Do your PS2 games look too jaggy on the PS3? Here's a semi-fix... [update 1]
All right, so currently my PS3 is connected to my TV via the HDMI and those cruddy composite cables -- the yellow, white, and red. Why both? Because my TV has channels dedicated to both. When I run a PS2 game on the HDMI channel, yeah, it looks bad. So what do I do? Go to my Display Settings and swap the PS3 back onto the 480i channel -- the channel most PS2 games were probably meant to be seen in. I think that's the problem -- PS2 games didn't plan on getting their resolutions increased so drastically. Anyway... so I swap it back to 480i and re-load the PS2 game and guess what? The text is gorgeous and the graphics look fine. I think. They don't look perfect, but it's a lot better than the HDMI shows.
You guys can go ahead and test this if your TV is prepared for the journey of multiple wires. Or computer monitor, which I know a lot of you swear by (and rightly so, it seems)! Let us know if this works for you. In all seriousness, though, it doesn't bother me that much. If I can still enjoy the gameplay, I don't mind having a jaggy sword, or funny-looking handrails. Perhaps Sony will strive to fix this in the future, but for now, keep your PS2 hooked up if it gets too unbearable.
[update: As I continue to screw around with different games, if you crack out any 2D-centric titles (Atelier Iris 2 in my case), the graphics actually look better with HDMI. The backgrounds have a few splotchy points, but the sprites are much, much sharper.]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
epobirs @ Dec 30th 2006 6:16PM
I've had no problem with PS1 games running on PS2 over S-video but then I happily used S-video with my PS1. There was even a dedicated port for it in the original units.
Of course years old PS2 games weren't concerned with HDMI and HD displays. That isn't the point. The point is that Sony had ample time to design around this when developing the PS3. Sony had to be aware of this quite a long time before the launch but it seems they simply didn't regard it as having any importance.
It gives one cause to wonder how late in the process they gave up on running PS1/Ps2 games under emulation and decided they had no choice but to add the cost of the integrated PS2 processor cluster. Was this done in such a rush they couldn't fuly test and integrate how the output would appear, then apply the needed corrections? It should be well within the RSX's abilities to make PS2 games targeting 480i look perfect at upscaled HD modes. This has been demonstrated with similar GPUs on PCs.
Wii360dsPC @ Dec 30th 2006 6:57PM
Not to sound all fanboyish, but XBOX games actually look better when played on the 360. This PS3 video issue thing just bothers me. Why didn't Sony include a hardware scaler? @#$!
TheGrimace @ Dec 30th 2006 7:00PM
I have a standard definition TV that I am running my ps3 on, and I can tell you that 480i fixes nothing! I have run FFX and FFXII as well as KH2 and several others on both systems using the SAME cable and the difference is extremely noticeable every time. I love my PS3, but this problem and the lack of support for old contollers (Guitar hero 2, DDR anyone?) has really made me regret my decision to buy before next year
Scott Krueger @ Dec 30th 2006 7:35PM
Wii360dsPC
Not to also sound Fanboyish, but less than 5% of XBox Games can Actually Run on the 360.
I'll take 99% Backwards Compatibility any day.
Why didn't Microsoft Make a System that is Backwards Compatible? Why Does it cost a Fortune to Transfer XBox Gamesaves over to the 360??
Thomas @ Dec 30th 2006 8:02PM
It does work, I tried it a couple of weeks ago. But this is nothing new. When we had the transitition from ps1 to ps2, if you were to use an S-video connection the ps1 games looked horrible, but if you go back to the standard connection, then the ps1 games look fine. Now... we need to get that Guitar Hero controller working on the ps3, (and other accessories) and then all will be right!
NeverSage @ Dec 30th 2006 8:03PM
I'm not sure if I like Microsoft or Sony's way of BC more. They both are so far from perfect. So is it /impossible/ for Sony to update the firmware to add antialiasing or something like that? Blah, ps2 games were jaggy enough on the ps2.
krzysztof @ Dec 30th 2006 8:49PM
This "workaround" has been generally debunked for weeks (and it doesn't work for me.) To sum up:
Problem: a PS3 de-interlacing bug makes PS2 games that are only 480i capable look worse on the PS3 than they do on the PS2. This is true even when the TV and cables are identical for both systems.
Proposed workaround: make the whole thing so blurry that you can't tell the difference. You could downgrade to the composite cable, take off your glasses, drink a lot of alcohol, etc.
These techniques can "solve" a lot of life's problems (especially alcohol) but the problems still exist!
No one is asking for the PS3 to make the games look better than they do on the PS2, just equally good/bad.
Having said all that, I agree that if you're a true fanboy, you can suck it up while you wait for a real fix. I'm playing FFXII on the PS3 (over component cables) and with the flicker filter turned on, along with some kind of edge-fuzzing maxed out on the TV itself, I can play the game and ignore the glitch.
But I still look forward to a real fix! Don't give up yet!
b-ri @ Dec 30th 2006 10:00PM
they said they were working for the next major update to upconvert DVDs, im sure the same methods can be used to upconvert the games.
TheGrimace @ Dec 30th 2006 11:25PM
b-ri
Still, it does tend to piss one off that we have to wait until March to get something done that they advertised as being ready at launch!
P.S. I know this is PS3 fanboy and I own a PS3... I am just letting off some steam I have for Sony here because I would get URANXBOXFANBOY in one second at the official playstation forums
hohlraum @ Dec 31st 2006 12:37AM
pullease. this doesn't fix the issue. this is a bug plain and simple. i wish people would stop posting 'fixes' cuz they aren't fixes. the problem with ps2 games on the ps3 is NOT a resolution issue its a display bug. blocks of video are being inverted.
Strike Man @ Dec 31st 2006 12:38AM
krzysztof is correct. Making the whole image blurry (through the use of a lower quality television and/or video cable) is FAR from a "fix" for the problem.
And if you look closely, beyond the color bleed and dot crawl of a composite connection, you'll still see the graphical glitch.
Otsego_Undead @ Dec 31st 2006 12:45AM
Well ive noticed the downgraded graphics for ps2 games via hdmi.. it sucks, but its bearable.. the gameplay is still there, and im sure Sony will have an update that will fix this. News to me on the DVD upconvert though... that would be sweet!
Sony will be good to us.
kdo @ Dec 31st 2006 3:20AM
so i just picked up FFXII for my PS3 and the darn thing keeps hanging at different spots during the opening cinematic cut scenes. is this a bad disc or is anyone else having this problem on their PS3 too?
poseidon @ Dec 31st 2006 12:41PM
The 360 backward compatibility list is somewhere near 400 titles. And most of the titles anyone would ever care about are on that list of 400.
And on the 360 all BC titles are rendered...not just upconverted but rendered in 720p and have 4x anti-aliasing turned on.
What does all that mean...? Well when you play a 360 BC title on the 360...it looks amazingly sharp...everything is very clean and looks great. Brings new life to older games and give you a bit of that next gen experience with last gen titles.
The PS3 clearly does not offer that level of experience with BC games.
Scott Krueger @ Dec 31st 2006 3:00PM
poseidon
It is 297 Titles.
Plus the List is Not ALL the Titles anyone would care about, go to Gamestop and you will see Posts of Tons of People Wishing for a game to make that list.
Battlefield Games are not on there, Chronicles of Riddick, NFL2K5, Deus Ex, etc.
I still Want Star Wars Republic Commando. Every New XBox Title that comes out is added to the List of "Not compatible with 360"
Then you have to get your gamesaves over to the 360... Good luck with That. XBox360 Transfer Kit $15 + XSata Harddrive Interface $50. You will need a PC or Laptop and alot of Patience. You will not be able to transfer your Doom Save, You will not be able to Transfer your Lego Star Wars Save.
When Sony makes a simple fix to automatically switch to 480 for old games then this point will be totally mute.
XBox360 does not Offer ANY experience on 95% of the Games.
NeverSage @ Dec 31st 2006 5:08PM
Scott,
It's true that there are a couple titles that I personally want to be BC on the 360. But besides those few, the games that are available, like poseidon said, look amazing. When Sony fixes their BC and adds antialiasing, theirs will be the best. But right now, I'm leaning towards the 360.
GiovanniMcAdoo @ Dec 31st 2006 5:41PM
You guys seem to forget that those Xbox games had to be re-realease after they added the needed adjustments.
dan s. @ Dec 31st 2006 7:50PM
"17. You guys seem to forget that those Xbox games had to be re-realease after they added the needed adjustments.
Posted at 5:40PM on Dec 31st 2006 by GiovanniMcAdoo"
wtf...learn to spell; think before you speak
bearattack79 @ Dec 31st 2006 8:52PM
One more reason that PS3 is the real shitbox!!!
AzH @ Dec 31st 2006 10:45PM
YOUR AN XBOT, bearattack. Your the reason I hate fanboys.
Sorry, had to say it.
I hope Sony releases a firmware update that can fix this problem.
Technabob @ Jan 1st 2007 9:52AM
My audio inputs are separately controlled from my video the way my system is set up. I know this doesn't truly fix the problem, but even if it makes the games a bit more playable since I could watch them in true 480i, that would be better than nothing.
I'll give it a whirl, I suppose.
Sony - PLEASE give us a firmware upgrade to fix this mess!
Josh @ Jan 1st 2007 10:51AM
I've been playing Dragon Quest VIII on both PS2 and PS3. I've tried the various "fixes" to correct the jaggies, but none of them work. The game is still playable on the PS3; I've had no hang-ups. It's just a small aesthetic problem that can be ignored, so I'll wait for a patch from Sony...if there ever will be one.
RetroMUFC @ Jan 1st 2007 5:44PM
What about the "pixel flipping" that is happening in games? The problem is is mentioned in the first post in the unofficial thread on this problem on the Playstation 3 message board:
http://boardsus.playstation.com/playstation/board/message?board.id=ps3&thread.id=808212
Ken @ Jan 1st 2007 9:12PM
18:
You can "sort of" do it. Depending on your setup it may be as simple as switching the option in the settings and the video source on your TV/receiver. Assuming you have a receiver with assignable audio inputs for each device you could have AV2 for the HDMI/optical and AV3 for the composite/optical. Then all you need to do is change the setting in the PS3 and switch the receiver to AV3.
Unfortunately like others have said there is NO fix right now for this problem, so my typing is for nought.
Technabob @ Jan 2nd 2007 2:29PM
So are you saying you can have both an HDMI cable and composite cable hooked up to the PS3 at the same time, then just switch inputs on your TV? Or is there more to it?
I've been dying to play Okami on my PS3, but via HDMI it looks so bad that I can't bear to do it.
Bgrngod @ Jan 2nd 2007 2:49PM
Let's just face it. Both MS and Sony half-baked the backwards compatibility for both the 360 and the PS3. The fact that the PS3 has no memory card slots, or controller ports clearly indicates they just couldn't care less about this being anything other then a novelty. We can buy adapters for the memory cards, but come on, how much would it have cost to put one memory card slot or controller slot onto a console that is already packing about a dozen different ports.
Seems to me that the only company to get it right was Nintendo with the Wii.
Just keep your old systems plugged in folks. Having the PS3 hooked up directly to my TV through HDMI means my PS2 still has a home on my system selector.
BC will be a non-issue a year down the road, just like it was after the PS2 launched. This is all just side-complaints that are coming up because the game selection for the PS3 is so limited right now.
daemeon @ Jan 8th 2007 8:09PM
Its true as someone already pointed out the ps1 and ps2 games were never ment to be run at the 480P. The cell processor and the graphics chip in the system are more then capable of handling the math and the antialiasing required to make the upscale happen cleanly, sony just forgot to add in the antialiasing function. In responce to those who want their games to look better until they work in this function i say to step back about 6ft and you won't notice it as much. Also to those that want to hook up their old controllers i say www.gamestop.com its 9.99, made by pelican and is due for availability on feb 1st.
KiD VenoM @ Jan 16th 2007 1:37PM
I have a solution to fix the problem, it worked for me.. and I hope it helps you too.
First go into your display settings, the last option on the first window should be a slection called " Cross color reduction filter " make sure thats on " on ".
Next Grab your original cables for the PS3 and plug them in. After that go into your Display settings and click " video output settings ", after that pick the Composite / S video mode (Red Yellow White cables ). Then go to display settings and then select display ratio 4:3. After that pick the sound settings to your liking. Im guessing it would be best to keep them at the composite setting. Remember to put your TV on the correct channel so you can see the RYW cables :)
Anyway I hope this helps you all, it makes my PS2 games look like NORMAL! Sadly they arn't in progressive scan 460p but oh well, all i wanted is them to be in their original glory.
A side note, not all my games look bad out of this setting in HDMI, some of my games look BETTER. Like SoulCalibir, Fatal Frame, Resident Evil 4, Shadow of the Colossus, ect. All the PS2 games that have progressive scan.
Anyway, did this help anyone else? :)
milanfan_apoorv @ Jan 20th 2007 4:33AM
There are very few games on the ps2 that cant be played on the ps3 and those are the realy old ones
anyways none can defend the 360 on its terrible backward compatibility. 5% i heard
Will @ Feb 23rd 2007 8:49PM
Easy solution! If your trying to play PS2 games on the PS3 then you would presume that you have a PS2 console, right? Well then why not just play the PS2 game on the PS2 and the PS3 games on the PS3,easy!