Silent Hill HD Collection

[weasl]

Question for you, Wayne: I've reading around the web that they reduced the fog in 2 to the point that you can see where the world is being drawn in instead of that being covered up as originally intended. You encounter anything like that?

Fogs not reduced it's just the method they used to make it on the PS2 looks like shit in HD.

[Bane]

Fogs not reduced it's just the method they used to make it on the PS2 looks like shit in HD.

Damn, that's a shame. If 2 looks that bad I'll have to seriously reconsider getting this then.

[Bane]

So now the Vita game has been delayed to May 31 the day before release. That's always a good sign.

This is all turning out to be a spectacular failure on Konami's part. It's really a shame how they treat this series nowadays.

[weasl]

So now the Vita game has been delayed to May 31 the day before release. That's always a good sign.

This is all turning out to be a spectacular failure on Konami's part. It's really a shame how they treat this series nowadays.

The Vita game was a bastardization of the series, not sorry to see it slip =/ But yeah the HD collection is a mess. It looks better inside but the exteriors are kind nasty with the fog, haven't touched the 3rd game.

Pretty big let down, may pickup and try Downpour tonight once it gets dark have low expectations for that too.

[Shoeless]

Pretty big let down, may pickup and try Downpour tonight once it gets dark have low expectations for that too.

Low expectations are good. That game might surprise you actually. It did for me.

[Wick]

The fog in Silent Hill 3 isn't very good either. I understand limitations, but there had to have been something they could've done to eliminate the ghosted blocks that fly at you out of the main fog while the character is running.

[weasl]

Low expectations are good. That game might surprise you actually. It did for me.

See now i'm getting my hopes up.

[Esquilax]

I just got this the other day and spent a few hours with SH3 (my favorite). So far, it seems pretty good. An incredible-looking PS2 game is now a still-pretty-good-looking PS3 game.

The framerate does hitch every now and again. This isn't exactly a fast-paced game so it doesn't hurt the experience too much, but it's still a little disappointing. It is too bad about the lack of original audio but the re-dub isn't bad either so far. The artwork definitely benefits from the bump to nearly a million pixels, and the character models still look great. The sound is also great in 5.1. It's not the best remaster out there but it's certainly better than, say, RE4 HD.

I also played SH2 for a little while. Yes, the fog looks like a bunch of blurry macroblocks and yes, the framerate is all over the place when outdoors. The assets still hold up alright in 720p, though. The original audio is what it is and sounds like it was recorded in a tin can. I'm interested in trying the re-dub since the voice acting actually sounded better to me in that video that was posted. I haven't played it enough to gather much more than that.

I wouldn't boycott it, but it's probably best to rent first and/or wait for a price drop.

I paid for mine entirely with rewards points so it's all gravy for me.

[Esquilax]

So a while ago I did send an email to Konami about the framerate and such, and I guess enough people did the same. I just got this in my inbox:

Dear Konami Customer,

Please see the below for an update on where we are in relation to patching this game.


KONAMI ANNOUNCES UPCOMING PATCHES FOR SILENT HILL DOWNPOUR AND HD COLLECTION

New online patches will correct frame rate and audio synch issues

Today, Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc. announced that online patches for both Silent Hill Downpour and Silent Hill HD Collection are currently in development and will be released soon.

Understanding the issues some users are experiencing, development teams are currently creating online patches for both games, which will fix the frame rate issues, the audio-synching in Silent Hill HD Collection, and the Auto-Save issues in Silent Hill Downpour. Players have voiced their concerns, and solutions to these issues will be fixed and launched in the coming weeks.

Patches for Silent Hill Downpour and Silent Hill HD Collection will be made available on both XBOX®Live Arcade and PlayStation®Network. Both Silent Hill Downpour and Silent Hill HD Collection are available at retail stores nationwide.

Every effort is being made to resolve these issues that have been reported but due to limitations in the code it is not quite set in stone what can be fixed. Please be assured Konami understands how important these games are to our customers and we are doing our best to provide a patch that will fix these problems.

Best Regards,
Destiny
Konami Customer Support
Hours of Operation:
Monday – Friday 9am – 5pm PST/PDT

The biggie is just to cap the framerate on the PS3 version. It practically never dips below 30 but can never sustain 60 for very long, so capping it at 30 like the 360 version should eliminate the judder and inconsistent feel of the games.

[Bane]

Owners of the 360 version are screwed.

When Konami released the Silent Hill HD Collection back in March, what should have been a celebration of gaming horror classics, Silent Hill 2 and Silent Hill 3, instead produced a collective sigh, as fans mucked through the countless technical issues within.

These issues were far more pronounced on Xbox 360 than PlayStation 3, and not long ago Konami issued a patch attempting to smooth out the PlayStation 3 version. Now, we know why Konami didn't release an Xbox 360 patch then: they have no plans to ever.

Here's the full statement released by Konami this afternoon:

Today, Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc. announced that while a PlayStation®3 online title update for Silent Hill HD Collection has been deployed for download via PlayStation®Network, plans for an XBOX®360 title update have been cancelled due to technical issues and resources.

Understanding the issues some users are experiencing, KONAMI issued a title update for Silent Hill HD Collection (PS3), which fixed frame rate issues as well as audio-synching and other reported issues. KONAMI apologizes to any players who are continuing to experience these issues on the XBOX 360 sku.
I'd normally take out the registered trademark junk, but if Konami's not feeling up to it, neither am I.

When asked if Konami will be offering a refund program for Xbox 360 owners, the company pointed me towards its customer support website.

Giantbomb

Man, first Capcom and now Konami. What's with these once-great Japanese game companies turning into shit?

[Indy_aka_Rex]

More like: What's with Microsoft screwing gamers out of patches because of their outrageous fees to third parties who want to fix their poorly QA'd releases?

[thejnc]

More like: What's with Microsoft screwing gamers out of patches because of their outrageous fees to third parties who want to fix their poorly QA'd releases?

So does Sony charge less?

[Indy_aka_Rex]

So does Sony charge less?

I don't think Sony actually charges for patches, they do charge for content, just not patches (for obvious reasons).

[Bane]

More like: What's with Microsoft screwing gamers out of patches because of their outrageous fees to third parties who want to fix their poorly QA'd releases?

So it's Microsoft's fault when a company puts out a buggy game to begin with? Sorry, you can't spin this to make MS the bad guys here. Konami put out a shitty title on both consoles, then decides to just not patch one of the versions.

Besides, this isn't some small indie developer... it's fucking Konami. It's not like they can't afford to pay whatever costs there are to patch it. The Fez situation and this one are not the same at all.

I don't think Sony actually charges for patches, they do charge for content, just not patches (for obvious reasons).

Except that they do.

[Indy_aka_Rex]

So it's Microsoft's fault when a company puts out a buggy game to begin with? Sorry, you can't spin this to make MS the bad guys here. Konami put out a shitty title on both consoles, then decides to just not patch one of the versions.

I do believe my text reads:

third parties who want to fix their poorly QA'd releases

So it's not like I'm blaming MS for Konami's failures.

I don't think anyone can argue MS isn't responsible for their BS fees and their general lack of flexibility when it comes to that.

Besides, this isn't some small indie developer... it's fucking Konami. It's not like they can't afford to pay whatever costs there are to patch it. The Fez situation and this one are not the same at all.

Just because they CAN afford it, doesn't mean the problem isn't the same. MS charges large sums of money to have third parties submit fixes to their games, whether it's indie or not, they charge the same. Considering SH: HD Collection's sales, it may have just not been viable for them to spend money fixing the game, if the sales weren't there on 360, why should they?

Except that they do.

Link?