v0.9.37 beta 4

Pre-release: try it, and report anything that breaks.

Faster by default

• Your CPU and graphics card are used much more fully. Until now the launcher turned off several of the engine's own speed-ups unless you ticked them yourself, which could leave the CPU and GPU at around 30% while the FPS stayed low. They are now on for everyone, switched over once from your old settings:
  • Graphics threads first, shorter sleep spin, precise frame pacing, fewer memory write checks and fast loading.
  • New: PC memory model (the graphics card reads the game's memory directly instead of copies) and Native draw calls (the game's draw calls reach the engine directly).
  • The native shader compiler is the default again.
• Each one can still be turned off in Graphics › Experimental engine features, and safe mode after a crash turns them all off. If you see wrong textures, missing objects or stutter, turn off PC memory model or Native draw calls first and tell us.
• If your Lantern Engine folder is synced by OneDrive (the Desktop and Documents often are), the log now says so: OneDrive uploads logs and shader files while you play. A folder outside OneDrive, such as C:\Games, avoids that.

Fixed

• The title screen showed enlarged, with only "Play Online" visible, when the UI ran at 4K over a scene of about 1080p (since 0.9.34).

Added

• Settings › Shader catalog: Export catalog saves your shaders as a small file (no game files inside). Add catalog adds someone else's to yours: the areas they have played no longer pop in or stutter for you. It needs a graphics card of the same kind and one start of the game first, and it adds to your shaders without replacing them.

v0.9.37 beta 3

Pre-release: try it, and report anything that breaks.

Fixed

• Models and objects popping in front of you. The shader catalog that ships with the engine was being ignored on every PC since 0.9.34 beta 9.9, so every shader was built during play. It is fixed and rebuilt: on an NVIDIA GPU about 510 pipelines are now built before the game starts, including on your very first start. The first start after this update takes a little longer while they are prepared.
• Saves "disappearing" after beta 2. Nothing was deleted: beta 2 moved the launcher settings from %APPDATA%\bbport-launcher to %APPDATA%\Lantern Engine, and an older launcher (0.9.36 stable, or an old copy) then started with no saves folder and no player profiles. Settings are now copied, and the old folder is kept (restored once if beta 2 moved it). bbport.ini is copied to lantern.ini the same way.
• Settings reset by an update: if an update left the default settings in lantern.ini, your bbport.ini settings are put back.
• Multi-second hangs on PCs with 16 GB of RAM: the game's memory heaps are only enlarged when your settings need it (above 1080p, highest model detail or screen space reflections).
• Mod patches showed the wrong names, and the custom resolution patch was not found, when the launcher was in a language other than English.
• The upscaler's reactive mask now works with DLSS, and "Show mask" works at every output resolution.

Added

• Save safety net:
  • Every time you press Play and every time the game closes, each profile's saves are copied to %LOCALAPPDATA%\Lantern Engine\save-vault (the newest 5 per profile). This happens even with Save backups off.
  • If the profile you are about to play has no saves, but saves exist in a folder you used before or in the safety copies, Play stops and asks first: use that folder, restore the copy, or play here anyway.
• HDR (native mode):
  • Bloom and glare around lamps, fire and the moon now get brighter with the light itself, instead of staying at SDR brightness.
  • Highlights keep the game's vignette and local darkening: exposure is measured for each part of the screen.
  • Smoother highlight roll-off near your display's peak, so very bright sources no longer all clip to the same white.
  • Peak brightness comes from your display by default (the Windows HDR Calibration value if you ran it). Turn off "Peak brightness from the display" to set it yourself.
  • "Compare: SDR | HDR" in the in-game menu shows SDR next to HDR while you tune it.
• In-game menu: tabs (Upscaling, Display, Picture, Gameplay, Interface) and a search box (Ctrl+F). L2/R2 or Ctrl+PgUp/PgDn switch tabs. DLSS preset, DLSS mip bias and the OptiScaler options can now be changed there.
• Launcher in 12 more languages: German, Spanish, French, Italian, Polish, Brazilian Portuguese, Turkish, Russian, Ukrainian, Japanese, Korean and Traditional Chinese.
• Smoother frame pacing, most visible on G-Sync/FreeSync displays: a late frame no longer gets a quick catch-up frame right after it.
• Less VRAM held: textures the GPU drew are written back to the game's memory and freed when VRAM runs short.

v0.9.37 beta 2

Pre-release: try it, and report anything that breaks.

• Fixed a freeze where the game stopped for good (picture and input stuck, sound still playing). It came from a background VRAM allocation that never finished.
• OptiScaler: its frame generation should no longer crash at start. The engine now creates its Vulkan device on a separate thread, so OptiScaler's hooks see it. If it still crashes for you, send the log.
• Less CPU work per frame: the game's per-frame data triggers far fewer page faults, and the GPU command thread looks up pending reads and writes faster. In busy areas FPS went from about 103 to 104-114 in our test.
• Everything is now named Lantern Engine. Your old files are moved over once, automatically:
  • bbport.ini is now lantern.ini.
  • Launcher settings moved from %APPDATA%\bbport-launcher to %APPDATA%\Lantern Engine.
  • Exported logs are named lantern-<date>.log.
  • Exported control profiles use the new name; old ones still import.
• Experimental, off by default: a new memory model on Windows, where the GPU reads the game's memory directly instead of copying it. It means far fewer page faults and less CPU work. To try it, put BB_GUEST_IN_PLACE=1 in Extra variables (More > Engine). If you see wrong textures, stutter or a crash, remove it and send us the log.
• If the sprint stops when you run sideways, the log now records it, which tells keyboard ghosting apart from a game problem.
• Performance reports: with BB_SECTIONS=1 the log now also breaks down the GPU command thread's time per draw.

v0.9.37 beta 1

Pre-release: try it, and report anything that breaks.

• FPS back with OptiScaler: 0.9.36's OptiScaler safe mode sent all GPU work from one thread, which cost a lot of FPS (90 down to 60-80 on some PCs). It now only does that when OptiScaler's own frame generation is on.
• OptiScaler's frame generation (FGOutput=dlssg/fsrfg/xefg in OptiScaler.ini) crashes this engine: on Vulkan it goes through a DX12 bridge that loses the GPU. The log and the crash report now say so. Set Frame Generation to none in OptiScaler's menu and use the launcher's frame generation instead.
• A GPU crash while presenting a frame now writes the full crash report to the log (it used to stop with just "ErrorDeviceLost").
• Co-op: when mods replace gameplay files (params, map layouts, events, AI, animations), the log says so at start. If you and your partner have different ones, enemies desync (killed for one player, still alive for the other).
• Co-op: the log counts network packets sent and received once a minute during a session, so desync reports show whether packets went missing.
• The log now shows your CPU model.

v0.9.36

Hotfix for 0.9.35.

• Fixed a quick tap of W/A/S/D right after closing a dialog still doing a d-pad action (like switching items).
• OptiScaler: the game now detects it and runs in a safer mode with it (More > Engine > OptiScaler compatibility). If it still crashes, the crash report says OptiScaler was loaded.
• New option: More > Engine > No motion blur smear with upscalers (off by default). Above 1080p, DLSS/FSR can smear the game's motion blur; this leaves the blur out there.

v0.9.35

Hotfix for 0.9.34.

• Fixed FPS slowly dropping the longer you play, and the crash after long sessions.
• Fixed the PC menus missing from the in-game System menu when "Change appearance" was on with a modded Hunter's Dream.

v0.9.34

Everything from the 0.9.34 betas since 0.9.33.

The launcher is now Lantern Engine (Lantern Engine.exe). The first start renames it and fixes your shortcuts; don't close the small window while it works. Steam shortcuts to Bloodborne.exe keep working.

After updating, the launcher asks once: New engine or Legacy (0.9.33). New turns on the faster draw thread, quicker shader compiling and more VRAM for textures. Legacy keeps the engine as 0.9.33 ran it. You can switch any time under Graphics > Engine preset.

The first start after updating rebuilds the shader cache (the compiler changed), so expect some stutter the first time you visit each area.

Fixes

• Black screen at start: three engine threads could wait on each other while the game set up its first images, so nothing was ever drawn.
• Freezes a minute into play or right after loading a save: two engine threads could wait on each other when the game read memory the GPU had just written. Four more places where the same kind of hang could happen are fixed too.
• FPS dropping more and more after deaths or teleports: the engine looked up the game's locks, semaphores and threads in lists that grew with every loading screen. If your FPS still drops over time, send the log after it has slowed down: a "Load:" line every minute shows what is building up.
• Vertex explosions (stretched faces and meshes): draws no longer use outdated vertex data, and indirect draws read their whole index buffer.
• Crash at start on some laptops (Windows error 1450): the game checks that Windows can give it the larger memory pool, and falls back to the smaller one instead of crashing.
• Long sessions on 8 GB cards and laptops: game data unused for 3 minutes leaves video memory, so VRAM no longer grows until a crash.
• Stutter on 8 GB cards after moving from stable to a beta ("Use more VRAM for textures" was stuck off).
• AMD cards crashing at start while loading the shader cache: the next start skips the pipeline that crashed the driver.
• FSR 4.1.1: no longer freezes the game for seconds when it starts (it compiles in the background, FSR 3.1 runs until it's ready); works on AMD RX 9000 again; if it can't run on your GPU, the game uses the built-in FSR 4 instead of dropping to FSR 3.1.
• DLSS and FSR no longer switch off near water and puddles (sewers, Gascoigne's arena).
• Uncapped FPS stops at your monitor's refresh rate (the Uncap FPS++ patch froze Ludwig's second phase at very high frame rates). BB_FPS_LIMIT=0 in Extra variables removes the limit.
• Follow camera (Original): the game's per-area camera settings load again.
• Mouse buttons: middle click locks on and right click is the strong attack by default, as intended (the defaults were swapped). Binds you set yourself stay as they are. The in-game controls page and mouse icons show the right buttons.
• Keyboard: WASD no longer moves the menu cursor after you close a dialog with them held.
• Controller input flipping between two devices (DS4Windows, Steam Input).
• 5:4 and 4:3 screens show the full width instead of a zoomed-in view.
• Quitting is fast and no longer freezes the PC.
• Korean menu text cut short in the PC menus (thanks parsifal295).
• Copy buttons no longer show an "OpenClipboard Failed" error when another program (like Discord) is using the clipboard.
• Occlusion culling is off by default (it made objects and floors appear late or flicker). It's still under Graphics > Experimental.

New

• Frame generation (FSR 3.1, 2x): Graphics > Frame generation, or the in-game menu. Off by default; needs an upscaler on and adds a little input lag. The HUD comes from the real frame, so it doesn't smear. Your FPS limit counts the shown frames: with a 120 FPS limit the game runs at 60 and frame generation adds the other 60.
• Sharp UI (Display > Sharp UI, off by default): menus, HUD and text drawn at your output resolution instead of 1080p stretched up. Much sharper at 1440p and 4K.
• FPS counter: choose its corner, size, text and background colours, transparency and border (Graphics > Show FPS, or the in-game menu). It shows the shown and the game's own rate with frame generation, and its numbers update twice a second.
• Simplified Chinese for the launcher and the in-game menu (translated by 123456qewret).
• Native shader compiler (optional): turn off Graphics > Experimental > Legacy shader compiler to try it. Its shaders are smaller than legacy's, but in heavy scenes it can still be a bit behind on some GPUs, so legacy stays the default.
• DLSS model choice: Transformer (preset K, default), CNN (preset E) or the DLL's default.
• Custom output resolution, plus 1280 × 1024 (5:4) and 16:10 presets.
• In-game menu shortcut: Insert or L3 + R3, Insert only, or off, so a controller can't open it by accident.
• Discord status (Settings > Community, off by default), with a fully custom card if you want one.
• App icon choice (Settings): red lantern, blue lantern, or the lantern fan art by j3loo.
• Engine options are switches under More > Engine instead of typed variables. Sliders take typed values, long dropdowns can be searched, and settings search (Ctrl+F) is in the title bar.
• Sharper launcher text (Segoe UI Variable, crisper settings pages).
• CUSA00900 (US Bloodborne) with update 1.09 is fully supported, and patched 1.09 eboots (60 FPS or debug-menu packages) get keyboard and mouse, the PC menus, camera, cheats and the crash guards.
• Online: The Hunter's Dream's long polling (invites arrive at once, far fewer requests), and the launcher tells you why after the game closes if the server refuses your sign-in.
• Testing, for Intel 12th-14th gen effect crashes (Ebrietas, Witch of Hemwick, One Reborn): More > Engine > Game fixes > "Intel effect crash fix (test)", with the Effect trail crash fix turned off. Please post your log either way.

Faster

• Shaders are kept across updates unless the compiler itself changes, and when it does they're rebuilt before the game opens instead of while you play.
• Shader catalog for new players (NVIDIA RTX): the second start compiles the game's shaders from your own game files before the game opens, so new areas don't stutter on the first visit. BB_SHADER_CATALOG=0 turns it off.
• New shaders compile on more threads at once.
• Less GPU work on copies of images that didn't change.
• Game on a hard disk: area files are read ahead to cut pop-in.

Direct draw calls are still there for testing (More > Engine > Direct rendering), off by default.

v0.9.34 beta 9.10

Simplified Chinese, and a log fix.

• New: Simplified Chinese for the launcher and the in-game menu, translated by 123456qewret. Launcher: Settings > Launcher language (restart the launcher). In-game menu: Play > In-game menu language, or Language in the menu itself. English stays the default.
• The per-minute "Load:" line in the log showed a nonsense write-fault rate when frame stats were on. Fixed (the game itself wasn't affected).
• Everything from 9.9 is in here too: freeze fixes, frame generation at a full 120, FPS counter options, the FPS-drop-over-time fix and the lighter native shader compiler.

v0.9.34 beta 9.9

Freeze fixes, frame generation at full rate, FPS counter options, a lighter native shader compiler and a first fix for FPS dropping over time.

• Freeze about a minute into play (or right after loading a save): fixed. Two engine threads could end up waiting on each other when the game read memory the GPU had just written. I also went through the rest of the engine for the same kind of hang and fixed four more places it could happen.
• Frame generation now reaches your full limit: 60 game frames become 120 shown instead of about 100. Every third frame had no generated frame before.
• Frame generation stays within your frame rate limit: with a 120 FPS limit the game runs at 60 and frame generation fills in the other 60.
• FPS counter: choose its corner, size, text and background colours, text and background transparency and the border (in-game menu and Graphics > Show FPS). The numbers now update twice a second, and the box no longer shakes as they change.
• Keyboard: WASD no longer keeps moving the menu cursor after you close a dialog with them held.
• FPS dropping more and more after deaths or teleports: the engine looked up the game's locks, semaphores and threads in lists that grew with every loading screen. Busy ones are now found right away. If your FPS still drops over time, please send the log after it has slowed down: it now has a "Load:" line every minute that shows what is building up.
• Occlusion culling is off by default again (it made objects and floors appear late or flicker). Turn it on under Graphics > Experimental if you want it.
• Native shader compiler (Graphics > Experimental, turn off Legacy shader compiler): its shaders are now smaller than legacy's and use fewer GPU registers. In heavy scenes it can still be a bit behind legacy on some GPUs, so legacy stays the default. If you try native, please tell me your FPS in both.
• Testing, for Intel 12th-14th gen effect crashes: the fix from 9.8 is now a toggle under More > Engine > Game fixes ("Intel effect crash fix (test)").
• The first start after updating recompiles shaders once.

v0.9.34 beta 9.8

Black screen fix, Sharp UI fix and a few new options.

• Black screen at start: found and fixed. Three engine threads could end up waiting on each other while the game set up its first images, so nothing was ever drawn. If you had the black screen, please try this one and let me know.
• Sharp UI: menus no longer turn into a wall of item icons with Native AA / DLAA at 1440p and up.
• The legacy shader compiler is the default again. The native one was slower in dense areas (Forbidden Woods) on some GPUs. It's still there: turn off Graphics > Experimental > Legacy shader compiler to use it.
• New: Graphics > Experimental > Engine preset. "New" turns on the newer engine features (occlusion culling, faster draw thread, quicker shader compiling, more VRAM for textures), "Legacy (0.9.33)" turns them off in one click.
• New: Settings > App icon. Red lantern, blue lantern, or the lantern fan art by j3loo.
• Testing, for Intel 12th-14th gen players who crash at Ebrietas, Witch of Hemwick or One Reborn: add BB_RED_ZONE_FUNCTIONS=1 under Settings > Extra variables and turn off the Effect trail crash fix. It should stop the crash without removing any effects. Please post your log either way.
• The first start after updating prepares the game again and, with the compiler change, recompiles shaders once.