Madlem Mini-Update v0.1.8.1
Added 2023-12-08 05:08:48 +0000 UTCI wanna push this out in response to some framerate issues I saw some having with the game. Since all logic happens on a deterministic fixed time step but I wasn't accounting for monitors with high refresh rates the game would run SUPER FAST and I mean WAY TOO FAST on some machines. This update is mainly to address that issue, but since my monitor ran at a clean 60 anyway I can't really test this, so I would like feedback from anyone who encountered this issue that'd be greatly appreciated. My current fix may work well on some monitors but may cause stuttering on others. If you do encounter problems with this version I recommend playing around with the vsync setting or your graphics card settings to see what works and documenting your findings if possible. I'm trying not to turn this place into a testing zone, you're patrons not testers after all so don't feel obligated to put in the effort for me.
I had also made a lot of performance improvements before the issue arose. Now object pooling is finally in effect, which should reduce the garbage collection overhead and cause less stuttering, though this may also produce some unexpected behavior which I am on high alert for. The same rendering technique used for bullet sprites is now also used for most other objects that are repeated a lot (pickups, player shots, bullet delays) which should improve overall performance. In my experience, fullscreen provides a smoother experience with almost no stuttering for me but now I'm aware that smoothness is likely varied on different hardware so I can only hope things are improved for everyone.
