>From Stuart Brady: > Then a new version of Elite for the Sam would be really good, as > I'm sure that the framerate, resolution, colour, and/or > sound/music and maybe even a few other things could be improved. > > I've heard that the BBC version works using a z-buffer, in thin > strips (due to memory contraints). The SAM can of course use much > larger > strips, but I'd like to know if there's any alternative to a > z-buffer. I've noticed that most of the time there are only one > or two ships visable on the screen at a time, so I'd have thought > that hidden > surface removal would often suffice. Any thoughts?
Z buffering doesn't *seem* to provide enough saving for small amounts of objects to be useful. Obviously there are cases when one object obscures large amounts of another, but with a few objects this case is quite rare, relatively speaking. In the times when there ISN'T this case, z buffering takes up quite a bit of time. However it looks like hardware support for Z buffering will take off, cos these days there are always millions of polys on screen at once. Then the chances of obfuscation are pretty good, so the gamble pays off. (Just imagine I'm an old man who can't stand clever graphics. I like those games where you press a key to fire your weapons, and a message comes up - you have missed the target. **Press a key to fire your weapons**) -Tob
