3DO vs PS1 (Starfighter.)

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3DOKid
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3DO vs PS1 (Starfighter.)

Post by 3DOKid » Wed Oct 08, 2008 8:01 pm

My mixed feelings on Starfighter as a game I've made felt. It's a boring game, but the graphics are amazing.

I recently got hold of the PS1 version, which while it retains the boring factor the WOW graphics have gone too. :shock:

maybe it's becuase I expected a little more from the PS1. After all it is more powerful, or maybe because it's a port, but either way it looks dreadful. really rubbish.

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Post by 3DO Experience » Thu Oct 09, 2008 12:44 am

here's the thing, find a game, any game, on both consoles and the PS1 will always look worse. Face it 3DO>PS1.
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Post by NikeX » Thu Oct 09, 2008 10:09 am

Does it have a time limit? If not, Im gonna buy it. I think it's one of the best 3DO titles. It looks like having freedom.

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Post by 3DOKid » Thu Oct 09, 2008 5:23 pm

I'd be interested to see the remit given to the coders who make ports of software between platforms.

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Post by MrAshDarksideTM » Sun Nov 16, 2008 5:59 am

I have both versions, as well as the DOS version. That said, the 3DO version really stands out as the best. Everything is just prettier, plus the fog in all of it's ports kills the whole mood of it. (I mean come on, cruising around in space, and seeing the detailed earth under you is an amazing sight, much better then the Earth being one big white ball.)

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Post by 3DOSmacker » Sun Nov 16, 2008 6:22 am

I never had this game for 3DO, but a friend of mine did. I distinctly remember it giving an absolutely unparalleled sensation of flight and maneuverability. I actually recently ordered a copy, and I'm just waiting for it to arrive. Get this, I ordered on the 2nd, and it said "estimated delivery between Nov. 7th and 25th." That's quite a window. With my luck, it'll show up some time next year.

I know you're talking about Starfighter, but in the debate between 3DO and PS1 versions of the same game, I might point out Need for Speed. The PS1 version had a couple of extra frills, but the magic of the 3DO version wasn't there. In the case of games like Starfighter that give you a tremendous sensation of flight, or NFS that give you an unrivaled driving simulation, even the slightest difference in playability can be the difference between a decent game, and a truly engrossing and/or addictive game.

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Post by NikeX » Fri Nov 28, 2008 9:51 pm

Let's compare the fantastic 3DO version:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QLXK8xubtic

with the bad Sega Saturn version:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JJYLjHge ... h_response

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Post by MrAshDarksideTM » Sat Nov 29, 2008 4:51 am

NikeX wrote:Let's compare the fantastic 3DO version:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QLXK8xubtic

with the bad Sega Saturn version:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JJYLjHge ... h_response

Hey, that video looks familiar. :D

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Post by NikeX » Sat Nov 29, 2008 3:59 pm

Ha! Great to have you here, could you help me please:
1 Does Starfighter have a time limit or some other kind of limit?
(is free flight only in the first level possible?)
2 Do enemies respawn?
3 How often can the ship be destroyed before Game Over?
4 Are there escort missions?
5 Is it possible to fly around the globe?
I'm going to buy a new FZ-1 plus Starfighter depending on your answers :)

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Post by MrAshDarksideTM » Sat Nov 29, 2008 6:53 pm

1.) The only objective in mission one is to dock with the mothership, so you can indeed just cruise around for however long you like. In fact thats how I spend most of my time, lol.

2.)Enemies do not respawn, EVERYTHING in the scenery is destructable. Every object, even the ground it'self. You can literally reshape mountians.

3.)You have 3 lives before it's game over, then you have to restart the current mission.

4.) As far as I have seen there are no escort missions.

5.) Yes you can fly around the globe, granted it's much smaller then the real world, but still quite an awesome feature. You can enter space as well.

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Post by NikeX » Sat Nov 29, 2008 8:15 pm

Thanks! This sounds so interesting. I'm gonna buy it. When I first read about it in the 90ies, after the PSX was released, I thought: Oh well, another shooter. But this game is different. 3DOKid calls it boring, but I call it REAL 3DO Power.

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Post by MrAshDarksideTM » Sat Nov 29, 2008 11:42 pm

I have always had a soft spot for it. It lets you make a playlist from the available in game songs, so if you throw "floating" on and just cruise it's pretty relaxing.

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Post by 3DOKid » Fri Apr 10, 2009 10:19 pm

I was wrong about this wasn't I?

It is awesome.

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Post by MrAshDarksideTM » Fri Apr 17, 2009 7:30 pm

3DOKid wrote:I was wrong about this wasn't I?

It is awesome.

Glad to have you aboard. :lol:
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Post by 3DOKid » Fri Apr 17, 2009 10:03 pm

It's been a huge amount of fun. My GOTY so far :oops:

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Post by Trev » Sun Mar 10, 2013 4:06 pm

I knew there was a longer thread on this game ... found it! :wink:

I think Starfighter is one of the best examples at showing how 3DO originals are superior to Psx/Sat ports.
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Post by 3DOKid » Sun Mar 10, 2013 5:50 pm

What is weird is that starfighter is a port from the Archimedes (an obscure British computer that competed with Atari ST and Amiga) it's a what i would call a 'number cruncher' game. SO by rights the more power the machine, the visually better the game should be. Now the PS1 and Saturn versions are ports of the 3DO version, but by rights, the PS1 or the Saturn version should look better. However, they do not.

What is noticeable is that the 3DO handles the fog better. The fog is used to obscure the range of view. On the 3DO it's very gradual, coincidently as it is in Space Hulk. To describe it, it's a fine grained obscuring of viability range. On the PS1 and Saturn, it's quite jarring and very distracting.

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Post by Trev » Sun Mar 10, 2013 7:59 pm

The fog in the ports reminds me of a lot of the early N64 games.
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Post by Martin III » Fri Mar 22, 2013 1:29 am

3DOKid wrote:What is weird is that starfighter is a port from the Archimedes (an obscure British computer that competed with Atari ST and Amiga) it's a what i would call a 'number cruncher' game. SO by rights the more power the machine, the visually better the game should be. Now the PS1 and Saturn versions are ports of the 3DO version, but by rights, the PS1 or the Saturn version should look better. However, they do not.
Very interesting. I wonder if it could have been some tinkering with the code, intended to make the game look better, which ended up making it look worse? (I'm pretty programming illiterate, so this is a real stab in the dark.)

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Post by 3DOKid » Fri Mar 22, 2013 10:53 pm

Martin III wrote:
3DOKid wrote:What is weird is that starfighter is a port from the Archimedes (an obscure British computer that competed with Atari ST and Amiga) it's a what i would call a 'number cruncher' game. SO by rights the more power the machine, the visually better the game should be. Now the PS1 and Saturn versions are ports of the 3DO version, but by rights, the PS1 or the Saturn version should look better. However, they do not.
Very interesting. I wonder if it could have been some tinkering with the code, intended to make the game look better, which ended up making it look worse? (I'm pretty programming illiterate, so this is a real stab in the dark.)
I think it is just a bad port. I believe (i stand to be corrected) but obviously the 3DO and PS1 architecturally quite different. If they just chucked the 3DO code onto the PS1, without optimising it for the PS1, it would be a bit rubbish. The teams they use to do ports from one platform to another tend to be the trainee's too from what in understand.

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