FFVIII Remastered

[Yagami Light]

Another new video they did not replace the 2d field textures with 3d models, Balambs car got upgraded.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e41B7eSR0HE

[rotschleim]

Another new video they did not replace the 2d field textures with 3d models, Balambs car got upgraded.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e41B7eSR0HE

Thanks to this video, I've been able to determine that the "HD FMVs" are not a new upscale. It's the same as Steam, which "upscaled" the original 2000 higher-res FMVs by applying a bilinear filter over each FMV.

2013 Steam: https://i.imgur.com/s81ZeSe.png

FFVIII Remastered: https://i.imgur.com/zFIy5cc.png

Fan-made HD upscale: https://i.imgur.com/8XcGbpc.png

(Pay attention to the clouds and wet sand in particular)

edit 1 - characters who are built into pre-rendered 2D backgrounds will not be updated. https://i.imgur.com/0ef9z8N.jpg

edit 2 - reverts to midi music at one point https://old.reddit.com/r/FinalFantasy/comments/cydtnx/an_interesting_ffviii_remaster_music_bug_turn_on/

[Erik]

I'm happy FF8 get some attention to Square. Sadly the remaster seems to be both hit and miss. I hope mods will work on this version since modders did wonders with the 2013 release. Thanks everyone who contributed to that!

[rotschleim]

thanks for posting so i don't have to keep editing.

last batch of updates: vibration hasn't returned. console ports eliminated the control config menu as well. last of my updates will be on boko. tbh i'm assuming he was cut entirely

[Yagami Light]

It's up on steam, downloading now

They moved the in game settings to a separate toggle outside, in addition there is fxaa and SMAA AA options.

[ZL325]

Looking at the files, looks like they wrapped everything up in a... ".zzz" file? o.O
There's main.zzz and other.zzz
Language files are within folders and some resource dll within.

Edit: So tried renaming the .zzz to like .rar just because, that didn't work, but when trying to launch the game it says this:

https://drive.google.com/open?id=1oD7z3c-Y7cNQVUqfW_kJEb3G4W0f0lcw

So I guess they're using some software called OpenArchive.

Maybe... this:https://www.graudata.com/en/openarchive/

Or maybe one of their functions used to extract it? Dunno. Haven't really learned any reverse engineering yet... D;

[Yagami Light]

All the original saves copy over fine Ultimecia looks good

[ZL325]

All the original saves copy over fine Ultimecia looks good

She's a goddess! <333

Edit: Too distracted by the goddess, just noticed the error... "Kurse"

Also Maki already cracked it and will make an extractor for said files soon. xD

[onixel]

Hope any mod for field backgrounds,cities etc because looks blurry but the new character models looks great

[Yagami Light]

They didn't update Ragnarok or Balamb Garden world models, but they updated the small Dollet ship from the Dollet mission on disc 1 thats seen for around 5 seconds, that makes no sense to me.

[ZL325]

Wait, was paying the Queen of Cards to add a rule a thing before or is that new? I really don't recall that.

Cost 30,000 gil to add Same to the local rules.

[Yagami Light]

Yes that's always been there, the FH concert music got updated sounds better than original steam release, different from the ps1 version though.

[Yagami1211]

Really hope the HD Background mod will be made compatible.

[Maki]

python2 script to unpack ZZZ files- just change path in line 5 to either main.zzz or other.zzz

Code: [Select]

import sys
import os
import struct

fd = open('main.zzz', 'rb')

def ReadEntry():
filenameLen = struct.unpack('<I', fd.read(4))[0]
filename = fd.read(filenameLen)
absPos = struct.unpack('<I', fd.read(4))[0]
flag = struct.unpack('<I', fd.read(4))[0]
fileSize = struct.unpack('<I', fd.read(4))[0]
return [filenameLen, filename, absPos, flag, fileSize]

filesCount = struct.unpack('<I', fd.read(4))[0]
entries = [ReadEntry()]

for i in range(1,filesCount):
entries += [ReadEntry()]
#print(entries[i])

for i in range(0,len(entries)):
finPath = os.path.join(os.getcwd(), 'EXPORT', entries[i][1].replace('\\', '/'))
dirPath = os.path.dirname(finPath).replace('\\', '/')
if not os.path.exists(dirPath):
os.makedirs(dirPath)
outfd = open(finPath, 'wb')
fd.seek(entries[i][2])
buffer = fd.read(entries[i][4])
outfd.write(buffer)
outfd.close()
print(finPath + " saved.")


[gjoerulv]

Because they don't need to be. Siren looked like she had a pubic jungle between her legs but if you look closely (or check the concept art) it's just "feather armor". Now it looks like a feather skirt and the design as a whole is clearer. Whether you like it or not, there's no other version of that particular model so you can't call it censorship. Unlike Squall, I think this model is a huge improvement.

No, Siren wasn't in a need of redesign. Not more than any of other the GFs anyway. I can't imagine anyone being upset by siren not being redesigned.

Well, perhaps I speak too soon. Maybe more of the GFs were redesigned?

Still kinda dumbfounded on the main cast redesign though.

[ZL325]

I'm starting to not mind most of the redesigns, except Squall's, but I do find myself being okay with it from time to time.

[Maki]

two FMVs are updated- if someone knows any tool or want to do frame-by-frame shit then please take a look at those two videos
(remaster on left)

[Shunsq]

I wonder how they managed to have more detailed characters. I did not manage to do the same because of "fixed point precision". They must have rewritten the function that load the model into the game.

[CYRU5]

To be honest ... I expected WAY more from this mod

[Kaldarasha]

Mostly negativ reviews on Steam... 
They have so many games on steam and all of the good old or old styled games achieving mixed reviews. Sadly, the peoples, who analyze this do only came to the conclusion that it must be the gameplay, because the modern games have much better reviews. But the truth is that the games have just a bad overall quality. It seems as if they dislike their own games.

[Wiseman]

I was just reading the Steam reviews. Most people's complaints are usually: it isn't wide screen, backgrounds are blurry, it isn't 60 FPS, and there is no real analogue movement.

[Divatox]

So what is the conclusion?
Remaster is better? or the mods are still winning?

[Kaldarasha]

I was just reading the Steam reviews. Most people's complaints are usually: it isn't wide screen, backgrounds are blurry, it isn't 60 FPS, and there is no real analogue movement.

Which are all things we could have now, if SE had worked with us on a open Gears engine, at the time when they made the re-release for FF7. They could have ported a lot of their psx games and we would have maintained it. But SE isn't a company that can't look far in the future. In the end they wasted more money than needed and also loose more and more of their reputation as a company, which makes high quality games.

@Divatox ATM the remastered is technically better and with mod support in the future, overall. But OpenVIII will be the definitive version which will have most of the things which people do except for a remaster.

[Divatox]

good to know, so i will wait a little longer to buy 

[Kaldarasha]

Maybe to the Xmas sale to a price which it is worth. But SE doesn't go lower than 50%.