[ scummvm-Bugs-1220168 ] SAM: Actor layering glitch

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Bugs item #1220168, was opened at 2005-06-14 09:26
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Category: Graphics
Group: Sam and Max
Status: Open
Resolution: None
Priority: 5
Submitted By: Torbjörn Andersson (eriktorbjorn)
Assigned to: Nobody/Anonymous (nobody)
Summary: SAM: Actor layering glitch

Initial Comment:
Sam & Max, English CD version
Latest ScummVM CVS snapshot

(This probably happens in other places as well, but
this is the best example I've seen so far.)

When talking to the guy at the Ball of Twine Museum, if
Max walks over to the spot where Sam is standing he
will sometimes be drawn in front of Sam and sometimes
behind, causing an annoying "flickering" effect. It
would look better is Max was always drawn in front.

In this scene, I believe Sam is actor number 2 and Max
is actor number 3. They're both in the same layer and
on the same Y coordinate, giving them the same value in
the sort order. Unless I'm mistaken they're always
added to the unsorted list in the same order, so I
guess the current sorting algorithm is not a stable
one, i.e. it does not preserve the order of equal keys.

It's quite easy - and very, very tempting - to make the
sorting stable. On the other hand, there's that big,
scary comment to contend with...

Since Max's movements are random, it's not certain that
he will stay in the same spot long enough for you to
observe the phenomenon. If he moves away too quickly,
just reload the savegame and try again, or wait for him
to walk back to that spot.

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