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Sega Saturn Appreciation and Emulation Thread
- Thread starter Seik
- Start date
Right, so nothing to warn you before. Oh well, keep backing things up I suppose.
moltonasty
Member
Ok, so I've been on a several week long journey of figuring out what's wrong with my modded Saturn, and have yet to figure it out. If anyone has any ideas it would be super super appreciated...I'm absolutely lost at this point.
I bought multiple brands of CD-R's, even bought a new burner that supposedly is great for Saturn discs. Yet I still can't get consistent results from discs. At the same time, discs I burned years ago still work perfectly...legit discs work as well.
Should I replace my Saturn lens? Or readjust the POT? Or get a new mod chip? This is crazy frustrating :/
I bought multiple brands of CD-R's, even bought a new burner that supposedly is great for Saturn discs. Yet I still can't get consistent results from discs. At the same time, discs I burned years ago still work perfectly...legit discs work as well.
Should I replace my Saturn lens? Or readjust the POT? Or get a new mod chip? This is crazy frustrating :/
PumpkinSpice
Banned
Are you using Alcohol 120%? I can't get anything to work with my saturn without using that in windows xp compatibility mode with RAW DAO burning on my DVD drive from 2004.
moltonasty
Member
Hmm I'll have to try this, I think I did a burn with A120 to test but I didn't use the Windows XP mode. Are you on W10?
I've mainly been using Imgburn since everyone seems to swear by it...but I'm making nothing but coasters with it lol.
moltonasty
Member
Well Imgburn is showing my lowest supported write speed as 16x for the Liteon drive that is supposedly great for burning Saturn discs. My BD drive supports burns at 8x I believe, but that didn't work either. I've tried so many different speeds but no consistent results on any discs.
Are you able to force a 2x or 4x speed even if it doesn't show for the supported speeds?
Are you able to force a 2x or 4x speed even if it doesn't show for the supported speeds?
PumpkinSpice
Banned
I think if you're not burning at 4X you're going to have bad results. AFAIK the faster you burn the harder it is for especially older lasers to read what's on the disc since the pits just aren't big enough.
moltonasty
Member
But can I actually burn at 4x if that doesn't show up on compatible write speeds? Not sure about Alcohol, but at least for Imgburn it's not listed.
You should be able to just choose it in Alcohol120%. I usually set it to 4x. I don't use Imgburn I'm afraid.
moltonasty
Member
Ok thanks for all the suggestions guys, I'll give it a shot with A120 after work.
The whole thing is so bizarre.Sometimes I can get a disc to work sporadically....like it may work for a few minutes then the Saturn stops reading it and I get sent back to the boot up screen. Then the next time I try the disc it won't work at all. Meanwhile discs I burnt years ago are still working fine lol. Hopefully this solves it!
The whole thing is so bizarre.Sometimes I can get a disc to work sporadically....like it may work for a few minutes then the Saturn stops reading it and I get sent back to the boot up screen. Then the next time I try the disc it won't work at all. Meanwhile discs I burnt years ago are still working fine lol. Hopefully this solves it!
Shadow Hog
Member
"Hrmm. I could get Dynamite Deka for cheap, but I don't like the Japanese-language prompts - even if I can read the katakana, I need to be able to do so really quickly. I'll just get Die Hard Arcade, then the prompts will be in English!"
"Aw yeah, the game got here. Time to slap this into my white Saturn and watch its attract mode!"
"...the prompts are still in Japanese."
So that was my night last night
Not gonna lie, though, I'm surprised at how quickly it throws the continues at you in Deep Scan. I'd expected it to be really tedious, but... not really? I can turn the initial 4 into 11 really quickly.
"Aw yeah, the game got here. Time to slap this into my white Saturn and watch its attract mode!"
"...the prompts are still in Japanese."
So that was my night last night
Not gonna lie, though, I'm surprised at how quickly it throws the continues at you in Deep Scan. I'd expected it to be really tedious, but... not really? I can turn the initial 4 into 11 really quickly.
sixteen-bit
Member
what if you change the system language to English? any difference?
Shadow Hog
Member
System language already is English last I'd checked, so no difference there. Must be based on the console's hardwired region.
blast processed
Member
If you're half a sleep, you can easily rack up 10 continues in deep scan.
sixteen-bit
Member
Shadow Hog
Member
I expect that still will have Japanese text, of course, but if you only have a Japanese Saturn...
Does Die Hard Arcade/Dynamite Deka switch resolutions during the QTE? Whenever I get to them, the video cuts out (screen goes black, but audio remains) on my plasma, and the video doesn't return. I'm forced to quit/reset.
I'm playing via a RHEA SD back-up reader, for full disclosure. Haven't tried yet with a real disc, so that may be the issue.
I'm playing via a RHEA SD back-up reader, for full disclosure. Haven't tried yet with a real disc, so that may be the issue.
Shadow Hog
Member
It seems to run at a pseudo-480i/240p mixture, honestly, similar to Fighters Megamix - except where FMM had 240p gameplay but a 480i HUD, the 480i elements in DHA seem to include its shadows and such, while the other 3D elements look more 240p.
Interlacing isn't too bad, though, since the game runs at 30FPS for the most part (the helicopter bit of the attract is 60FPS, but it's 240p).
Interlacing isn't too bad, though, since the game runs at 30FPS for the most part (the helicopter bit of the attract is 60FPS, but it's 240p).
I have the Japanese case, but the US disc.
Great game! One of my favourites.
Would like to try the PS2 remake, but I don't think I'd be able to do it on a native PS2 controller. Game just so well on the Saturn one.
That's going to be annoying as fuck for me to record since I hate both interlacing and res switching, res switching messes up in AmaRec TV. Also Fighters Megamix was 240p in menus and 480i during gameplay, I would know as I did recordings on it and a playthrough on youtube and it's interlaced during gameplay.
moltonasty
Member
Hmm, so even on Alcohol 120 my minimum disc write speed is 16x....does this mean I'm out of luck when it comes to burning backups? Maybe I should try replacing the CD lens, not really sure what else to do..
Shadow Hog
Member
It means you'll have to buy a disc burner that actually supports lower burn speeds. Modern burners don't, for some reason. (Cheaper? I dunno.)
Like, that's not a software issue, that's a hardware issue.
Like, that's not a software issue, that's a hardware issue.
IrishNinja
Member
yeah, i don't think i tend to go faster than 4-8x, i wanna say?
I don't know if this has been asked already, but... Any of you guys ever played PAL games on an NTSC console equipped with the Action Replay Plus?
I ask because I'd really like to try Duke Nukem 3D and Quake for the Saturn, but I can't find complete and reasonably priced NTSC-U copies, so I was wondering if their PAL versions are fine too, and - assuming they are - if it's safe to play them on my Japanese Saturn (safe, as in... Without major/game-breaking glitches, basically).
I ask because I'd really like to try Duke Nukem 3D and Quake for the Saturn, but I can't find complete and reasonably priced NTSC-U copies, so I was wondering if their PAL versions are fine too, and - assuming they are - if it's safe to play them on my Japanese Saturn (safe, as in... Without major/game-breaking glitches, basically).
some of those games will be PAL optimized so they might not display properly on NTSC machine... I know one of those games is Guardian Heroes. I think there was a list floating around somewhere on the web. I'll try and look for it later unless someone beats me to it.
Disc 2 done of Panzer Dragoon Saga. Really enjoying it so far; I'll give my full thoughts once I'm done. For those wondering (as I was), you can indeed play a PAL copy of the game on an NA Saturn using an AR Cart (with appropriate code) without issue.
Just saw the above post, haha. Here are a couple links to help determine which PAL games work on North American Saturns:
http://www.segasaturn.co.uk/games/sega_saturn_pal.html
http://www.oocities.org/timessquare/cavern/2520/titles.html
Just saw the above post, haha. Here are a couple links to help determine which PAL games work on North American Saturns:
http://www.segasaturn.co.uk/games/sega_saturn_pal.html
http://www.oocities.org/timessquare/cavern/2520/titles.html
http://www.segasaturn.co.uk/games/sega_saturn_pal.html
You're out of luck, they're both PAL-optimised. They may run faster than intended and/or have the top and bottom parts of the image outside of the screen.
sixteen-bit
Member
Cool games
spazchicken
Member
Got these gems in the mail yesterday. Also have Prikura Daisakusen coming soon too!
Does that say Bulk Slash?
The Saturn is the only system I regret never owning.
Yup, heard it was great and loved what I saw in some videos of gameplay I watched.
Got these gems in the mail yesterday. Also have Prikura Daisakusen coming soon too!
Bulk Slash!
I love the 2D artwork on Princess Crown. I wasn't too fond of Prikura Daisakusen though but grats on the buys.
JonathanNemo
Member
Prikura marks the first time I caught a game loaaaading for so long, I thought it had actually crashed.
If there ever was a Saturn game that would benefit immensely from cutting down CD-ROM load times with an SD card, that would be it.
If there ever was a Saturn game that would benefit immensely from cutting down CD-ROM load times with an SD card, that would be it.
It's when you change characters after losing a life in co-op games, maybe single player too. Not the best ST-V port job, Atlus.
Bulk Slash!
I love the 2D artwork on Princess Crown. I wasn't too fond of Prikura Daisakusen though but grats on the buys.
Agreed, I think PC might be the prettiest game on the Saturn, those dragon animations are remarkable too.
Prikura Daisakusen interested me because I saw some footage of the bosses and soundtrack and thought it looked cool, found a US seller selling a copy so it was an impulse buy. I'm trying to get more Saturn games before the prices explode.
That's what I'm doing right now!
IrishNinja
Member
i feel like we're a few years later on that =/
even some japanese stuff i wanted shot up, it's tricky finding deals! there's a guy right now on gamegavel with a bunch of (mostly common) imports for cheap, though...was debating lode runner!
Thanks guys. It looks like I'll have to go for NTSC with those games. Which isn't a bad thing, it's only going to be quite hard to find excellent-to-mint used copies (or just way more expensive than PAL, in case of brand-new ones).
Got these gems in the mail yesterday. Also have Prikura Daisakusen coming soon too!
Other than your Chun-Li figure, there's something else I'd steal from this picture, and that's Princess Crown.
Always loved the artstyle and visuals, but never actually got the chance to even try it. Is there any major language barrier to be aware of, preventing to fully enjoy the experience with the game?
IrishNinja
Member
Magic Knight Rayearth down! cheers to cj_iwakura, i'm not longer a poser for having your sticker on my memory cart, haha...for real, it's a bummer it's so expensive, cause it's legit a fun action RPG & definitely more enjoyable than Shining Wisdom, or to cross over to straight RPG's also by Working Designs, Albert Odyssey. i've never even seen the anime, and this was fun.
i frequently switched characters to examine stuff & see their reaction, which really played into their troupes & such...though goddamn, when you realize that literally every single new area not only has 3 diary entries (one by each of them), but that almost all are voiced over as well...you start to see why this thing showed up so very late. Vic must've been a madman to push for that! i only listened to a handful myself, but will definitely give them more attention if i replay it down the road.
another odd new year's resolution was to beat 10 Sega games this year...and this was # 8, so i'm definitely ahead of schedule! granted, i stacked them with mostly shorter stuff here & there, but while i still wanna power through D (maybe Enemy Zero?) for some halloween Kenji Eno love in October, i clearly saved the best for last & decided i'd try both scenario 1 of Shining Force III (now that i've properly beaten 1/CD/2 & Ark) and Dragon Force! neither are on the short side - especially DF, with all those different countries - but we're not even halfway through the year, so i think those are my best bets, and will totally finish off the major titles in my Saturn backlog as well - opening up time for other important things like Guardian Heroes alternate paths, haha. which do ya'll think i should do first? to be honest, I'm heavily leaning toward DF.
JLateralus
Member
I've never used GameGavel, so I decided to take a look at what this guy was selling. Some pretty good (and cheap!) commons on there.
So, I registered an account. First off, their SSL cert is expired as of March. Second, I used a fairly long password and it wouldn't seem to work when I tried to log in. I used the "forgot password" link and thought maybe I fat-fingered. It sent me the password in clear text and didn't tell me when registering that there was a max character limit so it would just cut off the last couple of characters.
Is this site reputable? The cert isn't a great sign, but the clear text password really leaves me skeptical of what they're going to do with my credit card when I buy something.
That being said, those games sure are a good deal...
Other than your Chun-Li figure, there's something else I'd steal from this picture, and that's Princess Crown.
Always loved the artstyle and visuals, but never actually got the chance to even try it. Is there any major language barrier to be aware of, preventing to fully enjoy the experience with the game?
Haha yeah that's one of my favorite figures I own.
There is quite a bit of dialogue in the game but I've found a few guides over the years that I've used to get through parts of the game. It's not as dialogue heavy as other RPGs though. It's more action oriented which is what I love about the game. I feel like once Odin Sphere came out the visuals looked beautiful but not as cool as having the 2D sprite work that PC has.
moltonasty
Member
Ok, so it turns out my two burners have different speeds. One has a minimum speed of 16x, and the other one does go as low as 4x. Both drives keep producing coaster after coaster.
-I know the mod chip should be fine, since other backups (that I made years ago) run perfectly.
-Legit discs work perfectly.
-Imgburn and Alcohol are producing the same results
-A few discs manage to boot, but then I'll try them again later that day or the next day and they won't boot anymore
This is absolute madness.
Shin Johnpv
Member
It could be your rips, and not necessarily your burning. Have you tried to rip a game you have, burning it and see if that works?
moltonasty
Member
Well I'm using verified Darkwater rips that people seem to use with no issues. I also tested them with an emulator to make sure the disc was readable, and sure enough the emulator plays them with no problem. Pop them into the Saturn and nothing..or they work on and off with some discs.
Have yet to try with my own rips, since I figured getting a verified rip would save me the time and effort if I don't have to rip my own.
Have yet to try with my own rips, since I figured getting a verified rip would save me the time and effort if I don't have to rip my own.