Still Unfinished Business

Okay, so here's the deal. Earlier this year I made a post indicating that my Grandia II undub project was stalled out due to a problem that was causing hangs after inserting text into a certain file. The file in question is the one that contains the script for Mirumu village. I was originally hoping to get some outside help in getting the issue solved, but that didn't happen. I wasn't even able to successfully contact the person I was trying to get help from, and to be completely honest I'm not even sure if they're still alive. So that was kind of a downer... but, as it turns out it didn't matter. I was able to solve the issue, and at this point I see no reason to believe I shouldn't be able to get this thing done without making compromises.

I'll make a post later explaining the technical details of what was going on, but for now I'd like to thank anyone following this project for being willing to put up with my perfectionism. The issue I was facing was not a critical one, and I could have produced a very respectable final product by simply working around it. Just not one I would have been satisfied with.

The fact it took so much time to solve was more a question of my not having enough time to work on this project recently than anything else. That, and I was operating under the assumption I'd be able to get help from someone who'd already solved the problem for quite a while until I finally gave up. But now I'm over the hump, and barring any unforeen issues, a release should be coming soon. I say "should", because given the amount of difficulty this game has given me so far (the text insertion hang is not the only issue I've had to deal with), I may yet run into other issues that could delay a release before I get done. The overall project completion is currently sitting at around 90%, but right now I'm extremely busy and my time to work on it is limited. I think a release before the end of the month is possible, but don't hold me to that. In the mean time, here is a quick video I made to show off undubbed battle voices:



Note that any graphical glitches you may notice are due to the emulator I'm using to test my modifications (nullDC). There are emulators that can play the game without nearly as many glitches, but I use nullDC because it has a few features that make testing easier.

One other thing. I just want to be clear on the fact that I am going to release this undub for the Dreamcast version of Grandia II, and only the Dreamcast version of Grandia II. The Dreamcast version is the original, and best version of the game. The PS2 port is a mess, and the PC port is defficient in at least a few areas (sound/battle glitches). That being said, if anyone wants to take on the project of porting my undub to one of the other version of Grandia II, I am willing to share my knowlege and resources. Just as long as you understand that my experience with either version is limited, and I know for a fact there would be unique challenges in porting my undub that I do not intend to solve for you.