Well, terrific news everyone! 3.0 seems to have done the trick. I played 2 matches of TS2 with around 5-7 bots onscreen at the same time, and the FPS held around 40-60. Even the respawn effect made only a minor dent in the FPS (dropping it down by 15 if I stare at it the entire time up close, dropping by 5 frames per effect at medium range, and not causing issues if viewed out of the corner of my FoV). The audio is still crisp and clear, and enabling cheats doesn't seem to have created any negative effects.
The opening cutscene created a serious drop around the ending portal part, but even that wasn't bad compared to my last experience. All in all, the game works fine. This is exactly how I hoped Dolphin would run: generally playable with some occasional and bearable drops in FPS.
So, I truly appreciate the help you guys have given me. Now I can get my nostalgia on without trying to ship my Gamecube up north!
The opening cutscene created a serious drop around the ending portal part, but even that wasn't bad compared to my last experience. All in all, the game works fine. This is exactly how I hoped Dolphin would run: generally playable with some occasional and bearable drops in FPS.
So, I truly appreciate the help you guys have given me. Now I can get my nostalgia on without trying to ship my Gamecube up north!