nesdev.org

Vibrato is technically frequency modulation, but it's not frequency modulation synthesis because the modulator runs at low frequency (LFO), not audio frequency like in the Yamaha OPL/OPN chips.

In fact the FDS vibrato can act in the audible range, it's frequency registers is identical to the main frequency register so you can even vibrato faster than the tone itself. However you can't change it in real time during the playback of the note, which is why it's wrong to call it FM synthesis.

Back to the top 100, I'm surprised that Zelda 2 and SMB2 scores so high. Personally I wouldn't think they deserves to be on a list, or maybe just for the "I am error" quote but hell this doesn't make it a good game. Anyway this is down to personal taste.

Crystalis at 43? That'd better be the last RPG on the list.... And I like SMB2, it's not a SMB game, but it is a good game. And yeah, Zelda 2 is a really shitty RPG graphics wise and then gameplay too, it's too fucking hard. The dragon warrior style map movement with crap graphics and then side screen gameplay with cheap enemies was total crap, any other game and it'd of been voted "worst NES game ever" but it was Zelda, so it was perfect I guess.

3gengames wrote:And yeah, Zelda 2 is a really shitty RPG graphics wise and then gameplay too, it's too fucking hard. The dragon warrior style map movement with crap graphics and then side screen gameplay with cheap enemies was total crap, any other game and it'd of been voted "worst NES game ever" but it was Zelda, so it was perfect I guess.

While I agree that Zelda 2 is (by far) one of the series weakest entries (ONE of -- let us not forget the CD-i Zelda games! Bwahahaha!!), it wasn't THAT hard. At least, once you spend enough time in the world map grinding until you got Link up to Level 8. The process of grinding though was horrendous. Imagine killing score after score of slimes to get to Level 8 -- it takes days (I can attest to this -- my insane self actually did this back when the game was new).

But yeah... overrated due to the name on the box.

Zelda 2 was extremely easy if you knew how to slice through the Iron Knuckles' shields (do a crouching sword attack while descending from a jump). The same move even hits enemies which would normally require the Downward Thrust to hit.

I never needed to grind in Zelda 2 anyway. The game intends you do to Level 1 early, because all the enemies there give enough points to give you all your early level ups. Otherwise, it's a slaughter in your favor, but you barely get enough points to level up. The game can be hard if you decide to do "Hammer before Level 1". Who needs candles?

It starts out hard and then gets pretty easy actually after you learn a few spells and find a few life upgrades.

The only place anyone should be grinding is on tektites at the main town across the ocean. You kill a few with fireballs, head into town for free healing and magic recharge, head back out, etc. Pretty dang quick leveling, even though you need to use magic to do it.

And then it gets too hard again in the very last dungeon, but a good majority of the game is incredibly easy.

@dwedit + UncleSporky: Note that my mention of my method in no way constitutes an actual endorsement of the procedure. Furthermore, notice that I qualified the act as me being insane.

Of course, if you're not insane, and you make it to level 8 killing slimes over and over on the same screen at the start of the game, you might wind up becoming insane during the process.

Remember, kids -- just say no to wanton slime-slicing!

Dwedit wrote:I was just reading the Zelda 2 entry, and you mentioned that the Famicom Disk System used FM synthesis. This is not correct. Even though it sounds a little like an Adlib card, it is actually wavetable synthesis with a 64-sample wave. It also supports vibrato and sweep envelopes.

Hell, even 'wavetable' synthesis is the wrong term. Wavetable synthesis is specifically built around a series of short waveform in tables that are meant to change the timbre of a sound over time. It can emulate filters and other style synths (like FM). Look up PPG synths. Sample based synth isn't correct either (which the SNES uses) because the waveform memory is just too short to hold a prerecorded instrument sound per se. The closest thing for term is Direct Digital Synthesis (DDS). Although DDS tends to use a PHA instead of a period divider, but the principle is the same. The only other terms I've seen labeled for such a channel is PCMPSG and WSG (wave sound generation). Though they aren't specifically official terms.

And even if the modulation of the channel reached audible range, it's using a period divider instead of a PHA... so it won't be FM synthesis.

Wooo! Busy me finally finished the next entry in my continuing look back at the top 100 NES and Famicom games of all time.

Here's part 7, #39-30

As always, feel free to leave your thoughts both in this thread and in the comments section of the post itself. Enjoy!

Again, I'm disapointed a chineese pirate make it in the list, but other than that it's all games I don't know and that looks very good (some of them have amazing graphics for the NES !) so I'll be glad to discover them ! Good work.

I don't even have time to look up and play all the obscure games people I know recommend to me, let alone the ones from this list. But I follow this because some of them have really gorgeous pixel art for NES. So I'm happy that Pokemon Yellow Chinese pirate made the list, because I wouldn't have discovered it otherwise. I've been studying NES game graphics for a while now, so that my game can look as good as possible.

I don't care about what position my favorite games end up in, since what's "greatest" is all opinion anyway, and perfectly ordering a list this large to satisfy even one person is hard. But this has some
1. wonderful looking games
that
2. I haven't heard of
so it's a useful list in addition to its main goal.

Bregalad wrote:Again, I'm disapointed a chineese pirate make it in the list, but other than that it's all games I don't know and that looks very good (some of them have amazing graphics for the NES !) so I'll be glad to discover them ! Good work.

Why feel disappointment? Try the game yourself and don't be so judgmental. The Pokemon yellow pirate is truly exceptional and wholeheartedly not only belongs on the list of the top 100 best games for the system, but high up on that list.

It may not be doing anything original, but its such a good copy of the GameBoy games it's truly astounding. It stands as an example of how Famicom pirates can and should be done.

Kasumi wrote:I don't care about what position my favorite games end up in, since what's "greatest" is all opinion anyway, and perfectly ordering a list this large to satisfy even one person is hard.

This. Thank you for saying that as I completely agree with that statement. Too much attention is placed on the numbered order. For future top xx lists (SNES, GBA, etc) I'm thinking about not even including a numbering system at all.

Whenever I go I get people saying "bahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh the order how DARE you put StarTropics in the 90s", etc etc.

It's all about personal preference, and making lists like this is incredibly time consuming. If you don't like my order, make your own list and I challenge you to do it while making it half as presentable as my own.

Wow, Pokemon Yellow have really impressive grafics!
Thanks for showing it.
I like the idea of Pirate games getting into list.Because something I never heard about can show up.
Great work, can't wait for next 10 from the list, Satoshi;]

I try playing that pokemon, artistically it's great. Everything else lacks though. Especially sound, it's just bad. Always going, annoying, and just out of tune sometimes and it just hurts. I mean, it's good, but not top 100 material IMO, not polished enough despite it being a pretty good start. I like all other games though, I like the list so far.

Well it's true that I would probably not know a pirated pokemon existed on the NES if SM didn't say so in his list, but still, all pirated NES games I've ever played are complete crap, and if it has good graphics chances are they are just ripped/converted from an actual game that have those good graphics. (in this case I guess they are just ripped form a GBC game).

Bregalad wrote:and if it has good graphics chances are they are just ripped/converted from an actual game that have those good graphics.

Still, it takes some skill to downscale the graphics for the NES. Lots of pirate NES games are great at simulating the look of SNES, Genesis and GBC games, proving that the NES is more capable than a LOT of licensed games would have you believe. I just wish the pirates were better coders (or have more time to work on each project).