Space Fantasy Zone - CD vs. SCD => Teh clash!

elnino · 04/15/2008, 01:33 PM

I always thought this game was to be released as a Super CD-ROM, however, I've just seen this auction:

http://page6.auctions.yahoo.co.jp/jp/auction/f61765966

The type can be clearly seen as a CD-ROM and I'm kinda confused now. Maybe this guy has somehow managed to get his hands on a "real" copy. Even if it's a fake ass self-made copy, it seems hardly believable that someone would make such a basic mistake. This leaves us with the other possibility that I've just been foolishly assuming that it was a SCD, although everybody knew it was not. Given my Charles Xavier like brain power, this makes even less sense!!

Does anybody know something about this matter?

nat · 04/15/2008, 01:42 PM

It's a CD-ROM^2 IIRC.

Try playing with a 2.0 card and I think you'll see I'm right.

Sinistron · 04/15/2008, 01:46 PM

Holy smoke though that is a nice looking copy. This whole time I thought that the Sapphire "boot" or whatever the hell it is was the only official looking boot for pce- this guy did some work if its not a rare official copy.

Nazi NecroPhile · 04/15/2008, 01:50 PM

PCECP says it's both formats (ala Terraforming and Sherlock 2); their faked manual shows the Super CD-ROM² logo. Since there are no 'real' copies, this is a very nicely done fake. I'm assuming that the disc was inkjet printed, but maybe they actually had some blank discs silk screened and are now trying to make a quick buck from suckers.

lkermel · 04/15/2008, 04:25 PM

This, most certainly, is a fake. However, it's a hell of a great job they did there ! This reminds me of the Sapphire boot.
I also didn't know Space Fantasy Zone had a serial number... NAPR-1023... this is interesting...

SignOfZeta · 04/15/2008, 08:01 PM

That picture they used for the cover was printed rather large in a Satoshi Urushihara book, so that's probably where they got the high quality scan.

The week part is the CD art. Either it isn't period correct/correct in style (dot pattern screen printing giving it a transparent look) or its a CD-R, which makes it kind of less impressive that the Sapphire boots.

But yeah, not real. Kind of a crazy price for a CD-R of an alpha anyone can just download. How finished is this game anyway?

nectarsis · 04/15/2008, 08:03 PM

Check the Sapphire boot sale page!!! That's where this is from ...

SignOfZeta · 04/15/2008, 08:10 PM

So it is. I'm very disappointed then, considering. It really looks like a CD-R to me, and that price is just gross.

nectarsis · 04/15/2008, 08:11 PM

Just went up in the past few days...

nat · 04/15/2008, 09:15 PM

Quote from: SignOfZeta on 04/15/2008, 08:01 PMKind of a crazy price for a CD-R of an alpha anyone can just download. How finished is this game anyway?

98%. The music track that plays at the end of level breaks off prematurely as does the tune that plays at the high score table. That's it, really minor stuff.

Turbo D · 04/15/2008, 09:19 PM

Can that be fixed with that pce toc fixer?

Tatsujin · 04/15/2008, 09:21 PM

but it was supposed to be a SCD as we can take out from this advertisement flyer:

/spacefantasyzoneow4.jpg

it clearly says "super cd rom" in the yellow oval circle ;)

nat · 04/15/2008, 09:33 PM

Quote from: Tatsujin on 04/15/2008, 09:21 PMbut it was supposed to be a SCD as we can take out from this advertisement flyer:

/spacefantasyzoneow4.jpg

it clearly says "super cd rom" in the yellow oval circle ;)

It also clearly says "(C) SAGA 1988"

Don't believe everything you read

Quote from: turbo D on 04/15/2008, 09:19 PMCan that be fixed with that pce toc fixer?

No, the audio in the music track actually just ends prematurely. It is padded with like 3 seconds of silence.

Joe Redifer · 04/15/2008, 09:34 PM

Quoteit clearly says "super cd rom" in the yellow oval circle ;)

That could be a typo. They also gave a 1988 copyright to SAGA.

EDIT -- Dammit, Nat and I posted the same thing at the same time... though at least I didn't feel the need to quote the entire image that was right above mine.

nat · 04/15/2008, 09:35 PM

Haha, I was first I was first!

Joe Redifer · 04/15/2008, 09:36 PM

But I was better. Look!

Tatsujin · 04/15/2008, 09:38 PM

typos in romaji (latein characters) are daily issues here in japan, even from major manufacturers! see them everywhere at anytimes. doesn't mean it's a fake or such stuff! they sometime just can't see the differences, even they tripple-cheched it! believe me!

Joe Redifer · 04/15/2008, 09:48 PM

But how could you mistype something like SEGA? That seems almost impossible even if you have no knowledge of the language. The SEGA logo alone dictates that there is only one A.

Tatsujin · 04/15/2008, 09:53 PM

the LOGO maybe, but that's not prevailing for a typed in character done by a japanese person on a japanese keyboard in early 90s. check typos like in double dragon 2 on the NES where they wrote "BIMMY & BILLY" instead of "JIMMY & BILLY". and this in an offical with a "seal of quality" NINTENDO product! it happens everyday at everywhere! even it seems almost impossible!

SignOfZeta · 04/15/2008, 10:23 PM

Quote from: Joe Redifer on 04/15/2008, 09:48 PMBut how could you mistype something like SEGA? That seems almost impossible even if you have no knowledge of the language. The SEGA logo alone dictates that there is only one A.

Its still a typo though, that is, a minor input mistake. Substituting a single letter. It specifically states "super" in more than one place though. If it said, "supper" or something, that would be more of the level of "saga". All things being equal I'd rather believe the official advert than what some bootlegger says.

This game was famously delayed before being cancelled. How long was the gap between this advert and the last time the game was seen on a release list? I'm pretty sure it was still "coming soon" for years after the last non-Super CDROM2 was released. Either way, if you are going to fake a package you might as well fake it using the only (I think?) official print for the game (unless the bootlegger actually knew that it was in fact a CDROM and not a Super CDROM, of course). I'm sure one of the more educated programmer types here could tell us what it actually is (Super or non-Super)

CrackTiger · 04/15/2008, 10:28 PM

Maybe this was printed in a factory like the Sapphire bootlegs.

The google translation says that it supposed to be the real deal and fully complete, unlike the previously released copies floating around.

I would be interested in getting a quality reproduction of SFZ as good as the Sapphire bootlegs, but this guy is trying to pass this off as the uberest of teh rarez.

SignOfZeta · 04/15/2008, 10:35 PM

Quote from: guest on 04/15/2008, 10:28 PMMaybe this was printed in a factory like the Sapphire bootlegs.

The google translation says that it supposed to be the real deal and fully complete, unlike the previously released copies floating around.

I would be interested in getting a quality reproduction of SFZ as good as the Sapphire bootlegs, but this guy is trying to pass this off as the uberest of teh rarez.

I bought a boot Sapphire from the guy for $38. That was fair for such a great reproduction, IMO. Now he wants $100 for the few he has left and $159 for his SFZs. I have a hunch someone Redfrogged (yeah, I did it) this guy. The prices went way up and I'm pretty sure the SFZ is a CD-R. It just looks cheesy. Plus, weren't we talking before a while back about how its really really hard (impossible?) to get a CD plant to press PCE CDs now? Whoever made one of those TG-16 homebrews on stamped CDs was saying he couldn't get such a thing now. I'm only have vague memories here...

Tatsujin · 04/15/2008, 11:01 PM

i made my own covers many years ago:

http://kt.homeunix.net/~tatsujin/
/sfz_f_mini.jpg
http://kt.homeunix.net/~tatsujin/
/sfz_b_mini.jpg

lol..even din't have any japanese characters as a truetype font in my Photoshop 4.0 at that time

copied them from the NJ star translator which i often used back then.

CrackTiger · 04/15/2008, 11:20 PM

I see that although the description of the Sapphire bootlegs is still that they're of mysterious origin, the same guy is still managing to 'find' more copies (including variously misprinted editions) and coincidentally stumbled upon the less "maybe-they're-made-by-Hudson" SFZ bootlegs.

It'd still be fine by me if they were being offered at a more reasonable price. I'd like to get one of the SFZ copies just to document the quality, any differences between it and the "incomplete" version as well as see if it is a cdr or factory pressed like the Sapphire reprints... but $160 is way too much money. Even with the $1 discount.

Thats closer to what I paid for my legit copy of Sapphire.

Quote from: Tatsujin on 04/15/2008, 11:01 PMi made my own covers many years ago:

I also made my own set of covers years ago, although I can only find the original batch-

I later updated them with a decent sized image of the coverart, likely the same one you used.

Joe Redifer · 04/15/2008, 11:38 PM

Bah! You guys are no fun. I was trying to be funny! And it was indeed absolutely hilarious until you guys had to try and analyze it seriously. How dare you ruin my comedy career!

PS - I guess since they made a typo in the copyright, it is null and void! I could claim I looked for a company called SAGA, couldn't find one and therefore I had every right to copy and sell the game! Or maybe sue NEC Avenue for ripping it off or something. I dunno. I want someone to get into trouble.

I do think it is funny if a foreigner gets a line on a Japanese alphabet character even slightly crooked, they'll shove a spear through his balls, but they don't mind messing up English and other languages so badly to where it is almost unreadable. It's the same as the "Nigger" double standard, meaning "It's OK if we do it/say it, but not you". Engrish does make me laugh, though... I can't imagine a world without it.

Keranu · 04/16/2008, 12:17 AM

That's an amazing bootleg (assuming it is one). I love how they even included that little poster pamphlet thing like a lot of games do.

nat · 04/16/2008, 12:24 AM

when the hell did the Sapphire folks post SFZ up for sale? It must've been in the past week cuz I just checked that page like 9 days ago to see if Sapphire prices had gone up any more.

Digi.k · 04/16/2008, 12:43 AM

oo the artist for that poster/advert looks like Satoshi Urushihara who did langrisser/plastic little

SignOfZeta · 04/16/2008, 06:43 AM

Quote from: Joe Redifer] on 04/15/2008, 11:38 PMBah! You guys are no fun. I was trying to be funny! And it was indeed absolutely hilarious until you guys had to try and analyze it seriously. How dare you ruin my comedy career!

That's because triple-take false irony is confusing as fuck. If it weren't then it wouldn't give you such a sense of superiority, and consequently you wouldn't be using it. Take the good with the bad.

Nazi NecroPhile · 04/16/2008, 10:27 AM

Quote from: Joe Redifer on 04/15/2008, 11:38 PMPS - I guess since they made a typo in the copyright, it is null and void! I could claim I looked for a company called SAGA, couldn't find one and therefore I had every right to copy and sell the game! Or maybe sue NEC Avenue for ripping it off or something. I dunno. I want someone to get into trouble.

That typo is directly responsible for the cancellation of SFZ. Sega couldn't forgive such a grievous error, and since NEC Avenue wouldn't volunteer their balls for spearing, then Sega's hand was forced and they withdrew their license. Damn, lazy, non-proofreading typists!

lkermel · 04/16/2008, 12:51 PM

I only feel REALLY bad for the people who're bidding,as we speak, $1500 on this fake ... I wish we could send them the link to the seller page... this is soooo wrong...

elnino · 04/17/2008, 12:48 PM

Lmaomg, I've never paid attention to the pics on the anime4ever page, they really are the same as used in the auction, haha. Btw the poor fools have passed the 2k limit now.

nat · 04/17/2008, 12:51 PM

Maybe I should e-mail the winner bidder and tell him he could have gotten the same thing, brand new, from Anime4Ever's website for a fraction of the cost (still overpriced though IMO).

Yes, I think I shall.

Nazi NecroPhile · 04/17/2008, 01:05 PM

Keep us updated as to his response, nat; it's certain to be entertainingly filled with incredulity, expletives, and a touch of rage. Poor gullible fuckers.

Tatsujin · 04/17/2008, 08:27 PM

thinking now about to do the same