Topics

76

Completely Unrelated / In which I attempt voice acting

« on: 2010-11-05 23:55:13 »

So, the other day, I saw this kickass video (yes, I know it's three years old) by David Hayter, the voice of Solid Snake. He's behaving like Snake, but I was disappointed that he didn't do the voice. But then, I got a deviously brilliant idea: dub over it. And so that's just what I did.

Thoughts?

77

Releases / [FF7PC-98] FF7Music Installer (1.51.13)(Discontinued, use Anxious Heart)

« on: 2010-07-28 21:39:28 »

Now that Aali's driver includes OGG support out of the box (and much more reliably than FF7Music has ever been), I will no longer be supporting this application. This post will remain available for posterity, but I highly recommend you use Anxious Heart instead.


FF7Music Installer
Current Version: 1.51.13
I did not make FF7Music, only the installer. I can do my best to find workarounds for FF7Music bugs, but I cannot fix any problems specific to the program itself.

This will not work with the 2012 re-release, only the 1998 PC version.[/size]

Download: Download (Mediafire) (put this in the same folder as the installer (torrent here), if you want the Remastered OST. The downloader will be fixed when I get a chance.)

What this is

• An installer for FF7Music, with everything needed to get it working on the latest versions of Windows. Comes with finalfantim's remastered soundtrack and the original Playstation music! No need for that crap Windows midi anymore!

What's Included

• FF7Music 1.51
• Highly Experimental 2.09, aka in_psf.dll
• MAD MP3 Decoder Plugin, aka in_mad.dll (I used this because older versions of in_mp3.dll don't work with x64 operating systems, and newer versions don't work with FF7Music)
• in_vgmstream.dll r828 (as well as a few dlls it depends on)
• out_wave.dll 2.0.2a
• out_ds.dll 2.2.7
• ficedula.dll
• ficeconsole.dll
• My own ff7music.ini
• The original PSF soundtrack for FF7
• finalfantim's remastered soundtrack
• Some nifty launch script magic

What's Required

• Windows XP or later. It also works on Wine, last I checked. Not yet compatible with Windows 8. I'm working on it.
• Final Fantasy VII patched to version 1.02
• Aali's Custom Graphics Driver

How To Use

• Download. Install. Enjoy.

What's this "Minimal installer"?

• It's just got the PSF soundtrack, not the remastered soundtrack. Perfect for small updates, or for if you don't want the OGGs.

How do I choose which included soundtrack to use?

• Open FF7Music from the Start Menu. Click Configure. Go to the Files tab. Choose which one you'd like from the Profile menu.

What about my own music?

• Put it in C:\FF7Music\Custom_Music and either add a new profile or modify an existing profile in FF7Music. The included readme should tell you what all the songs are supposed to be, so you'll know what you're replacing.

HELP! Something's way wrong! It won't install/music won't play/I still hear midi/I really have to go to the bathroom!

• I'm not surprised. I've only tested this very minimally, and I don't have a wide variety of machines to test it on. Tell me what version of Windows you're using, as well as exactly what went wrong, and I'll deal with it as soon as I can.

There's a virus in here! What are you trying to pull?!?!!?

• It's not a virus, just a false positive in crappy a/v software. It's been fixed in recent versions, anyway.

Notes

• The uninstaller is mediocre. It doesn't clean up after itself as well as it could, so some files and folders will need manually deleted.
• There are a few looping versions of songs included that are not actually used. See this post for more information.

Extra thanks to these guys

• Ficedula, for making such a great program
• sl1982, for all his help with learning and understanding NSIS.
• sl1982, Mendelevium, Cupcake, and sithlord48 for helping me test it. (PM me if I forgot you!)
• Aali, because his driver makes this possible without needing loopbe.
• finalfantim, for his wonderful remastered soundtrack.
• Timber, for his excellent looping OGG tutorial.
• Sir_Awesome III, for actually looping it all.
• kranmer, for his great AnyCD mod, as well as some really slick batch files that were helpful examples in improving my own.
• The AutoIt team, for making the best scripting software I've used.
• NSIS, for the best installer creation software I've used.
• All the users, especially those who have sent in bug reports. Without you, this installer would still be a mess!

Download: Download (Mediafire) (put this in the same folder as the installer (torrent here), if you want the Remastered OST. The downloader will be fixed when I get a chance.)

78

Completely Unrelated / Join in the Grammar Nazism! (This thread needed renamed)

« on: 2010-05-18 20:53:45 »

So I happened to find my first post ever. Asking for help. Before Aali's custom driver, before I had a decent computer. It seems like a different time altogether.

Recount memories gone by. How much has this place changed (or have you personally changed) since you joined?

79

Scripting and Reverse Engineering / GlovePIE FF7PC script, for anybody who cares (Wiimote! No-numpad!)

« on: 2010-04-30 05:10:15 »

Got a Wii Remote, Classic Controller, Bluetooth on your PC, and an insatiable desire to tweak with things?

With this script, you can run FF7 using your classic controller! It binds all of FF7's default controls to the related buttons on the controller! It won't work if you have custom keyboard controls! It won't work if you have a laptop without a numpad! Just like you remember on the PSX, analog doesn't work! But you don't care, because attempting to use an analog stick for something that only accepts digital input is imprecise and irritating to use! It also works with the Classic Controller Pro, because internally it's the SAME THING! I recommend it, because it feels more like a DualShock and less like a SNES controller!

So, without further ado, here's a script that most of you probably don't know how to use!

Code: [Select]

// Final Fantasy VII script, by Covarr

NumPad8 = Classic.Up
NumPad2 = Classic.Down
NumPad4 = Classic.Left
NumPad6 = Classic.Right

NumPadEnter = Classic.a
NumPadPlus = Classic.x
NumPad0 = Classic.b
NumPadDot = Classic.y

NumPad9 = Classic.L
NumPad3 = Classic.R
NumPad7 = Classic.ZL
NumPad1 = Classic.ZR

NumPad5 = Classic.Start
NumPadMinus = Classic.Select

Ctrl + Q = Classic.Home

It's so simple, people with ZERO scripting experience can add analog-stick and laptop support themselves if they feel like it! Yay!

You need GlovePIE for this to be even remotely useful. GlovePIE's author is filled with stuff about CO₂. You also need bluetooth, and I can't guarantee your adapter will work (some do, some don't). You don't need a sensorbar. You don't need a nunchuk. You don't need a Wii. You don't need FF7, but this script is near useless without it.

80

Completely Unrelated / Explain Your Name!

« on: 2010-03-13 17:34:39 »

Reading that discussion argument with Herpaderp on names got me thinking, we should have a thread devoted to usernames. What does your username mean? What are its origins? Why did you choose it? Explain as much or as little as you want.

If your name contains "Sephiroth", "Cloud", or any other FF character feel free to not explain it.

Covarr is the first half of my last name, Covarrubias (Hispanic name). The username originated about six years ago when some folks in my precalculus class couldn't pronounce my last name, I decided I liked it, and have been using it online ever since.

81

General Discussion / Square Enix announces Ultimate Hits line of rereleases for DS... in Japan

« on: 2010-01-13 02:36:20 »

Here's the news story

If they bring it to the US, maybe we'll get lucky and they'll follow Konami's example in rerelease boxart:

82

General Discussion / Submarine Parking

« on: 2010-01-01 18:38:46 »

So, umm, my submarine got stuck on land. I assume because it's right in the same place as the chocobo. Has anybody ever seen anything like this before?

Note: this is the PSN version being played on a PS3.

83

General Discussion / Question regarding All materia

« on: 2009-07-25 17:34:33 »

Is there any way to use a spell linked to all on only one character and save the all for later? Say for example I have All linked to Restore, but only one character is damaged. Is it possible to use Cure on that one person without wasting the All?

84

FAQs and Tutorials / [Tutorial] Covarr's New FF7Music Tutorial

« on: 2009-05-31 04:01:27 »

While this tutorial still works, there is now an easier way. If you plan on using either the original Playstation PSF music, or FinalFanTim's wonderful remastered soundtrack, you can use this installer, which will do all the work for you. Simply download, install, and enjoy! I'm going to leave the tutorial here for people who still want it.

TwilightFantasy's tutorial was good three years ago, but the advent of Windows Vista and the rise in popularity of x64 operating systems have created a number of issues that his tutorial could not have accounted for. Furthermore, there were some issues that even Win98 users had that his tutorial didn't address. As such, I decided to create an updated tutorial, as well as a zip file that contains everything you'll need, except for the actual music.


1. Download this zip file (mirror)

Contents:

• FF7Music 1.51
• Highly Experimental 2.09, aka in_psf.dll (I have also included its readme and history, as per Neill Corlett's requirements for redistribution)
• MAD MP3 Decoder Plugin, aka in_mad.dll (I used this because older versions of in_mp3.dll don't work with x64 operating systems, and newer versions don't work with FF7Music)
• out_wave.dll 2.0.2a
• out_ds.dll 2.2.7
• ficedula.dll
• ficeconsole.dll
• My own ff7music.ini

2. Extract the contents of this zip file into your Final Fantasy VII directory (usually "C:\Program Files\Square Soft, Inc\Final Fantasy VII\" for Win32, "C:\Program Files (x86)\Square Soft, Inc\Final Fantasy VII\" on Vista x64 and Win7 x64).

3. In the "ficedula" directory which should have been unzipped, open FF7Music.exe and click Configure.

4. In the "Setup" tab (where you should probably start out), change where it's looking for the input and output plugins. The ff7music.ini file included assumes the game is installed to "C:\FF7" as it is on my machine, but yours is probably in a different place (one of the locations I mentioned in step 2). Use in_psf.dll for PSX rips (.psf files) and in_mad.dll for MP3s. The output plugin will almost always be out_wave.dll, unless FF7Music is crashing)

5. In the "Files" tab, select a profile to work with. The ff7music.ini file I included already has profiles for the remastered soundtrack (though you'll have to put all the songs in the same folder), and the PSF collection available at zophar.net. If you wish to use anything else, you'll have to set up the songs individually yourself. Fortunately, TwilightFantasy had a list of what songs were what, so you'll know what you're doing if you edit it.

aseri - Hurry
aseri2 - Hurry Faster
ayasi - Lurking In The Darkness
barret - Barret's Theme
bat - Fighting
bee - Honeybee Manor
boo - The Flow Of Life / Lifestream
bokujo - Farm Boy
canyon - The Valley Of The Fallen Star - Cosmo Canyon
cannon - The Makou Cannon Is Fired (not including Shinra Explodes)
cephiros - Those Chosen By The Planet
chu - Still More Fighting
chu2 - J-E-N-O-V-A
chase - Crazy Motorcycle
cinco - Cinco De Chocobo
cintro - Those Chosen By The Planet (edit: Should be Sephiroth intro, but most collections don't seem to have this)
condor - Fortress Of The Condor
costa - Costa Del Sol
comical - J-E-N-O-V-A
corel - Mining Town
corneo - Don Of The Slums
crwin - A Great Success
crlost - Tango Of Tears
date - Interrupted By Fireworks
dokubo - Underneath The Rotting Pizza
dun2 - Chasing The Black Caped Man
earislo - Flowers Blooming In The Church
earis - Aerith's Theme - Aeris' Theme
elec - Electric De Chocobo
fanfare - Fanfare2 (this should be the second fanfare not the first as stated. This one is the shortened version only for the Parade in Junon.
fan2 - Fanfare (the normal fanfare, extended version.)
fiddle - Fiddle De Chocobo
fin - World Crisis
geki - Debut
gold1 - Gold Saucer
gun - A Full Scale Attack
guitar2 - On The Other Side Of The Mountain
hen - Who Am I
hiku - The Highwind Takes To The Skies
horror - Trail Of Blood
iseki - You Can Hear The Cries Of The Planet
jukai - The Forested Temple
junon - Off The Edge Of Dispair
jyro - Steal The Tiny Bronco
ketc - Cait Sith's Theme
kita - The Great North Cave
kurai - Anxious Heart
lb1 - Birth Of A God
lb2 - One Winged Angel ( Yayayay! <3)
ld - Judgement Day
mati - Ahead On Our Way
makoro - Makou Reactor
mekyu - Reunion
mura1 - Parochial Town
oa - Opening - Bombing Mission
ob - (JUST Bombing Mission)
odds - Chocobo Racing
over2 - Requiem
parade - Rufus' Welcoming Ceremony
pj - Jenova Absolute
pre - Prelude
red - Red XIII's Theme
rhythm - The Turk's Theme
riku - Shinra Explodes
ro - The Countdown Begins
roll - Staff Roll
rocket - Oppressed People
rukei - The Sandy Badlands
sadsid - Sending A Dream Into The Universe
sadbar - Mark Of The Traitor
seto - The Great Warrior
sea - A Secret, Sleeping In The Deep Sea
sido - It's Difficult To Walk On Both Feet Isn't It
siera - If You Open Your Heart
sinraslo - Infiltrating Shinra Tower
si - Shinra Explodes 2
sid2 - Cid's Theme
sinra - The Shinra Corporation - The Shinra Company
snow - Buried In The Snow
ta - Main FFVII Theme
tb - Main FFVII Theme
tender - Holding My Thoughts In My Heart
tifa - Tifa's Theme
tm - On That Day Five Years Ago
utai - Wutai Theme - Uutai Ruins
vincent - The Nightmare Begins - Vincent's Theme
walz - Waltz De Chocobo
weapon - Weapon Raid
yado - Good Night Until Tomorrow
yufi2 - Stolen Materia
yufi - Decendent Of The Shinobi
yume - Who Are You

EDIT: Can I also add that Bombing Mission, Fanfare 2, Shinra Explodes 1 and 2 are unavailable in the normal OST's.  If you wish to have these files you must either find an MP3 Trimmer to cut part of the song out, or I can have mine up for download if allowed/requested.

6. At the bottom of this section, where it says "Paths to search for music files:", replace the paths listed with wherever you put your music files. Make sure there aren't any spaces in these paths, or FF7Music will likely parse them wrong and not work correctly. (e.g. "C:\ff7songs\" is okay, "C:\ff7 songs" is not). If you're using Windows Vista or later, click Save and Exit and close the program for now.

7. If you don't already have it, download and install Aali's Custom Graphics Driver, and delete the # before music_plugin in the config file.

8. (This step removed, placeholder to keep the numbering consistent)

9. Right click on ff7.exe and choose properties. In the compatibility tab, set it to run in Windows 98 mode.

10. If you're using Windows XP or earlier, skip this step. Right click on FF7Music.exe and choose properties. In the compatibility tab, set it to run in Windows XP SP2 mode, and check "Run this program as an administrator".

11. Back in FF7Music.exe configuration, in the Playback Options tab, where it says "Midi device", choose the device that Final Fantasy VII is configured to use. If you're using Aali's driver, it doesn't matter what you choose.

At this point, you should be ready to go! Just make sure to launch the game from FF7Music.exe instead of from your regular start menu shortcut or from ff7.exe.

Note: If you're having stability problems, use out_ds.dll for your output plugin.



Got questions? I'll answer them. If a question gets asked repeatedly, I'll update this first post.

edit: OOPS! Turns out that my ini had a major flaw: People in PSF mode would have heard Rufus' welcoming ceremony instead of the full scale attack. This has been fixed.
edit: Now uses fake_midi in Aali's opengl driver
edit: Aali changed his driver, so I changed my tutorial accordingly.
edit: New host for the zip. Thanks, MilesTailsPrower!
edit: Steps 7 and 9 seem to be required on XP. Even if they're not, they won't do any harm. Step 10 is still Vista+ because XP's compatibility mode can't be set to itself, that's just turning it off. O_o.
edit: Now with out_ds.dll! Should help with stability issues.
edit: Fixed some PSF mistakes in the ini file. Thanks, Kein!

85

Troubleshooting / When MIDI volume disappears, so does ALL sound

« on: 2009-05-15 23:54:55 »

I'm having a problem where instead of muting or turning down the MIDI music, the game is turning down ALL my sound. My setup is as follows:

Intel Core 2 Duo E7300 @ 2.6GHz
Realtek High Definition Audio
Windows 7 Beta (Build 7000)
FF7 PC w/1.2 Patch
FF7Music
OpenGL graphics driver (running FF7 at 1680x1050)

I've tried running it without FF7Music, and I get the same problem, so I'm sure that's not it. Is there a way to fix it so that it doesn't try to mute the midi?

edit: I've seen the solutions elsewhere on this board. I already have FF7 set to use LoopBe instead of MS general midi. It doesn't seem to work.

86

General Discussion / Proposed redesign?

« on: 2006-09-12 01:24:34 »

I think these forums need a redesign. Here's my idea, to solve two problems in one:

87

Completely Unrelated / Skewed Comparison of DS and PSP!

« on: 2006-09-05 00:35:32 »

First, there was a video at PSP Fanboy.
Then, DS Fanboy shows the same video along with a challenge to make a rebuttal.
Then I came along and accepted the challenge.

Questions? Comments? Concerns?

edit: I've YouTube'd it to save bandwidth on my own site. Free hosts don't exactly give incredible amounts of bandwidth.

edit: A little clarification in the second sentence never hurts!

88

General Discussion / Out of curiosity...

« on: 2006-06-30 07:29:21 »

Which is worse, a legal FF7 with the animevamp patch or the "Ultima Edition"? With this question, I don't mean which is less moral or anything, just which runs worse on a computer. Mostly I'm asking this because I'm curious, but I don't want to ruin midi playback on my computer or waste 1.4GB of bandwidth when I already have a legal version that works just fine.

89

General Discussion / Bestbuy.com selling preorders for PS3 FFVII

« on: 2006-06-14 18:21:18 »

 It seems that here BestBuy.com is selling preorders for a PS3 version of FFVII. It's priced at $59.99, with a release date of Dec. 1, 2006. I don't take this as actual confirmation, but it sure is interesting.

90

Completely Unrelated / Looking for an article...

« on: 2006-06-07 04:17:01 »

A few months back, I found a website or article or something about crappy homemade arcade cabinets. Does anybody here know where I can find it?

91

Completely Unrelated / People who shouldn't be allowed to type.

« on: 2006-05-28 20:51:32 »

Here's a fun game, find posts in random forums across the net, and comments in random blogs. If the post is particularly stupid, post it here. You don't need to attribute it to anybody, just quote it. I'll start you off with a few.

Dear you,

suyp you fail at lief k??

it is games!!! u guys!!

I will forever alment you uprc;;;

10-29-05
nev re forget.,,....,,,.

92

Completely Unrelated / Sony bites Nintendo's style, chokes on the seed

« on: 2006-05-09 07:17:38 »

Sony has announced that the PS3 controller will feature motion detection. Other than that, it will be a PS2 dualshock without vibration. Basically, they stole an idea, and overcomplicated what they already had, while throwing away something else they stole.

Opinions?

93

Troubleshooting / FF7 Gridlines (I've already searched around these forums)

« on: 2005-08-13 05:06:01 »

I have gridlines when I run in hardware mode. This doesn't happen in software rendering mode. I have a Pentium II 350mhz with 64MB ram and version 1.02 of FF7. My graphics card is a NVidia Riva 128. Does anybody know what to do? Thanx in advance.

edit: I've already tried turning off antialiasing, that doesn't solve the problem.