Can someone explain the problem with Strikers 1945 (II) PSX?

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DatPhosphorGlow
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Can someone explain the problem with Strikers 1945 (II) PSX?

Post by DatPhosphorGlow »

This is in regards to Strikers 1945 NTSC-U for the PSX, which is really Strikers 1945 II.

I'm a noob when it comes to SHMUPS, so please excuse my ignorance.

I've been reading about this game for PSX, and hear that it's been compressed graphically to fit the screen in mode 1 and the game play adjusted.

But when I start the game, I have black bars on the sides and the display is vertical. Just like when I play The Raiden project.

Isn't this just how the arcade version of the game was? With a vertical 4:3 screen?

So the what needed to be or was compressed for the PSX port? And why were gameplay adjustments necessary?
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Kiken
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Re: Can someone explain the problem with Strikers 1945 (II)

Post by Kiken »

DatPhosphorGlow wrote:This is in regards to Strikers 1945 NTSC-U for the PSX, which is really Strikers 1945 II.

I'm a noob when it comes to SHMUPS, so please excuse my ignorance.

I've been reading about this game for PSX, and hear that it's been compressed graphically to fit the screen in mode 1 and the game play adjusted.

But when I start the game, I have black bars on the sides and the display is vertical. Just like when I play The Raiden project.

Isn't this just how the arcade version of the game was? With a vertical 4:3 screen?

So the what needed to be or was compressed for the PSX port? And why were gameplay adjustments necessary?
The arcade game uses a 3:4 aspect ratio (the entire screen is vertical). Original Mode 1 does not compress the graphics, but rather truncates the screen by removing roughly 1/8 of the playfield from the top and bottom of the screen. Enemy and boss patterns are retooled to fit the reduced playfield (nearly 1:1 aspect ratio). Original Mode 2 allows for a pan-n-scan method where the player can now move up and down the entire playfield but it is displayed within a scrolling window (members here love calling this wobble mode). If the full image was being displayed vertically on a horizontal display, it would only occupy about 30% of a 4:3 screen.

Original Mode 1 is a compromise for players who don't want to tate their TVs, don't want to play the game as a sidescroller and don't want to deal with a pan-n-scan playfield.
DatPhosphorGlow
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Re: Can someone explain the problem with Strikers 1945 (II)

Post by DatPhosphorGlow »

Kiken wrote:
DatPhosphorGlow wrote:This is in regards to Strikers 1945 NTSC-U for the PSX, which is really Strikers 1945 II.

I'm a noob when it comes to SHMUPS, so please excuse my ignorance.

I've been reading about this game for PSX, and hear that it's been compressed graphically to fit the screen in mode 1 and the game play adjusted.

But when I start the game, I have black bars on the sides and the display is vertical. Just like when I play The Raiden project.

Isn't this just how the arcade version of the game was? With a vertical 4:3 screen?

So the what needed to be or was compressed for the PSX port? And why were gameplay adjustments necessary?
The arcade game uses a 3:4 aspect ratio (the entire screen is vertical). Original Mode 1 does not compress the graphics, but rather truncates the screen by removing roughly 1/8 of the playfield from the top and bottom of the screen. Enemy and boss patterns are retooled to fit the reduced playfield (nearly 1:1 aspect ratio). Original Mode 2 allows for a pan-n-scan method where the player can now move up and down the entire playfield but it is displayed within a scrolling window (members here love calling this wobble mode). If the full image was being displayed vertically on a horizontal display, it would only occupy about 30% of a 4:3 screen.

Original Mode 1 is a compromise for players who don't want to tate their TVs, don't want to play the game as a sidescroller and don't want to deal with a pan-n-scan playfield.
Are you sure that's what they did? I think understand what the game and manual are saying, but it doesn't make sense to me. Why didn't they just use the full 3:4 visible ratio by scaling the overall image a bit smaller? I have huge black bars on the side of my un-tated TV anyway? It is nowhere near full screen.
StrzxgvNuvWvfld
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Re: Can someone explain the problem with Strikers 1945 (II)

Post by StrzxgvNuvWvfld »

DatPhosphorGlow wrote:
Kiken wrote:
DatPhosphorGlow wrote:This is in regards to Strikers 1945 NTSC-U for the PSX, which is really Strikers 1945 II.

I'm a noob when it comes to SHMUPS, so please excuse my ignorance.

I've been reading about this game for PSX, and hear that it's been compressed graphically to fit the screen in mode 1 and the game play adjusted.

But when I start the game, I have black bars on the sides and the display is vertical. Just like when I play The Raiden project.

Isn't this just how the arcade version of the game was? With a vertical 4:3 screen?

So the what needed to be or was compressed for the PSX port? And why were gameplay adjustments necessary?
The arcade game uses a 3:4 aspect ratio (the entire screen is vertical). Original Mode 1 does not compress the graphics, but rather truncates the screen by removing roughly 1/8 of the playfield from the top and bottom of the screen. Enemy and boss patterns are retooled to fit the reduced playfield (nearly 1:1 aspect ratio). Original Mode 2 allows for a pan-n-scan method where the player can now move up and down the entire playfield but it is displayed within a scrolling window (members here love calling this wobble mode). If the full image was being displayed vertically on a horizontal display, it would only occupy about 30% of a 4:3 screen.

Original Mode 1 is a compromise for players who don't want to tate their TVs, don't want to play the game as a sidescroller and don't want to deal with a pan-n-scan playfield.
Are you sure that's what they did? I think understand what the game and manual are saying, but it doesn't make sense to me. Why didn't they just use the full 3:4 visible ratio by scaling the overall image a bit smaller? I have huge black bars on the side of my un-tated TV anyway? It is nowhere near full screen.
I haven't played this specifically, but are the black bars your see with 4:3 content because you're on a 16:9 display?

These were the early days of being able to make (close-to) arcade accurate home ports, so I think they were still finding their feet a little with how to present a 3:4 game. You see lots of these modes on PSX/Saturn era games. Scaling down 3:4 to 4:3 at 240p can make the pixel art look pretty ugly, so isn't always desirable either, but I agree it's better than cutting off huge chunks of the game screen.
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pulsemod
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Re: Can someone explain the problem with Strikers 1945 (II)

Post by pulsemod »

there are black bars because it's using the original 3:4 aspect ratio of the game unscaled and cropped at the top and bottom. they don't scale all the graphics because it's running at a low resolution like the vast majority of PS1 games and it would look terrible to scale the graphics smaller and display them in a way the PS1 can render. options for ports of this era are to use the graphics from AC as-is or redo them all at a different scale
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davyK
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Re: Can someone explain the problem with Strikers 1945 (II)

Post by davyK »

I have the JP-PS2 version of this ordered - comes with 1&2 on the same disc. It looks like straight ports of the PS1 games. Any opinion on it? It looks to be in the "OK-ish" zone but it comes with a superplay DVD which is nice.
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davyK
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Re: Can someone explain the problem with Strikers 1945 (II)

Post by davyK »

Arrived today. Bare bones - no saves. Has TATE at least. What is really poor is that all the face buttons continue so if you are firing when you get a game over you go straight into the next game!!!! No options for supressing continues!!

Workaround is to configure the stick to use L1/L2 etc for fire. Really shouldn't have to do that though. The superplay DVD is a nice consolation but dear me.
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Re: Can someone explain the problem with Strikers 1945 (II)

Post by PC Engine Fan X! »

When I was in Japan back in 2000, I picked up Psikyo's Strikers 1945 II for the PSX (which has the aforemention mode 1 & mode 2 screen options from the get-go. Mode 2 screen option is tate and is the preferred way to play as intended. The Agetech PSX release of Strikers 1945 (aka S-1945 II) had the tate option removed entirely (it's recommended to play the original JPN region PSX import of S-1945 II since it has tate to begin with). Psikyo's PSX import of Strikers 1945 has both mode 1 & mode 2 screen options to select from (of course Agetech never did release it for the American PSX console indeed).

Agetech also did release the PSX stg title of Sol Divide with some content removed from the original JPN region PSX game of SD (including the RPG-ish stg mode). Again, the original PSX game of SD from Psikyo is the one to own/play nowadays.

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Austin
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Re: Can someone explain the problem with Strikers 1945 (II)

Post by Austin »

PC Engine Fan X! wrote:
Agetech also did release the PSX stg title of Sol Divide with some content removed from the original JPN region PSX game of SD (including the RPG-ish stg mode). Again, the original PSX game of SD from Psikyo is the one to own/play nowadays.

PC Engine Fan X! ^_~
Sol Divide in the US was XS Games, not Agetec.

But yeah, Japanese version is still the way to go.
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