Games: What games are you currently playing? [OT!]

[Cataferal]

Really? I'll give them a shot. Some of these platformers were probably eclipsed by Mario and Sonic back in the day, but now nobody makes them anymore, its cool to go back and see what else was there.

[Dreamer7000]

Okay, I think this is the best topic for this one. Can anyone, explain the Playstation's NTSC and PAL DVD types? Which is being used where? Can Playstations in Europe or other continets read both? What is the difference between the two? I'd like to know mainly everything about this. All goes for unchipped, clean Playstations.

Arigatou in advance! ^_^

[One Classy Bloke]

I answer to no wap. Particularly a wap in a games thread.

[Dreamer7000]

Which thread should I ask it in then, master?

[Cataferal]

Well, i'll cut it down to the very basics:

NTSC = Used in the USA and Japan as the TV standard. Higher frame-rate (59.94Hz field frequency), lower resolution (648 x 486).

PAL = Used here in Europe and Australia as the TV standard. Lower frame-rate (49.94Hz field frequency), higher resolution (720 x 486).

HDTV = The upcoming global standard. SLightly higher frame-rate (60Hz field frequency) and higher resolution (1280 x 720 or 1920 x 1080).

When it comes to consoles, asides from the difference in these video standards, you have a region block which seperates things even more. For example, despite the fact Japan and the USA share the NTSC video standard, they have been divided up by games developers so that people dont end up buying a game in the incorrect language. Also, this region coding allows publishers to measure the success of their games in the various markets across the world.

The harsh reality is, as a european with an unmodded Playstation or Playstation 2, you cant play games from America or Japan. Also, as a European, your superior resolution is rarely taken advantage of, since most developers create their games with the NTSC format in mind, and to do otherwise can jeapardise the frame rate. This is why we sometimes get those black borders. However, for those of us with NTSC compatible TV's, you can play your games in 60Hz with no borders: although, on some games (such as Devil May Cry 3) this can cause slowdown if not implemented correctly.

Hope that clears things up for you!

<font color="#345E81" size="1">[ September 12, 2005 04:57 PM: Message edited by: Cataferal ]</font>

[mrwiseman]

IRT OCB: http://web.madritel.es/personales1/cmpm/XJT0JRWC.jpg

IRT Dreamer(1): I'll explain it in the technical thread.

Oops, good Cata did while I was posting my thing (you'll see why it took me so long ^_^).

BTW, PAL is (768)?576 and NTSC is (640)?480. Horizontal resolution is estimated according to aspect ratio (4:3) because it's actually an analog signal.

[Dreamer7000]

Thanks a lot, Cata ^_^ (and Wiseman)

[Cataferal]

No worries man. Me and Wiseman stress over this technicality a lot. In fact, i'd say a little too much, its almost unhealthy the amount we've whined about this system. Im sure one day we'll put it to rights though.

[One Classy Bloke]

It is also worth pointing out that all PAL games from any region i.e. Australia, should work. Same goes for region 4 DVDs, they are pretty much the same as region 2.

BTW, I wasn't trying to be funny, i was simplely expressing my fury at the wapanese expressed by Hyper.

[Cataferal]

Headset volume = Off
8 player Sniper playlist = Available
Halo 2 online = Fun.

This actually requires skill to master since the focus is on stealth and accuracy. This is the best mode for me, as an MGS fan.

Ive also been playing Half-Life 2, and i consider the single-player to be far more enjoyable than Halo 2's, which proved a little stale. Meanwhile, the multiplayer modes (Counterstrike/Deathmatch) are a little unbalanced in my opinion, although they pose some interesting ideas. I think some of the most fun will be in the fan-made mods though.