Attempt to make sure exit works even if there's a problem.

menu.py

@@ -280,23 +280,38 @@ def donate():
     webbrowser.open('https://ko-fi.com/stormux')
 
 def exit_game(fade=0):
-    """Clean up and exit the game.
+    """Clean up and exit the game properly.
     
     Args:
         fade (int): Milliseconds to fade out music before exiting.
                       0 means stop immediately (default)
     """
-    # Get speech instance and check provider type
-    speech = Speech.get_instance()
-    if speech.providerName == "speechd":
-        speech.close()
+    # Force clear any pending events to prevent hanging
+    pygame.event.clear()
+    
+    # Stop all mixer channels first
+    try:
+        pygame.mixer.stop()
+    except Exception as e:
+        print(f"Warning: Could not stop mixer channels: {e}")
+    
+    # Get speech instance and handle all providers
+    try:
+        speech = Speech.get_instance()
+        # Try to close speech regardless of provider type
+        try:
+            speech.close()
+        except Exception as e:
+            print(f"Warning: Could not close speech: {e}")
+    except Exception as e:
+        print(f"Warning: Could not get speech instance: {e}")
     
     # Handle music based on fade parameter
     try:
-        if fade > 0:
+        if fade > 0 and pygame.mixer.music.get_busy():
             pygame.mixer.music.fadeout(fade)
-            # Brief pause to allow fade to start, but not complete
-            pygame.time.wait(min(fade // 4, 200))  # Wait up to 200ms maximum
+            # Wait for fade to start but don't wait for full completion
+            pygame.time.wait(min(250, fade))
         else:
             pygame.mixer.music.stop()
     except Exception as e:
@@ -308,5 +323,6 @@ def exit_game(fade=0):
     except Exception as e:
         print(f"Warning: Error during pygame.quit(): {e}")
     
-    # Exit the program
-    exit()
+    # Use os._exit for immediate termination
+    import os
+    os._exit(0)