Slamy has posted a new Release Candidate (RC1) build of the Philips CD-i core on the official MiSTer Discord. While he describes it as more of a stability update than a feature-heavy release, the list of improvements is still quite substantial.
The update focuses on improving audio consistency, video playback, and overall system reliability. A new CD sector cache has been introduced, ensuring a steady stream of CD data from HPS, even if the MiSTer Main process stumbles momentarily. This helps maintain smoother playback, though screenshots are still not possible without a brief system hang.
Several fixes target audio handling, including a correction to base audio mixing (previously causing heavy distortion) and adjustments to MPEG audio streaming, which now allows underflow to prevent playback drops. slamy notes that this area still needs more analysis to fully stabilize.
The FMV playback system received multiple updates as well, such as added validity checks for frames, prevention of scrambled graphics during playback, and specific fixes for titles like Burger King – CD-i Training (1997) and 2 Unlimited – Beyond Limits. Additionally, the DVC core can now be reset without losing functionality, a small but important stability improvement.
To showcase the progress, Pixel Cherry Ninja recently streamed the new RC1 build in action, and everything appeared to run smoothly, a promising sign for what’s still considered an unstable release. While not yet final, this version marks another confident step forward in bringing the Philips CD-i experience faithfully to MiSTer.
Join the MiSTer FPGA Discord channel to download the RC1 release and follow ongoing development.
You can look back at the livestream below: