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[future_pinoy]

High Definition is like Gold, Not all that Glitters is Gold, Are you listening Matt Cassamasina ! You and you're High Definition fetish ! arrrgggg ! Now how can you solve this piece of crap without shelling out thousands of dollars for a new HD set. Microsoft, you've got a lot of explaining to do.

http://blog.wired.com/games/

Monday, 11 September 2006
No Solution Forthcoming Re: Dead Rising in SD
Topic: Game|Death

Game publisher Capcom indicated this morning that there is no solution forthcoming to the issues that cause their latest hit game, Dead Rising for Xbox 360, to be nearly unplayable on standard definition TV sets.

A representative of the publisher told 1up.com that a patch "is not possible" due to the scope of the problem, which causes the in-game text messages to be unreadably small on non-HD displays.

The statement comes right on the heels of the company's announcement that it will double its advertising budget for Dead Rising, pumping an additional $3 million into television ad buys.

The game, a campy zombie-killing adventure set in a shopping mall, became a surprise hit for the company when it was released last month, shipping over half a million copies in its first two weeks.

But players without high-definition television sets got a nasty surprise when they popped in the disc. They couldn't read the crucial messages that the game sent out telling them where to go and what to do next.

Without them, they were set adrift in the shopping mall, helpless against the advances of hordes of zombies.

As complaints piled up, Capcom offered users some suggestions, but none were especially helpful. Today, after weeks of silence, the company divulged to 1up.com that although they had looked into creating a downloadable patch that would remedy the problem, "the amount of text and the size of the patch necessary to change the text" made it impossible to solve the problem.

Given that Capcom is a company that has never, historically, shied away from releasing "Director's Cut" editions of its games, it's likely that such a solution might be the only thing gamers without $1000 displays can hope for.

I'm still wondering how in the hell this got through Microsoft's quality control measures.

 

[Jeff-DSA]

I heard the 1up guys saying that the text was almost impossible to read but I had never noticed it myself. Guess this is what they were talking about...

 

[Ninja Scooter]

they aren't gonna release a "Directors Cut" just to fix the text for SD tvs.

anyway, Madden 07 has a similar problem, though not nearly as bad.

 

[goomba]

Pathetic

 

[sangreal]

Why not post the original 1up story instead

http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3153521


btw, I have an SDTV and while the text is (really) small it is certainly not unreadable for me. Are you guys playing over composite or something?

 

[Son of Godzilla]

Wow, they had to have chosen the worst tv possible to take pics of. Its pretty much fine on mine.

 

[bluemax]

Try playing it on a 13 inch SD TV, reading the text is worthless almost.

And even in component on the 27inch SD TV in our living room it's not any better. It looks really blurry on the text.

 

[Throwaway123456789]

Wtf, didn't they even TEST their own god damned game on a regular TV before shipping it?

 

[Alts]

The text does make the game unnecessarily difficult at times. I found this woman who, apparently, had broken her leg or something along those lines. I, and the three friends who were also staring at the small text couldn't get any useful information out of the clumps of white in the dialogue box. I ran towards an exit, and when I looked behind me, I realized she had barely left the room I found her. She screamed a bit, and was eaten. I came on GAF that night, read the Dead Rising thread, and realized she couldn't walk.

HOORAY.

 

[Polari]

"A masterpiece on par with Retro Gaming Hacks"

 

[duckroll]

I've been bitching to friends about the "unreadable" text on my SDTV too. So I was going to click on the thread and bitch, but..... MAN WHAT A MISLEADING PHOTO. There's no way in hell it looks like that on any decent SDTV. The text is small and pretty damn hard to read for me, but that's just a horrible exaggeration.

 

[GhaleonEB]

Game publisher Capcom indicated this morning that there is no solution forthcoming to the issues that cause their latest hit game, Dead Rising for Xbox 360, to be completely unplayable on standard definition TV sets.

Fixed. I returned my copy today for this very reason, after less than two hours of play time. I could not read the menus, dialoge or mission objectives on my 27" SD set. It was reduced to a game of "follow the arrow". Suck total. The underlying game was solid as a rock, but I just couldn't get into such a fundamentally flawed game. I think this will go down as one of the biggest QA issues in a looooong time. At least, I hope it does, so no other developer, including Capcom, **** up this severely.

 

[Barry Lightning]

do all of you have hd tv's and thats the reason no one has brought this up in a considerable voice? why do i find that absolutely entertaining?

 

[sangreal]

The text does make the game unnecessarily difficult at times. I found this woman who, apparently, had broken her leg or something along those lines. I, and the three friends who were also staring at the small text couldn't get any useful information out of the clumps of white in the dialogue box. I ran towards an exit, and when I looked behind me, I realized she had barely left the room I found her. She screamed a bit, and was eaten. I came on GAF that night, read the Dead Rising thread, and realized she couldn't walk.

HOORAY.

If you are talking about Leah in the jewelry store whos baby got eaten, I don't think the text tells you she cant walk anyway

 

[Wario64]

I can read the text just fine...then again, my tv is 50 inches.

 

[sangreal]

do all of you have hd tv's and thats the reason no one has brought this up in a considerable voice? why do i find that absolutely entertaining?

What? It is complained about in almost every Dead Rising thread, and the official forum is a mess.

but like I said, i can read the text okay on my SDTV so its NOT a problem for all SDTV users

 

[Alts]

If you are talking about Leah in the jewelry store whos baby got eaten, I don't think the text tells you she cant walk anyway

Yeah that was her. Okay, the text is fine, I just suck at the game.

 

[loosus]

Return the game. Buy an even smaller television in protest. Make sure it's in black-and-white. Congratulations, you've now stuck it to the man.

 

[Mr Toast]

I had that issue with the demo, so I was worried it would be a major issue in the playability of the game. Don't get me wrong, I certainly think its a fun game but this will have to be a no-sale until I can upgrade my tv.

 

[duckroll]

Yeah that was her. Okay, the text is fine, I just suck at the game.

Nah the only one that sucks is her. I got so pissed off with her whining that resulted in the zombies massing all over the store that after I got the points for her joining, i let them eat her while taking pictures of it, and then killed all the zombies and left. :lol

 

[Dragona Akehi]

Return the game. Buy an even smaller television in protest. Make sure it's in black-and-white. Congratulations, you've now stuck it to the man.

Hey wanna buy me a nice 37" panasonic plasma? I'd sure love to get rid of this 14" SDTV which is all I can afford.

 

[Flo_Evans]

:lol it is not that bad. If your TV is that shitty you should get a new TV before a 360... or buy a VGA cable.

Hey wanna buy me a nice 37" panasonic plasma? I'd sure love to get rid of this 14" SDTV which is all I can afford.

honestly if all you can afford is a 14" TV how on earth did you buy a 360?

 

[Mairu]

I don't have a HDTV and the problem wasn't that bad for me. It gets a little difficult sometimes but it's mostly readable

 

[loosus]

Hey wanna buy me a nice 37" panasonic plasma? I'd sure love to get rid of this 14" SDTV which is all I can afford.

You missed part one: return the game.

Or alternatively: sell the game.

honestly if all you can afford is a 14" TV how on earth did you buy a 360?

Because she spent it all on the 360 of course, silly!

 

[BobJustBob]

Now how can you solve this piece of crap without shelling out thousands of dollars for a new HD set.

Spend hundreds of dollars for a new HD set. Alternatively, spend $50 on a VGA cable for your 360.

 

[Aaron]

Text was fine on my 32'' SD (though it was a lovely CRT). Don't blame Capcom if you're too cheap to buy a decent TV. Playing the 360 on a sub 20''? Why even bother buying the console in the first place? You could have gotten quite a nice TV for that $400.

 

[radios shipping overview]

cry, cry again

 

[Mojovonio]

Had I known I had to get an HDTV as well as the 360 to be able to play games, I wouldn't have made the purchase and gotten the Wii instead.

 

[Dragona Akehi]

Text was fine on my 32'' SD (though it was a lovely CRT). Don't blame Capcom if you're too cheap to buy a decent TV. Playing the 360 on a sub 20''? Why even bother buying the console in the first place?

Did you miss the "all I can afford"? I don't have a 360 yet, but it's on the purchase list. And no, I won't be able to afford a "REAL" TV by then either.

 

[White Man]

"Nearly unplayable" is a pretty big exaggeration.

 

[Rhindle]

I personally think you're cheating yourself if you spend money on a 360 (or a PS3) before you have a decent HDTV.

You're especially missing out on a big part of the experience if we're talking about games with awesome detailed modelling and environments like Dead Rising. I would just stop buying games for a while and save up.

 

[duckroll]

Did you miss the "all I can afford"? I don't have a 360 yet, but it's on the purchase list. And no, I won't be able to afford a "REAL" TV by then either.

No offense but...... if you're using a 14" TV, the Xbox360 is going to cost more than a better TV.

 

[Alts]

Nah the only one that sucks is her. I got so pissed off with her whining that resulted in the zombies massing all over the store that after I got the points for her joining, i let them eat her while taking pictures of it, and then killed all the zombies and left. :lol

Hearing people who'd been tagging along with me for a while screaming "FRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANK!!" in their most pathetic voice was perhaps one of my most enjoyable experiences recently with gaming. I couldnt help but laugh at them as they curled up in the fetal position being ravaged by zombies.

It is also worth pointing out that that picture is a photo taken of a TV set, which is certainly not going to make the text look any better. Chances are the text was somewhat legible on the TV, and they selected a photo to overemphasize the point of the article.

 

[Dragona Akehi]

No offense but...... if you're using a 14" TV, the Xbox360 is going to cost more than a better TV.

Actually no, depending on where I look. Besides, I spend all my monies on games and systems. Which is why I can't afford a new telly in the goddamned first place.

 

[LakeEarth]

Hell its hard to read on my 26' HDTV. Its just a blur on a regular TV.

 

[sugarhigh4242]

EGM October

EGM: What's up with the supersmall font? Why not include a font that's legible got non-HDTV owners?

YK: [Laughs] People should definitely gave an HDTV before buying an Xbox360.

 

[duckroll]

Actually no, depending on where I look. Besides, I spend all my monies on games and systems. Which is why I can't afford a new telly in the goddamned first place.

T_T

I can sympathize.

 

[Son of Godzilla]

What's stupid is the picture is of the timers, which you don't need to know the names of anyway.

 

[loosus]

"Nearly unplayable" is a pretty big exaggeration.

by Chris Kohler

There you go.

 

[Rhindle]

EGM October

EGM: What's up with the supersmall font? Why not include a font that's legible got non-HDTV owners?

YK: [Laughs] People should definitely gave an HDTV before buying an Xbox360.

Well there you go.

 

[Pachinko]

I have to agree that it doesn't look that bad, maybe if you play it through RF and place all the cords in a metal box connected to a battery for added interference. There's no denying that the font was meant for 720P though, on atleast a component connection through a regular tv it's blurry and small but still readable. If you're stuck on a tv that doesnt' even have component inputs though, then yeah I wholly agree that YOU should upgrade your tv, a component capable television can be bought for LESS then a 360 is worth.

 

[Stinkles]

Also, it's hardly new. I played several SNES games with unreadable text, although I can't remember a single one to illustrate my point. But still, it's too bad they can't patch it.


This is going to happen more and more on consoles in the future as HD becomes the norm (cept on Wii, LOL)

 

[Aaron]

Actually no, depending on where I look. Besides, I spend all my monies on games and systems. Which is why I can't afford a new telly in the goddamned first place.

Save up for a new TV. Live off rentals and discounted used games. Really, you're not going to get much out of next gen on a TV that size. You're only squandering your potential experience.

 

[GhaleonEB]

"Nearly unplayable" is a pretty big exaggeration.

No, it's not. YOU try playing the game when you can't read any of the in-game text.

 

[Dragona Akehi]

Save up for a new TV. Live off rentals and discounted used games. Really, you're not going to get much out of next gen on a TV that size. You're only squandering your potential experience.

Not gonna happen. Sorry. I already scraped together a sound system and I have a bad feeling that's gonna have to last me till the end of time.

 

[future_pinoy]

hey, not all of us are rich like some of the spoiled brats here. Microsoft and Capcom should have taken into account how many 14" to 17" SDTV's are out there. High Definition will not be standard until 5 to 6 years from now.

 

[Flo_Evans]

maybe you should spend all that time buying games and systems and playing them looking for a better job?

 

[op_ivy]

Wow, they had to have chosen the worst tv possible to take pics of. Its pretty much fine on mine.

agreed. once again, this is just fanboys, er excuse me, game journalists, making a big deal over nothing.

 

[Son of Godzilla]

hey, not all of us are rich like some of the spoiled brats here. Microsoft and Capcom should have taken into account how many 14" to 17" SDTV's are out there. High Definition will not be standard until 5 to 6 years from now.

Honestly I'd bet that the VGA/HD::360 ownership ratio is higher than 1.

 

[Aaron]

Not gonna happen. Sorry. I already scraped together a sound system and I have a bad feeling that's gonna have to last me till the end of time.

Heh. I just bought a new center channel speaker after using what I got from a friend for nothing for... over a decade at least. It helps to get a second, less expensive hobby so you don't tear through games, and probably best to avoid GAF a bit to not get sucked in by the latest flavor of the month.

hey, not all of us are rich like some of the spoiled brats here. Microsoft and Capcom should have taken into account how many 14" to 17" SDTV's are out there. High Definition will not be standard until 5 to 6 years from now.

Anyone who has been using a 14'' for the past 20 years is only doing themselves a disservice. You might as well be getting the sound through a tin can with a string on the end. Spoiled brats? Every TV I've ever owned I had to pay for myself. Right now I've got electric bills, gas bills, water bills, condo fees... etc. Still, I'm a complete miser hording my precious coins, and thus able to bask in HDTV glory. It's all about getting a decent wage and learning to budget. Lower end HDTVs aren't just for the 'rich.'