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Been considering buying a PC-FX system for a while now. I may pull the trigger

Started by ZachSpears, 10/13/2015, 08:51 PM

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ZachSpears

I may pull the trigger soon if I find the right one at the right price. Can anyone recommend some of the playable games for someone who cannot read or speak Japanese? Are there enough of those to actually enjoy owning one? Sorry for the lame questions. Also, has anyone ever modded one to be able to play Super CD Roms in any capacity? Is that even possible? When will the questions end?!?!

Sorry, havent been around here much. Love you guys tho.


-Rock

NecroPhile

You should check it out via emulation before buying.  Other than the translated games (Zeroigar and Pia Carrot), they all have at least some Japanese that you'll have to work around, and it's hard to gauge just how much Japanese is too much for individual tastes.  What kind of games do you really want to play?

As for hacking in backwards compatibility, it's not been done.  I suppose anything is possible given enough knowhow, money, and time, but I can't see why anyone would bother.
Ultimate Forum Bully/Thief/Saboteur/Clone Warrior! BURN IN HELL NECROPHUCK!!!

Bernie

I have the paid version of MEPCX if you want to try it out Rock.  Just let me know.

elmer

Quote from: Bernie on 10/14/2015, 03:25 PMI have the paid version of MEPCX if you want to try it out Rock.  Just let me know.
Mednafen does a better job of the emulation ... and it's free!  :wink:

Bernie

Quote from: elmer on 10/14/2015, 03:41 PM
Quote from: Bernie on 10/14/2015, 03:25 PMI have the paid version of MEPCX if you want to try it out Rock.  Just let me know.
Mednafen does a better job of the emulation ... and it's free!  :wink:
For as little as I play it.  ME is fine.  I've never messed with Mednafen.  Isn't it command based?

NecroPhile

Unless it's been fixed since the last time I tried (years ago), MEFX won't let you play the timed attack mode in Zeriogar.  It's good enough to get a taste of the system, though; even the 5 minute trial is good enough for that.
Ultimate Forum Bully/Thief/Saboteur/Clone Warrior! BURN IN HELL NECROPHUCK!!!

elmer

Quote from: Bernie on 10/14/2015, 06:01 PMI've never messed with Mednafen.  Isn't it command based?
It's definitely less newcomer-friendly with no Menu Bar and a text-based config file to tweak, but there are 3rd-party GUIs for it.

Once you've got it set up (i.e. download the PC-FX BIOS, and put it in the right place), then you can just run it by dragging-and-dropping a PC-FX .cue file onto the Mednafen icon.

Aggie Tsubi

What's playable without knowing a lick of Japanese kinda depends on how much patience you have for screwing around blindly a bit until you figure things out. If you want games where you barely have to mess with text at all, your options are slim. And if you want to buy them, the more English-friendly, action-y titles tend to be the expensive ones (Zenki, Zeroigar, and Chip-chan Kick). PC-FX systems have no issues playing burned games, though, so you could always go that route (and then have access to the couple patched games). Plus, really, even if you had a copy of Zenki, the damn game is so pricey that you'd probably want to play a backup and keep the real deal safe anyway, haha. Or maybe it's just me who's paranoid. :P

Anyway, getting back to my original point, I'd argue that some of the kind of text-heavy games are still playable and enjoyable even without knowledge of Japanese. Like Farland Story is a strategy RPG, so obviously there are menus in Japanese and cutscenes. But it's pretty traditional as far as strategy RPGs go, so if you're familiar with the genre and don't mind fumbling through the menus until you figure out what the options do, it's easy to play. Last Imperial Prince is another game that's pretty straightforward. It's a side-scrolling adventure game a la Zelda 2. You have to wander a little to find the right people to talk to and trigger the advancement of the story, but the game does a good job of shuffling you along from area to area. Combat is a little funky, but I think it's fun.

ZachSpears

Thanks for the info and advice guys, I appreciate it! I will def. check out the emulator first, Bernie

Arkhan Asylum

Quote from: Rockabilly Paradise on 10/13/2015, 08:51 PMI may pull the trigger soon if I find the right one at the right price. Can anyone recommend some of the playable games for someone who cannot read or speak Japanese? Are there enough of those to actually enjoy owning one? Sorry for the lame questions. Also, has anyone ever modded one to be able to play Super CD Roms in any capacity? Is that even possible? When will the questions end?!?!

Sorry, havent been around here much. Love you guys tho.


-Rock
1) Nope. Doesn't play SCD games.

2) Do you like digital comics/RPGs? 


If not, don't bother.   Emulate the like, 3 games that will entertain you.


The majority of the titles are text heavy because that was the thing at the time (RPGs/digital comics/etc.).   

The RPGs are good, but if you can't even kind of read the text, what's the point.  Boundary Gate might amuse you (First person dungeon crawler), but you won't get any textual enjoyment, so you could really just play basically any other dungeon crawler....

Same goes for the other games.   
This "max-level forum psycho" (:lol:) destroyed TWO PC Engine groups in rage: one by Aaron Lambert on Facebook "Because Chris 'Shadowland' Runyon!," then the other by Aaron Nanto "Because Le NightWolve!" Him and PCE Aarons don't have a good track record together... Both times he blamed the Aarons in a "Look-what-you-made-us-do?!" manner, never himself nor his deranged, destructive, toxic turbo troll gang!

CrackTiger

If you are already avoiding PCE RPGs and digicomics because of the language barrier, then it's best to skip the PC-FX. If you think you might be up for it, try playing through some on PCE first and you'll get a good idea if the PC-FX is for you.
Justin the Not-So-Cheery Black/Hack/CrackTiger helped Joshua Jackass, Andrew/Arkhan Dildovich and the DildoPhiles destroy 2 PC Engine groups: one by Aaron Lambert on Facebook, then the other by Aaron Nanto!!! Him and PCE Aarons don't have a good track record together! Both times he blamed the Aarons and their staff in a "Look-what-you-made-us-do?!" manner, never himself nor his deranged/destructive/doxxing toxic turbo troll gang which he covers up for under the "community" euphemism!

SignOfZeta

IMG

TurboNeoSega

I'm still on the fence as well. Interested to see what info you come up with!

Bernie

I've had a pcfx two different times.  I just couldn't get into it, for the same reasons already mentioned.

thesteve

i play the PCFX some
Ruruli Ra Rura is fun once you figure out the menu system
zenki is great with no lang barriers
pia carrot is interesting
last imperial prince you get stuck without being able to read
zeroygar is solid

its not getting a ton of use but if its cheap enough could still be worth it

JoshTurboTrollX

It is a bizarre attraction.  I had it before and after a few weeks it collected dust and I lost interest.  Yet... I still wish I had it around.
Jossshhhhh...Legendary TurboTrollX-16: He revenge-bans PCE Developers/Ys IV Localizers from PCE Facebook groups and destroyed 2 PC Engine groups: one by Aaron Lambert on Facebook, then the other by Aaron Nanto!!! Josh and PCE Aarons don't have a good track record together! Both times he blamed the Aarons and their staff in a "Look-what-you-made-us-do?!" manner (extortion!), never himself nor his deranged, destructive, toxic turbo troll gang!

blueraven

It doesnt get nearly as much use as any of my PCE consoles, but is badass nonetheless.

I only have played Zeroigear and Battle Heat, but I like them both.

turboswimbz

THe system is neat, it's a great conversation piece.  Mine gets played on and off. BUt I wouldn't get it just for that reason, to have it sit and collect dust is just silly.  THe games can be quite fun if your generally willing to put some time into them.  Zerogar and battle heat are cool, and so are a lot of the other games.  There is generally a lot you miss if you can't read/understand the language hawever so it's something to consider.     Overall  I would say try some games out first if you can, then get it of you are still intreted.  It's not a console that's going to get super heavy play time, but one that you might find you really enjoy anyway.
NW: Hey, I made it on this psycho's Enemies' List, how about that ?? ;)
BT: Look at how the fake SFII' carts instantly sold out and were immediately listed on eBay before the flippers even took possession. Look at Nintendo's overpriced bricks. Look at the typical forum discussions elsewhere. You can't tell most retro gamers anything!

elmer

Quote from: turboswimbz on 10/22/2015, 09:38 PMIt's not a console that's going to get super heavy play time, but one that you might find you really enjoy anyway.
Well, I hope that we can get the PC-FX opened up for homebrew over the next year, and perhaps then we'll see some new stuff on it.

It really is a nice console design, and it's going to be much easier for any aspiring homebrew developers to work on than the PCE (or gawd forbid, the Saturn!).

turboswimbz

Quote from: elmer on 10/22/2015, 11:02 PM
Quote from: turboswimbz on 10/22/2015, 09:38 PMIt's not a console that's going to get super heavy play time, but one that you might find you really enjoy anyway.
Well, I hope that we can get the PC-FX opened up for homebrew over the next year, and perhaps then we'll see some new stuff on it.

It really is a nice console design, and it's going to be much easier for any aspiring homebrew developers to work on than the PCE (or gawd forbid, the Saturn!).
This would make me happier than a clam.  I really like this damn PC tower box and the controller a lot.   
And I should point out thanks to your work on zeriogar the FX did get quite a bit of play time recently.  I played through that game a lot, the replay is quite remarkable for such a "simple" shooter. (simple for lack of a better term)
NW: Hey, I made it on this psycho's Enemies' List, how about that ?? ;)
BT: Look at how the fake SFII' carts instantly sold out and were immediately listed on eBay before the flippers even took possession. Look at Nintendo's overpriced bricks. Look at the typical forum discussions elsewhere. You can't tell most retro gamers anything!

DPCameron

When you buy a PC-FX and games, you really have to come at it from two angles. There are a few consoles like this.

On one hand, you want to play games, obviously. The PC-FX is hard to do, for reasons that have already been stated. It's not impossible to enjoy without knowing Japanese, but it does become harder. If you can afford the games that are playable without Japanese, then it's great!

On the other hand, you have the collector mindset. The one that wants something obscure and not well known. Something to talk about and show off to people. This is perfect for that.

The PC-FX represents the last of the "classic" consoles in my mind. The last time that 2D art was the pinnacle of game design. For that reason alone, it's one of my favourite consoles and I'll defend that position until I die.

Seriously, you should try the games before buying. Like them or not, you should then consider whether it's a piece of history that you would like to own, regardless of games and homebrew.

It is a piece of history and shouldn't be forgotten. Thank science for this forum (^_^)/

lwizardl

I also want to get one of these systems, but knowing very little japanese I know I will have a tough time with some of the games.