Wii VC 240p mode list

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RGB0b
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Re: Wii VC 240p mode list

Post by RGB0b »

I'd eventually love to make a "rompack" of all VC games (and maybe even MM9&10) converted to 240p. I bookmarked your guide when you posted it, but never found time to go through the process ;/
Ikaruga11
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Re: Wii VC 240p mode list

Post by Ikaruga11 »

retrorgb wrote:I'd eventually love to make a "rompack" of all VC games (and maybe even MM9&10) converted to 240p. I bookmarked your guide when you posted it, but never found time to go through the process ;/
Great idea Bob.

What about the N64 games? Do you feel they should be in 240p too? Native 480p is great imo. It's one of the advantages over real hardware.
RGB0b
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Re: Wii VC 240p mode list

Post by RGB0b »

Yeah, I mean, I'd love an archive of everything...I'd just (selfishly) start with the stuff that's most important to me :)
Ikaruga11
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Re: Wii VC 240p mode list

Post by Ikaruga11 »

retrorgb wrote:Yeah, I mean, I'd love an archive of everything...I'd just (selfishly) start with the stuff that's most important to me :)
I agree. With...recent events...I feel that archiving and preservation seems more important than ever.
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blizzz
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Re: Wii VC 240p mode list

Post by blizzz »

Good news everyone. I went through the tutorial again and managed to replicate it. It was a bit of a pain, since a lot of the homebrew tools from the Wii scene are no longer available. Just simply because they were hosted on shady freehosters, but also because sites like Google Code have shut down by now. Anyway, after trying out a couple different scripts for LZ77 Type 10 compression I found one that produces the same files as the one I used in the past.

I'll update and translate the tutorial soon™.
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blizzz
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Re: Wii VC 240p mode list

Post by blizzz »

Tutorial: Convert a 480i TurboGrafx-16 VC title to 240p

Background: Most VC titles on the Wii can be played in 240p. This is not the case for many TurboGrafx-16 titles, which only run in 480i with an added blur filter. However since some of the later releases run in 240p we can take their emulator version and convert the older 480i releases to output in 240p.

This guide may look long and complicated, but it's mostly just copying files around.

Requirements
- A Wii with Homebrew Channel + an SD card
- .wad versions of a 480i and a 240p TurboGrafx-16 VC game
- A wad manager to install the VC titles
- (optional) Triiforce to force 240p 60Hz RGB output

PC Tools
- ShowMiiWads v1.4 (requires common-key.bin) OR ShowMiiWads mod 1.0 (v1.5) which doesn't require common-key.bin
Mirror: blizzz.ovh
- CustomizeMii v3.11
Mirror: blizzz.ovh
- wwcxtool v1.21

Warning: I highly recommend using BootMii on your Wii to prevent a soft brick from a broken wad file. Before installing wad files on your Wii you should check if they work in the Dolphin emulator on PC.

For this tutorial I will use the NTSC-U version of Bomberman '94 as a donor for the 240p emulator version and Blazing Lazers as an example of a 480i game.

Step 1 - Extract the wad files
Open your wad folder in ShowMiiWads. Right click on Bomberman '94 and select Extract To Folder. Now use Tools > Unpack U8 Archive to unpack the 00000005.app file you just extracted.
Repeat the same for Blazing Lazers.

Step 2 - Create a working folder
Create a new folder and copy the contents of Bomberman '94 including the 00000005_app_OUT folder into it. Delete 00000000.app (the banner file) and 00000005.app (the emulator, settings and rom) from it. In the 00000005_app_OUT folder delete the files LZ77N43800PL.BIN, LZ77_html.arc, savedata.tpl and TITLE.TXT.
We will replace these files with Blazing Lazers in the next steps.

Step 3 - Apply LZ77 Type 10 compression
The later (240p capable) version of the TurboGrafx-16 emulator uses LZ77 compression for its roms. Since the game files from the older 480i VC titles are uncompressed we need to compress them now.
- Copy wwcxtool.exe into the 00000005_app_OUT of your 480i game and open a command (cmd) prompt in this folder
- Type 'wwcxtool /c0 html.arc LZ77_html.arc' and press enter
- If there is a xyz.pce file (for example N43406YP.PCE) type 'wwcxtool /c0 xyz.PCE LZ77xyz.BIN' and press enter. (replace both xyz with the filename of your game)
- If there is a LZ77xyz.BIN file (for example LZ77N43300YL.BIN) instead, do nothing. It's already compressed.

Step 4.1 - Copy the banner
Copy the 00000000.app file from your 480i game into the working folder.

Step 4.2 - Copy the game files
Copy your compressed LZ77xyz.BIN, LZ77_html.arc files as well as savedata.tpl and TITLE.TXT from your 480i game into the 00000005_app_OUT folder of your working folder.
Now open config.ini in your working folder and edit the NAME and ROM entry to match the file you just copied.
More info about the config file:
Spoiler
“Name=”
This option does not do anything. Just put the title of the game’s name here (keeping it short and using ASCII characters only).
Make sure you <u>KEEP</u> this setting!

“ROM=”
Tells the emulator which “.hcd” to load. Replace the option with “CDROM.hcd”.
Make sure you <u>KEEP</u> this setting!

“BACKUPRAM=”
Saves data (if game uses a save feature) so if the power is turned off (not using the Wii VC Save State), the data won’t get loss.
0 = Doesn’t backup save data
1 = Does backup save data

“MULTITAP=”
The "TurboGrafx 16" / "PC Engine" only had one once controller port and in order for multiplayer (up to five players) to work, a multitap has to be connected.
0 = No Multitap connected (only 1 Controller is connected)
1 = Multitap is connected (4 Controllers are connected)

“PAD5=”
Use this option if the “MULTITAP=” option is set to 1 and the game you are injecting supports 5 Players.
If activated, when you start the game, an option appears which will allow you to set which “Wii Remotes” / “Gamecube Controllers” to use.
0 = Controller 5 is not connected to Multitap
1 = Controller 5 is connected to Multitap

“RASTER=”
I’m not a 100% sure but I think this option is to allow scrolling backgrounds to display correctly.
I know “Star Parodier” uses this option and in “Puyo Puyo CD” (inject Nintendo Wii Channel, not official Nintendo Wii Channel), it fixes a tiny 'glitch' in the scrolling of the high score screen.
You will just have to experiment with this option as I don’t know which games are programmed to use it.
Also beware that games that don’t support “raster” might slow down. I had to disable it in “Rainbow Islands” because the game slowed down when too many enemies were on the screen.
0 = Raster affect is off
1 = Raster affect is on

Below I have quoted what Wiki says about “Raster”:
< !--c1--><div class='codetop'>CODE</div><div class='codemain'><!--ec1-->“Some display systems have only one layer. These include most of the classic 8-bit systems (such as the Nintendo Entertainment System, the original Game Boy, and the PC Engine). The more sophisticated games on such systems generally divide the layer into horizontal strips, each with a different position and rate of scrolling. Typically, strips higher on the screen will represent things farther away from the virtual camera or one strip will be held stationary to display status information. The program will then wait for horizontal blank and change the layer's scroll position just before the display system begins to draw each scanline. This is called a "raster effect" and is also useful for changing the system palette to provide a gradient background.”<!--c2--></div><!--ec2-->

“NOFPA=”
No idea what this option does. It is always activated in official Wii Channels.
Make sure you <u>KEEP</u> this setting!
0 = NOFPA is off
1 = NOFPA is on

“IRQMODE=”
No idea what this option does. It is activated in “Gradius 2: Gofer No Yabou”.
0 = IRQMODE is off.
1 = IRQMODE is on.

“CD_VOLUME=”
“ADPCM_VOLUME=”
“PSG_VOLUME=”
Adjust the CD (.ogg music), PSG (music playing from the .bin files) and ADPCM volume.
Used in “Gradius 2: Gofer No Yabou”.
Use 1 decimal point for the volume value, for example: 0.8

“HDS=”
“POPULUS=”
“SPRLINE=”
No idea what those options do. These settings are not activated in official Wii Channels.
0 = Disable setting.
1 = Activate setting.

“EUROPE=”
Disable if installing on a Japan Wii, activate if installing on an American or Europe Wii.
Make sure you <u>KEEP</u> this setting!
0 = If installing WAD on a Japan [NTSC-J].
1 = If installing WAD on a USA or an American [NTSC-U] Wii or Europe [PAL-E].

“PATCH=”
No idea what this option does but it is activated in “Gradius 2: Gofer No Yabou” - Europe version.
0 = PATCH is off.
1 = PATCH is on.

“HIDEOVERSCAN=”
By default, this is set to “off”. It is set to “on” in “Castlevania: Rondo of Blood”.
An over-scan is an extra image around the four edges of a video image, which is not meant to be seen by the viewer.
Turning this on basically puts a small Black Border around the image. Depending on the type of TV you have will depend if you can see them or not.
I’ve no idea when you need to use this option, so will you just have to experiment.
0 = HIDEOVERSCAN is off.
1 = HIDEOVERSCAN is on.

“YOFFSET=”
Used in “Castlevania: Rondo of Blood”. It moves the screen down (y axis) to centre the image.
If you get any injected ISO’s that do not display in the centre of the screen like “Bonanza Bros.” (inject Wii Channel, not official Wii Channel), try using this.
Use whole positive numbers like 0, 3, 7, 9 etc.

“ARCADE=”
“CHASEHQ=”
“PADBUTTON=”
These are options that don’t get used in any official WADs.
No idea what these options do.
0 = Disable option
1 = Activate option
Step 5.1 - Repack the 00000005_app_OUT folder
Use ShowMiiWads to pack the 00000005_app_OUT in your working folder and save it as 00000005.app. Tools > Pack U8 Archive > Without Header, click on No in the prompt that asks if the archive should be compressed. Delete the 00000005_app_OUT folder.
Now your working folder should contain the files 00000000.app to 00000007.app, plus a .cert, a .tik, a.tmd and a .trailer file.

Step 5.2 - Repack the wad file
Use Tools > Pack Wad in ShowMiiWads to pack your working folder into a .wad file.

Step 6 - Fix the Title ID of your new wad file
Your newly created wad file has the same title id as your donor game. Before you install it on your Wii you have to change it to the title id of the game you converted. ShowMiiWads shows you the Title ID. For Blazing Lazers it's PB8E.
Open CustomizeMii and select your newly created wad as the source wad. In the Options tab enter the Title ID of the game you converted to 240p and set Startup IOS to 53. Click Create WAD to save the edited file and delete the file from step 5.2.

--------

Test your new wad file in Dolphin before you install it!
Last edited by blizzz on Thu Jun 29, 2017 2:52 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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holaplaneta
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Re: Wii VC 240p mode list

Post by holaplaneta »

This is excellent blizzz! Thank you very much.

Bob from retroRGB, if you want I can help with some of them. I plan to do this with the Arcade, Turbografx, NeoGeo and Commodore wads.

I don´t think I´ll be doing the 240p mod for the nintendo or genesis consoles since I already have all of them in original hardware with RGB mods. Do you want to do those? I would like to eventually have all of them for archival.

Actually I have a wad for the first release of StarFox 64 (v1.0) that had better framerate and the original control sensibility too.

Let me know and maybe we can share the workload.
RGB0b
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Re: Wii VC 240p mode list

Post by RGB0b »

I'll be drowning in work for at least the next few weeks, so I won't be able to get to any of them for awhile. Maybe we can make a spreadsheet or something and kee track of who's done which, so our work isn't duplicated?
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holaplaneta
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Re: Wii VC 240p mode list

Post by holaplaneta »

Good idea.
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Lawfer
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Re: Wii VC 240p mode list

Post by Lawfer »

Can any of the following games be played in 240p?

Final Fantasy IV: The After Years

La-Mulana

Mega Man 9

Mega Man 10

Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney

Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Justice for All

Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Trials and Tribulations

Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode I
Arasoi
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Re: Wii VC 240p mode list

Post by Arasoi »

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Last edited by Arasoi on Sat Jun 20, 2020 10:46 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Lawfer
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Re: Wii VC 240p mode list

Post by Lawfer »

Arasoi wrote:I can't comment on the others, but I can confirm Mega Man 9/10 cannot be forced into 240p by any means I've tried over the years.
That's a pity, but thank you very much for confirming these two.
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TheShadowRunner
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Re: Wii VC 240p mode list

Post by TheShadowRunner »

@blizzz : were you able to convert Gate of Thunder JPN (PCE CD) version to 240p?
When i use the emu from pretty much any other PCEngine CD game such as Dracula X, L-Dis, Star Parodier, the intro in GoT is screwed visually, with seemingly background and foreground mismatch/problems.
Also, for some reason the Home menu to go back to Wii appears in Finnish (I believe), when it should still be in Japanese since my donor emu games are japanese (and so is my Wii). Have you experienced this and would you know a solution?

Edit: ok figured the issues!
Gate of Thunder requires RASTER=1 with the new emu although it has RASTER=0 in its own config file for the old emu, strange..
My issue with the Finnish lang in the Home menu was due to keeping the old home.csv and home_nosave.csv. Keeping the new/donor ones and it works perfect.
2 questions on your method though:
- Is there any reason you use CustomizeMii to change the Title ID when it can be done within ShowMiiWads?
- why do you alter the Startup IOS to 53..? The default donor Startup IOS has always worked fine here.

Edit2: The more I experiment with config.ini, the more I believe it isn't used at all.
For instance GoT which requires RASTER=1, when rebuilt with the Dracula X emu is always badly emulated (visual flaws) regardless if RASTER is enabled in the config file or not (but with the Star Parodier emu works OK). It seems to me the config.ini is remnants of the emulator compilation/build but isn't actually used at runtime on the Wii.
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blizzz
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Re: Wii VC 240p mode list

Post by blizzz »

I also get glitches during the intro in Gate of Thunder (US version). Never noticed it because I skipped the intro while testing the wads. Good to know that it works with Star Parodier as a donor.
TheShadowRunner wrote:2 questions on your method though:
- Is there any reason you use CustomizeMii to change the Title ID when it can be done within ShowMiiWads?
- why do you alter the Startup IOS to 53..? The default donor Startup IOS has always worked fine here.
I didn't know ShowMiiWads could change the Title ID. I'm not sure if using IOS 53 had a reason. I originally did this in 2015, so it's been a while. The changes to config.ini were in the original guide from GBATemp. An easy test to see if it's actually used would be to change YOFFSET and check if the image is moved down the screen.
Ikaruga11
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Re: Wii VC 240p mode list

Post by Ikaruga11 »

Is injecting or editing Virtual Console games safe? I heard it can brick your Wii if done wrong.
paulb_nl
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Re: Wii VC 240p mode list

Post by paulb_nl »

When modding your Wii anything you do has a chance of bricking it so you should have a backup and restore method available. For example BootMii installed as boot2 or running an emulated NAND from sdcard or USB.
Logan Jones
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Re: Wii VC 240p mode list

Post by Logan Jones »

Hey, guys! The list is complete! Take a look:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/ ... XvVSY52hoA
Ikaruga11
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Re: Wii VC 240p mode list

Post by Ikaruga11 »

Logan Jones wrote:Hey, guys! The list is complete! Take a look:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/ ... XvVSY52hoA
Thanks.

So we know which Virtual Console games can render in native 240p. Can we also know which games render at 480i and 480p? All 21 Nintendo 64 games for the Wii Virtual Console can render in 480p and 480i. What other Virtual Console games on the Wii can render in 480p?
Logan Jones
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Re: Wii VC 240p mode list

Post by Logan Jones »

I've heard that Neo Geo VC games, with 480p mode turned and 240p mode disengaged, render in 480i only. I may be wrong, but it's what I heard.
Ikaruga11
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Re: Wii VC 240p mode list

Post by Ikaruga11 »

Logan Jones wrote:I've heard that Neo Geo VC games, with 480p mode turned and 240p mode disengaged, render in 480i only. I may be wrong, but it's what I heard.
Well that's unfortunate.
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BazookaBen
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Re: Wii VC 240p mode list

Post by BazookaBen »

Arasoi wrote:I can't comment on the others, but I can confirm Mega Man 9/10 cannot be forced into 240p by any means I've tried over the years
With the Dolphin emulator you can play them in 240p, but last time I tried (2 years ago) there was quite a bit of stuttering and a few frames of input lag. BUT that was over 2 years ago, I need to give it another try. There are new rendering methods that may help with both of those issues.
BONKERS
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Re: Wii VC 240p mode list

Post by BONKERS »

Anyone know if the MSX games run at 240p?
(Would be a decent way to play some MSX games on a CRT if you could inject the roms)
Logan Jones
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Re: Wii VC 240p mode list

Post by Logan Jones »

BONKERS wrote:Anyone know if the MSX games run at 240p?
(Would be a decent way to play some MSX games on a CRT if you could inject the roms)
I've read online that BlueMSX emulator on Wii does not run in 240p. What a shame.
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Re: Wii VC 240p mode list

Post by Arasoi »

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Last edited by Arasoi on Sat Jun 20, 2020 11:07 am, edited 1 time in total.
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BazookaBen
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Re: Wii VC 240p mode list

Post by BazookaBen »

Arasoi wrote:Interesting, I'd like to try this. By 240p, what do you mean exactly? 320x240 full screen? The original NES resolution it uses before stretching it?
I think I created a 320x240 resolution in Custom Resolution Utility and set Dolphin for integer scaling. That might create underscan on some CRT's though, so next time I try it, I'll look up MM9's actual resolution (probably around 256x224 like a lot of NES games) and use that. If anybody knows that resolution off the top of your head, let us know.

The Konami Rebirth games are probably the full 320x240 though.

I really hope they've found a way to reduce input lag though. I remember that being instantly noticeable last time I tried it.
bikerspade
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Re: Wii VC 240p mode list

Post by bikerspade »

Einzelherz wrote:I've been working on this the past few days, mostly because I'm curious if there's any truth to the commonly held knowledge that there was a crossover of 240p compatibility on Virtual Console titles. I figure that if anything this list, when more complete, could at least point people to certain rarer titles that might otherwise be cost/system prohibitive.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/ ... XvVSY52hoA

If anyone can refute some of these that would be helpful. Or even just add to it.

One thing is does make me curious about though is if it's possible to edit those VC titles that don't allow for 240p to allow for it. I assume it's a flag somewhere in the embedded emulator.
Is there a 240p compatibility list available for Wii VC titles in other regions (e.g. Japan)? I recently discovered the following Japan Wii VC titles DO NOT support 240p:

Ai Cho Aniki
Gradius
ImageFight
ImageFight2
Salamander
bikerspade
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Re: Wii VC 240p mode list

Post by bikerspade »

retrorgb wrote:I'd eventually love to make a "rompack" of all VC games (and maybe even MM9&10) converted to 240p. I bookmarked your guide when you posted it, but never found time to go through the process ;/
I have just finished converting all Wii VC NTSC-U TG16 (including CD) releases to 240p. All of the conversions have been tested on my Wii. Let me know if you are interested in them.
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BazookaBen
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Re: Wii VC 240p mode list

Post by BazookaBen »

bikerspade wrote:I have just finished converting all Wii VC NTSC-U TG16 (including CD) releases to 240p. All of the conversions have been tested on my Wii. Let me know if you are interested in them.
Do you think this is possible with MegaMan 9/10 and Contra/Castlevania Rebirth?
bikerspade
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Re: Wii VC 240p mode list

Post by bikerspade »

BazookaBen wrote:Do you think this is possible with MegaMan 9/10 and Contra/Castlevania Rebirth?
I don't think so.
Ikaruga11
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Re: Wii VC 240p mode list

Post by Ikaruga11 »

BazookaBen wrote:
bikerspade wrote:I have just finished converting all Wii VC NTSC-U TG16 (including CD) releases to 240p. All of the conversions have been tested on my Wii. Let me know if you are interested in them.
Do you think this is possible with MegaMan 9/10 and Contra/Castlevania Rebirth?
I know MegaMan 9/1 are natively rendered in 480i, but which resolutions are Contra/Castlevania Rebirth rendered at?
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