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jgenesis v0.12.1 is a cross-platform emulator supporting various 8-bit and 16-bit consoles like Sega Genesis and SNES. The new version includes changes to settings storage on Windows, allowing a shift to user profile directories by default. Users can revert to the previous method via options. Notable improvements include a compressed rewind buffer that significantly reduces RAM usage, especially for Sega CD and 32X, and asynchronous save state writing to minimize performance impacts. The update also fixes turbo input mapping issues and ensures that only failed settings revert to defaults. Download is available via the source link.
jgenesis v0.12.1 has been released. This cross-platform emulator supports numerous 8-bit and 16-bit gaming consoles including Sega Genesis, Sega CD, SNES, Master System, and Game Gear.
jgenesis Changelog:
Settings Changes
On Windows, the settings file will now be saved in the user profile directory by default (usually located at C:\Users\$NAME\AppData\Local\jgenesis\); this behavior has been consistent across other platforms (e.g. typically $HOME/.config/jgenesis/ on Linux).
If you prefer the previous Windows setup where the settings file resides in the emulator directory, you can adjust this in Settings > Paths or create a portable.txt file within the emulator directory (the contents are irrelevant, just the file’s presence is needed); this method works on all platforms.
The –config command line argument still allows overriding this setting when needed.
Improvements
The rewind buffer is now memory-compressed, significantly reducing the emulator’s RAM usage, especially when emulating Sega CD or 32X.
While savings will vary depending on various factors, for instance, a 10-second rewind buffer for 32X now occupies approximately 40-80 MB of RAM instead of nearly 600 MB.
The compression process occurs asynchronously, ensuring no performance degradation in the emulator.
Save states are also compressed and written to disk asynchronously, decreasing the likelihood of emulator stuttering during state saving.
Fixes
Turbo input mappings now function correctly; this issue was a regression in v0.12.0.
It stemmed from backend modifications to accommodate the Genesis debugging tools introduced in v0.12.0, which required substantial rewriting of the main emulator execution loop; the previous version inadvertently missed the code responsible for toggling turbo buttons.
Settings will no longer reset to defaults if a single setting fails to deserialize from the config file; now only the problematic setting(s) will revert to default.
(SNES) Cartridges that indicate an excessively high SRAM amount in the cartridge header will now receive 256 KB of SRAM instead of none (#635).
This typically occurs with prototype cartridges lacking a proper header, where the “SRAM byte” is part of random code or data; however, some of these still necessitate SRAM.
