PC-98 translations updates (2023)

[Tak-MK]

Variable Geo by Harry Johnson and Valley Bell has been released! Get the patch here.

Done by machine learning unfortunately

 

[Avlus993Ruf]

Appareden is a interesting game. Although I couldn't set up CD-audio in the Neko Project 21/W, but the music is still good (with options "Original FM Sound" and "New 86 Sound" in main menu). I'm glad, that 46 Okumen has returned to translation activities!
Variable Geo - the difficult (keyboard!) fighting...

 

[dorkasaurusrex]

Appareden is a interesting game. Although I couldn't set up CD-audio in the Neko Project 21/W, but the music is still good (with options "Original FM Sound" and "New 86 Sound" in main menu). I'm glad, that 46 Okumen has returned to translation activities!
Variable Geo - the difficult (keyboard!) fighting...

Is there any kind of way to tell WHICH sound option in the menu is the correct one for a given game? Does it change when you select a different one? I assume it's a different sound-chip being emulated, but maybe it's something else. You have to reset the emulator every time you change it, right?

So complicated to get it right...

Anyways, thank you guys for keeping the mystique of the PC98 alive. These games have taken a very special place in my heart in the last year or so and I just can't get enough of them. Thanks to everyone who does what they can to give these magical games a proper English translation

 

[Avlus993Ruf]

Is there any kind of way to tell WHICH sound option in the menu is the correct one for a given game? Does it change when you select a different one? I assume it's a different sound-chip being emulated, but maybe it's something else. You have to reset the emulator every time you change it, right?

A few days later, I tried to emulate the Appareden in DOSBox-X. In this emulator, the Appareden launched with CD-audio. Unfortunately, Appareden with DOSBox-X works unstable, with frequent freezes (with any of the four sound options: original FM Sound, New 86 Sound, MIDI-GS and CD). In addition, from any of the settings of PC-98 sound cards in Neko Project 21/W did not work MIDI-GS (unlike DOSBox-X). Of course, I did not forget about the Reset emulators But I could not launched the Appareden with CD-audio in Neko Project 21/W. In any case, this is not such an important problem.
In any case, the DOSBox-X allowed me to compare the Appareden's music of each of the four options. In my opinion, the Appareden sounds best with original FM sound. Therefore, I believe that it is better to launch this game in Neko Project 21/W with original FM sound.

 

[02_xivy]

Is the Brandish 1 translation a script port, or an original one?

I would also like to know if it's for the original or renewal version.

 

[BabaJeanmel]

New translation, for the renewal version.

 

[02_xivy]

One more thing, do you know how much of the translations for 1 and 3 are finished?

 

[BabaJeanmel]

No idea, sorry.

 

[Theusruka]

Where can I follow the progress of the groups that are translating PC-98 games or visual novels in general?

 

[Nikokaro]

Where can I follow the progress of the groups that are translating PC-98 games or visual novels in general?

As far as I know, about VNs in general, here:
https://fuwanovel.moe/category/vnts/
but unfortunately it hasn't been updated for a few months.
About PC-98 translation projects, few groups have their own dedicated web pages: but you can often find information on Discord.

 

[Toppis]

Where can I follow the progress of the groups that are translating PC-98 games or visual novels in general?

pc-98 games maybe in that discord server

 

[Nikokaro]

Hello buddies. The complete english translation of  Mime, a fantastic first person dungeon-crawler for pc-98, has just been released, but as far as I'm concerned, trying it with NP2 on PSP, it freezes at the beginning, after the hourglass appears, as shown in the photo.
I used the pre-patched version available on archive dot org.
Has anyone tried it? Does this happen to any of you? Thanks.

Edit: Well, trying it on the android version (Retroarch + NP2 core) of Neko Project II, it works fine. On the PSP version instead, it basically freezes before the underlying english text appears. Hmm... strange issue... I wonder why...
Shit!

 

[Avlus993Ruf]

On the PSP version instead, it basically freezes before the underlying english text appears.

Perhaps the cause of the freezes in the emulator. Mime (with english translation) work without problems in Neko Project 21 and Neko Project 21/W. But in Neko Project II game stops at the same moment with a sand clock.

 

[BabaJeanmel]

Valley Bell sent me a special executable for MIME that uses only 286 assembly instructions instead of 386. Can you try it on your setup ? (you need to replace the file in the hdi using Disk Explorer)

 

[Nikokaro]

Valley Bell sent me a special executable for MIME that uses only 286 assembly instructions instead of 386. Can you try it on your setup ? (you need to replace the file in the hdi using Disk Explorer)

Hey chief, how's it going? I don't know if the file was meant for me or the other user, but I grabbed it anyway.... , aaaand guess what? It works perfectly. I had already thrown in the towel on this one, and out of the blue here it is, alive and well on my good old PSP3004. A big thank you , to you and your fellow programmer.

P.S.
I still have a more general question about this.
Is there a standard procedure to modify the .exe file of other PC-9821 titles, to make them work on PC-9801? Is it possible to do it simply with a hex editor, even by a beginner like me (in truth, a simple gamer )? If so, what specifically needs to be modified?
Thanks.

 

[BabaJeanmel]

Awesome, glad it worked for you!

Valley Bell also did the same fixes for Night Slave and Variable Geo. You can get them here: https://github.com/ValleyBell/PC98VNResearch/commit/1f40e33

Make sure to rename the executables and replace the existing ones.

Unfortunately, there is no standard procedure to make these kinds of fixes, it requires ASM hacking...

 

[bomb2022]

About PC-98 translation projects, few groups have their own dedicated web pages: but you can often find information on Discord.

do those pc 98 groups only do translations?

or can any of them instal bootable games on disk to?

also BabaJeanmel what about you could you instal some rare pc 98 games for me?

Spoiler: and before you say anything about ms dos or retroarch, look at this spoiler

i created this account just to ask pc 98 pros to make game disk for me

so will start with "introducing" myself
my game collection is over 15 TB now. i have a win 7 pc and a win 10 laptop on which i can run 15 easy to use console emulators
there is only one thing missing in my collection: obscure/rare pc 98 games

and just to be clear: i'm not interested in programming MS-DOS or setting up retroarch

i just want easy to use/run pre installed/configured game disk that run on neko project 2 or anex86
preferably in hdi/fdi or d88 format like the ones in the: Neo Kobe - NEC PC-9801 (2017-11-17) google it
i'm willing to pay for working game disk files like them

and i don't care about translation.

 

[Nikokaro]

there is only one thing missing in my collection: obscure/rare pc 98 games.
................
i just want easy to use/run pre installed/configured game disk that run on neko project 2 or anex86

As for me, I don't think I fully "grasp" what your request is. On archive(dot)org you can easily find almost all the games (roms) available for PC-98 both in floppy disk (fdi) and hard disk (hdi, that is to say already pre-installed) formats, and both can be played ("inserted") directly on Neko Project 2 through the appropriate slot. What other type of installation are you talking about? There are a myriad of "obscure" doujin games for PC-98 often contained in a single floppy disk (fdi format) that obviously have to be played directly like that, without the need for any installation. Were you referring to these perhaps?

 

[BabaJeanmel]

Same, Neo Kobe should pretty much have you covered.

Games needing hdd install are already available in preinstalled format. So everything is plug-and-play.

On my Internet Archive account, there are a few HDD conversions for some old games of the 88-92 period, should you need them. But they're perfectly playable from the d88 versions too.

 

[bomb2022]

As for me, I don't think I fully "grasp" what your request is. On archive(dot)org you can easily find almost all the games (roms) available for PC-98 both in floppy disk (fdi) and hard disk (hdi, that is to say already pre-installed) formats, and both can be played ("inserted") directly on Neko Project 2 through the appropriate slot. What other type of installation are you talking about? There are a myriad of "obscure" doujin games for PC-98 often contained in a single floppy disk (fdi format) that obviously have to be played directly like that, without the need for any installation. Were you referring to these perhaps?

the obscure/rare game i mean are the ones uploaded by this krugman https://archive.org/details/@krugman

this one in particular https://archive.org/details/aura-genshi-no-shou
since i collected and can run all the other games from the same developer, even bought the new ones on dlsite

but that damn krugman uploaded it without pre installed system files.
i learned i need to use ms dos to run the game but i don't want to use MS-DOS
its old crap from a bygone era
and retroarch is just a pile of crap and stolen emulators

and i know krugman's games can be made easy to run because this pro named gd56223 did it for this other game https://archive.org/details/oura-pc98

ive been trying to contact him ever since but archive org doesn't has a pm funktion so i have to ask elsewhere...

i just want to play the game and maybe a few others once and then bury them in my collection,
i even been banned on 2 sites for asking this already, but i think i'm getting better at explaining what i want