Half-Life 2 for PS Vita 0.1.1-beta

Fixes for new installs, and a much faster first launch.

Download hl2_vita-0.1.1-beta.zip below and install hl2_vita.vpk over 0.1.0: your saves and settings stay, and the controls below are corrected automatically. New to the port? Follow INSTALL_VITA.md.

Fixed

• The analog sticks didn't work on a new install until Options > Controls > Restore Default Controls (#4).

Faster first launch

• First launch to the main menu is much faster at around 1-2 mins (it was about 7-10 minutes before), and about 1-2 minutes to the first map (up to 24 minutes before). Shaders are now compiled when they're first needed instead of all at once, and the shader cache no longer creates hundreds of folders up front.
• The trade-off here is that brief hitches will appear upon first load of a map or when an effect is used for the first time. Each new shader takes about half a second to compile on the Vita, so the first minutes of a brand new install - and each subsequent new area - can pause for a moment, sometimes a few seconds. Every shader is compiled only once and kept in ux0:data/shader_cache/. This seems like a fair trade-off compared to the half-hour long initial load times where the engine compiled everything upfront. Removing these hitches is the next big item on my list.

Also new

• Gyro aiming (#3): turn and tilt the Vita to aim, on top of the right stick. Off by default; turn it on and set its sensitivity in Options > Controls.
• The touchscreen's left and right halves can be assigned to any action in Options > Controls. They work in game only; in the menus you tap as usual.
• The rear touchpad's right half sprints by default. The left half still crouches.
• Loads are a little shorter: the engine log no longer writes every line to the memory card on its own, and the lightmap rebuild runs under the loading screen.
• Better bug reports: engine.log now keeps the last five sessions, like the boot log, and README_VITA.md lists what to include (firmware, model, storage, plugins).

Known issues

• First-time shader hitches, described above.
• Rarely, the game can crash while loading the next map. Save often.
• Cube map reflections are off, and the intro videos don't play.
• Suspend and resume are lightly tested.
• kubridge has known offsets only for firmware 3.60 and 3.65; on others it warns that crashes may occur.
• Half-Life 2 only: no Episodes, Lost Coast, multiplayer or mods.

Reporting bugs

Open an issue with ux0:data/hl2_vita_boot.txt, ux0:data/halflife2/engine.log, crash.log if there is one, your firmware and model, where you were in the game, and the version (top right of the menus). README_VITA.md has the details.

Not affiliated with or endorsed by Valve or Sony. Free, and it must stay free.

SHA-256 of the zip: 4d875af76c343eddf19cf8efff4fb7c1563085213d7e79c6c150651d91d78c42