Vagrant Story on PSP

I have been experimenting with playing PS1 games on the PSP, and so far it has been a joy. For times when I am away from a PS2 console, having a portable console that allows me to play a perfectly emulated Vagrant Story anywhere was something I didn't think possible and yet I was doing so yesterday in the tube. Obviously you will need to install a custom firmware (3.40 OE-A and above) on your PSP which can be tricky but not too difficult, as well as access to a couple of PS1 games. As for the games itself, thankfully it is just about hitting your local independent video games store, flea market, GameStation, CEX or worse eBay. Prices varies based on quality and rarity, but you can never go wrong with a preowned classic like Metal Gear Solid for £2.99 (GameStation price).


Vagrant Story in zoom screen mode where the top and bottom part are cropped

Once you have ripped your game to your PC, you will need to a program to convert your PS1 game to a PSP format, in which case a PS1->PSP application like IceTea is needed. IceTea, for example, allows you to select the compression level. Using the 'best compression' setting, I was able to get Vagrant Story's 700MB ISO size down to 116MB file size, which is impressive as the game contains bits of FMV. You can also create your custom icons (144x80 PNG) and background image (480x272 PNG) for when highlighting the game file in XMB. Dump the generated Eboot file into a folder inside the ms/PSP/GAME folder on your Memory Stick. PS1 game saves will automatically created upon booting the game and you can manage it on the XMB save utility just like normal PSP game saves.


And here it is in normal mode which contains no cropping. Sorry about the crap lighting.

PS1 games can be played via different screen modes, including original and zoomed (both 4:3), zoom (cropped) as well as fullscreen (squashed). Because of the lack of dual analog as well as L2 and R2 shoulder buttons on the PSP, you may find some games to be pretty difficult to play. Fortunately there aren't that many games that uses those buttons or the right analog nub (Metal Gear Solid for example does not use the right stick). Plus you can map the left analog nub to emulate the L2 and R2 triggers. In Vagrant Story's case, the game actually support for the right analog stick for freelook but fortunately Squaresoft also mapped the same function to the Start key. Performance wise, the game runs brilliantly with no stuttering framerates or sound issues.

Hope this mini-guide will help. I tried to keep technical stuff out, but seriously, converting a game is a very easy process. Now if you excuse me, I need to go hunting for a copy of the super rare PS1 port of Chrono Trigger.

Brilliant scheme, will abuse it

From 14 February, directional markings will be installed in several Jubilee Line platforms. These are designed to encourage Tube passengers to allow fellow travellers off the trains first before boarding. Makes sense and thereotically it is a simple yet brilliant idea. Even better for people like me whose journeys includes guessing where train doors will be when they stop at the platform by looking for signs of wear and tear on the yellow line, this scheme will be a boon to those who are keen to stay a step ahead - if only to get a seat in our cattle carriages.

via London Underground blog

Agreeing with Daily Mail, oh no

They still write bollocks, but today I find myself sadly agreeing with them that the use of Wiis as a tool in school P.E. classes is a waste of good judgement. Screw Wii Fit and DDR, the only way to get proper exercise is doing physical outdoor activities. It is cheaper too and nobody is sad enough to steal footballs.

Shut up Daily Mail with your one-hit wisdom. Go back to writing shit so we normal people can resume hating you. Not that they were right anyway, "2% more energy than playing on traditional" pads is clearly made up.

Update

So after rushing through Etna mode in Disgaea: Afternoon of Darkness, guess which game I started on the PSP? Another strategy jRPG port. But I am so burnt out from Disgaea, that Final Fantasy Tactics: The War of the Lion will have to take a back seat for now what with the release of turn based strategy title Advance Wars: Dark Conflict (Days of Ruin) yesterday (more on that later). A replay of a classic (Tactics) with its beautiful pencil-shaded animations deserves its full attention, not when I am too tired. Sucks to be my wallet right now, but I am sure I will revisit Tactics soon enough to justify the beating.


Oh, returned my PSP Slim and got a new one. Apparently the d-pad was faulty but I didn't realised it until I tried my mate's, where after a couple of minutes with his copy of Tekken going back to mine I found it not as responsive. The left part of the unit was squeaking too, but I must have missed that as I always play with headphones. ^_^" No new piano black in stock so I had to settle for ceramic white instead. I had my initial doubts on white, but right now I just find this lovely as the picture indicates - almost as pretty as my first choice, the Japan exclusive light blue version. The d-pad works perfectly here and there is no squeaking to be heard. Very glad to have noticed the problem. Q(^.^Q)

Team ICO's PS3 game tease

Are you excited as I am now? This solitary screenshot alone just sold me the PS3. Just waiting for a release date to save up.

via GAF

James Bond 22 gets Sci-fi B-movie title

Some of you may know that I am not a fan of Casino Royale, nor Daniel Craig's demented take on Britain's most famous fictional cold war spy. But at least I can take comfort with the fact that there has been no badly named James Bond films, yet. Almost all Bond films, good or bad, had a catchy title that rolls of your tongue perfectly. Goldeneye, Die Another Day, Diamonds are Forever, License to Kill and Live and Let Die are some of the Bond titles that I consider pretty classy.

Today the next Bond film title, previously known as Bond 22, has been revealed to be Quantum of Solace and will be a direct sequel of the awful Casino Royale I wasted 5 quid on. The title is based on a lesser known short story by Ian Fleming, though I am sure that the film will have almost no reference to the story (in the book Bond only appears as a background character) which was initially published by girl bible Cosmopolitan! In the film we will find Bond seeking revenge for the death of Vesper Lynd. Doesn't sounds like James Bond to me - in fact it sounds like the plot of another film I rather like. Yes, Bourne Supremacy. I predict another hit for MGM, but with many film goers likely to just blurt out "James Bond" for their tickets.

Mass Effect smeared by anti-gaming media

Surprise surprise, FOX News who shares the same parent company as The Times, recently aired a segment attacking Mass Effect for its alleged inclusion of full nudity (which it doesn't, not that it matters to me if it does! - we are not a bunch of old prudes here). Proving equally as ignorant as their British counterparts, the news anchor, Martha MacCallum acknowledge that the game receives an 'M' rating. But she insists that it is available to kids, forgetting to blame parents and stores for enforcements. The news anchor also ignores the fact of the parental control system available on the 360 and claims that kids can get around that if parents aren't strict enough.

As with The Times articles, this is just another excuse for some people to attempt to relinquish their parental responsibility on their own kids and just blame the industry. The anchor even admits that she saw nothing of graphic nature of the game, but continued to blame it. The segment also features an attack by giggling psychologists Cooper Lawrence, who admitted to never playing the game - yet claims that the game features full graphical nudity as fact. I could go on and on, but you just have to watch the segment to understand how frustrating it is to find a news channel that always claims to be unbiased (yeah right, like we ever bought into that!) reports lies as factual. It is sad.

A rebuttal by EA is available here. I am not normally a fan of EA, the company, but this time they really came off as passionate enough to defend their work and the industry after a series of smear attacks by the media. Cooper Lawrence, the psychologist who slandered the game but never played it has since saw her Amazon books rating gone downhill. Juvenile actions by juvenile gamers maybe, but so was her initial action.

Right wing hack prefers Hollyoaks to ICO

A hack writing for The Times, accused video games as highly addictive - the equivalent to Satan's Sudoku, and that she would never ever purchase a Xbox, PS2, GameCube and portable gaming consoles for her kids. Because apparently kids spend 5 hours a day staring at their DS and PSP, playing games that has no character development or plotlines, and it is the fault of the evil creators brains. While I agree that some games lack a decent storyline (e.g. Halo 3, Super Mario Galaxy), to say that she actually prefer her kids to watch hours of hours of repressive and downright trashy British soaps like Eastenders and Hollyoaks is downright amusing, or a desperation in her part to prove an invalid point. Like any other entertainment industry, video game are available with a wide variety of subjects - much like books and films, and not the black and white situation she accuses the industry of being in.


According to Ms. Turner, Hollyoaks is good for children...

Much like her other anti-video gaming Times buddy Emma Mahony, Janice Turner has taken a line that if her children ends up spending too much time playing video games, it is the fault of the industry. Never did she once, like her colleague, own up and admit that if their children play too much video games, or play the wrong video game - it is their own fault to supervise them as parents should. But then again, like many people nowadays, it is far easier to blame society for any ills their children could theoretically suffer from - rather than looking in the mirror. Yes too much gaming is not good, but to say that video gaming is the root of all evil isn't proper journalism - it is typical scaremongering. Why not sit down with your children and play with them or are you one of them technophobes who just can't accept change. Or is Hideo Kojima's intricate plots in Metal Gear Solid series too much to take in for such close-mindedness?


... but games like ICO, which features a storyline that encourages the player to think outside the box are like 'crack'

As a Eurogamer commentator perfectly summarised - this is yet another right wing hack one again proclaiming his or her preference for the 'good old days'.