Sorry to double-post, but after downloading the high quality version of the video, I have to say that the GameSpot preview seems a bit misleading. There are more visual enhancements there than an almost-straight port from the PC version would have: significantly higher frames-per-second, some textures (like the Episode 1 sea) do appear to be re-done, and the Episode 2 sandworm appears to have been either remodelled or retextured, as it doesn’t look like the old Saturn model any more:
The dragon looks like it might be a more “rounded” model too, as the Saturn original was extremely angular and low-poly. I expect the person who wrote the GameSpot article just hadn’t played the original version of the game for several years, and might have been a bit off in their judgement. (I’m not sure about the “solid 30 FPS” comment, though; the game on this video looks noticeably smoother than that, as far as I can tell, and it doesn’t look like it’s artificially speeded up.) Of course, this still isn’t as exciting as a “full remake” would be, but if they’re actively improving the game (rather than just porting it) it seems like a more worthwhile effort, at least.
I just hope they ahve tweaked the aiming process.PD1’s only problem was that the aiming wasn’t 100% fluid (altho they fixed it in PDZ;and orta’s aiming was simply the best).Gamespot did however said the aiming reticule wasn’t very responsive…
I wonder if the music has been remastered in anyway.I wonder if the FMV’s have been retouched…
Well that’s great news for sure… Especially if the game is running smoothly now instead of the choppy 20 or so fps of the original. And you are right about the dragon, it does look like it’s considerably improved. And since the game is so early in development (30% you said?) then maybe we can look forward to more high poly recreations of original graphics.
Isn’t that what a remake would do though, why do you think it’s a smaller effort than that? The engine has been enhanced (if not remade, it’s not like we would be able to tell) to run in higher FPS and the graphics are being redone in higher polycounts and with higher res textures… What more should a remake do that would have been visible by the 2 episode sampling Gamespot got?
It could add more extra stuff, more cut scenes, remixed levels or whatever… But it could do without those too and all these wouldn’t even be visible on the demonstration unless an editor who isn’t clueless previews it and can see if there are such differences or not.
I agree, to be honest I was just getting in the frame of mind to expect something more extravagent; I’m actually more than happy that we’ll be seeing an improved but faithful rendition of the game. Anyhow, I’ll keep an eye on other sites and see what opinions different people come out with; IGN still hasn’t posted about it yet, and other sites might give a more detailed judgement…
30 frames according to the gamespot editor… Don’t forget that some people strongly believe that 30 frames is all you need for a smooth looking game and that 60 is useless excess… Maybe he’s one of them
I know mediocre-quality Windows Media videos aren’t the best things to make judgements with, but I’d say the FPS in the video does look higher than 30; Panzer Dragoon Zwei was 30 from what I can remember, and it wasn’t as smooth as this seems to look.
To be sure I wasn’t just imagining the sandworm difference, I did some comparison screenshots; it looks to me as if the worm has been both retextured and remodelled to some extent:
I think the third image shows the different level of detail most clearly. The second image shows that the dragon’s almost certainly remodelled too, as the top of its head / horn is just a flat polygon in the Saturn version, while there seems to be a clear curve there now.
The third picture might be proof that the sanworm was indeed remodelled since the position of it’s eyes is different.
I can’t relaly sure for sure but I think Kyle is different too.I’d be shocked if he wasn’t a 3d object.
PS:Have you noticed that the dragon appears on top fo the health bar in those pictures?Oh and thanks for the pics Lance.If it isn’t too much torubel could you get a pic or two from Ep1?Just so we cna see the dragon in a different position (granted the drgaon wasn’t very visable if I recall correctly…)
Wonder why in the original version we see that the HUD overlays the dragon model while on the new game the dragon is currently appearing on top of it. I thought features like that are hardcoded, so perhaps we are looking at a new engine with the PD1 material imported, and slowly replaced piece by piece? Cos I don’t think they’d willing do this change if they were leaving the game as it, it’s probably just something that has slipped their minds (for now) during development… Or I’m thinking way too much into it
For the sake of mentioning it, the tentacle things of the worm are also looking different. In the original they start out greener while on the new version they seem to be completely in that white-ish material just like the whole head. Actually the whole head shape and tentacle attachment in that area looks different.
Also, what color were the gun shots in the original PD? Do they look different in this (I don’t think they are dragon lasers as they seem to have missed their target in two of the pics)?
Kyle was in fact a 3D model in the original game, albeit a pretty primitive one; Lundi in the second game was more or less just a 2D carboard cutout, though. I’ve always guessed that they simplified the rider back then to save polys for the enemies and environment…
Heh, in my hurry I actually didn’t notice; it could be a new stylistic change I guess, if it’s not an accident with the rendering.
Also, I forgot to mention, but the viewpoint in my screenshots isn’t the default viewpoint in the original game; that would be a first-person perspective when facing to the back, with only the dragon’s tail visible (not like Zwei or Orta, if you remember). I had to change it to the secondary viewpoint to make it match up better with the new game, although the dragon still isn’t in quite the same position in relation to the camera. This might suggest that they’ve updated the camera to be more like Zwei or Orta’s now, with no auto-zooming when you rotate. (The dimensions of my shots are also squashed a bit to make them match up, too.)
I think the gunshots look more or less the same (blue blobs of laser fire), but a “flash” sprite appears at one point when Kyle’s firing that I haven’t compared with the original yet; I’ll check that out (along with a couple of other things) shortly…
Sure thing, I think the dragon is almost totally obliterated by the writing in that bit, but I’ll see what I can come up with…
OK, further deductions from these, er, two-and-a-half-seconds of footage:
GameSpot mentioned this already, but this new version of the game does indeed appear to be derived from the PC / Xbox port: the “sky” background in both Episode 1 and Episode 2 is scaled and positioned differently to how it was in the Saturn games, but the same as in the PC / Xbox versions. (The cliff in the background of Episode 2 isn’t “fading” as it grows further away as it does in those Saturn images I posted, either.)
However, in this video the sandworm doesn’t fire slime at you during that jump as it does in the Xbox / PC / US Saturn / PAL Saturn versions; it currently doesn’t seem to have a projectile attack, as in the original Japanese Saturn version. On the other hand, the attack might just not be implemented yet.
In the Sega Ages game it looks like Kyle’s gunshots create a trasnparent blue flash sprite when they connect with an enemy; in previous versions of the game, the “impact sprite” was a slightly naff-looking red blob.
The sea (in the Episode 1 clip) is almost certainly textured and rendered differently in this game; water rendering in PD1 did always look slightly wonky before, even just in comparison to Zwei and Saga, so it looks like they might have gone for something more convincing. You also appear to be closer to the water’s surface than you’d normally be at that point in the battle. Anyhow, here’s the best shot I could get from the Episode 1 bit of the clip:
Again, the dragon model looks a bit smoother in this part too, but it’s hard to be sure; the airship model certainly looks identical to me. As in the Episode 2 clip, the dragon also appears to be further away from the camera than in the existing versions of the game (well, further away than their default viewpoint and nearer than their long-range viewpoint), suggesting that the camera’s being tinkered with…
2- Hmm, isn’t it possible that at that point the worm simply wasn’t shooting anything at you? (oh and I dind’t knew the Japanese version has no slime…)
Thanks agehn for the pic Lance.
I wonder if all Sega Ages games are retouched by the same team…
If you look carefully while playing, you can tell that it must be the same jump due to the position of the cliff in the background, and the position of the worm in relation to the dragon; each leap the worm makes puts it in a distinctly different position as it arcs across. To get those screenshots I actually switched to the Japanese version of the game, as in the US version I was getting beaten about by slime while trying to take the shot.
EDIT: Unless you mean that the worm might just attack you at different times in the new version of the game, in which case that’s quite possible.
I’m also curious to know who’s handling this; I expect it’ll just be one internal team at Sega of Japan, likely a new team that was assembled when Sega decided to take the Sega Ages games back in-house.
Small update: the Japanese page that I found the first screenshot on (Project Sega Ages 2500) has posted some details on the Panzer Dragoon demo at the show. According to BabelFish:
They are degree of completion 30% ones.
This time it is play possible up to episode 2.
Adjusting the Sega Saturn edition to PS2 in the base, to high resolution it is converted, but part production is still incomplete, somewhat there is the difference in lock on decision and the like. As for here in all products being to be corrected, as for the person who feels strange feeling concerning really relief.
At the place where it changes largely with the latest ROM, the blue dragon which is the prayer, it probably is to ハイモデル to convert on the basis of XBOX edition ’ パンツァードラグーンオルタ’? Because the Saturn time it was foot or 1 board of the dragon, don’t you think?..
It converted around the prayer 60fps to in addition to, (!) Because, as for smooth dragon, it is the expectation which can experience going back and forth.
In addition improving the modeling of the sand worm of 2 aspects, in order to be able to overtake the memory where reaching and, you fumble finely and push down, is beautified from 10 years ago of everyone it is in the midst of ardent endeavoring.
No new info, really (at least, not that I can make out), but it looks like I wasn’t wrong about the sandworms being remodelled or about it running faster than 30 frames per second, which is reassuring.
I guess they are remodelling major things like the main character and dragon and big enemies/bosses. Would be nice if the team decided to ask for a little more time because they grew fond of the game and they wanted to do it justice by remodelling every single thing… One can hope…
