The "It doesn't has to be so friggin' compressed" petion

135678

Comments

  • edited July 2009
    fire2box wrote: »
    Every episode is going to be like this due to the limits of the Wii and Nintendo being to stupid to raise the cap size or come out with a hard drive. It's just another way Nintendo shoot's themselves in the foot.

    It's not just Nintendo, it's also due to the older xbox live arcade caps as well. In defense of telltale, they are not so huge that they can afford to redo audio for the console downloads, and actually ToMI is far better sounding than Sam and Max, that game made me think I blew a speaker.
  • edited July 2009
    Re-do Audio for console downloads? Does anyone here know what they are talking about? :p TellTale will have Masters of all their work in full LPCM, it's from these masters that they encode the format and compression the game needs. Considering the Wii version isn't out for some time I'd imagine it would be a couple of days tops to convert a bunch of High Bitrate files for the PC and Low Bitrate for the console.
  • edited July 2009
    I was a bit worried about the quality when i saw the 180mb download size but i was impressed. The voice audio was the only thing that seemed to be compressed alot but no where near as bad as previous telltale games. I agree that they shouldnt be afraid of aim for around the 400mb ish mark to up the quality.
  • edited July 2009
    Here, I've done some quick examples of how the compression can be done well, these are based off the CMI Files, which are in 22.05Khz Frequency. The .IMX File is the compressed WAVE file in the games archive, then you'll have the full WAVE extracted from that file and finally the OGG's I quickly threw together to compare space used and sound quality.

    http://www.megaupload.com/?d=6CKA9UNC
  • edited July 2009
    Ash735 wrote: »
    Here, I've done some quick examples of how the compression can be done well, these are based off the CMI Files, which are in 22.05Khz Frequency. The .IMX File is the compressed WAVE file in the games archive, then you'll have the full WAVE extracted from that file and finally the OGG's I quickly threw together to compare space used and sound quality.

    http://www.megaupload.com/?d=6CKA9UNC

    Cool. Those OGG files you compressed sound really good. Although, that one minute clip still weighed in at a megabyte. I have to wonder what the runtime of all of the speech is? Is there an hour worth of dialog? Two hours? Given a MB per minute, two hours of dialog would weigh in at a substantial 120 megabytes. In that case, I can see the need to compress it even further for a downloadable release.

    That being said, doubling the current bitrate to make the speech file 60 megabytes seems pretty reasonable. And higher bitrate on the DVD release still seems like a winner.

    Heck, I'm still thankful that they've made some headway in this area since Sam & Max. Hopefully they'll keep working on it.
  • edited July 2009
    I tested the files in your zip. The music sounds great but the voice is hissing like hell in the .wav and even worse in the ogg.
  • edited July 2009
    here is a thought ask Telltale for a download link for the better graphics and sound, this way if one has no limits on what they can download then they can spend the night downloading the game if they wish...Telltale might ask a littiel more for it the qustion is are you willing to pay for it if they ask for it????....
  • edited July 2009
    der_ketzer wrote: »
    I tested the files in your zip. The music sounds great but the voice is hissing like hell in the .wav and even worse in the ogg.

    It can't be hissing like hell more in the OGG, the spectrum is identical, I'll post a pic for proof if you want. As for the WAVE, that's directly from the game, the WAVES on there own sound louder in volume because the game reduces the volume of them in the mix.
  • edited July 2009
    salmonmax wrote: »
    Believe me when I say, I have more important things to do in my life than complain for the sake of it. We're just discussing our opinions on an aspect of the game. Don't poop on our opinions!

    lol this made me laugh. :)

    Sorry. just the "Don't poop on our opinions" part. Not saying that you don't have a good point.

    My response to Don't poop on our opinions is this:

    "Yeah, sure. I'll do that when a rhino jumps into my pants and dances the Irish jig."

    In other words, me try not to berate anyone who has a good complaint.
  • edited July 2009
    Ash735 wrote: »
    Re-do Audio for console downloads? Does anyone here know what they are talking about? :p TellTale will have Masters of all their work in full LPCM, it's from these masters that they encode the format and compression the game needs. Considering the Wii version isn't out for some time I'd imagine it would be a couple of days tops to convert a bunch of High Bitrate files for the PC and Low Bitrate for the console.

    Actually no, most game manufacturers now build their games in engines that can be quickly compiled for multiple consoles from one source. Telltale is really small and the window for getting these games out is extremely tiny. Episode 2 will be finished up just days before it's release, plus these guys don't have the resources of big companies like EA.
  • VainamoinenVainamoinen Moderator
    edited July 2009
    Marill wrote: »
    Wow.
    People complain about anything they can find, can't they? I get that they'll need criticism on controls, or maybe puzzles being too easy/hard etc.. but the file size being too small? Geeze..

    The actual points of critique wasn't the file size, but the sound and texture quality. I myself had few problems with sound, only with texture quality. However, 188 MB is an OK download and I see why it has been done, and there is no fair way to change the path that TTG is going with these games, so there's not actually a way to complain. Higher-res-textures should not be on the DVD, at least only if they're optional. Computers which might not run that fast and people who have played the original ToMI without problems might suffer unbearable performance losses with high-res.

    What about a fan-made high-res-texture pack for ToMI?

    Laserschwert, are there any options you could think of, Mr. Game-Model-Extractor? ;)
  • edited July 2009
    Its likely for xbox live, which has unreasonably small game size limits.
  • edited July 2009
    TheDude06 wrote: »
    Its likely for xbox live, which has unreasonably small game size limits.

    At least someone here has a brain.
  • edited July 2009
    I'd also like the game to have a better sound quality: as for TT bandwith, which of course isn't free, I'd also accept a download schedule/timeslot (like razorback free access) in exchange.
  • edited July 2009
    I like pie!
  • edited July 2009
    some of the texture were really low quality.
  • edited July 2009
    SANAFABICH wrote: »
    some of the texture were really low quality.

    I SAID I LIKE PIE!!!!!! :mad:
  • edited July 2009
    You know, in total, as in all five episodes, it should be roughly 1GB.
    That's plenty big enough for any other game, so why is it a problem here?

    It would be a little smaller then 1GB if it was assembled as a single game. You only need to have a single copy of the game engine and recurring character models.

    I do get your point though.

    People forget that adventure gaming was almost commercially dead. It's cutting corners that allows you to even play these games at all.
  • edited July 2009
    OCKi wrote: »
    Please let Telltale know, by this petion thread, that we care much more for the content, than the actual size of the game!

    We do posess large-sized harddisks ya know!! ;)

    True; I've got a 1TB hard drive lying around waiting to be used. Know what I don't have? A fast, reliable internet connection.

    I'm happy that you live in a place where filesize is irrelevant to you. Just don't go ruining it for those of us who aren't as lucky. I already have to put up with absurdly huge demos that take hours to download and only last five bloody minutes. I've always applauded Telltale for keeping their games a reasonable size.

    As for your complaints about sound quality: this is something I always had a beef about in previous games. Not once did I perceive any problems with ToMI.
    I agree on this, if you're downloading games via the internet then 188 odd MB is nothing i.e. you wouldn't be doing the aforementioned if you didn't have a decent connection [or a game-capable PC] anyway.

    500-700 MB is perfectly fine. Don't compress it in the remaining episodes please TTG! :)

    Yeah, I mean I can always go out to a shop and buy a boxed copy of ToMI on release day... oh wait, no I can't.

    And your supposition that having a "game-capable" PC automatically means you have a high-speed internet connection is completely ridiculous. Buying a new CPU or a faster graphics card will not magically cause the undersea cables linking my country to the rest of the world to suddenly carry more traffic, or for the telcos to drop their prices!
    TestType wrote: »
    Signed!
    Voice compression is the biggest problem here, it could really do with some higher res textures as well. I doubt anybody cares if an episode is 500-1000mb.

    I damn well do! 1 GB is 10% of my monthly quota. Most months I run out of quota a few days before rollover, so it's not insignificant.

    Tell you what, once you're paying for my connection, you can argue the downloads should be as big as you like. Sound fair?
    Aractus wrote: »
    Look, I've come to an opinion on this. Telltale should increase the quality and size of the download, and those with slow internet connections can buy the hard-copy instead. I think this would work for everyone.

    Look, I've come to an opinion on this. Telltale should decrease the quality and size of the download, and those with fast machines can buy the hard-copy instead. I think this would work for everyone.

    Not so fun when someone completely disregards what you want and propose you wait longer, is it?
    Laffer wrote: »
    Well in some third world countries they might have that crappy or not internet at all but they also wont be buying any 35$ games either...

    Maybe you'd care to look at countries other than your own. Last I checked, Australia wasn't a third-world country.
    OCKi wrote: »
    I'm no expert! :P That's why I'll accept any good reason why they're keeping it at a low bitrate. As far as I can see, there aren't any revealed to us yet.

    I take it you've conveniently skipped over the messages from people living in places without cheap, high-speed internet access, then?

    Really, these sorts of threads make me angry because it belies a complete lack of empathy for people who aren't as lucky as you are. Instead of asking for a high-quality download or a high-quality add-on or something, you just say "screw the people with slow connections; it doesn't affect me, so I don't care!"

    Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go off and fume elsewhere!
  • edited July 2009
    FoboldFKY wrote: »
    I take it you've conveniently skipped over the messages from people living in places without cheap, high-speed internet access, then?

    Really, these sorts of threads make me angry because it belies a complete lack of empathy for people who aren't as lucky as you are. Instead of asking for a high-quality download or a high-quality add-on or something, you just say "screw the people with slow connections; it doesn't affect me, so I don't care!"

    Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go off and fume elsewhere!

    I actually don't own any high speed internet at the moment, so I downloaded episode 1 over night and was completed as I eventually came home from work the next day.
    In my experience people eventually get what they want if they want it.
    You can choose to download the game regardless of how long it will take or how big it is, or wait for the DVD to hit the shelves.

    If this is the only argument for the sound compression, I'd say it's a weak one. But that's just me. :)


    PS. This is the 100th post in this thread, wich should indicate that this is a topic worth addressing and discussing.
  • edited July 2009
    thatdude98 wrote: »
    I SAID I LIKE PIE!!!!!! :mad:
    well, I LIKE BIG BUTTS AND I CANNOT LIE! :mad:
  • edited July 2009
    FoboldFKY wrote: »
    True; I've got a 1TB hard drive lying around waiting to be used. Know what I don't have? A fast, reliable internet connection.

    I'm happy that you live in a place where filesize is irrelevant to you. Just don't go ruining it for those of us who aren't as lucky. I already have to put up with absurdly huge demos that take hours to download and only last five bloody minutes. I've always applauded Telltale for keeping their games a reasonable size.

    As for your complaints about sound quality: this is something I always had a beef about in previous games. Not once did I perceive any problems with ToMI.



    Yeah, I mean I can always go out to a shop and buy a boxed copy of ToMI on release day... oh wait, no I can't.

    And your supposition that having a "game-capable" PC automatically means you have a high-speed internet connection is completely ridiculous. Buying a new CPU or a faster graphics card will not magically cause the undersea cables linking my country to the rest of the world to suddenly carry more traffic, or for the telcos to drop their prices!



    I damn well do! 1 GB is 10% of my monthly quota. Most months I run out of quota a few days before rollover, so it's not insignificant.

    Tell you what, once you're paying for my connection, you can argue the downloads should be as big as you like. Sound fair?



    Look, I've come to an opinion on this. Telltale should decrease the quality and size of the download, and those with fast machines can buy the hard-copy instead. I think this would work for everyone.

    Not so fun when someone completely disregards what you want and propose you wait longer, is it?



    Maybe you'd care to look at countries other than your own. Last I checked, Australia wasn't a third-world country.



    I take it you've conveniently skipped over the messages from people living in places without cheap, high-speed internet access, then?

    Really, these sorts of threads make me angry because it belies a complete lack of empathy for people who aren't as lucky as you are. Instead of asking for a high-quality download or a high-quality add-on or something, you just say "screw the people with slow connections; it doesn't affect me, so I don't care!"

    Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go off and fume elsewhere!

    this, exactly this, a thousand times this, and GREAT JOB FOR FINALLY SAYING WHAT I'VE BEEN TRYING TO FOR DAYS!!!! You get a smiley! :)

    ...

    and a burrito!

    burrito.gif

    YAY! Is tasty.
  • edited July 2009
    SANAFABICH wrote: »
    well, I LIKE BIG BUTTS AND I CANNOT LIE! :mad:

    :confused: Are they here to satisfy?
  • edited July 2009
    FoboldFKY wrote: »
    I damn well do! 1 GB is 10% of my monthly quota. Most months I run out of quota a few days before rollover, so it's not insignificant.

    So even if Monkey episode would take 1GB you still would have 9GB to spare, in life most people have to make sacrifices how they use their resources. But we aren't even talking about gigabytes here, if the current voice package is 30mb, doubling it to 60mb wouldn't hurt even people like you with small transfer limits and would mage a huge difference in the sound quality.
  • edited July 2009
    Call me old fashioned but I didn't hear anything wrong with the sound.... Maybe I'm just too used to playing old games.
  • edited July 2009
    I can understand some people being upset with the sound quality of some of Telltale's games but...

    As another person said in this thread 2 versions would solve a lot of peoples few gripes with Telltale.

    A lot of people have spent a lot of money to get 'superior quality sound' probably not solely for Telltale's catalogue, but for their overall use.
    I use a laptop with a Realtek HD soundcard with my laptop speakers and PC with a X-Fi soundcard and surround speakers.
    The audio in all Telltale's games sound absolutly fine on my laptop but I can hear the difference on my PC.

    I say have a normal download for each episode and an optional 'HQ Speech' pack for each game.
  • edited July 2009
    the_boo wrote: »
    Actually no, most game manufacturers now build their games in engines that can be quickly compiled for multiple consoles from one source. Telltale is really small and the window for getting these games out is extremely tiny. Episode 2 will be finished up just days before it's release, plus these guys don't have the resources of big companies like EA.

    It doesn't actually take long at all to convert another set from the MASTERS, trust me, I'm sure TellTale will have Masters of all their recorded work unless they wen't to the Idiot School of Sound Recording and even then, in the rare chance that TellTale are Idiots and they threw away the Masters, then at least music would still be backed up by Michael land as he'd have Master copies for his music before he sends a copy to TellTale to use for the game.

    It would take an Afternoon, Tops, to have the Masters and convert multiple bitrate versions for PC and Consoles. Then when that's done, simply pack each version in there required archive, so low bitrate versions go to the Wii archive and High Bitrate would go to the PC archive. If anything, what you say about TellTale working up to last minute means they have even more freedom for this compared to other Video Game companies where in most cases the All Sound and Music Production has to be done around 3 Months before release date so the coders can clean up the game and test, etc.
  • edited July 2009
    Come off it! The voice was fine, the textures I have no complaint about! MY GOSH! (I think you people have gotten too used to HD TVs, Blu-Ray, and Alienware computers, and quite frankly I'm sick and tired of it.)
  • edited July 2009
    thatdude98 wrote: »
    Come off it! The voice was fine, the textures I have no complaint about! MY GOSH! (I think you people have gotten too used to HD TVs, Blu-Ray, and Alienware computers, and quite frankly I'm sick and tired of it.)

    It's not our fault that we're a part of the technical evolution! :D
    Besides.. As said before, 97's CMI had much better sound quality, and back then we didn't own any HDTVs and/or BluRays..
    (At least I didn't.. =P)

    The textures though, I agree, is perfect the way they are! ;)
  • edited July 2009
    OCKi wrote: »
    Besides.. As said before, 97's CMI had much better sound quality,

    And still: It might have had higher bitrates but the quality of the recorded voice was worse.
    You can't take a bad quality file and make it better by increasing the bitrate. It's just not possible.
  • edited July 2009
    Are you saying that CMI's recorded voice are worse than ToMI's?
    Maybe me ears are failing me. I wish I could put up a comparization of some of the dialogue in both games.
  • edited July 2009
    What the Heck? I Didn't find anything wrong with the sound. Ergo, no need to increase the download size.
  • edited July 2009
    CMI's dialogue has a certain "soft raspy" quality to it if you listen closely, but it's not muddy or flat like modern over-compression.

    I've done a lot of high compression audio tests in the past, and there's usually a critical point where certain types of sources go from "acceptable" to "horrible". And compression levels that may work just fine for some types of audio (say simple piano music) would sound horrible for more complex stuff (say a pop song with vocals).

    The problem is TTG appears to be placing far too much importance on the exact size of audio, rather then realizing that it might only take a marginal improvement in bitrate to completely cure their audio problems (or at least our complaints of their audio), especially for certain types of voices that are problematic at the current "stock" compression level.
  • edited July 2009
    more megs is always a good thing
  • edited July 2009
    Although I didn't have any specific problems with LotSN, here are a few thoughts on the matter:

    1. I'm sure Telltale had file size targets for this (and any other) episode, aimed at finding the best solution for as much of the game's audience as possible. I wouldn't question their decision that this 190M size is the most satisfying overall - of course there can be individual members who would prefer something quite different, as it's seen in this thread.
    Adding to that, I'd also like to hear Telltale's opinion on the speech compression - specific for LotSN.

    2. Based on the above, the only question is that if it's worth the extra work to create HQ speech / texture / whatever packs, or simply different installers. For me, the only viable solution seems to be that there are two download packages, one at the best common denominator size (190M, in this case), and one at HQ size, probably close to 1G. However, no matter how easy it is to create the alternative resources, the QA activities related to the separate installer can be significant (not to mention supporting two different install bases), so it's definitely not a "yeah, why not do it?" decision.

    3. That said, I'd love to see a HQ version. I didn't have any specific problems with the Monkey Island game (I played it once only), but playing the Wallace and Gromit games for the second or third time around, it was quite obvious that some textures would look much better in higher quality (one such example is the Infiniflavour vehicle). I'm sure I'll spot such things in LotSN when I play it next. It wouldn't improve the game significantly - but it would improve it to some extent.
    And, yes, I'd pay a little extra for the much larger download sizes - but if there'll be no HQ version, then it'll also be OK.

    Just my 2c.
  • edited July 2009
    Completely agree. The quality is "good enough" for normal playing. It's not spectacular and you'll always find a few spots where you think "it could be better", but it's not a dealbreaker. Additional packages would be nice though. If only to stop the whining.
  • edited July 2009
    Fausk wrote: »
    Mind paying more for Telltale's bandwidth too?

    This is a weird argument considering i bought a 10 gigabyte game on steam the other week for 10 dollars.
  • edited July 2009
    Telltale's audio quality has been called out in a few reviews lately and given the amount of new fans ToMI will bring I'm sure they can't ignore it forever.

    To those who say people should stop complaining I say, great, I'm glad you're not cursed with adequate hearing, now leave us in peace so we can keep pointing out this obvious flaw until Telltale take notice :D
  • edited July 2009
    Maybe we could get a compromise: The download versions stay at their current size and the Collector's Disc contains higher quality textures and audio. I mean, we're talking about a file size increase of roughly 100%, so that would mean that a enhanced edition would take up about 2GB for the whole season, still leaving plenty of room for DVD video.
  • edited July 2009
    Maybe we could get a compromise: The download versions stay at their current size and the Collector's Disc contains higher quality textures and audio. I mean, we're talking about a file size increase of roughly 100%, so that would mean that a enhanced edition would take up about 2GB for the whole season, still leaving plenty of room for DVD video.

    We've been suggesting that since Sam and Max, maybe this time things will change?
Sign in to comment in this discussion.