Is the PC version worth getting?

[Whoomp]

^ There's always ebay.

[michinobu_zoned]

Is the PC version of SH3 worth getting or not?

I personally like PC games better then Console ones. However I am aware that most Console versions of some games are better then their PC version counterparts.
I already have the PS2 version of SH3 but i'm interested in getting the PC version.


Oh, and are there any mods for the PC version of SH3? If so then I will get it because I LOVE mods!!!

YES. There are mods out there for it, though not many. The PC version is the only version that I have. Although, I own a PS2, for a while when I was going to college, parents wouldn't let me take my ps2 so I bought the PC version for it instead.

And, older pc games tend to come real cheap when compared to ps2 due to the fact that game sales have to be shared with Sony when the game comes on their platform, whereas you don't have that with the PC market. However, the thing about really good games, is that if you wait long enough the game prices go as low as $5. But, when no stores sale it any longer you find "mint condition" PC game versions of our favorite console games sky-rocketing to as high as $80-$100!

This was something I learned with FF8 as I didn't have a psx and I never managed to get the pc version, even when it only costed $20. But, when no stores sold it any longer, you couldn't find it anywhere on the internet for less than $80. And, some of these games were being sold used at that price.

I thinki that if anyone is trying to buy the game for PC, soley for modding purposes, then you're better off trying to download the cracked version of it somewhere.

Keep in mind, that you're likely only to find the no CD needed crack and not the actual game itself which is pretty huge as the PC version uses 5 disks to install the game.

[TheButcher88]

No I don't think the Silent Hill 3 PC Version is Worth Getting, at least not to me, I use my computer a lot, I use too many processes and playing the PC version slows down my game play. plus the PS2 is way better, it has better stability, familiar controls, and better graphics, so yeah I suggest you don't get the PC version of Silent Hill 3, but the PS2 whcih is all you will need....

[michinobu_zoned]

I believe the mods, and screenshots are worth getting it,there are some nice mods out there. On a side note does anyone know if it works on Vista?

Works pretty well on my system. Using the CD version instead of that little no-cd crack runs smoother, cut scenes are less choppy - even if my installation took all cutscenes off of the disk and onto my hard-drive. The executable that requires the CD some how does a better job, though the differences might not be noticeable on some people's computers.

Both versions, consequently, will have some choppiness due to the fact that the PC environment is unpredictable. And, a game at that age may not have thought to make use of multiple-core processes. There's wonder if the programmers even used multi-threading at all.

However, Vista should implement multi-threading at the kernel level, meaning that it should break the SH3 process into different threads itself. The only thing is, how would Vista know how to break the game into multiple threads since it would have no clue about things like cut-scenes and lighting effects and the like.

Chances are, it justs looks at calculating-intensive threads (such as the graphics since they're processor intensive) and puts them at lower priority than the user dependent I/O threads (such as, controlling the character and menus) as it is one of the principles of designing an OS to give I/O processes more time with the CPU so as to not piss the user off.


I honestly think my older PC had less choppiness than my new one. Though my PC was XP and had a single core processor with only 1GB of memory, it's processor was till 3.2 GHz. Whereas my new laptop has a 2.0 GHz dual core processor with 3GB of memory.


SOME ADVICE IF YOU DO PLAN TO USE VISTA: is to set go into task manager before you start playing SH3, and open up the "Processes" view by clicking on its tab. Right when you start the SH3 executable, go look for the sh3 process in your processes list and right-click. Go to "set priority" and click on that option, in it you'll find another drop-list with different levels of priority. Set sh3 to a priority level of "high". This guarantees that the SH3 game will have as much CPU time as the windows desktop manager itself.

The more CPU time the Silent Hill 3 game has, the less likely you'll encounter any sort of animation choppiness. This doesn't interfere with anything else, unless you're using your PC to calculate other things like for scientific research. Oh, and of course clear memory of things that are likely in "idle".

The OS still gives "idle" processes time with the CPU because it doesn't know that they're not doing anything. Clearing tasks out of memory frees up the queue that the processor-time manager uses to divide time up with the CPU. The less processes waiting in memory for the CPU, the more time each process gets with the CPU.

For things you might need but don't want it to run that long per second, such as anti-virus, I suggest placing them on lower priority and thus allowing Silent Hill 3 to have even more CPU time.

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No I don't think the Silent Hill 3 PC Version is Worth Getting, at least not to me, I use my computer a lot, I use too many processes and playing the PC version slows down my game play. plus the PS2 is way better, it has better stability, familiar controls, and better graphics, so yeah I suggest you don't get the PC version of Silent Hill 3, but the PS2 whcih is all you will need....

I disagree. The graphical process of even the modern budget pc dwarfs that of the PS2. The only thing that gives console games better stability is that they have a whole system to themselves and as of consequence are free to run in real-time. However, most pc's do a pretty decent job of simulating real-time parallelism eventhough they don't. Especially Windows, since Windows has managed to prevent CPU bottlenecking that the Unix-based OS's such as the Macintosh are notorious for.

The issue of controls is manageable with buying a controller that resembles your ps2 controller and then changing the control settings. But, for me the keyboard and mouse do just fine.

Also, the original poster was interested in MODS which is something that the PS2 version does not provide. The PC version is superior in that aspect because you can even go as far as to change the appearance of the models yourself.

[Mis Krist.]

Please don't double post. I've gone and edited your posts for you, but I just wanted you to know that it's against our forum rules for members to post two times or more in a row. Just use the edit button if you have something more to add.

[michinobu_zoned]

^ Yeah, thanks. Will do next time.

[ViciousBoss]

Can anyone provide a link or name a site that has these mods? I've looked all over but couldn't find anything

[Fallen_Angel]

I hink this site has mods, look in the hack and mod section:
http://valtielsshsite.proboards46.com/index.cgi

[headkickrodeo]

Actually, the graphics are exactly the same. Get a decent 3D card, they actually look better. And even on my old, crappy graphics card, it never crashed on me once. Silent Hill 2 never did, either. You can also adjust the settings on your video card to get more vivid colors, things like that. I actually prefer the PC version...I even got used to the controls!

No I don't think the Silent Hill 3 PC Version is Worth Getting, at least not to me, I use my computer a lot, I use too many processes and playing the PC version slows down my game play. plus the PS2 is way better, it has better stability, familiar controls, and better graphics, so yeah I suggest you don't get the PC version of Silent Hill 3, but the PS2 whcih is all you will need....

[paladin181]

You can change the controls to your liking. I have a logitech dual analog controller, cost me $20 3 years ago. Functions just like a PS2 controller. There's also the PSX/PS2 to USB converter (anywhere from $12 to $40) to use your PS2 controller on the PC. I personally set up all my SH games to play like SH1 with the controls, however that's just a personal preference, with some alterations for additional controls only available in later games.

And SH3 does look a little better... SH2 looks like night and day compared to the PS2 version. Much sharper and nicer looking, except the FMVs.

[michinobu_zoned]

You can change the controls to your liking. I have a logitech dual analog controller, cost me $20 3 years ago. Functions just like a PS2 controller. There's also the PSX/PS2 to USB converter (anywhere from $12 to $40) to use your PS2 controller on the PC. I personally set up all my SH games to play like SH1 with the controls, however that's just a personal preference, with some alterations for additional controls only available in later games.

And SH3 does look a little better... SH2 looks like night and day compared to the PS2 version. Much sharper and nicer looking, except the FMVs.

Yeah, it's a good thing that they used real-time 3D on SH3, on the console before they ported it over for the PC. All the pre-rendered shit normally doesn't come out well on the PC version - take the FF7 pc port for example. The back ground on that game always looked stretched out on a 640X480 full-screen resolution. Playing window-mode gave you a smaller screen but at least the background images were at their original size (which was small for PC technology then).

Now that they're making console games compatible with HDTV's high screen resolutions, console games are already on par with the PC version. But, it does get irritating for me to hear people make ignorant comments like "the console version's graphics is better" on anything like PSX, or PS2 games. Or, even in comparison of unrelated games on the two platforms. Like, they actually try to come off saying that PC graphics don't amount to shitty console games. Which is ludicrous and only shows how ignorant they are about computers.

[Cohen330]

Totally worth it. I'll play SH3 on any system. I kind of like the mouse and keyboard controls, myself.

[Detective Cartland]

I myself find it hard playing on a keyboard and mouse but whatever works for you.

[nowhere]

Theres no differnce, If you have one of consoles dont buy another.....
I have this pc version. Nothing extras. Its good game, but if you have it dont buy another.

[SHACKled89451]

Mod and hacks are not illegal. You can do whatever you want to the game as long as you don't make any money from it.

Well, it's the only version I've played of 3, and I think it's rather good, I've had less problems with SH3's pc version than I did with 2 or 4's. Haven't had to tweak much to get it running perfectly. Although I do use a gamepad for it, as I didn't like it much with a mouse and keyboard, but the controls are configurable enough so even if you don't have a gamepad for your pc, you should be able to set up a custom configuration that'll be comfortable.

Great! I can't wait to get my copy.

What sorts of mods can you do to SH3, just out of curiousity....

[heavensnightsh]

Well, basically all this stuff
http://silenthillforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=11975

[michinobu_zoned]

Theres no differnce, If you have one of consoles dont buy another.....
I have this pc version. Nothing extras. Its good game, but if you have it dont buy another.

Better graphics, most monitors for pc's these days come with at least 1024x768 as the manufacturers' recommended resolution. I think my laptop comes with 1200x800 recommended and it was 600 bucks last year.

The only thing that might bother someone about the PC version is the poor performance their PC will give when playing SH3. The only reason why a PC version might not play better is due to issues dealing with multiprogramming. If you have a second processor, that is a real hardware processor and not a logical processor like a "dual core", then you could dedicate that CPU to playing SH3 exclusively while your other processor could handle all other multitasking issues.

And, it wouldn't have to be an expensive CPU either, as the PS2 processor is cheap by modern standards for CPU's.

[Uyrikeustek]

If you're not interested in the modding, then don't get the PC version. It is an improvement from the SH2 PC version, but there is still a risk of encountering a glitch near the end of the game that makes your healing items disappear in black spaces in your inventory. Stick with the console versions.

[Kerrigan]

I'd say go with the PC version even if you're not interested in modding—that is, of course, if you're a fan of Silent Hill 3. There are some tweaks that set it aside from the PS2 version, though they're pretty minuscule.

There are some sound alterations. The audio has been altered in a few cutscenes (Thessaly Lerner and Michael G's voices have been omitted, and there is a sound added after the elevator descent in the mall; I personally prefer the PC version of the cutscenes), the pitch of some noises have been changed (the screaming mannequin's voice is much higher on the PS2 version; on the PC version it's the same scream Heather makes when she falls to her death). There are some new loading screens. The chapel is slightly tweaked—on the PS2 version, after Heather acquires the Brass Key, the hallway outside of the confessional area has some bloody trails on the wall. On the PC version, it is completely enveloped by fiery, swarming, bloody patterns.

The zoom function is also intensely magnified. If you're the type to stop and observe details, then the PC version is probably going to offer a better experience.