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Propeller Arena Leaked!
link343 - May 13, 2004

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  Dud May 15, 2004

  
	
	

		
		

			Originally posted by Kaneda@May 14, 2004 @ 02:31 AM



 find on the net



"Propeller Arena for the Dreamcast was supposed to be released late last year. Unfortunately, after the tragic events of September 11th"



link...



Kaneda


I remember reading a similar article a few years ago. However I failed to comprehend how aerial combat had anything to do with terrorism. :huh Maybe I need to start being offended more easily.

 APE992 May 15, 2004

  
	
	

		
		

			Originally posted by link343@May 14, 2004 @ 10:56 PM



 Ok, on the CD, the last date they(Sega/AM2) worked on it was early morning on 9/11/2001.The time they modifed the files was betwwen 7:07 and 7:14AM. I need a program that can open AFS, MLT, DAT, and BIN files? I'm also looking for a windows program that can read PRS, and PVP files. Your help could help get a server online so people could play Propeller Arena online.


For those who don't know, AFS is basically like a giant zip file of sorts that hold .adx files, basically segas very own fun audio compression format. I have extracted ~3000 adx files from the afs, a nice chunk of which aren't playable by the winamp plugin I use for such files. The ones that are playable are sound effects or background music. Speech is there but usually in smaller chunks, as in single words or a single sentence. 1st_read.bin and ip.bin are just data files for the actual game. I don't really know the specifics, but from what I do know 1st_read.bin is the actual program data, and ip.bin is the bootstrap loader. Nothing real special although the ip.bin should be replaced with another one for faster booting of the game. The rest of the extensions I don't recognize.

 Pearl Jammzz May 15, 2004
Plane running into a big building killing thousands.......a plane game where u go around and kill other planes. Make sense now? I feel they could of released it but it was their decision...

 Pyrite May 15, 2004
Well there a stage thats placed in a city with skyscrapers and sometimes its hard to dodge them and you go right into them just like sept 11th

 APE992 May 15, 2004

  
	
	

		
		

			Originally posted by Zher@May 15, 2004 @ 07:22 PM



 Well there a stage thats placed in a city with skyscrapers and sometimes its hard to dodge them and you go right into them just like sept 11th


It's not that hard to dodge the buildings. After playing the game it seems stupid. They were as many people have said, afraid someone might reenact 9/11. Problem with that is as soon as you hit a building you blow up. Nothing happens to said building, so a reenactment of you flying a biplane into a building will happen, but never 9/11.

 it290 May 16, 2004
Wellp, as I said before, I think the 9/11 thing was just an excuse for them not to release it. I mean, the DC's future was dismal at that point; the game probably wouldn't have sold very well to begin with and 9/11 was just icing on the cake. If you recall, Shenmue 2 was cancelled for the US at around the same time, and if Sega didn't think they could make money off that, they certainly couldn't have had very high hopes for Propeller Arena (especially given that it's an online-oriented game and they probably didn't want to support it).

 racketboy May 16, 2004

  
	
	

		
		

			Originally posted by it290@May 16, 2004 @ 06:33 AM



 Wellp, as I said before, I think the 9/11 thing was just an excuse for them not to release it. I mean, the DC's future was dismal at that point; the game probably wouldn't have sold very well to begin with and 9/11 was just icing on the cake. If you recall, Shenmue 2 was cancelled for the US at around the same time, and if Sega didn't think they could make money off that, they certainly couldn't have had very high hopes for Propeller Arena (especially given that it's an online-oriented game and they probably didn't want to support it).


good point about the Shenmue thing

 Pyrite May 16, 2004
I thought Shenmue 2 didn´t came out on the US DC because Microsoft bought it and wanted it on the XBOX and since PAL copies were already pressed they had to let go.

If they didn´t wanted to support PA then why make the game at that stage in the first place? Unless SEGA makes decisions from night to day and they are are known for bad decisions.

 it290 May 16, 2004
Well, the game took quite a while to develop. By the time the game was pretty much ready, they decided they weren't going to make money off it. Same thing happened with Half-Life and Soul Reaver 2.. both of those were pretty much complete as well.

There was a deal with Microsoft, as you mentioned, but that was only made because SOA didn't think they'd make enough money by releasing it on the DC (which they were still releasing games for at that point). The game was already slated for release in the US at that point, the Xbox deal just gave them another excuse for backing out. I doubt MS really cared about exclusivity as far as the DC was concerned anyway. SoA really screwed the US over towards the end of the DC's life cycle; there were several really good games that never saw the light of day over here.

It was a dumb move in my opinion. Shenmue II sold dismally on the Xbox, I think it would have fared much better on the Dreamcast. Not too many DC fans had 'boxen by that point, and I'm sure a lot of Xbox owners weren't interested in a sequel to a game they never heard of, especially one with 'DC-quality' graphics.

(side note: That is something that always pisses me off with reviews of games ported from the DC to the current systems.. reviewers always say 'the graphics look dated' etc etc.. as if the DC were a PS1 or something. True, some DC games do look dated, but honestly I was more impressed with the graphics of Code Veronica than those of REmake, for example. And Skies of Arcadia/Sonic Adventure 2 sure look better than a lot of 'cube games I've seen.)

 link343 May 16, 2004
According to Online Consles:
  
	
	

		
		

			PA was developed by AM2, and was set to be integrated into Sega Net, and thus uses the Sega SNAP network package for its online abilities. Basically were looking at the same exact situation as Outtrigger, which was also produced by AM2. Thus Propeller Arena will for all purposes, never be able to play over the internet. (Nokia now owns Sega SNAP) 



There is an option for uploading Training Data. However this was merely to be uploaded to the PA website to participate in rankings. So no ghost vs ghost or anything is capable here with PA. 



What does work is the browser, which can only be accessed via modem, it is not BBA compatible. What alos is available is a tool for configuring your BBA, which does come in handy. It is the same tool that comes with Outtrigger, so for those needing a BBA configuration tool this will be usefull to people. 



And now onto something that will probobly enrage many of you, as I know it does seriously tick me off. The question remains where did Propeller Arena's master servers exist? At what location? Well already we have described many similarities in the handling of Propeller Arena and Outtrigger. 



Below is where OT's servers were location: 



Outtrigger (JP) outtrigger.kage.isao.net 



Outtrigger (US) kage-bootstrap.dreamcast.com 



Below is where PA's servers were location: 



Propeller Arena (JP) propeller.kage.isao.net 



Propeller Arena (US) kage-bootstrap.dreamcast.com 



If Propeller Arena had been released a lot sooner, we might have been able to actually play this game online. Same exact server locations as Outtrigger. Unfortunatly now we will never be able to play this game online unless someone completly reverse engineered sega snap middleware. Which in all honestly people, is impossible.

getting a server is impossible, I guess.

Another person on Online Consles said something that ticks me off:


  
	
	

		
		

			What will really drive you guys crazy, because I know it did for me, is that at the Classic Gaming Expo 2003, PA was on display. Now, mind you, that Expo was August 10th and 11th--at a time when OUTTRIGGER was online--which; if this theory is correct, would mean, that PA would be able to connect to the internet.


 it290 May 16, 2004
Pssh. I doubt they were actually running the PA server software at that time.

 gameboy900 May 16, 2004
They probably got rid of the game because of the horrible sales that faced alien front online. A game with basically the same type of gameplay. PA would have been boxed with the mic (there's a option for the talk button in the config so you could chat with others like in AFO). The game would have NEVER made any money for Sega it was easier and cheaper for them to just write it off and get their money back that way. And to be honest I wasn't too impressed with the graphics, seemed like the locations were just too barren.

 FiZiX May 18, 2004
Alright, this may be a stupid question but does anyone know if it's possible to play PA between 2 Dreamcasts on a network if they both have BBAs or do they need a server in that scenario too?

 it290 May 18, 2004
No, a server is definitely needed. Link cable support might be a possibility however (especially considering AM2's F355 supported it), but I don't know if anyone's tried it yet.

 link343 Jun 12, 2004
If your looking for the cover for Propeller Arena, it's here....

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