Shining Force III: Shining Force III Prototype File Dump

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Incorporating Scenarios 1, 2, 3 and the Premium Disc, all in one handy board!

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Shining Force III Prototype File Dump

Post by MicrowaveableHamster »

Hey all!

I popped in a couple years back and posted some pics of a SF2 proto I had obtained and dumped. Well, I have been fortunate enough to find one for the great SF III, as well, and figured I would post a couple, as well. Please note I have not dumped the files of this yet, since I've never really worked with Saturn protos before. Please note the CD is dated 4/23/98, which is about 5 weeks before the US release and a couple months before the final US build (not sure how that works, maybe there were some edits post-release?).

Obviously finding any differences in a game this size could be extremely difficult, so I'm hoping to get the files ripped and compared as best as possible. Like I said, though, I'm not entirely sure how to accomplish this with Saturn stuff...I'll figure it out :). Now continues my quest to find a SF 1 proto and complete the Holy Trinity for one of the best RPG series ever created!

I will work with these over time and pop in and share anything interesting that I may find.

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Oh, and I also got a couple Shining Wisdom CDs as well! The silver is basically a copy ripped from the assembly line, and the backup build is dated a few months prior to its US release, but I believe a couple days after the final build was created:

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Last edited by MicrowaveableHamster on Sun Jul 16 2017 8:00pm, edited 2 times in total.
Special T
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Re: Shining Force III Developmental Build

Post by Special T »

You might want to check out the saturn dumping guide on redump.org

http://forum.redump.org/topic/4495/sega ... -28112010/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

People there are pretty helpful.
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Re: Shining Force III Developmental Build

Post by RedShine »

That's quite an amazing find. Makes me wonder if at any point SOA considered releasing all three Scenarios overseas, and if earlier builds than this were created to reflect that.
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Re: Shining Force III Developmental Build

Post by MicrowaveableHamster »

RedShine wrote:That's quite an amazing find. Makes me wonder if at any point SOA considered releasing all three Scenarios overseas, and if earlier builds than this were created to reflect that.
I believe that the original builds of SF3 America contained the original dialogue after the last battle, but it was changed at some point after SEGA decided it was just going to be Scenario 1. I am unsure which dialogue this has, but I will do my darndest to figure it out eventually!
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Re: Shining Force III Developmental Build

Post by knight0fdragon »

That is definitely possible, an ISO would be nice so we could rip it and see
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Re: Shining Force III Developmental Build

Post by RedShine »

MicrowaveableHamster wrote:I believe that the original builds of SF3 America contained the original dialogue after the last battle, but it was changed at some point after SEGA decided it was just going to be Scenario 1. I am unsure which dialogue this has, but I will do my darndest to figure it out eventually!
By that you mean the dialogue that alludes to the continuation of the story in later scenarios hm?
Indeed, if that bit of text could be found, it would at least corroborate my assumption somewhat.
Do keep us posted, and thanks for sharing the information.
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Re: Shining Force III Developmental Build

Post by MicrowaveableHamster »

Hey all,

Sorry for the necro bump, but after a long few months with a new kid and moving, I finally have had time to have someone dump the CD (no damage, w00t) and compare it to the US release. And...

GOOD NEWS! Looks like there are a significant number of differences in the files - roughly one-third of the binary files are different and predate the US release, most by a couple months and some by like 7-8. We're looking more into stuff now to see what we can do electronically, and from there I guess we'll just have to spot them ourselves in the game, to the extent possible.

The text files, however, appear to all be identical, so I'm guessing that means the ending must be the same. Unless some of the binary files contain the text? I'm not educated enough on the subject.

Anyway...I'm not one to keep stuff like this under wraps for value or anything. I am having a good number of copies made for cheap, so...like if anyone wants to send me a PM to say hello and see how I'm doing, please feel free!


Edit: Oh, almost forgot! Here's a link to the Google Doc Excel chart of the file comparisons between the Beta and the US release:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/ ... d=50099644" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

:)
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Re: Shining Force III Prototype Located

Post by knight0fdragon »

Looks like the scripts are different, Anything X5_ related is the text for the game, my translator app should be able to open those up
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Re: Shining Force III Prototype Located

Post by MicrowaveableHamster »

knight0fdragon wrote:Looks like the scripts are different, Anything X5_ related is the text for the game, my translator app should be able to open those up
Awesome man, any updates by chance? I have a few, found by someone familiar with the game who did an incredibly fast run through (within like 2 days lol). These are his words, not mine:

Definite differences:
-'Kyonshi' in Quonos Graveyard are named 'Mad Folk'
-'Elbesem Ob' is called 'Treasure Orb'
-Game is overall slower, graphically glitchier. (May have been before final game engine and compression algo)

Things that feel different but I'd have to dig more to check:

-Statue Gem drops on ground instead of drops from enemy
-Save game options have 'Begin' and 'Copy' during game play at times

I'm guessing there are certainly more, given the number of coding differences.

Now for the fun part: If anyone here is interested in a copy, please let me know. I sent the disc to someone to have copies made and I have a handful or more. They won't last long, so if interested, please let me know ASAP.

Thanks!
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Re: Shining Force III Prototype Located

Post by knight0fdragon »

Not sure what you mean by update, it has existed over 10 years lol, Why don't you just share the ISO instead of having to mail people discs. Should only be about 250MB
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Re: Shining Force III Prototype Located

Post by MicrowaveableHamster »

knight0fdragon wrote:Not sure what you mean by update, it has existed over 10 years lol, Why don't you just share the ISO instead of having to mail people discs. Should only be about 250MB
I can ask my friend who ripped it if he could send me the files, provided he saved them. I just asked him to create a few copies for me so it could be backed up. I've run most of the older generation consoles via emulator/roms, but Saturn I have not, so I'm unfortunately not as familiar with the process.

I will reach out to him in the next few days to see. If not, I could always send you a copy and you could rip and post them if it's something you'd be interested in. I have no desire to hoard the files or anything, as I don't care much about market value because I won't be selling it lol.

Anyway, I'll update once i hear back from my guy.
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Re: Shining Force III Prototype Located

Post by knight0fdragon »

you just copy it like you would any other CD, just make an ISO
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Re: Shining Force III Prototype Located

Post by MicrowaveableHamster »

Direct download now available:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/h28jzlpjh78gr ... e.rar?dl=0" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
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