|
|
Post by Lost Mercenary on Aug 7, 2010 19:43:21 GMT
I require your assistance ladies and gentlemen. Having just completed Chrono Trigger (it's awesome!) I feel compelled to get a copy of Chrono Cross. Unfortunately it never came out here in the UK so that leaves me getting the US version. Basically I'm asking if anyone knows where I can get my hands on a chipped PS1 for it (ebay says no) since I hear that's how a lot of people got imported games to work or if there's another way of playing NTSC games on a PAL Playstation or any other solution that's out there. Appriciate any help you can offer guys  |
|
|
|
Post by n4th4nth3j0k3r on Aug 7, 2010 20:59:19 GMT
What you could do is use a PS1 emulator on your PC. Most PS1 emulators allow you to put the game into your CD Drive and play it from there, right on your PC. Since you would have an actual copy of the game, you wouldn't need to worry about any legal issues. Alternatively, like you said, you could head off to Ebay, to buy one already chipped, or if you google it, there are plenty of guides on how to chip one for yourself; none of which are hard, but it would require that you have access to a soldering iron.
|
|
|
|
Post by Exu on Aug 7, 2010 21:51:20 GMT
Put Action Replay in, load Action Replay, put in foreign game.
Should work, can't back it up 100% though however this dicovery on Dreamcast and Gamecube is what spawned the Freeloader.
|
|
|
|
Post by Lost Mercenary on Aug 7, 2010 22:52:12 GMT
What you could do is use a PS1 emulator on your PC. Most PS1 emulators allow you to put the game into your CD Drive and play it from there, right on your PC. Since you would have an actual copy of the game, you wouldn't need to worry about any legal issues. Alternatively, like you said, you could head off to Ebay, to buy one already chipped, or if you google it, there are plenty of guides on how to chip one for yourself; none of which are hard, but it would require that you have access to a soldering iron. Would prefer not to use an emulator. Mainly due to my computer being a piece of crap. And besides... wouldn't want to play it on a keyboard. Never been much of a PC gamer. And Action Replay? The old cheat cartridge? Seriously? That does region free? |
|
|
|
Post by Exu on Aug 7, 2010 23:10:30 GMT
In theory it could, never tried it on a PSX myself. But yes, put in the disc and use that to boot the NTSC game and you might be in business. It took off after it turned out the demo Action Replay CDX given away with a copy of DC-UK was able to boot games from other regions.
|
|
|
|
Post by Balls on Aug 8, 2010 0:03:45 GMT
And besides... wouldn't want to play it on a keyboard. Never been much of a PC gamer.
I hear this [censored] argument everywhere I go and don't understand it. It is possible to, you know, attach a controller to your PC.
Even if you don't want to shell out for a PC controller, you can use a 360 or PS3 controller. And if you don't have either of those, you can just get an adapter that allows you to use a PS2 controller on a PC.
The idea that PC gaming can only be done using a keyboard is just as common as it is ludicrous.
That's a poor test, considering most foreign games worked on Dreamcasts from different regions from the off anyway. |
|
|
|
Post by n4th4nth3j0k3r on Aug 8, 2010 9:00:51 GMT
I suppose he could attach a controller,it's what I do myself. Also, being realistic, PC gaming does normally require than you use a keyboard, because there are more functions and actions in a game, than there are buttons on a controller, but that point is invalid here anyway, due to it being a PS1 we're supposed to be discussing.
That's a poor test, considering most foreign games worked on Dreamcasts from different regions from the off anyway.I wouldn't consider this a poor argument, due to the fact, that it's correct. Action Replays or any other sort of cheat disc/cart, became even more popular after the discovery that they could be used to boot games from a different region. Back to the point. Try the methods that have already been suggested, but also, take in to consideration the emulator again. Technical Specs of a PS1 CPU: 32-bit RISC (33.9MHz) RAM: 2MB, 1MB Video RAM Graphics: 3D Geometry Engine, with 2D rotation, scaling, transparency and fading and 3D texture mapping and shading Colors: 16.7 million Sprites: 4,000 Polygons: 360,000 per second Resolution: 640x480 Sound: 16-bit 24 channel PCM I don't know what it's like, but I'd hope that your PC is way more powerful than this, because I don't think that running a PS1 emulator would put too much strain on your system. I have a REALLY, quite rubbish laptop, and was still able to run the PS1 without a hitch. If you do consider the emulator, Google "ePSXe" or "Psxfin", these are the best ones. You would probably also need to download the binaries. Google "scph1001.bin" You shouldn't have too much problem from there. |
|
|
|
Post by Beeth on Aug 8, 2010 11:29:17 GMT
I can confirm that it is indeed possible to play games from other regions on PS1 using an Action Replay card. I know this due to, regrettably, rather dubious reasons; a former mate of my sister's kept giving us both a lend of his games way back when. Snag is most of, if not all of them, were copies. My sister kept asking me to ask about chipping my console so that it could play them, after all the negative stories I'd read in magazines in the like I outright refused.
Eventually, a way was found around this: Using an Action Replay cartridge and a spring wedged in between the lid and the button which makes it believe the cover is closed. When the AR was turned on, a proper disc was inserted and recognised as such. When it stopped the disc, it was simply swapped with one of her mate's discs, which then ran because the console had already verified there was an official PAL disc in there. And as far as it was concerned there still was. In theory, the same thing should be possible with official discs from other regions, as it would recognise the first PAL disc and run the latter as such.
Obviously, I don't endorse or recommend using it for the former method described. But this should almost certainly allow you to get around the regional lock-out set by the console. I'm not sure how you would go about acquiring a suitable lid wedge though, you might have to do a makeshift one or somthing.
|
|
|
|
Post by n4th4nth3j0k3r on Aug 8, 2010 15:01:10 GMT
I'm not sure how you would go about acquiring a suitable lid wedge though, you might have to do a makeshift one or somthing. I used to do this too, a small spring from a click-pen fits perfectly into the small plastic pin in the PS1 lid to hold the little button in place, allowing you to hot-swap. |
|
|
|
Post by Exu on Aug 8, 2010 15:18:20 GMT
You might be able to just select "start game" with the AR as it usually overrides the command to quit or freeze that would usually happen on opening the disc.
|
|
|
|
Post by Beeth on Aug 8, 2010 15:22:39 GMT
No. If the AR is on, it will verify the disk the instant you switch it on, then stop and remain on the AR menu. If it doesn't verify a proper disk it will not run when you select "Start Game" after, even if you then put a proper disk in there. One official PAL disk will be required for that initial verification.
|
|
|
|
Post by Lost Mercenary on Aug 8, 2010 17:29:34 GMT
Well after much deliberation over these suggestions and hours of hunting on auction/shopping sites I decided to go and buy a chipped PS1. I finally found one at last! I went with this because Emulators just don't do it for me for some reason. Not only do I not like keyboard controls but at least this way it feels like I'm not robbing the company blind and it feels almost insulting to the creative staff who made these games to be playing it for bugger all. I am very much against game piracy. Action Replay just seems like a game of roulette more than a guaranteed way to go about playing imports. It just relies on how well you know the workings of the console (which I don't know a lot of) and sheer luck. Cheers for the advice though guys. Is much appreciated |
|
|
|
Post by n4th4nth3j0k3r on Aug 8, 2010 20:21:38 GMT
I hope the PS1 brings you much enjoyment, it does for me  |
|
|
|
Post by Retro on Aug 9, 2010 16:12:30 GMT
I went with this because Emulators just don't do it for me for some reason. Not only do I not like keyboard controls but at least this way it feels like I'm not robbing the company blind and it feels almost insulting to the creative staff who made these games to be playing it for bugger all. I am very much against game piracy. Eh? Games companies don't get money for pre-owned games. You don't get new copies of Chrono Trigger sold anymore. You wouldn't be robbing anyone. |
|
|
|
Post by Beeth on Aug 9, 2010 16:49:59 GMT
Eh? Games companies don't get money for pre-owned games. You don't get new copies of Chrono Trigger sold anymore. You wouldn't be robbing anyone. It still isn't legal, though. In most cases, the games are still under license and as such acquiring a rom of them via a download is a no-no. Not that it stops most people, like, it all depends on your own discretion, and on how savvy and persistent the company involved is on these issues. The emulator itself is considered a bit of a grey area, mainly because of the rom issues, but the emulator itself doesn't contain any copyrighted material per se, just a series of codes and technical jibber-jabber which more or less allows games of whatever format it's emulating to play on a system. Those collection games you get of MegaDrive games et al? They all use emulators, quite happily and freely. They own the copyrighted material, so they can quite happily distribute their roms on these emulators as they please, providing they stick to their own material. Also, emulators are often used in the development of various indie and homebrew games. As long as you had a purchased copy of the console in the first place (as you've already mentioned), there should be absolutely nothing wrong with obtaining an emulator. |
|
|
|
Post by Balls on Aug 9, 2010 17:53:20 GMT
Emulators themselves are not illegal. They're computer programs with no copyrighted material.
For emulators for certain consoles, however, you need the BIOS files, which are copyrighted. This is why no emulators are distributed with them.
Obviously, the games are illegal too.
LM's argument is null and void, since, as he has stated, he owns the game. And, as was pointed out in the second post, most PlayStation emulators will play a disc straight from your CD drive, so you wouldn't even have to do the morally fine but still technically illegal downloading of the game.
If you own a PlayStation and a copy of the game, you can put the game in your CD drive (or, even better, rip the iso from the disc and store it on your computer to eliminate any problems that might be associated with reading from the disc) and rip the BIOS from the PlayStation.
However, ripping the BIOS filed from an actual PlayStation to a PC requires a bunch of equipment that no normal person would generally have unless they were a proper computer geek or ehty bought it specifically for this purpose.
So, the only technically illegal thing you'd be doing would be downloading the BIOS files. Still, as you have a PlayStation, you've already paid for them so it's not morally objectionable in any way.
So, really, if your two reasons are controllers and piracy, you're not pirating and you can use a controller anyway.
Another common argument is that it just "doesn't feel the same" playing it sat at your computer, which can be avoided if you just hook your computer up to your PC.
The only really valid argument against it is the performance of the emulator. While your PC likely does have higher specs thatn a PlayStation, it doesn't necessarily mean it will play at full speed, with the same graphics and sound quality. My laptop has higher specs than a Dreamcast, for example, but it still can't play a Dreamcast game properly, there's the issue of CPU usage.
Most PCs nowadays will play a PlayStation game no problem though.
Still, you've got the new PlayStation now. Use that.
|
|
