What did you play most recently?

[Weirdy]

Onimusha: Warlords. Shitty english dub aside, the game's solid Onimusha and a great start to a great series.

you could've switched it to jap with eng subs

 

the option is available even on the pc version

[Agozer]

Onimusha: Warlords. Shitty english dub aside, the game's solid Onimusha and a great start to a great series.

you could've switched it to jap with eng subs

 

the option is available even on the pc version

Not in the PAL version. Imagine my surprise when I stumbled upon the Wikipedia article stated stated this. Another case publisher removing great features from a game just to fit in a couple more bullshit subtitles in a different languages. This is how it's always been with the PlayStation 2: During conversion, The publisher gets rid of [either]:

 

a) 60Hz mode because they are incompetent

In regards to point a), fullscreen viewport. Uses a quick and dirty PAL conversion with letterbox instead

c) A widescreen mode, because god forbid people use their widescreen sets to the fullest

d) A Progressive Scan mode, because god forbid PAL gamers need such extraneous features (about less than 10% of all the games that had ProgScan before their release in PAL territories still retain that feature proper after conversion)

 

In recent years though, it's been more common that if the US release has a japanese language track, then the PAL version gets that as well.

 

All this because the publisher feels the need to fill the space on a disc with either extraneous language tracks or subtitle tracks. Or both. Even when they sell the game in countries that have no need for those extra languages. They're there just to coincide with the incredibly shortsighted media laws from the likes of France, Germany and Spain.

 

In all fairness, the 60Hz mode is pretty common in PS2 games, and there are a number of cases where the actual PAL conversion is professionally made that a 60Hz mode is really not needed (that is, a fullscreen viewport and the game was optimized to the point where there is no noticeable slowdown). Unfortunately the first onimusha not only has the japanese language track removed, but also does not have a 60Hz mode and it's letterboxed. No noticeable slowdown though.

[Smilee]

Street Fighter 4

 

Finally got the chance to play this extensively. Just copped it for 20 bucks.

[KyokugenKiss]

Star Ocean: The Last Hope, this game is boring the shit out of me right now

[L.S.D]

Star Ocean: The Last Hope, this game is boring the shit out of me right now

I didn't dare to touch this game, even with a 6 foot pole.

[Agozer]

Star Ocean: The Last Hope, this game is boring the shit out of me right now

I didn't dare to touch this game, even with a 6 foot pole.

I hear that the battle system is excellent despite a lackluster story, so why not?

[Shibathedog]

Don't some PAL games run crappier than NTSC because PAL is a higher resolution and they where optimized for NTSC?

 

I'm still pissed no one agreed on a single standard. Because no one did in the US we get a lot NTSC videos that run at 24 FPS so they are easier to convert So we get the lower framerate AND the lower resolution. I guess HDTVs solve all this but still. (60FPS w00t!)

 

Hey maybe you can help me figure out this TV I ended up with, on the back it says "FOR CANADA ONLY" and it has Composite, S-Video, and Component inputs. Here are some modes I have tested:

 

PAL50 - Does not work (PAL 50 is basically default PAL right? When I start up Xbox games in PAL by accident it doesn't work and I get a rolling image)

PAL60 - I vaguely remember having some game that had this option and I think it worked but I'm not sure if it was modified to actually be NTSC or something.

NTSC - Works fine

NTSC + Progressive Scan - Does not work

Connected to PC Via Component

640X480 - Works

720X576 - Works

 

It's that 720X576 that confuses me, Isn't that progressive PAL?

[The-Ice-Man]

Video regions confuse me. For Xbox I get eveything in PAL if possible coz I have a PAL 50hz TV, but I have some games that are US. Most of them work fine if launched from XBMC in PAL, but some need to be launced in either NTSC or NTSC-J in order for FMV sequences to play without skipping.

[Agozer]

PAL50 (or just PAL) is the video standard for all European countries and other countries that adopted said standard. It's 625x576 interlaced or 720x576 progressive with 25 frames interleaved to get that 50Hz refresh rate. (versus 30 frames interleaved for NTSC). PAL games run crappier than NTSC simply because of that difference in the number of interleaved frames per scene. PAL60 is basically NTSC but with a few specific PAL details thrown in (e.g. chrominance at 4.43 MHz versus NTSC's 3.58MHz, PAL colorspace, etc).

 

TVs that were made for NTSC regions do not support the basic 50Hz PAL signal as is, and most "ye' olde" SDTV's do not support Progressive Scan. In contrast to the PlayStation 2, the XBOX has system-wide PAL60 option on its Dashboard. Good news for me is that I can almost completely eliminate the pseudo letterbox effect prevalent in many PAL games (or alternatively "overshoot" a little on the other extreme) by using a adjustable display mode on my HDTV.

 

In other news, finished Onimusha last night. Now Onimusha 2 is on the table.

[Shibathedog]

So I have a TV that supports NTSC and Progressive PAL but not regular PAL or Progressive NTSC.

 

WTF?! It's like they couldn't make up their minds when they made it.

[Agozer]

So I have a TV that supports NTSC and Progressive PAL but not regular PAL or Progressive NTSC.

 

WTF?! It's like they couldn't make up their minds when they made it.

When a TV is connected to a PC, it's a different matter, because NTSC and PAL only apply to TV signals and don't care about resolution per se, only lines, fields and frames (people eventually combined those three into an umbrella term resolution when digital TV, HDTV sets and component cables took the stage). The structure of TV signals themselves hasn't really changed, just the technology and cabling that outputs them. PC video signal is always progressive, and PAL/NTSC signal specifics play no role in that - so yes, it's entirely possible that your TV can handle 720x576 and 640x480 (akin to PAL/NTSC signals resolution-wise) from a PC source, yet still fail to support "true" progressive TV signal.