Topic: Factor 5 and DivX Networks release SDK for GameCub

[RickPowers]

Tired of badly compressed video in GameCube games?  Fret no longer, DivX and your pals at Factor 5 have the answer!

The small size of the GameCube discs makes them easy to manage and cheap to make, but they only hold a fraction of the data a standard DVD-ROM can.  While most games can be made to fit in 1.5GB of space, FMV, or full-motion video is much harder to compress without significant loss in video quality.

PC users have long known the advantages that the DivX format (not to be confused with the ill-fated DIVX alternative to DVD) has in terms of files sizes and image quality.  Now Factor 5 in a partnership with DivX Networks are bringing tools to developers to compress FMV with the DivX format, allowing for better looking video in smaller file sizes.

How much smaller?  It depends on the source and the aggressiveness of the compression, but DivX says that the tools can create movies at DVD Quality that are 7-10 times smaller than MPEG2.

The code is hand built in assembly language for the Gekko processor as well, and the playback portion uses both the Gekko CPU and the Flipper graphics processor to decode.

Since the tools have been developed by Factor 5, they are tightly integrated with the MusyX and AX sound libraries.

More information is available at the DivX for GameCube SDK page.