I’m sure that the SNES guys optimized the hell out of it.
Ironically, no: the artwork in the game was scanned and used as directly as possible, in a 256-color format so fat that even cartridge loading speed was an obstacle. This is why the game slowly widens the frame to reveal that title screen: you’re seeing everything that’s made it to VRAM.
I have no idea why they didn’t convert the image to 4-bit when it’s all so green. If I was referencing it in a homebrew I’d use Mode 0 for four planes at just four colors each, and have some amazing parallax as the camera craned up.
Ironically, no: the artwork in the game was scanned and used as directly as possible, in a 256-color format so fat that even cartridge loading speed was an obstacle. This is why the game slowly widens the frame to reveal that title screen: you’re seeing everything that’s made it to VRAM.
I have no idea why they didn’t convert the image to 4-bit when it’s all so green. If I was referencing it in a homebrew I’d use Mode 0 for four planes at just four colors each, and have some amazing parallax as the camera craned up.