Since the reveal of ESRGAN, an AI technique that can enhance the textures of older games, a lot of gamers have been waiting for HD texture packs for the classic Final Fantasy games. And while there is currently one in the works for Final Fantasy 7, a beta version of an HD pack is currently available for download for Final Fantasy 9.
Created by ‘Ze PilOt’, this AI-enhanced HD texture pack can be downloaded from here. Now since this is a beta release, the modder stated that there might be some issues with it.
First release of the FF IX HD mod (aka Moguri Mod). This is a beta version. Please report any issue (corrupted background, bad animation,…) with a screenshot of the problem & the location (Lindblum, Lost Forest, Alexandria, …). https://t.co/bDFbW2zYBE
— ZeP "parody" @Zep@mastodon.gamedev.place (@Ze_PilOt) January 16, 2019
For example, gamers may experience corrupted backgrounds or bad animations. In case you experience such issues, you should report them to the modder (obviously with a screenshot and the location).
Still, this is the first step in replaying Final Fantasy 9 with HD backgrounds and textures. And, well, since Square Enix does not plan to ever release proper remakes of these older FF games, I think a lot of gamers will appreciate what modders are trying to achieve.
Now imagine if someone could use ESRGAN in order to enhance the sprites of the classic Mortal Kombat games. I don’t know if it’s possible to replace the textures of the arcade version, however the PC has already received perfect arcade ports of Mortal Kombat 1, 2 and 3. As such, I’m pretty sure that it could be possible to enhance those textures and replace them. And to be honest I’d really love to see what MK would look like with better and higher-res sprites so here is hoping that someone will at least experiment with it.
But anyway, enjoy this HD Texture Pack and stay tuned for more!
John is the founder and Editor in Chief at DSOGaming. He is a PC gaming fan and highly supports the modding and indie communities. Before creating DSOGaming, John worked on numerous gaming websites. While he is a die-hard PC gamer, his gaming roots can be found on consoles. John loved – and still does – the 16-bit consoles, and considers SNES to be one of the best consoles. Still, the PC platform won him over consoles. That was mainly due to 3DFX and its iconic dedicated 3D accelerator graphics card, Voodoo 2. John has also written a higher degree thesis on the “The Evolution of PC graphics cards.”
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Not bad https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/e68158c17654229ced661ed83dfadc0ee4efe2688c60792a18634a8528d9de4b.jpg https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/1a000169a3ed409922c02876487768d42d80abdb8ddc59f45b228b3104ca64f0.jpg https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/e394515e8059321febe3fa7bf70c51cacd7b89fc96ea6fda540e6a75f281d5a9.jpg https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/298d6a5ef409586b728ae588360e80cb71596dcb2509e82456491f3f76510ddc.jpg https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/062e206b43131853cf00632327a2a8231dd1235770bdef4966ca3fcc32593d40.jpg
Not good either, some comparisons with better upscaling methods for the last image:
http://www.framecompare(dot)com/screenshotcomparison/0M21NNNU
put a dot, this site has abysmal comment policies.
xusky is a steam user who used a different upscaler – possibly his own – , but did not give much info about it, he posted the image here:
steamcommunity .com/app/377840/discussions/0/142261352660457538/?ctp=52
MEH.
does this work on steam?
Looks like he just used the manga109 model or severely softened the result, not a good choice at all for “realistic” backgrounds like the one in FF9, but it does not require cleanup.
I’ll still be waiting for this one to complete, it should use much better suited upscaling models without cutting corners:
https://steamcommunity.com/app/377840/discussions/0/142261352660457538/?ctp=51
This is actually a custom trained GAN with original artwork from FF9 (and other pertinent sources). More infos here :
http://forums.qhimm.com/index.php?topic=18553.0
The link you’ve posted is an upscaled from the layered background, with all the lighting effect. This is actually quite close to my initial testing with a non-custom GAN :
https://imgur.com/gallery/K1R3wJZ
i need this for FF8, Parasite Eve 2 and Chrono Cross!
Someone is working on 8:
forums.qhimm(dot)com/index.php?topic=18543.0
the rest is unlikely to happen for ps1 exclusives.
there is actually a way to extract the backdrops from Parasite eve, using the same method used to extract content from FFVII PS1 . the only obstacle would be getting the emulator to run the new content pack. I don’t think it would that impossible though. Emulators have been made to run content packs for a long while now.
It’s not impossible, PPSSPP, CEMU and a N64 emulator that I don’t remember its name had it for a long time, it’s unlikely because none of the ps1 emulator devs showed any interest in it in the span of 2 decades.
Hopefully ESRGAN will change this, but I doubt it will happen anytime soon.
The worst FF.
FF9 is actually on most peoples short list of best FF games with 7 and 6 also being on that list. Some people replace 9 or 6 with 10 but 9 is never too far from that spot. Its a great FF game and an overall great JRPG.
It’s sh*t.