PAL Dreamcast - which games are 50hz only/ have no VGA support?

[Link83]

Hi Everyone,
I have been slowly replacing my entire colection of games with NTSC versions where necessary - im already half way there with my N64 and Gamecube, and now my attention has switched to the Dreamcast.

My entire Dreamcast collection is currently PAL only, but I know that many PAL Dreamcast games have a 60hz mode and VGA support - so really I guess there is no need to re-buy them as NTSC?

So my question is - which games are 50hz only?

So far I have found a short list from here:-

http://www.digitpress.com/faq/dreamcast_pal.txt

Aero Wings
Aero Wings 2: Air Strike
Bust A Move 4
Conflict Zone
Dino Crisis
Dynamite Cop
Evil Twin Cyprien’s Chronicles
Flogian Brothers: episode one
Grandia 2
Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver
Maken X
Pen Pen Triicelon
Power Stone
Resident Evil Code: Veronica
Sega Rally 2
Skies of Arcadia
Spawn in the Demon Hand
Spiderman
Star Wars: Episode 1 Jedi Power Battles
Super Magnetic Neo
The Next Tetris
Tokyo Highway Challenge 2
Virtua Fighters 3 Team Battle
Zombie Revenge

But I have no idea how complete that list is, does anybody know of any other titles?

Also, im curious to know what happens if I use the region changer disk mod to change my Dreamcast to accept PAL region games, but output NTSC - does this force all/most of these games into 60hz? (eg PAL Power Stone) even though it doesnt allow you to choose in-game?
....and does this mod cause PAL Dreamcast games with the 50/60hz selection screen to skip it? (eg Defaulting to 60hz) Or do you still have to select 60hz?

Lastly, and most importantly, what games are missing VGA support in the PAL version, but had it in the NTSC version? (eg PAL Skies of Arcadia)

Basically as you can tell im just trying to work out which games I should bother to replace with NTSC versions.

Thanks in advance

[Hohum]

Buggy Heat might be 50hz only, can't quite remember. Grandia 2 is 50hz only for standard tv output, but still has VGA support.

[tom-nook]

I seem to remember Bangai-o not supporting vga (but I think it supported both 50 & 60hz).

[honeymustard]

Ahh crap, I just bought RE:CV, didn't know it was only in 50Hz

[Sane]

There was a time when i knew all this, seems so long ago . Honeymustard, you can run RE:CV in 60hz if you boot it with a codebreaker if I remember correctly, not 100% sure but give it a try if you have one.

[Kit]

Sega Rally 2
Tokyo Highway Challenge 2

Both of these are 60hz.

[Silvergun X]

PAL Sega Rally 2 I could've SWORN was 50hz only.

[Skull Commander]

PAL Sega Rally 2 I could've SWORN was 50hz only.

It is.

[Link83]

Thanks for the replies guys, so that list is pretty complete then? (Maybe just missing Buggy Heat)

...and does the NTSC Bangai-o have VGA support?
Im curious to know what PAL games had VGA support removed you see. I know Skies of Arcadia is one of them, but are there any others?

Also, Honeymustard - RE Code Veronica can be forced into 60hz. According to that FAQ I linked to these are the only games that cant be forced into 60hz:-

Conflict Zone
Dynamite Cop
Maken X
Pen Pen Triicelon
Skies of Arcadia

Perhaps these are the only games that dont support VGA aswell?

[[nothing]]

If you want an NTSC list, there is one here:

http://www.racketboy.com/retro/2006/05/dreamcast-vga-cable-compatibility-list.html

Although it has no mention of Vampire Chronicle for Matching Service, which is only VGA compatable after re-burning the disc with a patch applied.

[JazzFunk]

Both of these are 60hz.

I know that SR2 isn't 60hz and I'm pretty sure I remember Tokyo Highway 2 being 50hz only as I got it a few years back and - as it was a later DC PAL game - I expected it to be 60. It wasn't, and it peed me off a bit.

I'm also pretty certain both PAL Tony Hawk's are 50Hz only, too.

[tom-nook]

...and does the NTSC Bangai-o have VGA support?

According to this (old ntsc-uk) thread is doesn't :

http://ntsc-uk.domino.org/archive/index.php/t-74615.html

Having a look around a few other sites it seems some incompatible games can be patched or forced into vga but Bangai-o is one that can't.....

[honeymustard]

I'm playing Marvel vs. Capcom 2 and it didn't give me the option to display in 60Hz... doesn't appear to be in the options menu either.

Edit: actually that's probably because I'm playing the NTSC version on a PAL system

[MikeRox]

Tokyo Highway Challenge 1 is odd. If you play it in RGB (and I think it has to be RGB) it is 50hz only, until you've had one race, as soon as it goes back out into the menu, it jumps in to 60hz (automatically).

Tokyo Highway Challenge 2 is 60hz (again can't remember if it's by selection or just automatic on boot up so long as you're in RGB)

Tony Hawk automatically detects 60hz, as does Tony Hawk 2 I believe, but again they don't give you a frequency select screen. I can confirm that they do both run in 60hz though.

honeymustard, yeah MvC2 has a 60hz option on PAL.

[Link83]

Also, im curious to know what happens if I use the region changer disk mod to change my Dreamcast to accept PAL region games, but output NTSC - does this force all/most of these games into 60hz? (eg PAL Power Stone) even though it doesnt allow you to choose in-game?
....and does this mod cause PAL Dreamcast games with the 50/60hz selection screen to skip it? (eg Defaulting to 60hz) Or do you still have to select 60hz?

Just thought id answer my own question for the benefit of any future readers!
I have just performed the 'region changer' mod on my Dreamcast - I left the region as PAL but set the video output to NTSC, and now almost all my PAL games play in 60hz by default!

When this is done PAL games that used to let you choose the refresh rate now skip that screen but are still in 60hz, and many PAL games that were 50hz only (Such as Power Stone, Sega Rally 2, Virtua Fighter 3tb etc) are also forced into 60hz as standard - guess the developers were simply to lazy to add the refresh rate option

This mod is well worth doing if you can do it, heres a guide:-

http://www.mmmonkey.co.uk/console/sega/dc-region.htm

Although I have read over at DCemulation that you should either disconnect it after you have made the change, or fit a switch to choose when to change the region, as some titles (mainly Japanese titles by the sound of it) try to write to the flash rom, and if the two points are still linked they can accidentally write over the Region Settings in the flash - meaning your Dreamcast wont even boot up anymore.

Im now beginning to think that the only PAL games that had VGA support removed are:-

Conflict Zone
Dynamite Cop
Maken X
Pen Pen Triicelon
Skies of Arcadia

Only by the very fact that they are the only 50hz titles that cant be forced into 60hz (Although the only one I can confirm for sure is Skies of Arcadia) If anybody has any of the other games and a VGA box it would be great to get this theory confirmed