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Post by Don Meu on Aug 17, 2006 11:22:11 GMT -5
as subject... experts opinion requested, no timewasters...
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Post by Gamesoul Master on Aug 17, 2006 11:40:12 GMT -5
I prefer the PSX version. Having played both versions, there was nothing especially better about the PC version. It was a simple port... there weren't even any bug-fixes done to the PC version before its release (the PC version even has the same typos!).
- It has poor compatibility with video cards, which leads to graphical errors on a lot of the graphics cards I tried playing it with. Even with compatible cards, there are noticeable differences (minor glitches and such) during gameplay. - The fact that it used MIDI-format music with a poor MIDI driver meant that the music was nowhere near the quality of the PSX version. Even using a special soundfont didn't help much. It actually grows quite irritating after playing for a while. - FMV's had a bad tendancy of not running as well as the PSX version (slight pauses and many misplaced objects, characters, and other annoying problems). - It isn't compatible with any type of PSX memory card saves. There *is* a utility that can convert them, but it doesn't always work, and that is a lot of trouble to go through, just to use your PSX saves for the game. - It doesn't have as many hacking utilities as the PSX version. This one actually surprised me when I figured that out, but it's true. If you really want to hack the game, your best bet is to use a save editor for a PSX save (there are some *really* good ones out there), then convert the file to the PC-compatible format and hope it works.
About the only thing better about the PC version is that there is no need for a memory card, so you have practically unlimited space for saving your games (there *is* actually a limit, but it's too high to ever actually be reached).
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Post by Don Meu on Aug 17, 2006 12:15:17 GMT -5
is it possible the PC version isnt better than the PSX version? no bug fixed? no better gameplay? no better graphics? no better sound? no extra features added? ... is it just a "bad" port?
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Post by Ultima on Aug 17, 2006 12:24:55 GMT -5
Yah it was just a bad port. Same with Final Fantasy VIII for PC. There were some minor changes to the graphics, AFAIK, but they weren't all that noteworthy (not enough for me to remember anyway ). There are other hacks for the game, like using the Cloud character model from the Sephiroth fight regularly, or using in-battle characters models as regular character models (like when you're just walking around). It's a real pain to get it working right on a lot of computers, though, so emulation's probably the way if anyone wanted to run FF7 on PC anyway.
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MotM
Junior Member
Posts: 68
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Post by MotM on Aug 17, 2006 12:46:50 GMT -5
Everything that Ultima said is true. The PSX version is definitely better, apart from graphics. You can get the same gfx on ePSXe with D3D plugin though...
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Post by psicomaniaco on Aug 17, 2006 19:13:26 GMT -5
Here's some problems with the PC version:
-Eidos used a lowsy compression on the FMVs, making them VERY blocky;
-And they added a even worse video decoder on the game making the FMVs shutter and display wrong colors.
-They haven't added any kind of filtering on the backgrounds, making them very blocky on PC monitors. (It should be noted that pSX and EPSXE DOES filter the backgrounds, and even VGS, if you have a Geforce card, will filter 2d images);
-The midi musics are weird on PC. You can use a good synthesizer, but some songs will still be inferior, like One Winged Angel.
-The PC version will crash like hell on Windows XP.
-The PC one doesn't cap the speed on the bike part, making it unplayable faster on newer computers.
-The only good thing about the PC version is that the 3d images WILL look better than the PSX ones. But not too much.
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Post by Truth Unknown on Aug 17, 2006 19:56:26 GMT -5
I actually owned the PC version but game disc 1 & 3 got destroyed.
For the time period it was released in, its was a normal port by a third party.
Pros: 3D was great. You had an ablility to use a 640x480 resolution and have filtered 3D textures. If you had a soundfont able soundcard, the music worked excelently. One Winged Angel and others had voices, and non-standard synths.
Cons: All 2D textures were not upgraded to fit 640x480 Menus, Backgrounds, and Close to Screen 3D models with textures looked ugly. Game was not compatable with XP. Video had to be compatable for Mid-Range PCs at-the-time thus lower quaility was used. Controls where diffilcult to get used to on keyboard. (I don't remember if there was joypad support)
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MotM
Junior Member
Posts: 68
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Post by MotM on Aug 17, 2006 20:06:37 GMT -5
There's a 3rd party patch for the pc version which lets you play FFVII with 'no' problems. I can't tell for sure since I haven't completely played it, I was able to play in the beginning part though.
FFVII pc version was the first FF game I started with, before playing the psx version, I thought this was good... stick with the PSX version and you'll be alright.
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Post by Gamesoul Master on Aug 18, 2006 16:20:25 GMT -5
Well, even with a soundcard that supports soundfonts, the sound isn't *exactly* the same, which is noticeable to anybody who loves music (and frustrating).
The patch indeed isn't released by Eidos (although they unofficially acknowledged it), and it is a patch to basically get past the chocobo races without freezing on XP systems (it does work... I've played through the whole game on this computer with XP running, and that is the only area of the game that ever froze for me before the patch, and that was only on XP).
Eidos released a "True Motion filter" patch to fix and speed up the playback of the FMV's. It works fairly well, but you will still notice problems depending on your system (said from experience).
There is joypad support (I use the same controller with FFVII-PC that I use with pSX).
I only play in 640 x 480, and the menus looked fine. Everything else looked like crap no matter what resolution was used. The 3D images don't really look any better than the PSX version, even though the official word is that there was a good chunk of time spent improving the graphics for the PC release. I recommend an older ATI card for use with this game, as they have had the best result in my experience with this game (I went through *many* video cards just to find one that would work properly with this game, as I didn't have a Playstation when I bought this game).
If your computer is fast enough that the bike scene runs fast for you, you're lucky, because on many computers it runs slow as hell, no matter how nicely the rest of the game runs for you.
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R4Zi3L
Full Member
I-wanna-be-a-pirate!
Posts: 198
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Post by R4Zi3L on Aug 18, 2006 18:10:12 GMT -5
interesting topic... does backgrounds also looks better on psx?
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Post by Ultima on Aug 18, 2006 18:39:39 GMT -5
As has been said, the textures were not improved, so they looked bad on higher resolutions.
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Post by Don Meu on Aug 19, 2006 1:00:26 GMT -5
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Post by Truth Unknown on Aug 19, 2006 2:17:46 GMT -5
Yeah I found out my friend had a copy of the same platinum edition of Final Fantasy VII so I borrowed it and made a new copy of the 1st and 3rd game discs (yay I my game back, somewhat). I have been playing it for sometime (to the part in Sector 6 getting one of the characters back) with patches (which i should have mentioned earlier but Don Meu saved me the trouble of posting links).
I was wrong about the filtered textures, it has been a while when i played it (2000 ish) on an old eMachine (which was crap but I didn't car). Soundfonts do work, but there was not a update for newer soundfont cards (my poor Audigy 4 that I just bought) so I have to manually set the soundfonts in the manager. I kinda wish that old SBLive! card still worked.
The game on PC is not that bad and it dose prove that Final Fantasy VII does have a black border on the bottom SO NO MORE POSTS ON THAT GAME! Edios did modify some parts of the game to show stuff on the bottom, so far its the menu system that fills the bottom.
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Post by Don Meu on Aug 20, 2006 4:47:21 GMT -5
oh well, by the way, anyone knows what is that annoying BLACK BORDER on the bottom of the screen?... ... ;D lets come serious, just a little off-PSX... what is the latest PC release of FFVII and FFVIII? Eidos Platinum Collection, EA Classic, etc...
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Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
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Post by Deleted on Aug 20, 2006 7:21:16 GMT -5
Is "neither" an option in this question? Seriously though, on PSX bt far. Any PSX->PC conversion has been pretty bad in my books. Only good thing about PC FF7 that I can think of is the midi music, that was easily rippable and then I could play them on my awesome soundfonts and whatnot.
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