[Dragona Akehi]

Why has no one posted 720p 16xAA F-Zero shots? I don't care it's not made for the Wii.

Because, much like Zeus coming before Semele in his full glory, it would destroy those who come upon it without its human guise.

[SS4Gogita]

goddam

I need a new PC now, too :(

[Cobra84]

Why has no one posted 720p 16xAA F-Zero shots? I don't care it's not made for the Wii.

Because the game doesn't work correctly. Your vehicle is invisible and doesn't move.

[zaxor0]

Does anybody have any experience with a good case that has room to stick in hardware but that dissipates heat well and would look nice in a rack? And any recommendations on a Linux release that's fast-loading and easy to navigate? I'll do more research for myself, but I thought maybe if people had some suggestions, that'd be a better use of this thread than debating the fun factor of a Rare game from 2002.

If you are looking for good navigation for media files and DVR support on a standard linux distro, i.e. ubuntu, check out MythTV. There is a lot of software allowing you to turn your ubuntu box into a media center using mythtv. It might be what you need. http://www.mythbuntu.org/

Also here is a link I found which might offer some other insight, http://www.linux.com/feature/51047 but this is from 2006 so it is a bit dated.

Here are two linux media center oriented distro's (i have no experience with these):
http://www.linuxmce.org/
http://www.geexbox.org/en/index.html

[Haunted]

Because, much like Zeus coming before Semele in his full glory, it would destroy those who come upon it without its human guise.

thanks for the sticky, btw.

[Cataferal]

Why has no one posted 720p 16xAA F-Zero shots? I don't care it's not made for the Wii.

Hmmm. 720p F-zero GX shots are on their way. Here are some more 720p 4xAA Brawl captures for now. Enjoy. :)

[Blizzard]

DK's fur is AMAZING. And it's awful that if I had this emulator, I know exactly what high-texture-detail area I'd check out. ;____;

[markatisu]

Because the game doesn't work correctly. Your vehicle is invisible and doesn't move.

There is some video of F-Zero GX at 720p but of course as you said the vehicles are invisible so its just drop dead amazing tracks

[bridegur]

Brawl almost looks like a new game. Incredible. Hopefully all of this attention will speed the progress of the emulator so we can see more games in this light, like Galaxy, Blue Storm, etc.

[Threi]

Brawl has unusually high-resolution textures for a Wii game...

[_dementia]

Brawl has unusually high-resolution textures for a Wii game...

Explains how they nearly filled the DVD with data

[nincompoop]

Holy Jesus @ Brawl O_O

[Hazaro]

Explains how they nearly filled the DVD with data

DL DVD

Cataferal, have you considered overclocking your Q6600?
(See post on last page)

[Cataferal]

DL DVD Cataferal, have you considered overclocking your Q6600? (See post on last page)

Ahaa. Sorry, I missed that.

Yes, I have. But I'm a novice to all this tech-savvy talk of timers and memory clocks. Obviously, bumping each core up to 2.8/3.0Ghz would do wonders for the frame rate here (might even get full 60!), especially given only two are actually being used. I'm definitely considering it. :)

In response to your other question, I'd say anything above an 8800GT would do you just fine (my friend's tested this). It's definitely the CPUs day at the gym with this one.

[Hazaro]

Ahaa. Sorry, I missed that. Yes, I have. But I'm a novice to all this tech-savvy talk of timers and memory clocks. Obviously, bumping each core up to 2.8/3.0Ghz would do wonders for the frame rate here (might even get full 60!), especially given only two are actually being used. I'm definitely considering it. :) In response to your other question, I'd say anything above an 8800GT would do you just fine (my friend's tested this). It's definitely the CPUs day at the gym with this one.

Voltage do 1.350V
Multiplier at 8x
FSB at 375Mhz

Presto!

Alternatively...
9x and 333Mhz

Easy fast and simple. shouldn't run into any problems with those settings.

[Cataferal]

Voltage do 1.350V Multiplier at 8x FSB at 375Mhz Presto! Alternatively... 9x and 333Mhz Easy fast and simple. shouldn't run into any problems with those settings.

Thanks very much! I'll give those a whirl tomorrow.

Meanwhile, here are two 1080p 4xAA shots before I retire for the night:



(Mods: If they're too big, I'll obligingly take them down.)

I think the game is slightly better suited to 720p, from an artistic perspective, although 1080p definitely comes in handy with those distant, wide panning camera angles.

[CamHostage]

If you are looking for good navigation for media files and DVR support on a standard linux distro, i.e. ubuntu, check out MythTV. There is a lot of software allowing you to turn your ubuntu box into a media center using mythtv. It might be what you need. http://www.mythbuntu.org/ Also here is a link I found which might offer some other insight, http://www.linux.com/feature/51047 but this is from 2006 so it is a bit dated. Here are two linux media center oriented distro's (i have no experience with these): http://www.linuxmce.org/ http://www.geexbox.org/en/index.html

Thank you for the leads. I have a tiny bit of experience in this end of things, but never got far. (I searched in vain for a good build of Ubuntu for my PS3 as an alternate OS, but I never found one that was as seamless and fast as I had hoped. I had also considered building a MythTV but never needed another DVR.) I'm not ready to jump into the project yet, but this has fast become a piece of hardware I don't want to be without.

Something to note is that MythTV (which has a nice interface) can allow for emulator plug-ins. The PS2 and Wii emulators are not yet written into the interface (the Dolphin Project is roughly scripted already, not sure if it works already), but it doesn't look that complicated to adjust the script.

Also, no matter what front-end you use, GAFers might want to take note of the fact that the MythTV website has sites describing a lot of the set-top box hardware that's out on the market. Some of it looks really nice!

[Durante]

I have a question if the Wii was built to have excellent 480P (SD) graphics why are we getting the result .Nintendo tripled the amunt of RAM to 88MB + the 3MB framebuffer to 91MB total or 3x what was in the GC. The GPU and CPU have been increased too. So why don't we have more Wii games that look as good a SMG,MP3 or PS2 games like MGS3/FFXII or Xbox games with large worlds like Fable. I have a 32in HDTV CRT so the Wii game with good graphics "SMG,SSBB and MP3" all look great but after that there is a drop

Because the Wii wasn't "built to have excellent 480P graphics". Otherwise they wouldn't have gone with an 8 year old GPU design.

[Cataferal]

Just tried F-Zero GX, and it is indeed unplayable in it's current state.

I may be able to capture some shots of the build-ups to each race (with the camera panning around all the most distinctive parts of the level), but very little in-game content until someone offers a definitive fix. More on this later.

[Mojo]

Sorry if this has been answered, but how would you get a sensor bar to work with this?

[Tenkai Star]

Sorry if this has been answered, but how would you get a sensor bar to work with this?

Use two candles =P the sensor bar is really only two IR diodes. I guess I would have my Wii running just so the sensor bar would be on =P

[pakkit]

Does this explain in part the lack of games for N64 on Wii? Since there is a bump in resolution when bringing a N64 game to the Virtual Console, do they have to spend a while making sure the game still runs smoothly 100%?

[Templar Wizard]

How do i get a 360 controller to work with this? i have enabled it on the pad settings, windows sees it as a pad YET i cant use it.

[Polari]

Someone should port this to 360 and PS3 and watch the world implode.

[Surfheart]

Wind Waker is stunning in SD let alone HD, Oh my god!

THis looks amazing too!



I so wish Ninty had at least offered 720p this gen. They can have the exact same textures/geometry effects as they do now but just display in 720p. The Wii's output quality is just terrible because of that tiny framebuffer.

i must be the only person that liked the distance blur in wind waker

I LOVED that effect! Added so much charm to the visuals IMHO.

[mr_nothin]

So does this play any/all GC games?

[JoshuaJSlone]

Does this explain in part the lack of games for N64 on Wii? Since there is a bump in resolution when bringing a N64 game to the Virtual Console, do they have to spend a while making sure the game still runs smoothly 100%?

That's pretty much the case with emulation regardless of whether they're tampering with the resolution.

[Mojo]

Use two candles =P the sensor bar is really only two IR diodes. I guess I would have my Wii running just so the sensor bar would be on =P

So does the sensor bar actually send any data to the Wii, or is the only reason why its connected just to power the IRs?

[Jocchan]

I LOVED that effect! Added so much charm to the visuals IMHO.

So did/do I, but it looks so much better in 720p screens. It's obviously still there, but a lot more subtle than before.

So does the sensor bar actually send any data to the Wii, or is the only reason why its connected just to power the IR LEDs?

Bolded the correct one (with a small fix).
Funny that the mysterious orange port is only there to power a few LEDs.

[Ysiadmihi]

Man when they get this thing running Wii games normally my need for consoles will have vanished completely.

[Fafalada]

It's obviously still there, but a lot more subtle than before.

That's one of those things that can't quite work right with resolution changing. Blur is done in screen-space - and the filter-kernel doesn't scale with resolution - which means rendering looks different from what it was originally intended to.

But as long as artifacts are just a change of aesthetic like in this case, it's well worth the tradeoff of improved clarity.

[Vorador]

So does the sensor bar actually send any data to the Wii, or is the only reason why its connected just to power the IRs?

According to what i know the "sensor bar" only use it's to help calibrate the wiimote. But nothing more.

[Jocchan]

That's one of those things that can't quite work right with resolution changing. Blur is done in screen-space - and the filter-kernel doesn't scale with resolution - which means rendering looks different from what it was originally intended to. But as long as artifacts are just a change of aesthetic like in this case, it's well worth the tradeoff of improved clarity.

Yup.

According to what i know the "sensor bar" only use it's to help calibrate the wiimote. But nothing more.

The sensor bar only tells the Wiimote where's your TV (relative to its current position). That's it.

[Tenkai Star]

Bolded the correct one (with a small fix). Funny that the mysterious orange port is only there to power a few LEDs.

Correct! You can buy a batterypowered sensor bar to use with the emulator if you dont like candles.

[Jocchan]

Correct! You can buy a batterypowered sensor bar to use with the emulator if you dont like candles.

Two years ago I built an USB-powered one with a friend of mine.
Four IR LEDs, four resistors, electric wire, some solid structure (to keep them fixed and safe) and one USB cable cut in half. It worked flawlessly, even better than the official one.

EDIT: I wouldn't connect it to my PC (I'm still afraid some miscalculation could fry my USB controller, my laptop had USB controller issues and I don't want this to happen again lol), but it works flawlessly with a spare USB hub I have (I just connect the sensor bar to the hub, the hub to the power line, and I'm ready to go).

[Tenkai Star]

Two years ago I built an USB-powered one with a friend of mine. Four IR LEDs, four resistors, electric wire, some solid structure (to keep them fixed and safe) and one USB cable cut in half. It worked flawlessly, even better than the official one.

I think I am going to build one with the led:s further apart so you can sit further away from the tv.

EDIT: Will propably build one that is adjustable.

[M3d10n]

Yeah Soul Calabur 2 and Tony Hawk Underground supported 720 on the original xbox . SC 2 had black bars and wasn't 16x9. I don't understand how the xbox could do HD but the Wii can't even when it has more system memory? Did the Xbox 1 have a larger framebuffer?

Because the Xbox used a GeForce 3 with a few GeForce 4 features. Desktop versions of such GPUs were designed for playing games at 1024x768 without problems.

The Wii might even have enough speed for 4:3 720p (on non-fillrate intensive games), but there are two points that prevent it from doing it: everything must be rendered to the internal EDRAM (which cannot fit a buffer bigger than 640x5something) and the video-out chip (which simply does not feature video-out signals higher than 720x480 for NTSC). The PS2 and the Xbox had more flexible video-out, so a game had more options when it came to resolutions.

[Jocchan]

EDIT: Will propably build one that is adjustable.

Good idea. Just be sure the original sensor bar size is one of the options, just in case (the Wiimote should work just fine, but it's all up to the intensity of the IR light emitted by LEDs).

[Tenkai Star]

Good idea. Just be sure the original sensor bar size is one of the options, just in case (the Wiimote should work just fine, but it's all up to the intensity of the IR light emitted by LEDs).

Gonna get more intense LED:s so it shouldnt be a problem. There is just a huge pile of other stuff I want to do.
<- Electrical Engineer, I know what I´m doing, just not in what order =P

[Jocchan]

Gonna get more intense LED:s so it shouldnt be a problem. There is just a huge pile of other stuff I want to do. <- Electrical Engineer, I know what I´m doing, just not in what order =P

<- Computer Engineer here, so quite clueless about circuitry except some basic stuff
But, seriously, building your own sensor bar is pretty damn easy ;)

[Tenkai Star]

<- Computer Engineer here, so quite clueless about circuitry except some basic stuff But, seriously, building your own sensor bar is pretty damn easy ;)

I know. Gonna order some stuff from a big electrical retailer soon and gonna include components to build my own sensor bar. This emulator just gave me a little more motivation.

[Dabookerman]

AMD x2 4400+
2gb ram
ATI x1900 aiw 256mb user here

What are the best settings to run games?

Oh nevermind, the game runs like shit :(

[brain_stew]

Use two candles =P the sensor bar is really only two IR diodes. I guess I would have my Wii running just so the sensor bar would be on =P

http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.3389

and

http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.11866

ow you have bluetooth and a wireless sensor bar for less than $10 delivered.

[EatChildren]

I so wish Ninty had at least offered 720p this gen. They can have the exact same textures/geometry effects as they do now but just display in 720p. The Wii's output quality is just terrible because of that tiny framebuffer.

Pretty much. I can deal with the assy horsepower (in comparison) at the moment, but games would be so much easier on the eyes if they output at just 720p (1080p would rock, but whatever).

Even just looking at Brawl, which isn't the best looking Wii game, it's clear how much nicer the whole thing looks with a higher resolution. Character and stage textures are rather nice, and it helps to be able to see everything in detail from a distance.

Damn you Nintendo.

[Dabookerman]

Pretty much. I can deal with the assy horsepower (in comparison) at the moment, but games would be so much easier on the eyes if they output at just 720p (1080p would rock, but whatever). Even just looking at Brawl, which isn't the best looking Wii game, it's clear how much nicer the whole thing looks with a higher resolution. Character and stage textures are rather nice, and it helps to be able to see everything in detail from a distance. Damn you Nintendo.

Wait.. how?

I would say it's definitely in the top 5 of technically best looking game on the Wii.

Maybe artistically that's all down to opinion.

[EatChildren]

Wait.. how? I would say it's definitely in the top 5 of technically best looking game on the Wii. Maybe artistically that's all down to opinion.

Eh. I love how Brawl looks and really wouldn't change anything, but I find the likes of Galaxy and even Prime 3 look better. That's probably just my personal taste though.

Either way, my point remains; the art assets could remain exactly the same and Wii games would look gorgeous in a higher resolution.

[comedy bomb]

Either way, my point remains; the art assets could remain exactly the same and Wii games would look gorgeous in a higher resolution.

Maybe Wii 2 will upscale? I could see Nintendo doing this and only upping the overall horsepower a tiny bit.

[alr1ghtstart]

It's simply not just upscaling/re-rendering. It's the tons of AA/filtering that makes it looks really nice.

[Eteric Rice]

So what games is this thing running so far? Or does it run them all, but some have bugs, etc?

[Cataferal]

So what games is this thing running so far? Or does it run them all, but some have bugs, etc?

All games seem to at least run, but with varying levels of glitches. Obviously, they focused on the most popular, and beautiful games available: Brawl and Galaxy - which are highly playable. For anything else, compatibility is pretty much incidental as there aren't many game-specific patches.