MegaManX5Recomp

This recompilation is a byproduct of developing psxrecomp — the games are the proving ground, the framework is the goal. These are in-development previews, not finished ports — expect rough edges, and depth will keep landing over months, not days. My time for any one title is limited, so I ask for your patience. Contributions are welcome — testing, issues, and PRs to the game or framework all help and will accelerate this game's polish. More on the why at: Recomp + AI: 5 Months Later »

Mega Man X5 (USA, SLUS-01334) statically recompiled to a native PC executable with PSXRecomp — the same framework behind TombaRecomp and MegaManX6Recomp.

What This Is

This repository contains the game-specific configuration, seeds, tools, and build glue for running Mega Man X5 on the PSXRecomp framework. The game's MIPS code is machine-translated ("recompiled") ahead of time into native C, then compiled into a real Windows program that runs the game's own logic on a faithful simulation of the PS1 hardware (GPU, SPU, GTE, memory cards) plus the real, recompiled PS1 BIOS — no high-level emulation shims.

It does not contain the Mega Man X5 disc image, the PS1 BIOS, generated game code, or any decompiled game C. Those are produced locally from your own legally obtained assets.

Important files:

• game.toml: runtime / recompiler / video / controller config.
• seeds/: Ghidra-derived function starts and game-specific seed data.
• tools/regen.ps1: regenerates the recompiled C output.
• tools/package_release.ps1: builds the redistributable release zip.
• psxrecomp-v4.pin: framework commit this project is known-good against.
• ISSUES.md: game-specific issue log.
• DISC.md: source-disc identity and verification hashes.

Status

Playable preview — v0.0.2-alpha. Mega Man X5 boots from the PS1 BIOS and plays — through the opening (including the intro cutscenes, which now decode and play), into stages, with working controller input and memory-card save/load, and no known crashes. It has not yet been verified all the way to the end, so treat it as a very playable preview rather than a certified full playthrough.

Area	State
PS1 BIOS boot	Works (real recompiled BIOS)
Disc-detect / boot	Works (loads the engine and streamed overlays)
Intro cutscenes / FMV	Plays (movies now decode); auto-skip available
Controller	Works; DualShock/analog presented by default (required by MMX5)
Stage gameplay	Works (not yet verified all the way to the end)
Memory-card save / load	Works (standard PS1 .mcd, emulator-compatible)
Renderers	Software, OpenGL, and Vulkan; OpenGL is the validated default
Mods	Widescreen 16:9 and frame interpolation; both default-disabled

See ISSUES.md for notes and the remaining enhancement follow-ups.

Features

These are the framework features that are already working in this build:

• Modern renderers. CPU software, OpenGL, and Vulkan backends are available. OpenGL is the validated default for this release.
• Fast loading (turbo loads). While a load is in progress the whole machine fast-forwards at your PC's full speed, then drops back to normal the instant it finishes — so disc loads complete far faster while all of the game's internal timing (and audio) stays correct. Authentic 1× disc timing is kept; the speed comes from the load fast-forward, not from speeding up the emulated CD (which would break timing). On by default; toggleable in the launcher.
• Intro cutscenes / FMV. The opening movies (CAPLOGO.STR / X5OP.STR, with BGM.XA audio) decode and play. Full-motion videos can also be skipped the instant they start — off by default so you see the intro, toggleable in the launcher (Settings → "Skip FMVs").
• DualShock controller by default. MMX5 will not poll buttons until it detects an analog-capable pad, so the runtime presents a DualShock by default. Adjustable stick deadzone; per-player override in the launcher.
• Supersampling + anti-aliasing. Internal-resolution SSAA (1×–4×) with optional linear present filtering for clean edges.
• Mods view. Two reviewed, game-owned enhancements are available: default-disabled 16:9 widescreen and presentation-only frame interpolation. Widescreen expands the Capcom 2D background tile window and widens enemy activation and primitive culling; interpolation preserves the game's stock logic, audio, and VBlank cadence.
• Graphical launcher. Pick your BIOS, disc, and memory cards; verify the disc; configure renderer / supersampling / controller, with live settings persistence — then press Launch.

Setup

Release Package (recommended)

1. Download MegaManX5Recomp-v*-windows-x64.zip from Releases and extract it.
2. Run MegaManX5Recomp.exe. A launcher window opens.
3. OpenBIOS is included and selected automatically. You may optionally choose a legally obtained retail PlayStation BIOS.
4. Set the game disc: select your legally obtained Mega Man X5 (USA, SLUS-01334) disc image. The launcher verifies the ISO9660 header, region, and serial.
5. Optionally adjust renderer, supersampling, screen look, and controller settings, then press Launch. Your choices are remembered.

Accepted disc formats: .cue + .bin (preferred — pick the .cue) and .bin. Do not convert the disc to a 2048-byte "cooked" .iso — that discards the Mode-2 Form-2 XA sectors MMX5 streams its FMV/audio from. If the header or game ID does not match SLUS-01334, the launcher warns and tries to run it anyway.

Selected paths and settings persist next to the executable. Clearing the BIOS row returns to OpenBIOS.

Building From Source

Builds on Windows (MSYS2/MinGW).

Requirements:

• A C/C++ toolchain (MSYS2 mingw-w64-x86_64) and CMake 3.20+.
• Mega Man X5 (USA, SLUS-01334) disc image (.cue + .bin or .bin). Not included. Verify it against DISC.md before reporting regressions.
• A retail Sony BIOS is optional; redistributable OpenBIOS is included.
• The psxrecomp framework available at the sibling path ../psxrecomp (linked in as the psxrecomp-v4 junction at the psxrecomp-v4.pin SHA), plus a recompiled BIOS in psxrecomp/generated/ (see the framework README).

The recompiler needs the game's PS-X EXE extracted from the disc. A helper is included:

python3 ../psxrecomp/tools/extract_psx_exe.py "mmx5/Mega Man X5 (USA).bin" SLUS_013.34 mmx5/SLUS_013.34

Generate the recompiled C, then build and run:

# Regenerate generated/SLUS_013.34_{full,dispatch}.c from the disc/EXE.
#   Windows: pwsh tools/regen.ps1
#   (or invoke the recompiler directly:
#    ../psxrecomp/recompiler/build/psxrecomp-game.exe --config game.toml)

cmake -S . -B build -G "Unix Makefiles"
cmake --build build -j16
./build/mmx5-runtime.exe

To build the redistributable Windows release (regens, builds with the launcher, bundles assets + cache, and zips it): pwsh tools/package_release.ps1.

Configuration

Most options are exposed in the launcher and persist to settings.toml. The underlying defaults live in game.toml:

• [video] — renderer, supersampling (1–4), antialiasing, texture_filtering, and auto_skip_fmv. Widescreen and frame interpolation are owned by the two packages in the Mods view.
• [controller] — default_analog (DualShock on by default), deadzone.
• [runtime] — disc_speed (kept at 1x), turbo_loads, bios_hle, overlay_cache.

Controls

PSX button	Keyboard
D-Pad Up / Down / Left / Right	Arrow keys
Cross	X
Square	Z
Circle	S
Triangle	A
L1 / R1	Q / W
L2 / R2	E / R
Start	Enter
Select	Right Shift
Turbo	Tab (hold)
Fullscreen	F11 / Alt+Enter

A game controller (Xbox, PlayStation, or any SDL-recognized pad) is supported via SDL when connected. MMX5 expects an analog pad, so a DualShock/analog controller is presented by default.

PSX button	Xbox controller
D-Pad Up / Down / Left / Right	D-pad or left stick
Cross	A
Circle	B
Square	X
Triangle	Y
L1 / R1	LB / RB
L2 / R2	LT / RT
Start	Menu
Select	View / Back

Release builds include input.ini next to MegaManX5Recomp.exe. Edit it to change controller device index, deadzone, or button mapping.

Memory Cards

Save and load work. The runtime uses standard PS1 memory-card images (.mcd / .mcr) compatible with DuckStation, PCSX-Redux, Mednafen, ePSXe, and similar emulators. Cards are stored in the saves directory and managed in the launcher's memory-card UI. Runtime memory-card files are local artifacts and must not be committed.

Help make your game faster — just by playing

Why isn't the game already at full speed everywhere? Most of MMX5's code is converted ("recompiled") into a fast native program ahead of time. But PlayStation games don't keep all of their code in memory at once — they stream extra chunks of code off the disc as you reach new areas (these chunks are called overlays; MMX5 streams most of its game logic from ROCK_X5.DAT / ROCK_X5.BIN). We can't convert a chunk we've never seen, and the only way to see it is for someone to actually visit that area. Until then, that area's code runs in a slower compatibility mode.

Releases ship a head start. The cache folder next to the executable contains pre-converted native code for areas covered so far, and that work is reused across launches. While you play, the runtime records newly visited areas into overlay_captures.json and your own cache grows automatically.

Please do not post overlay_captures.json publicly. It contains verbatim snapshots of the game's code read from your disc, which is copyrighted material — keep it on your own machine, alongside your disc image.

Development Rules

• Use the real recompiled BIOS and real hardware simulation in PSXRecomp.
• No HLE BIOS shims, no stubs, no fake events, no hand-edited generated files.
• Framework changes go in mstan/psxrecomp, not here.
• Game binaries, generated code, memory cards, Ghidra databases, and build outputs stay local.
• See CLAUDE.md for project-specific rules.

License

PolyForm Noncommercial 1.0.0. See LICENSE.

Mega Man X5 is copyright Capcom. This repository contains none of the game's original binaries or assets. Release packages contain no game assets or disc data. They include the MIT-licensed OpenBIOS; a retail BIOS is never included. The release executable and the bundled cache folder do contain statically recompiled (machine-translated) builds of the game's code, the same distribution model used by other static recompilation projects such as N64: Recompiled.

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