ROM Hack Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure

[PKGINGO]

While it wasn't meant to be taken harshly there's a couple of reasons it's relevant.
1. You might conclude said song in the extra scenario was new and therefore could not be reinserted at a higher quality.
2. Doing work like this might involve a bit of backstory you aren't familiar with. What if you confused Cherie's song with Cornettes (pretending you never had the lyrics).
3. You were not aware of an extra scenario in the the first place. When you say "I finally finished it.", it gives people the wrong impression that this is no longer a WIP.
4. Finally, you make no mention that this is only tested on the R4. A fan such as myself with a DS-X, and I hear the cyclo also has an issue, would have no idea your patch doesn't even work for them. The work you did is for your specific setup, and its very disheartening to the other users.

Don't get me wrong, I love the idea and even want to rectify number 4, it just doesn't seem too focused on "the fans" and other users. Again, it wasn't meant to be harsh, just a feeling like theres a lack of passion. As for being grateful? I have nothing but the utmost respect hackers. I also plan on doing my own WIP as you read, after I can find some reliable internet (probably at school on monday or tuesday). So while I commend you for your efforts, I think if you want to continue, you should perhaps get a bit more involved with the story of the game. Again, do not take this harshly... it just reminds me of the times back when pokémon was being translated because "people thought it was cool" and "because they could" even though some of them had no idea what the dialog they translated was or even what they were "translating" contextually.

 

[DarthNemesis]

I think it's kind of ridiculous to say that only hardcore fans of / experts in a game should be allowed to modify a game. It's not like there's an abundance of willing hackers, so be glad someone's taken an interest at all! I mean, those are certainly valid concerns for any project, and granted you're being polite and all, but I don't see why any of those potential issues would lead you to the conclusion that he ought not touch the game in the first place. If you're concerned about quality, you can always point out any errors for him to correct, so it can still work out just fine in the end... besides, it's a song replacement patch, not a triple bypass surgery - it's not the end of the world if something isn't perfect.

 

[CPhantom]

They don't even have the extra scenario though, so yeah. It's not available. If it IS, then please do tell how to get it, and I will do what I can do. But so far, no one anywhere has mentioned how to gain access to this scenario, so it is quite difficult to even know what would be edited.

I'm still not understanding what you are meaning buy the fact that your cart is much slower. Does your game lag? If not, it shouldn't play faster or anything. I have the files set to the way that .ADX files usually are, and it shouldn't affect you in any bad way because a few files were swapped. Like I have said before. The songs are not PERFECT on the cart. The worst case being about a 2-3 second ending period for one of the songs, but that is the biggest problem and I'm going to be releasing a patch for those two songs.

Anyway, a friend of mine is getting an Acekard2, so I'll test this out on his card to see if there is anything different.

Either way, I'd enjoy, as DarthNemesis said, constructive criticism, and not "OMG U DUNT LIEK TEH SERIEZ" responses. I liked Rhapsody on the PSX, I never played the entire series, and probably wouldn't, as it isn't my favorite RPG of all time. In fact, it is probably on the lower end of my list. However, it doesn't mean I didn't like it...it's just heavily generic. I did enjoy the music though, and my sister felt it was more fitting towards her experience with the game using English voices, so that is why I did this. Not because I'm some big lover boy fan of the series.

 

[DarthNemesis]

I'm still not understanding what you are meaning buy the fact that your cart is much slower. Does your game lag? If not, it shouldn't play faster or anything. I have the files set to the way that .ADX files usually are, and it shouldn't affect you in any bad way because a few files were swapped. Like I have said before. The songs are not PERFECT on the cart. The worst case being about a 2-3 second ending period for one of the songs, but that is the biggest problem and I'm going to be releasing a patch for those two songs.

I could've sworn I saw something about this before...

Ah, here it is: http://gbatemp.net/index.php?showtopic=107...t&p=1445356
Hey, it's the same person. Looks like (she?)'s actually doing something about it instead of just criticizing, so that's good. It'd be nice if you could both work together on a solution, though.

 

[CPhantom]

I'm still not understanding what you are meaning buy the fact that your cart is much slower. Does your game lag? If not, it shouldn't play faster or anything. I have the files set to the way that .ADX files usually are, and it shouldn't affect you in any bad way because a few files were swapped. Like I have said before. The songs are not PERFECT on the cart. The worst case being about a 2-3 second ending period for one of the songs, but that is the biggest problem and I'm going to be releasing a patch for those two songs.

I could've sworn I saw something about this before...

Ah, here it is: http://gbatemp.net/index.php?showtopic=107...t&p=1445356
Hey, it's the same person. Looks like (she?)'s actually doing something about it instead of just criticizing, so that's good. It'd be nice if you could both work together on a solution, though.

I see...hmmm. Well then I'd like to see how the card reacts. This is directed towards PKGINGO by the way: Please make a video or something to show me how it looks on your card. DS-X...ugh...I've always hated it, and glad it wasn't my first card. Haha. Just let me see how it is acting though, and I'll see what I can do. If it really is 45 seconds at the end though, something is seriously messed up there. That is VERY slow. I'm still going to guess it'd be the turtle speed of the DS-X.

Thanks for the link though Darth :]

 

[PKGINGO]

I think you are guys are misinterpreting what I am saying. In this case, it seems to be lacking passion, which I find is quite fine if you are sharing a personal work. However, releasing this in the open in its given presentation gives an improper illusion to whomever gets it and the producer is spreading incorrect information. I've looked at the game too. Not only did I HEAR the music for the extra content, I saw data. Whether it is accessible or not is irrelevant. Should be accessible via cheat if ANYTHING, maybe even by DLC. I never disassembled the full game really, I lack the time to trace the entire program at the moment. The point is you are flat out dismissing the extra content. I didn't even try and I found that information. That just tells me that you do not have your heart set on it. If you do something, you SHOULD have your heart set on it. Thats all I'm saying.

Now since you asked, I made a video, thanks to my boyfriend, of the intro with my buffer code on. My patch will probably be a mix between lower bit rate music and the extra buffering if it does not cause gameplay problems. Sadly, I had the bandwidth to upload either this video or a beta patch today so you get the video. Anyone willing to test my patches will have to wait until I get access to non crappy net again.

You can view my video here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m5OHPZ7i75A

I apologize for the volume (very quiet)... I had to improvise a recording setup.

As you can see, my buffer code HELPS the problem but its still there, you can see clearly see a gap in the ending. You can also see the sprites freeze for a moment while the next data chunk is loaded mid song. This is a direct result of my flash card, as I stated in my thread, I'm more than capable of fixing it myself, so I don't need you to look at it. We have entirely different goals and targets. You for fast cards, me for all. I also do not think its wise to use commercial middleware to do this (even if it is a free evaluation). There is plenty of documentation. When I wrote my encoder years ago (for SC5P2), I remember referencing a yamaha ADPCM sound chip in MAME if that helps you out any.

Edit: IIRC Bero was working on an adx program way back when too if that help. Not sure what came of that, but I found this in my old bookmarks for you, should prove very useful for coding:
http://web.archive.org/web/20060818165032/...tsushi/adx.html

 

[AXYPB]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I was under the impression that the extra content wasn't dubbed because it would have involved getting new actors and redubbing everything else.

 

[PKGINGO]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I was under the impression that the extra content wasn't dubbed because it would have involved getting new actors and redubbing everything else.

You are correct, however, CP intends to do HQ releases of the content, as you have read throughout the thread. Therefore, an enhanced HQ version of this extra content is readily available to him if he knew where to look and what to look for.

 

[Kerian]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I was under the impression that the extra content wasn't dubbed because it would have involved getting new actors and redubbing everything else.

You are correct, however, CP intends to do HQ releases of the content, as you have read throughout the thread. Therefore, an enhanced HQ version of this extra content is readily available to him if he knew where to look and what to look for.

it's not yet available. When I finally get the 2 zips I was talking about on page 4, we will know what JP songs can be released as HQ Version for the DS

 

[PKGINGO]

Of course it's not available from either of you. I used the word INTEND. I also happen to own all of the NIS OSTs, so I do know what is on them. Your "extra content" won't be on the disc you have. As I already stated, it is in ANGELS PRESENT, not Puppet Princess.

 

[immortal846]

Is this english version of the game or for the japanese version.

 

[War]

This is for the English version of the game.

 

[PKGINGO]

Is this english version of the game or for the japanese version.

While I don't have the Japanese cart, I would assume it works for BOTH, though designed for the english one.

 

[Kerian]

Hmmm OK I finished downloading (????) [?????????] ?????? ?????? ????????????? [?????????] 160k.rar but I don't think this is what we want. It only contains ~4songs with vocals.

And who is La Pucelle (??????)?

Still downloading the other 2, may take days or weeks =_=

Of course it's not available from either of you. I used the word INTEND. I also happen to own all of the NIS OSTs, so I do know what is on them. Your "extra content" won't be on the disc you have. As I already stated, it is in ANGELS PRESENT, not Puppet Princess.

wait - I have a hard time looking for the Japanese OST for this game, files we need to do a HQ JP redub, and you tell me you actually own it?? The heck, send it to CPhantom then so we can a JP redub!

 

[DarthNemesis]

Hmmm OK I finished downloading (????) [?????????] ?????? ?????? ????????????? [?????????] 160k.rar but I don't think this is what we want. It only contains ~4songs with vocals.

And who is La Pucelle (??????)?

That's the soundtrack to a different game by Nippon Ichi Software. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_Pucelle:_Tactics

 

[PKGINGO]

Kerian,

1. Even if I had the bandwidth to upload it (which i should if I did it one song at a time), I don't know who you are or why I should even consider distributing a rare gem like this so it makes its way to the 'bay', let alone take the effort to upload them individually.

2. When I ordered it way back when, I got it from here: http://www.himeyashop.com/ ; I think the people at NIS did a fantastic job with it, so I probably would not ever post links publicly to the OST to help curb piracy. You, however, are welcome to find and purchase your own copy, if not at himeya, then try ebay or yahoo auctions.

3. If I did post links, I would either A) watermark them (noticable fade in the middle, maybe a voiceover), or B) release low quality (higher than the DS, but not nearly what youd get from a CD). This can be in the form of ADPCM too... so I might pre-encode the files forcing whomever to decompress, edit, and recompress.

4. If CP wanted them from me, he would have asked for them from me.

5. If I gave them to ANYONE, they would have to prove that they would not be used with the commercial middleware.

 

[Kerian]

Hmmm OK I finished downloading (????) [?????????] ?????? ?????? ????????????? [?????????] 160k.rar but I don't think this is what we want. It only contains ~4songs with vocals.

And who is La Pucelle (??????)?

That's the soundtrack to a different game by Nippon Ichi Software. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_Pucelle:_Tactics

Ohhhh the ????????? in the filename is pretty misleading then.
Wikipedia: La Pucelle is loosely related to Nippon Ichi's Marl Kingdom series, of which Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure is the only game to be released in North America.
Oh I see, I see.


To PKGingo:
2. Hmm well, I do not have any intentions on uploading them to whatever website, and I don't think CPhantom has either. Especially since the EN hq redub was created for cphantoms sister in mind after all. So I don't think CPhantom would run around and distributing the files like crazy.

3. No need to post links for all of us. Giving the urls to only the guy, whoever it may be, who has interrest in releasing a hq jp redub version would be fine. Of course, if you then still intend to release them as LQ version, we may be better off looking for a different song provider. No offense.

4. Well you just told us that you actually own the NIS OSTs, so he didn't knew about that o.O He PMed me asking me if I would link him the files once I gathered them to create a HQ en redub version =O If you would have told us sooner, he may have PMed you, and who knows, he might still do it. I don't know, I can't read his mind

5. Maybe he will, I did not wanted to speak for him in his place, it was just a suggestion.

I hope this clears things up. I don't think anyone wants you to go and posting dl links to the files. PMin the links the guy who is doing the redub would be fine.

 

[PKGINGO]

My post was made late for me, so it was probably hard to understand. I meant to say if CP wanted it, he should ask me himself.

Also, I wouldn't call it really LQ, probably MQ. I'd cut the bit rate to 192 or as low as 128 if you can prove no commercial middleware or release a predone adx directly coded to adpcm from the CD if you cant. Just so you don't have to go out of your way to find the Tenchi no Present OST for one song.

I will NOT post any of the full albums because I don't want this to end up on the pirate bay. If you want the OST, I would buy it from a retailer to support NIS because they are the ones that did this great job.

 

[Kerian]

My post was made late for me, so it was probably hard to understand. I meant to say if CP wanted it, he should ask me himself.

Also, I wouldn't call it really LQ, probably MQ. I'd cut the bit rate to 192 or as low as 128 if you can prove no commercial middleware or release a predone adx directly coded to adpcm from the CD if you cant. Just so you don't have to go out of your way to find the Tenchi no Present OST for one song.

I will NOT post any of the full albums because I don't want this to end up on the pirate bay. If you want the OST, I would buy it from a retailer to support NIS because they are the ones that did this great job.

Hm hm if you want to make adx files out of them, sure why not =O You could even create a patch yourself!

If you want to release them directly in (good quality and) adx format , go for it

EDIT: http://gbatemp.net/index.php?showtopic=107...p;#entry1438726
Oh well, looks like you are already at it!
For anyone interrested in a Higher Quality JP Redub, that also inclused a complete replacement of the score with the PSX higher quality sound files, check out PKGINGOs thread.

 

[tbgtbg]

Is the updated SND folder supposed to have one less file in it than the one in the unpacked game? Am I supposed to keep that last file that isn't in the new SND, or just use the new SND and not worry about the missing file?