RPG Progress Report

[noiseredux]

cool cool. I'll consider post-game content as bonus stuff to come back to next time I have the itch. Like side quests in Skryim. I should have time to knock out the main quest tonight then.

[Arenegeth]

Also the hdretrovision snes component cable

https://www.hdretrovision.com/snes/

Thanks for that. Still looks like I need a Model 1 console though, and mine probably isn't one, though I haven't confirmed it. It was the Super Mario All Stars PAL UK Bundle, probably too new for Model 1.

I finished up with all the Accolades in Dragon Quest XI, and now I've moved on in scanning every nook and cranny for any leftover treasures. There was a conspicuous Treasure Chest in the Emerald Coast only so far, but I know I got at least something left in Nautica.

The official guide for Octopath Traveler is on the way, when it arrives I can finally go back to that game and 100% it proper. It irks me that I had to restart after all that progress, especially for a single measly item, but oh well, I'm doing everything a lot better this time around, including making careful Quest choices since I half assed it last time.

[Jmustang1968]

Also the hdretrovision snes component cable

https://www.hdretrovision.com/snes/

Thanks for that. Still looks like I need a Model 1 console though, and mine probably isn't one, though I haven't confirmed it. It was the Super Mario All Stars PAL UK Bundle, probably too new for Model 1.

I finished up with all the Accolades in Dragon Quest XI, and now I've moved on in scanning every nook and cranny for any leftover treasures. There was a conspicuous Treasure Chest in the Emerald Coast only so far, but I know I got at least something left in Nautica.

The official guide for Octopath Traveler is on the way, when it arrives I can finally go back to that game and 100% it proper. It irks me that I had to restart after all that progress, especially for a single measly item, but oh well, I'm doing everything a lot better this time around, including making careful Quest choices since I half assed it last time.

Not sure, in the US we had the model 1 SNES which is the shape and look that is most commonly associated with a SNES. The model 2s were the junior or mini revisions. In Europe I imagine you can go the Scart route easily.

[Violent By Design]

Does anyone know if the genesis ports of Star Control and Starflight worth playing - or should is there a big gap in quality between them and the computer versions?

[Arenegeth]

OK, so I've opened up my Super Nintendo and it says: SNSP-CPU-02.

I couldn't really tell from that and by looking at the pictures over at RetroRGB because the American model looks quite different inside, but if the expansion port 'three dots of doom' are any indication then mine isn't a Model 1 as I had assumed, since it has them.

Guess I won't be playing any Super Nintendo JRPG's any time soon, a pity...

[pierrot]

Wait, wait. Hold on a second. Do you have a SNES that looks like this:



or one that looks like this:



Those second models are the only SNES models I know of that don't support RGB through SCART, without modifications (which is also an almost trivially simple modification with the amp circuits RetroRGB sells). The issue with the 1 CHIP revisions of the first model, as I recall, is that they need to be modded for CSYNC, but are still otherwise compatible with RGB and Sync-on-Composite. I'm also not sure that the Model 2 SNES was ever sold in PAL territories, but I really haven't ever had much reason to keep up with PAL model revisions, so I don't know, but it seems much more likely than not that you have a SNES that can output RGB over SCART.

[MrPopo]

Does anyone know if the genesis ports of Star Control and Starflight worth playing - or should is there a big gap in quality between them and the computer versions?

The Genesis port of Star Control is probably the superior version, as I believe there are unique scenarios to it, and the game is a little easier to control on a controller. Starflight you can probably go either way. You'll need to take notes either way, and the Genesis version has some changes that make it a little easier to play.

[Arenegeth]

Well, I'll have to get a cable and do a test, but from what I get from the RetroRGB site, even if my model displays RGB it will do so in a lower quality and be a bit blurry compared to a 1CHIP.

I don't like to settle for anything than the best when it comes to base units these days, I spend too much of my early years playing with Composite and even RF because I (most of us really) didn't know any better, now I do, and I still have to settle when it comes to my display options, since getting an RGB monitor locally is near impossible (which means extra expensive to have one shipped to me) and stuff like the Framemeister and OSSC are pretty expensive also.

Which is also why I don't consider my Mega Drive and Saturn 'RGB ready', they display RGB just fine with the right cable, is just that they are Model 2's, and Model 1's are supposed to be superior, I may not be able to have everything perfect, but I'll get the best base unit damn it!

*Sigh* Of course all of these problems could be solved with money, but I'm not a millionaire and I can only focus on one system at a time (currently the Dreamcast) and Super Nintendo in specific is very expensive, most CIB JRPG's are in the $100's minimum, so even if I had everything else sorted out, the system's games will inevitably take a toll on my pocket on top of that.

[pierrot]

Didn't have a chance to really sit down and actually type out a decent response until now, sorry. I understand trying to get the best audio and video quality generally possible. I was there at one point. The problem with getting too far into the weeds with different console revisions, and trying to eke out every last drop of visual clarity, is that the video game community doesn't have many particularly rigorous testers, and I've found that documentation of setup and procedure tends to be quite lacking. So the results can be almost meaningless, or at the very least, potentially subject to all manner of error.

Case in point, I've read about that Model 1 vs Model 2 Saturn output clarity, thing, on RetroRGB, but other sources suggest that there is no difference. The 1CHIP SNES is another one where generally people tend to agree that they have sharper output, but some testimonials suggest that there are potential graphical glitches, not too unlike something one might see in emulation, that can be seen in certain games played on the 1CHIP models, but not when played on non-1CHIP models. (Just a note on the Mega Drive: I've never heard of any differences in the RGB output produced by different revisions of the Mega-sis. Composite, and audio output are a different story, but I'm fairly certain the RGB output, from any model/rev of Mega Drive should be practically identical. Some units have developed some banding (read: jailbars) even in the RGB output, though.)

If you want to be really fussy about the SNES, I wouldn't really blame you. I personally bought a Super Famicom a number of years ago, that is kind of crappy, with pretty soft RGB output (and a fair amount of color bleed), as well some nice latticed noise patterns that look sort of like a Kogge-Stone prefix graph. I don't often enjoy playing the SNES that much, though, and sort of stopped caring about it, after setting up a decent XRGB Mini profile for it. I wouldn't recommend worrying about the Mega Drive, or Saturn, though. Even if there is a difference, it's potentially so minor that any number of things--like what cables you use, how you lay out your cabling, and what noisy sources you might have around that could couple into the system, or transmission lines--could alter your personal results.

It's very common when designing systems to have to make trade-offs, and for commercial products, a lot of those trade-offs are also motivated by reducing costs. So even "perfect" revisions of particular game consoles are still going to have a number of imperfections. The SNES is one of the most difficult old consoles to deal with, in my experience, though. I will say that. I've modded a lot of the other Nintendo consoles for RGB, but the SNES is a bit of a crap sandwich, any way you slice it.

[alienjesus]

As one of my goals for the year, I'm attempting to beat every game I received as a gift in 2018. That's not too intimidating were it not for the fact that one of those games was Sega Mega Drive Classics for the Switch - a compilation of 51 titles.

Anyhow, I've been working through the collection gradually, mixing games up so that I spread out games of different quality, length, difficulty and genre throughout. I'm now on game 6, and I thought it might be fun to chronicle my adventures in the first of several RPGs I'll be playing...



It's still early days - I'm only an hour in and most of that time has consisted of grinding. I equipped Nei with some steel bars, took to the plains outside of town and took to smacking some bugs around the head for a while.

Eventually I was brave enough to venture away from town a bit, found a bridge I couldn't pass because some dude who wanted to kill Nei was there, and then found my way to the next town which has been attacked by 'scoundrels' - seriously, every single person in town refers to 'those scoundrels'. If someone came into my town, blew up all the houses with dynamite, killed all the men, stole away all the women and left all of the old people and children abandoned for dead I would have some more choice words than 'scoundrels'. Something like 'those complete fucking c-'....

...Aaaanyway, I did find it amusing that the thieves had blown up everything but left the weapon shop intact and surprisingly well stocked. Shame it's a bit pricy for me now. I walked back to the opening town (Paseo?) and a dude named Rudolf (or RUDO, as the game insists you call him from then on, good old 4 character name slots) joined my team for some reason. He had a shit gun equipped but I gave him some daggers and he seems OK so far. He's only level 1, but I assume he's the Odin of this game and will do silly damage later. Do guns still do fixed damage later on?

Anyhow, as Rudo is still a level 1 baby, it's back to slapping bugs around the face for a while. Grindy grindy....