT being the go-to format for tracking AGI music, with as many effects supported as possible.

2

AGI Development Tools / Re: IT2AGI sound converter script - some fixes

« on: June 25, 2025, 09:53:01 PM »

And another new feature coming up: "disable AGI fading" - generates extra notes to keep sound at target volume, instead of letting AGIv2 start to "dissolve" them after their 5th tick. This should be useful in tandem with IT format's NOTE-OFF and NOTE-CUT commands. NOTE-CUT will still terminate a note instantly, but NOTE-OFF will re-enable the fading (or, rather: stop keeping it alive), letting the note fade as it would. This should make it dead easy to control when and how we want to sustain our notes, instead of letting AGI break stuff.

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AGI Development Tools / Re: IT2AGI sound converter script - some fixes

« on: June 24, 2025, 11:45:56 AM »

In related news, my patch enabling 16-bit noise shifting, sounding nice and resonant as in SEGA consoles (as opposed to the discordant noises of true PCjr) is in ScummVM now, for some future release.

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AGI Development Tools / Re: IT2AGI sound converter script - some fixes

« on: June 18, 2025, 05:18:33 PM »

New version out, now with Sega VGM support (see SMSPower for some Sega Master System musics).

5

AGI Development Tools / Re: IT2AGI sound converter script - some fixes

« on: June 17, 2025, 04:12:27 AM »

Oh, I'm well aware of the memory footprint. That little song crashes my tested copy of KQ6AGI
That was simply a proof of concept, demonstrating that the VGM and AGI sound formats are very closely related, and the rare AGI authors can benefit from the comparably vast area of VGM chiptunes.

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AGI Development Tools / Re: IT2AGI sound converter script - some fixes

« on: June 16, 2025, 09:19:44 AM »

There we go! Attached: 'One Jump Ahead' in AGI sound format, ready to import into a homebrew Sierra for nonbelievers.
I guess, with proof of concept like thhis, my VGM2AGI script will be joining IT2AGI in the GitHub repo soon.

7

AGI Development Tools / Re: IT2AGI sound converter script - some fixes

« on: June 16, 2025, 08:00:31 AM »

But it's still Sierra AGI, with its 60/sec music timing, nothing more than that! I don't suppose a sound file following AGI rules could possibly "overload" the engine, so that it wouldn't play on a regular hardware.

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AGI Development Tools / Re: IT2AGI sound converter script - some fixes

« on: June 16, 2025, 06:09:10 AM »

DOSBox. Sadly, I don't have a true DOS machine available.
I can record one in ScummVM, too, but it has a raspy sound emulation, similar to a bug I -think- I fixed in WinAGI, but I've yet to understand ScummVM's C++ code well enoug to see if a similar buffer flaw manifests there.

9

AGI Development Tools / Re: IT2AGI sound converter script - some fixes

« on: June 15, 2025, 07:42:58 PM »

Iskovlun: File format, maybe. But the CHIP itself is exactly the same, or, well, a manageable variant of one. Thus, whatever works on consoles, should work - at least to a good extent - on a PC with the same chip embedded.

Well, I went digging in bits. This is far from complete, but here is Aladdin on a Sega Master System, in VGM format. And it plays in AGI after being run through a VGM-to-AGS script I jerry-rigged today. It sounds horrible, I've yet to figure out why, but the song structure holds, and it's arguably already far ahead of the usual AGI music complexity. So, my point seems to stand.

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AGI Development Tools / Re: IT2AGI sound converter script - some fixes

« on: June 15, 2025, 02:45:56 PM »

It doesn't take much to send a few bytes to a sound chip, that can't take much CPU power...

11

AGI Development Tools / Re: IT2AGI sound converter script - some fixes

« on: June 15, 2025, 12:42:51 PM »

Portability.

Expand? 🤔

Let me rephrase. It seems that whatever is possible on the chip on consoles, should (well, minus crazy hacks) be possible in AGI. But so far I've seen not a single mention of that approach anywhere, so I wondered why. Why are AGI users happy to hear a single note of bass, while it's commonplace on consoles..?

12

AGI Development Tools / Re: IT2AGI sound converter script - some fixes

« on: June 15, 2025, 08:00:12 AM »

So here's a hot take. Tandy/PCjr use the same chip that the SMS console has. Consoles have a lively music scene. The VGM format stores bytes for the chip ready-to-play. What the hell stopped AGI musicians from using that as a resource..? 🤔 I'm either missing something, or rediscovering the wheel here...

13

AGI Development Tools / Re: IT2AGI sound converter script - some fixes

« on: June 11, 2025, 03:15:02 PM »

More features incoming!
- Global volume (initial setting and effect) - perfect for fade-ins and outs
- Channel volume effect
- Volume slide effect

Also, here's a teaser. Direct IT-to-AGI export, no trickery. The NeverEnding Story in Sierra AGI glory! (Only the beginning so far, but yes, solos are coming.)

(Hey, TNES came out in 1984, if Sierra had the rights, they could've made a TNES adventure! Any takers..? )

14

AGI Development Tools / Re: IT2AGI sound converter script - some fixes

« on: June 08, 2025, 09:30:35 PM »

Well, for what it's worth, a new version is out. Add a separate instrument in IT (my usual choice is the Synth Lead - Square from the MIDI Library), give it a name containing [BUZZ], and play some bass notes on the 3rd channel. Let me know if it works, or maybe sounds horrible if your DOSBox/ScummVM happens to sound differently than mine!

15

AGI Development Tools / Re: IT2AGI sound converter script - some fixes

« on: June 08, 2025, 05:13:38 AM »

In the next version, the script will recognize a [BUZZ] tag in an instrument's name, and will generate appropriate notes on the noise channel magically. Of course you won't be able to use drums at that tick.