INITIAL D ARCADE STAGE 3 RECOMPILED - PUBLIC EARLY DEMO v2489

This is unfinished public playtest software for Windows x64. The package
contains no game data, BIOS, card saves, custom music, extracted assets, logs,
learned QA course paths, generated guest-code source, or personal paths.

New in v2489:
- The accepted runtime advances static SH-4 closure while retaining a
  BIOS-free static-AOT product path and native Vulkan renderer.
- Fresh installations use normal Direct Vulkan presentation. Safe presentation
  remains a manual F1 troubleshooting option and is not forced at launch.
- The launcher prevents duplicate update/setup work, avoids a full 2,196-file
  hash after a transient metadata failure, and gives update prompts a visible,
  closeable, time-bounded window.
- Saved Very Easy/Easy/Normal/Hard/Very Hard cabinet difficulty is forwarded
  to the runtime.
- The accepted executable passes standalone no-BIOS and native Vulkan product
  gates. The owner completed a roughly 20-minute standalone Direct-Vulkan
  session without a process crash; this is not exhaustive hardware testing.
- The product folder and executables retain their stable names:
  "Initial D Arcade Stage 3 Recompiled",
  "Initial D Arcade Stage 3 Recompiled.exe", and
  "Initial D Arcade Stage 3 Recompiled Runtime.exe".
- Updates merge product files into the existing installation while preserving
  game files, cards, custom music, logs, settings, update preferences, and
  unrelated destination-only files. Failed installs restore the old files.

You must supply your own legally obtained matching files in "game files":
- gds-0033.chd
- 317-0384-com.pic

Run "Initial D Arcade Stage 3 Recompiled.exe". The launcher validates and
extracts from those inputs locally. Python and a NAOMI 2 BIOS are not required.
Allow roughly 1.3 GB of temporary free space during first-run setup.

Start with 60 FPS. Higher-refresh presentation remains experimental. This is
not a finished release.
