+-^CrossBow^- Posted December 18, 2020 Share Posted December 18, 2020 So again I don't have the game in hand to confirm, but I'm reading that in order to have a CPU controlled 2nd player to help out, requires you to have a SegaCD attached as apparently the game uses the second CPU in that in order to handle the AI for the CPU assisted second player. That has got to be a first right? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Gemintronic Posted December 18, 2020 Share Posted December 18, 2020 (edited) 37 minutes ago, -^CrossBow^- said: So again I don't have the game in hand to confirm, but I'm reading that in order to have a CPU controlled 2nd player to help out, requires you to have a SegaCD attached as apparently the game uses the second CPU in that in order to handle the AI for the CPU assisted second player. That has got to be a first right? I hope that means you don't have to do this to get a CPU sidekick? I mean, I'd understand if it meant a tactically enhanced companion in comparision. I must be reading that wrong. Edited December 18, 2020 by Gemintronic Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+-^CrossBow^- Posted December 18, 2020 Share Posted December 18, 2020 No my understanding is that you only get the option for a CPU sidekick if the game detects the SegaCD attached because it requires the 68k in the SegaCD to control the CPU assisted player. Without the SegaCD you are a one man army. That also explains why in the videos I've seen of this, that the SegaCD type logo comes up at the beginning of the game. Apparently on the MegaSG the game plays some crappy demo version and I think that is all you can play and the manual mentions this as a type of trolling for those not playing on actual hardware? But I might be misunderstanding that. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+chicgamer Posted December 18, 2020 Share Posted December 18, 2020 1 hour ago, -^CrossBow^- said: That also explains why in the videos I've seen of this, that the SegaCD type logo comes up at the beginning of the game. Apparently on the MegaSG the game plays some crappy demo version and I think that is all you can play and the manual mentions this as a type of trolling for those not playing on actual hardware? But I might be misunderstanding that. Yeah, I watched a video of someone playing it on a MegaSG, and it has more of an 8-bit graphic style and very simplistic gameplay. Interesting bit about the SegaCD. I hadn't heard that part about the computer-controlled co-op player. It appears this game has friendly fire (not sure if that can be turned off), so I'm not sure I'd want a computer-controlled ally. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+-^CrossBow^- Posted December 18, 2020 Share Posted December 18, 2020 3 minutes ago, chicgamer said: Yeah, I watched a video of someone playing it on a MegaSG, and it has more of an 8-bit graphic style and very simplistic gameplay. Interesting bit about the SegaCD. I hadn't heard that part about the computer-controlled co-op player. It appears this game has friendly fire (not sure if that can be turned off), so I'm not sure I'd want a computer-controlled ally. Actually I'm pretty sure you can turn off the friendly hits. The game's menu options appear to taunt you for these choices with the text it displays but most of this is here say and what I'm gleaning from vids that have been posted. There is already a full walkthrough of the game on the hard difficulty level. That was done using a CPU assisted player two and the title clearly states, SegaCD indicating it was needed to do this. I've read as much. I also think I saw a mention that the 8-bit game only happens the first time you turn it on and that if you reset the game, the normal game then comes up? I don't have a MegaSG so I hadn't paid much attention to that. But I know there are plenty out there that do. Also due the amount of dithering being used in the graphics, this one is best viewed in s-video on a CRT. Although s-vid still usually kills the dithering effect so I'm not sure why that would be the most recommended way. But yeah, RGB and up signals will result in a dither fest on the graphics. I don't care as I will still play it through my HDRetro cables on my model 1 all the same. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Battlefish Posted December 20, 2020 Share Posted December 20, 2020 On 12/18/2020 at 4:29 PM, -^CrossBow^- said: Apparently on the MegaSG the game plays some crappy demo version and I think that is all you can play and the manual mentions this as a type of trolling for those not playing on actual hardware? But I might be misunderstanding that. That's kinda snotty of them, no? (Have to admit, I'm pretty impressed by all the different configurations this game supports.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Battlefish Posted December 20, 2020 Share Posted December 20, 2020 (edited) (double post) Edited December 20, 2020 by Battlefish Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazy Climber Posted December 21, 2020 Share Posted December 21, 2020 On 12/18/2020 at 3:29 PM, -^CrossBow^- said: No my understanding is that you only get the option for a CPU sidekick if the game detects the SegaCD attached because it requires the 68k in the SegaCD to control the CPU assisted player. Without the SegaCD you are a one man army. That also explains why in the videos I've seen of this, that the SegaCD type logo comes up at the beginning of the game. Apparently on the MegaSG the game plays some crappy demo version and I think that is all you can play and the manual mentions this as a type of trolling for those not playing on actual hardware? But I might be misunderstanding that. Yeah, I'll probably just be playing one player... I already have to buy a different/another genesis since I have the original (non compatible) model...I'm not tracking down a sega CD too lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+chicgamer Posted December 21, 2020 Share Posted December 21, 2020 So ... this arrived today. I tried playing it a couple of times. When I first started the game, I got the joke 8-bit version of the game. After power cycling my Genesis, the real game came up. Unfortunately, it has some issues. I had the game crash on me the first time I played it, and the second time, a level loaded with a glitched background. It may be that my model 1 happens to be one of the models that have issues. When I have some time (as opposed to now, when I should be working), I'll try it out on my Nomad to see if I continue to have issues. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazy Climber Posted December 21, 2020 Share Posted December 21, 2020 16 minutes ago, chicgamer said: So ... this arrived today. I tried playing it a couple of times. When I first started the game, I got the joke 8-bit version of the game. After power cycling my Genesis, the real game came up. Unfortunately, it has some issues. I had the game crash on me the first time I played it, and the second time, a level loaded with a glitched background. It may be that my model 1 happens to be one of the models that have issues. When I have some time (as opposed to now, when I should be working), I'll try it out on my Nomad to see if I continue to have issues. yeah, I thought I heard it doesn't play on model 1 genesis systems/etc... (which unfortunately is what I have lol) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+-^CrossBow^- Posted December 21, 2020 Share Posted December 21, 2020 Apparently it is only an issue on the TMSS model 1s as I understand it? But maybe not? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+chicgamer Posted December 21, 2020 Share Posted December 21, 2020 Mine is a non-TMSS model. I did try it out on my Nomad for a few minutes (couldn't help myself), and I didn't notice any issues. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+-^CrossBow^- Posted December 21, 2020 Share Posted December 21, 2020 Hmm... well. I do have a va6 I could use, but I don't like using it as it doesn't have all the audio and video mods installed into it that my main Genesis does. Ugh... Well, I guess I will have to see. Mine does show a Shipping status now and shows coming from Vegas like yours but no tracking information or anything aside from that to know. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+chicgamer Posted December 21, 2020 Share Posted December 21, 2020 Mine was delivered today, and it still shows as "Shipping.." on Watermelon's site, so you may get yours soon. I'm going to try using the Game Genie to see if that helps with the crashing/glitching issues. If not, I'll be playing this on my Nomad. So glad it has A/V out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sapicco Posted December 21, 2020 Share Posted December 21, 2020 50 minutes ago, chicgamer said: Mine was delivered today, and it still shows as "Shipping.." on Watermelon's site, so you may get yours soon. I'm going to try using the Game Genie to see if that helps with the crashing/glitching issues. If not, I'll be playing this on my Nomad. So glad it has A/V out. Did yours glitch too? Keep us posted about the game genie and if it fixed it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+chicgamer Posted December 21, 2020 Share Posted December 21, 2020 13 minutes ago, Sapicco said: Did yours glitch too? Keep us posted about the game genie and if it fixed it. Unfortunately, the Game Genie trick didn't work. With the Game Genie attached, I can only access the joke 8-bit game. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+-^CrossBow^- Posted December 22, 2020 Share Posted December 22, 2020 Man, the post office is just hosed up right now!!! So I had a random woman get out of the passenger side of a mini van and put a USPS priority package on my porch. I go to take a look and sure enough it is from Magical Game Factory and the padded envelope package was in pretty dirty condition. I guess mine was originally delivered to another house by mistake and the person was kind enough to seek out my address and deliver my copy of the game. Having said that, I just played about an hour of it without any issues at all on my va2 model 1! At least I didn't have any lockups or glitching of graphics etc. It did load up the 8-bit troll game at first as well, but I think that is what it does the first time. But since then, it has played excellently! Now my va2 isn't a stock model 1 at this point as I've done quite a few mods to it over the years but Paprium seems to run just fine on mine. I did detect what sounds like some of the instruments sounding off key on the music, but for all I know that might be how it is supposed to sound? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sapicco Posted December 23, 2020 Share Posted December 23, 2020 (edited) Got mine today. Didn’t work on my model 2, but worked on the 3. I’ll have to retry the model 2 Edited December 23, 2020 by Sapicco Video busted Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+-^CrossBow^- Posted December 23, 2020 Share Posted December 23, 2020 From what little I'm starting to pick up, it looks like the game has issues on just about any model but I did notice something that someone stated over at Sega-16. The game because of the extra chips does require a bit more juice to operate. A normal Genesis game will only have the Genesis pulling about 600ma of current. But Paprium will add about 70-100 additional ma of current from the system. One thing different on my Genesis from most, is that I replaced out both of the original 7805s about 2 or 3 years ago due to odd graphic issues that were happening with the SegaCD attached. I installed 2A output 7805s into each of the VCC1 and VCC2 spots on my genesis to correct that issue. Point being, is that provided the PSU I'm using can handle it, my genesis is able to provide more current than a standard genesis but I believe the factory installed units were like 750ma - 1A output so who knows. But it was an interesting thing and I've seen lockups and graphic glitches happen on Genesis systems that have flaky power supplies or power issues in general. So again, it makes me wonder if this game is finally stressing systems enough to show issues where they might not have been noticed in the past? The other difference in mine, is that I have a 3438 FM chip installed alongside the original 2612. So perhaps that has something to do with it also. Another odd thing, is that I have both my model 2 SegaCD attached and my 32x as well at all times. I noticed a few times while playing the game that the SegaCD power light would actually come on? I would only be lit for like a second and was very random, but it makes me wonder if the game occasionally draws from the CPU of the SegaCD when playing if it detects you have one even if you aren't using the 2nd player CPU assist? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sapicco Posted December 23, 2020 Share Posted December 23, 2020 (edited) what’s crazy about that power thing you describe, I tried paprium on two different TVs, one tv ( an old flat screen from many years ago that had some issues) when I turned on the game the TV made a loud crack noise and pretty much blew. Do you think related? I just figured it was the tv’s time to go. Edited December 23, 2020 by Sapicco Typo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazy Climber Posted December 23, 2020 Share Posted December 23, 2020 Still waiting on mine...that's okay though, it's only been about 10 years Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+-^CrossBow^- Posted December 23, 2020 Share Posted December 23, 2020 1 hour ago, Sapicco said: what’s crazy about that power thing you describe, I tried paprium on two different TVs, one tv ( an old flat screen from many years ago that had some issues) when I turned on the game the TV made a loud crack noise and pretty much blew. Do you think related? I just figured it was the tv’s time to go. I doubt the game had anything to do with your TV going South. The game cartridge itself does contain at least one if not two different FPGAs inside it to handle everything it does. Interesting, I had the game in my Genesis yesterday just on doing its attract mode stuff and no issues at all. I was able to play through a complete game on the Arcade version without any glitching or lockups on my system. So what I'm thinking here, is that while this has been suggested and being tried at Sega-16, the thread there is all over the place so I'm going to start a new thread here for those with the game to post their results on the hardware they have tested and ONLY the results of the game working or not, what issues...etc. Anything game play related that isn't talking about some issue with the way it plays on your systems, needs to stay in this thread or those AA members start their own. I'm more curious if some pattern can be found because I thought all the model 2 units were supposed to be golden on playing this game? Sound like a decent idea to the rest of the folks? I've got a few other Genesis systems I could hook up including my va3 JPN Megadrive that is all stock I could add to that mix. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+chicgamer Posted December 23, 2020 Share Posted December 23, 2020 Not a bad idea. I tried the game on my Genesis with the 32x attached, and that seems to have fixed my issues. I've only had the time to play through a couple of levels, though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+-^CrossBow^- Posted December 23, 2020 Share Posted December 23, 2020 Well I noticed something else really strange when playing my copy yesterday on my model 1. It played without any issues on a full playthrough of the Arcade game. But I did notice several times while playing the game, that the SegaCD power light would come on for a second or two? I was NOT using a CPU assisted 2nd player so I can't think of any reason why that would be happening? And it wasn't between level loads or starting a new game. It would happen in the middle of a level as I was playing. Usually seemed to happen when new assets might be getting loaded in or.....wait... I think it was happening each time I saw Sprites walking in the foreground before they were enemies coming onto the screen?! So the rotation/scaling might be getting triggered as needed? I need to remove the Genesis and play without the attachments to see what happens. The more I can test here the better my starting topic for hardware tracking on this thing will be. Thanks for the update when playing through a 32x although I can't figure out how that would help since I don't believe the game uses 32x hardware at all and the 32x would be just a passthrough device in this case. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+chicgamer Posted December 23, 2020 Share Posted December 23, 2020 I can confirm that it does detect 32x hardware. In the first secret room (at least, the first I found), there is a bag of garbage. With the 32x attached, this is replaced with a 32x box. However, I have no idea if the game makes use of the 32x's power. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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