Badlucktroll
Member
If they do a Ps3 emulator they will just drop random shit out of a hat like enslaved odyssey to the west and gripshift
(if you're not from EU, ofc)
Funniest of this whole story is that the *last* (I think) PS2 title we got in this saga was AC5, which ran at proper 4k with some upgraded assets (but still emulated). So the last title got the best treatment - but then things just died.
It's not a per-game wrapper. Compatibility may not be as high as PS3 one was, but it's still general emulation.
It's not a per-game wrapper. Compatibility may not be as high as PS3 one was, but it's still general emulation.
Curious why compatibility might not be as high as the PS3 one, when the PS5 has significantly faster hardware?
eDRAM?
Or they stop doing per-game wrapper and work on a universal emulator. By next year, they'd have half the PS2 catalogue playable. Much better than 3 games per months for 12 months which gives you a measly 36 games.
but wouldn't this be a non-issue for sony owned/published games? couldn't sony at least just release those?...It's not the emulator which is making most back-catalog releases difficult to put out there, it's all the legal and rights-handling issues. Back in the blitz time of PS Classics on PS3/PSP or Virtual Console releases, classic games were big business and companies rushed to get all that paperwork done and games re-published as quickly as possible, but that machine has slowed down for various reasons, and also there's not money anymore greasing the wheels.
I'm about 95% sure it's a PS2 rom underneath - just like Parappa, Locoroco and Patapon on PS4 are actual PSP roms running PSP code.The version of Ace Combat 5 for PS4/5 included in special releases of Ace Combat 7 was a port, not an emulated copy of the PS2 game.
The simple reason that's not very plausible is that they did it as pre-order bonus for a game - once. The cost of full decompilation work is up there with developing a whole game (I know of real projects that did this commercially and what it cost them) so it would never fly, and the only alternative is either runtime emulation or static recompile which is just precompiled binary with a statically linked emulator backend.a bit like the fan-made decompilation work of Super Mario 64 or the Jak & Daxter engine, but I'm not sure how that could have been determined?)
I mean - fine - but that's semantics. It's 'not unlike saying PS2 had no PS2 native games because each game shipped with a 'per-game' wrapper (and they all did - there were no OS provisioned drivers - each game came with its own entire driver stack - without that - games can't even launch on PS2).Not a per-game emulator, but it's still a per-game wrapper, as in there is no OS-level support or separate emulator application.
As do most homebrew emulators, PCSX2 has like a million and one per-game compatibility hacks. Also this existed on commercial emulators as well - 360 had it, PS3 had it, PSP had such elements too.Also, the emulator probably has some per-game code to it, although that's usually from trying to use the previous version of the generic emulator and finding that this game used calls which were unusual and now cause the emulator to break, so it must now be accounted for.
You mean - download a new version - like every update? It's not like these PS2 packages haven't been updated before - they did it when PS4 Pro launched for instance. The one caveat is that with PSN entitlement mess - I am not sure if they can add a PS5 SKU to these or not(since this seems to be the approach for all other classics) - I think some PS4 titles have done so, so presumably yes - but who knows if then we'll lose access to the games or some stupid thing...There would have to be a new release of Primal, and you would need to re-download the entire package.
It was more compatible - not exactly better performing. Most of these PS2 titles on PS4 run significantly faster than original hardware - bugs/issues aside. On PS3 - I don't recall anything running particularly better.Curious why compatibility might not be as high as the PS3 one, when the PS5 has significantly faster hardware?
The thing that always irked me about this thing was that Sony offered this 'emulator engine with asset replacement' for other systems on PS4 - we literally had multiple PSP releases that way as well - no porting involved there. And the tech existed since PS3/PSP era (for other legacy systems). And that also vanished after 2016.
Princess Crown, LocoRoco 1 and 2, Patapon 1 and 2, PaRappa the Rapper, and Castlevania Requiem (and maybe more that I'm forgetting), all on PS4, were pretty similar all around.*I'm also greatly disappointed that the whole PSP Remaster initiative went nowhere.
I'm about 95% sure it's a PS2 rom underneath - just like Parappa, Locoroco and Patapon on PS4 are actual PSP roms running PSP code.
The simple reason that's not very plausible is that they did it as pre-order bonus for a game - once. The cost of full decompilation work is up there with developing a whole game (I know of real projects that did this commercially and what it cost them) so it would never fly, and the only alternative is either runtime emulation or static recompile which is just precompiled binary with a statically linked emulator backend.
Now sure - Namco could roll out PS2 emulator on their own - but as you note- they never used it anywhere else - so that's suspect. Using Sony's framework that we know existed would explain the no other platforms bit at least.
Princess Crown, LocoRoco 1 and 2, Patapon 1 and 2, PaRappa the Rapper, and Castlevania Requiem (and maybe more that I'm forgetting), all on PS4, were pretty similar all around.
but wouldn't this be a non-issue for sony owned/published games? couldn't sony at least just release those?...
I think those received similar treatment (access to native system features and 'potentially' upgraded assets).Are you talking the emulation approach used in the PS3 version of Monster Hunter Portable 3 HD?
Princess Crown, LocoRoco 1 and 2, Patapon 1 and 2, PaRappa the Rapper, and Castlevania Requiem (and maybe more that I'm forgetting), all on PS4, were pretty similar all around.
I mean - the above examples are all presented as 'native' binaries on the disc(EBOOT.PBP) - you need to go a layer deeper, but no idea if anyone did this.could be, but Namco insists its a port, and some investigations into the app describe it as its own thing.
Well - the few tidbits of internal info I remember hearing back then (it's been 15+ years though so... memory lapses and all that) indicated they had a program running for legacy-hw 'remasters' (PSP, PS2, PS1 targets). But in the end how many publishers actually bothered to pick it up is another story - that's why I still suspect AC5 though as it behaves very much like these other conversions.Some assumptions were that the PSP Remaster line might be in preparation for offering these same enhancements across both PS3 and PS Vita, but that feature never translated over to the new handheld hardware. Instead, it was just a strange technical experiment which was used in a few Japanese PS3 discs and then forgotten to time.
With the exception of Princess Crown and Patapon 2 (both which were kinda late to the party in 2020) PS4 remasters were disc-based releases too.These were disc-based releases
The SIE ones did have updated, 4K assets from what I know.(Also, there are no texture packs in those PS4 PSP releases, assuming PSP Remaster had texture packs included on the PS3 disc.)
With the exception of Princess Crown and Patapon 2 (both which were kinda late to the party in 2020) PS4 remasters were disc-based releases too.
The SIE ones did have updated, 4K assets from what I know.
The initiative was very similar, anyway, the only difference is that the PS4 one was kept much more behind doors.
okay, i'm bailing right there...You'd like to think so, but paperwork has a way of cutting deep into you...
For example, these PS2 for PS4/5 releases are running on a new emulator made by a 3rd Party company. Those guys have to get paid for their work, and they assumedly are getting paid right now for each game they implement and test and rerig and wrap up with their emulator. Now, Sony is as far as we know the maker of the previous emulator, but just assume it's someone else (or assume that Sony as a corporation is picky about who uses its proprietary tech without paying, even if it's Sony itself,) and think about the paperwork conflict there. Does Team A get paid a penny for every new Primal sale, or does Team B? And if you use Team B's emulator to run Team A's copy of the game, do both teams get a penny? And if the entire value to be paid out is two pennies, but contractually you have to send out those pennies, is it worth the effort to sort all this out?
That's a drastic version of the scenario which may not be happening... but then again, working in a business can really be that maddening and confounding in the paperwork roadblocks you encounter.
while I understand what you're saying (mostly, anyway), i'm still thinking it's got more to do with sony arranging things so that you pay over & over, each gen, to play the games that you've already payed for previously than it does anything else (which, understanding the meaning of 'rentier capitalism', i can understand completely)...
The original PS2 emulation on PS3 (launch units with support at the OS level) worked because aspects of the PS2 chipset were included in the PS3 chipset; later versions of hardware-based BC cut out the Emotion Engine and RAMBUS memory but still kind of worked (although in my experience with actual hardware, both had issues like lag, I guess primarily because the game still had to go through the PS3 scaler and things just got messy.) The final PS2 emulation solution on PS3 was entirely software-based, through an emulation app wrapper labeled "ps2_netemu", and it was surprisingly capable (especially after hackers cracked it to work with games Sony never released on PSN), but it still always had problems. And then the PS2 emulator on PS4 labeled "ps2onps4" is said to be sort of a new version of ps2_netemu rather than a total rewrite for new hardware.
PS2 Emulation - PS3 Developer wiki
Playstation Development Wiki - PS5, PS4, PS3, PS2, PS1, PSP, Vita Informationwww.psdevwiki.comPS2 Emulation - PS4 Developer wiki
Playstation Development Wiki - PS5, PS4, PS3, PS2, PS1, PSP, Vita Informationwww.psdevwiki.com
This new PS2 emulator for PS4/5 is created by a totally different studio (I can't remember their name, but they did the PS1/PSP emulation and also some Nintendo Switch work.) It's more modern, ideally has some improvements and features, but it's not produced internally by Sony, for better or worse in terms of compatibility.
It's not the emulator which is making most back-catalog releases difficult to put out there, it's all the legal and rights-handling issues. Back in the blitz time of PS Classics on PS3/PSP or Virtual Console releases, classic games were big business and companies rushed to get all that paperwork done and games re-published as quickly as possible, but that machine has slowed down for various reasons, and also there's not money anymore greasing the wheels.
It'd still be great if they could get this new emulator wrapped into the existing PS4 versions of PS2 Classics ASAP. (And technically if it was a standalone app, it would have been possible to write it so it'd ignore the existing old emulator wrapper and just yank the ISO through to the new emu app. I'm all Sony having dedicated PS platform emulator apps instead of the way they've been handling it since PS4 or even the PS3.) However, there may be some legalities still with how those old games were re-released, making a brand new mess of additional 10-year-old paperwork on top of the slow process of getting through the 25-year-old PS2 version paperwork. Primal being out right now on PSN one way doesn't make it instantly re-releaseable again a different way.
360bc is very low res.this one is odd when 360 bc and the ps2 one is shit.
Amen brotherWe won't get any of the really cool stuff.
I wish Shadow Hearts wasn't locked on the PS2. My friend's been talking up those games for years.
well, if they're trying to determine if this'll generate more premium subs, they likely don't want to over-commit, eh? to the extent that, if it don't appear to work? they can simply fall back on the 'traditional' method of distribution (ie, selling them}...If the only reason why you often need to pay over and over each gen to play the games you've already paid for, then they'd have all of those games out as soon as possible to get that cash machine rolling right away. But instead, they're releasing 3 games this month, and maybe 3 next month (or not? their PS1 and PSP output has not been steady) and they would start with the big-selling hits.
Sony would surely love your money, and they would love it if you gave them money without them needing to spend time and money making something new for you to buy. Unfortunately, business does not move in such obvious ways some times...
Nobody is asking for 100 games a month.
We're arguing that they should have built up at least a larger up-front selection of maybe 20 - 30 titles to add to the service day one, after which they can incrementally add a small number of new titles each month thereafter.
They should develop a universal emulator. They had one for the PS3 to run PS2 games. The PS5 is so far beyond PS2 in performance that even a poorly optimized emulator should be able to run most games at full speed.
They shouldn't be trying to provide game-by-game wrappers. It's wholly inefficient. If they can only dedicate the resources of a small team, then they should be working much smarter than this.
well, if they're trying to determine if this'll generate more premium subs, they likely don't want to over-commit, eh? to the extent that, if it don't appear to work? they can simply fall back on the 'traditional' method of distribution (ie, selling them}...
I dunno, man. The new PCSX2 is pretty damned good. I play my ripped games and they look better than ever. You can even retexture the games and make them look even better. It hasn't been around too long, like a year+? But, if you own the games, can rip'em. I would go that route. I recently tried out Duckstation, too. Never going back to any other emu.Eager to see how well their new emulator works. Sly Cooper had some missing effects in the HD remaster so a proper version based on the PS2 original would make it the best place to play it.
PCSX2 and Duckstation are both absurdly great, and utterly eliminate the need for Sony's non-service.I dunno, man. The new PCSX2 is pretty damned good. I play my ripped games and they look better than ever. You can even retexture the games and make them look even better. It hasn't been around too long, like a year+? But, if you own the games, can rip'em. I would go that route. I recently tried out Duckstation, too. Never going back to any other emu.
No, they are emulated, it is obvious just after just boot them, also if you jailbreak the console you can inject other games in to the emulator...Can we dump ps4, its just holing us back now, how about some ps vita games,
Old ps2 games are ports, these are the first few emulated games
well, in that case, why not dribble them out? gives them something to announce every month...But they don't need more data; they've been selling PS Classics on PSN for almost 20 years, and including PS Classics from PS1 and PSP has been part of the Premium Subscription model tiers from the very beginning. I don't think it's a mystery as to whether if they released God of Wars or Final Fantasies on through PS Plus in one big avalanche of hits, it would do better subs than a Prequel-era Star Wars and one of the Tomb Raiders and a Sly Cooper.
They did the avalanche of hits when they launched the tiers, BTW. And it included "a catalog of beloved classic games from the original PlayStation, PS2 and PSP generations to download and play."
UPDATE: All-new PlayStation Plus launches in June with 700+ games and more value than ever
PlayStation Plus and PlayStation Now come together; players can choose from three flexible options.blog.playstation.com
well, in that case, why not dribble them out? gives them something to announce every month...
They could drop 10 games a month, and it would still take them over 35 years.Better than dropping a few dozen at once, the delusional whiners being one month silent but then complain for the rest of eternity how much Premium sucks.