Gaming Why isn't the 480p "fix" a bigger deal? It should be!

ChibiMofo · Jun 10, 2019

I just installed the 480p fix for USBLoader GX* and it's great! I have a 2007 original Wii and have been using it with component cables since 2008. I was skeptical as to how much of a difference it would make but frankly I'm blown away. Text in particular almost looks like 720p quality at times.

What an effing shame that Nintendo refused to fix this in a system update nearly a decade ago as they clearly could have. If an easy software hack (involving nothing more than changing a couple of hexidecimal digits!) can fix it, a system update could have as well. Boo!!!

But what really puzzles me is why this isn't a bigger deal here and elsewhere. I've been waiting for the usual suspects at YouTube to mention it. Nothing. And here only a few people seem interested. For those of us who bought the first 60 million or so Wiis, this should be a big deal: A free graphics upgrade many years after Nintendo moved on to the Wii U. Speaking of the Wii U, it's true: My best friend brought over her Wii U and plugged it into my 1080p Samsung. My Wii with this fix is clearly clearer and sharper than running the same games on vWii.

I think some folks who have not been using their Wiis might dust them off if they knew about this fix. What can we do to make more of them aware of it?

* I tried to include a link to the fix (/threads/usb-loader-gx-480p-fix.536672/), but as a new member I'm not allowed to post links - even to GBATemp itself - because spam!

Maeson · Jun 10, 2019

Well, I was really interested in this matter early on, when it was discovered. Better looking picture for Wii? That sounds like a dream to me! I really thought it would be the next big thing for the homebrew scene and I had a lot of questions.

But then things started to develop and more information started to come out. I was reading all I could find, and I followed conversations about it. People like Leseratte started working on a way to make use of this discovery for retail games, while many others started to update homebrew applications to include this improvement. It was pretty great.

And then it was made known that this was more a "fix" for systems produced between launch and a certain point in time more than some sort of "magical discovery", and that my system just so happens to be one made once Nintendo actually fixed it on a hardware level; so I couldn't notice any change at all. Some people said that the difference was small, others said it was rather noticeable.

That deflated my personal interest a lot, because I'm simply not able to check the differences (although of course, that also means that I never needed it in the first place, which I suppose is being lucky), not to mention that the people that are updating / trying to implement this fix in ways we can use shouldn't be annoyed asking constantly how progress is going, so I just kinda stepped back and let things develop.

With that said, I'm also weirded out a bit because of how little known seems to be. While it seems I won't be able to benefit from it, millions of Wii systems out there could have a sharper picture, and that's pretty big. Or it should be, at least.

About making people more aware about it, I don't know if it would be better to wait for this fix to be officially supported for USB Loader GX and such. While some homebrew apps have this improvement already in, I imagine most people would be interested in this being functional for Wii's own games, and the last time I checked, it was still being tested.

Draxikor · Jun 10, 2019

I guess isnt mainstream because there's few people who have the first Wii launch model's, also the Wii dual mod bypass this bug, i'm waiting for the fix on other Wii loaders and Nintendont, i am updating this info on a spanish Wii scene group.

Extrems · Jun 10, 2019

Draxikor said:
I guess isnt mainstream because there's few people who have the first Wii launch model's, also the Wii dual mod bypass this bug, i'm waiting for the fix on other Wii loaders and Nintendont, i am updating this info on a spanish Wii scene group.

The WiiDual can't be installed on the affected models.

Draxikor · Jun 10, 2019

Extrems said:
The WiiDual can't be installed on the affected models.

I see then the info on retroRGB is wrong in that aspect.
PD I see some people saying that some RVL-CPU-40 consoles suffer from this bug, and thats a WiiDual mod compatible.

tech3475 · Jun 10, 2019

1MiinMofo said:
What an effing shame that Nintendo refused to fix this in a system update nearly a decade ago as they clearly could have. If an easy software hack (involving nothing more than changing a couple of hexidecimal digits!) can fix it, a system update could have as well. Boo!!!

From my understanding, the issue would require either every game/title to be recompiled with a fixed SDK or an, if possible, 'on the fly' patch would have to be applied.

The Wii can't handle game/title updates like the other consoles, so my guess is Nintendo didn't think it was worth the risk to do an 'on the fly' patch,p and/or the necessary testing required for what they likely saw as a minor issue, presuming they were aware of it.

SnackJr · Jun 12, 2019

I'm tempted to try it, but don't want to screw with my Wii anymore. I'm afraid ol' girl will brick on me someday.

newo · Jun 28, 2019

What is the C code that you need to put in to get this this working? Or do you have to recompile everything with new libogc libraries? the wii community right now has very few active programmers doing original/new program which affects the level of hype that can be drawn upon.

leseratte · Jun 28, 2019

Here is the libogc pull request: https://github.com/devkitPro/libogc/pull/65

You can either fix this by recompiling with a patched libogc, or you can just use a hex editor to patch an existing homebrew DOL / ELF file.

gohan123 · Jun 28, 2019

I might test it someday because I have a launch day wii. but I never ever touch it, if I want to play wii / gc I play those games on dolphin with hd textures.

edit:

ok I tried it, maybe I'm doing something wrong but I don't see any difference at all.

edit2:

I noticed that the black border in usb loader gx itself on left and right sight disappeared. but the 480p fix which you can toggle for the games doesn't do anything.

Draxikor · Jun 29, 2019

gohan123 said:
I might test it someday because I have a launch day wii. but I never ever touch it, if I want to play wii / gc I play those games on dolphin with hd textures.

edit:

ok I tried it, maybe I'm doing something wrong but I don't see any difference at all.

edit2:

I noticed that the black border in usb loader gx itself on left and right sight disappeared. but the 480p fix which you can toggle for the games doesn't do anything.

The difference is too slight but exists, is more noticeable if you are playing on a CRT, on a FHD or 4K is way harder to notice especially if you are using a 16:9 over 4:3

--------------------- MERGED ---------------------------

@gohan123 This link have the comparisons on this fix made by @matt!

CMDreamer · Jun 29, 2019

Draxikor said:
The difference is too slight but exists, is more noticeable if you are playing on a CRT, on a FHD or 4K is way harder to notice especially if you are using a 16:9 over 4:3

--------------------- MERGED ---------------------------

@gohan123 This link have the comparisons on this fix made by @matt!

Thanks for the note.

So then I won't benefit from the hack, I'm using original Nintendo's component cables on a 32" 720p LED Screen.

The WiiU though, really looks great on it using its HDMI cable.

Draxikor · Jun 29, 2019

@CMDreamer Well yes and not, you need to keep your expectations a bit low i mean this fix dont make the output HD but is something curious and helpful to first wii launch owners, by the way the wii games on a Wii U have a lot of troubles the aspect ratio and game space window is messed, is actually better to play wii games on a Wii, with of course component cables.

gohan123 · Jun 29, 2019

I can't even really tell the difference in this close up images ... so that's for me the answer for op why this isn't a big deal. most people propably can't see a difference.

newo · Jun 29, 2019

The difference between composite vs component was definitely night and day. This might be the final cherry on top for 4:3 aspect users.

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