PS3 is region-free, but there's a hi-def catch

by Ross Miller { May 7th 2007 at 5:15PM }

Though the PlayStation 3 is not locked by any particular region, meaning a Japanese PS3 should play European titles, there is one caveat as far as technology is concerned.

Jem Alexander, a new writer for Joystiq sister PS3 Fanboy and the owner of a US PS3 living in Europe, recently picked up a European copy of F.E.A.R. only to get a discouraging message: "This game not supported (80028F10)." You don't need to be fluent in hexdecimal (and if not, why are you wearing those t-shirts, hm?) to feel confusion and resentment towards the supposedly region-free console.

The problem is much less sinister. North America and Japan use NTSC television standards, or 480i, while Europe uses PAL standards, or 576i. Hence, the US PS3 isn't configured to handle the extra 96 lines of imaging. (You might remember a similar problem being noted with European Genesis releases for the Wii Virtual Console.) The solution is simple but costly: all PS3 titles support 720p, so buy an HDTV set.

[Via PS3 Fanboy]

Tags: europe, ntsc, pal, region, sony

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

CakeOrDeath @ May 7th 2007 5:22PM

You're really not getting your moneys worth out of a PS3 if you don't own a HDTV anyway.

Buckshot @ May 7th 2007 5:27PM

You probably should already have a hd set at least for a modern standard of living, if not for next gen video and gameplay.

sheppy @ May 7th 2007 5:29PM

Not for $600 frackin dollars, you aren't. Fortunately, when PS3 was announced, I started saving money in tiny increments so even as March came about and PS3 was delayed, I had about $1000 to throw at an HDTV set (which benefited my 360 experience greatly) and by the time the console actually launched, I saved up another $1200. Which helped my sudden urge for a Wii...

It should also be noted, I do console launches proper. Provided the software is out there, I usually grab the console with about 6 games. Sadly, only Wii fit that profile out of the past three launches. PSP was a great launch too.

hegemonyhog @ May 7th 2007 5:35PM

"You probably should already have a hd set at least for a modern standard of living, if not for next gen video and gameplay."

Rage rising...rising...

Rubang B @ May 7th 2007 5:37PM

Modern standard of living?!? Why I oughtta strangle you you early adopting technophile sack of.......

syco @ May 7th 2007 5:42PM

I'm kinda shocked anyone would by a PS3, but wouldn't have a HDTV. The PS3 is a sort of thing people purchase to justify their HDTV's existence. It's not exactly a compelling purchase for normal people with normal budgets and normal TVs.

samfish @ May 7th 2007 5:44PM

Get with the times, you technological Luddites! Anyone who doesn't own an HD television set CLEARLY must live in a BARN and be incredibly poor or of, otherwise, LOWER class persuasion.
Peasants, all of you!

sheppy @ May 7th 2007 5:52PM

HD isn't exactly new anymore. So I don't see how "early adopter" is an insult, or even valid nowadays. Also, who besides technophiles, OWN a PS3 right now?

Phranctoast @ May 7th 2007 5:55PM

I completely agree samfish. well said.

Dov @ May 7th 2007 5:56PM

Early adopting? HD's been around almost 10 years now - adopting Blu-ray (which I have) or HD DVD? Fine, early. HDTV? No way.

gregory mitchell @ May 7th 2007 6:03PM

Being the 360 fan i am. even im like DUUUUHHHH. IF you've been on earth more than 10years you should know that europe uses the PAL system. Your a dumbass for getting caught off guard. This isnt a pS3 setback. had you had USA TV it work. This is a TV situation not a PS3 not doing what it said i would

Grog @ May 7th 2007 6:04PM

HD is still far from mainstream. You can't call something "a modern standard of living" when the format hasn't been modernized (720p, 1080i, 1080p?), when the majority of people don't own one, and when the vast majority of broadcasts are still not compatible.

paulcardo @ May 7th 2007 6:11PM

I think you're right samfish, and HD it's not everything

Erick @ May 7th 2007 6:11PM

I picked up a PS3 and I'm still playing it on standard def. For me it honestly came down to standard WiFi, hard disk size, and backwards compatability. I didn't want to run CAT5 all around the House, I like downloading large demos / storing music on it, and I've got some old school PS2 games that I love playing with my friends (NBA HOOPZ for real!)...

Not that I need to justify my purchase to any fan-boys out there

As pointed out in the post the real issue here is the difference in resolution between standard def (i.e. non HD) TVs in the US and Europe. My understanding is that this is not a software issue (i.e. there is no region coding on the disk). It's the issue of a US / Japanese PS3 not outputting the signal on the disk.

Something doesn't add up here... seems like F.U.D.

Is this guy playing his US PS3 on a European television? If that's the case than I would assume he would have ran across this issue in other games or he would be unable to even view his PS#... is this isolated to F.E.A.R.?

If he's playing his US PS3 on a US TV in europe than the solution is to either buy the US version of the game or a standard DEF European TV.

Bottom line, the final answer doesn't have to be "Buy an HD TV"

Laurens Holst @ May 7th 2007 6:19PM

Most PAL TVs can play 480i just fine, if they’re connected with a SCART RGB connector (which is pretty much the standard here in Europe).

There is no technical reason why Sony could not just play 480i if 576i is not supported by the game.

~Grauw

Vegan @ May 7th 2007 6:24PM

"You probably should already have a hd set at least for a modern standard of living..."

Wow, someone needs a reality check.

Toolio @ May 7th 2007 6:27PM

Ross,

Wow. You've done a man's job, sir. When I read the poorly written, inflammatory post by Jem Alexander on PS3 Fanboy, I rolled my eyes.

Points of Jem's ignorance:
1. Was not aware that NTSC and PAL standard-definition TV systems are generally incompatible and have been for...oh let's see now...forever. There are exceptions (SCART), but many PAL TV's do not support NTSC.
2. NTSC supports 480i/p, Jem, not 420.
3. The country code for Japan is "JPN." "JAP" is the racist code for Japan.
4. Jem complains that FEAR is "fast becoming the most expensive game I've ever bought." That price is going to seem a whole lot steeper when he finds out how hard the game blows.

Thanks for setting the record straight, reporting on this "problem" in a level-headed, informed manner.

You just may have single-handedly restored my faith in Joystiq.

Toolio

ps - I still found the title of your post a little typically Joystic flamebait. I would suggest an alternate, clearer title, perhaps:
"Clueless PS3 Fanboy Writer Lucky That Shitty Game Won't Work, Yet Still Unsatisfied"

Joshua @ May 7th 2007 6:39PM

Why the crap would he have a PS3 without an HDTV?

dave @ May 7th 2007 6:56PM

I believe it is up to the developer what formats the disc title will support. A game title could pass Sony certification in PAL regions without providing NTSC display modes. But it is also possible for them to support both display modes. So why wouldn't they support both? It could be that the game requires extra testing for both modes, and hence a larger chance of failing certification. A bigger argument on Previous Gen games (PS2, etc.) was that there may not be enough disc space to provide assets (movies, animation, etc.) for both NTSC, and PAL regions. That's not likely a good argument with Blu-ray however. But many European TV's (non HD) support both PAL and NTSC, so some European PS2 games supported both modes. So there is no reason the PS3 titles can't support both, it just may not be required for certification in Europe.

Nimrod @ May 7th 2007 7:53PM

If only the PS3 had a scaler... like a certain other next gen console released a year before it.

Then all the games can be rendered in 720p, then simply scaled and outputted to the resolution choice of the user. Be it 480i, 576i, or even 1080p.

laserboyjc @ May 7th 2007 7:57PM

I just want to say thanks for the link to the t-shirt store in the article...there are actually some nifty video game inspired designs on there

RUSKULL @ May 7th 2007 8:06PM

seriously, who pays full price for a PS3 only to enjoy half of the experience?

RUSKULL @ May 7th 2007 8:07PM

...meaning that without HD, they're missing out on a lot of what they paid for.

atomicstrawberry @ May 7th 2007 8:22PM

PS3 isn't region free. It's up to the publisher to decide, just as it is with the X360. Sony have said that their first party games won't be regioned, but that won't stop other publishers from regioning.

serotoninzero @ May 7th 2007 8:24PM

This seems obvious. Doesn't this seem obvious? This is obvious.

Tom Hayden @ May 7th 2007 9:52PM

First of all a decent hdtv set can be had for a couple hundred bucks these days (in the US at least, I do know that things tend to be unreasonably expensive across the pond). On top of that, wtf is Jem Alexander doing writing for PS3 fanboy and getting surprised by something that is easily discoverable with about 3 seconds worth of research on the interwebs, not to mention well known and obvious to anyone with even a modicum of experience in buying/trying to play out of region content?

mike @ May 7th 2007 10:02PM

for those claiming HDTV is the standard, your clearly the idiots. Think about this: Most people buy a new tv every 10 years. Assuming you bought a tv just 3 years ago, you still would not have HD unless you spent the big bucks. Yes, 95% of new tvs sold today are HDTV, but people dont replace their old tvs everyday. I personally am buying a new tv (old one is 6 years old) and its of course gonna be HD. But dont expect everyone to have HD for another 7+ years. Like I said, people who just bought a new set a few years back, have a long ways to go untill they grab a new hd one. TVs are expensive items, not like a dvd player. People wont upgrade just for the hell of it (well some will like me), but most will burn their old sets into the ground before they are forced to upgrade.

Grog @ May 7th 2007 10:04PM

Please define "decent hdtv" and "couple hundred bucks" for me. I went TV shopping about 6 months ago and ended up settling on a 32" Sony SDTV. In the same price range I could have gotten a no-name 25"-ish LCD HD, and that was for more than a couple hundred bucks. Unless you're willing to put down $800-1000, decent HDTVs are still not worth considering. Hopefully they will be in five years or so, when my wife and I are ready to move the Sony into a bedroom and shop for a new one.

Aex @ May 7th 2007 10:35PM

@Grog

Now you can get a decent HDTV for $500-$600, depending on the offer. Just takes some research. But why would you spend $300-$400 on a SDTV, when in a few years you'll probably end up spending double++ that on a HDTV? Personally I'd rather just save up $1800 and score myself a 57" 1080p Mitsubishi, that way I wouldn't have to replace my TV for the next 10+ years.

Tom @ May 7th 2007 11:09PM

@Grog (and all the other naysayers):

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824160141R

$235 HDTV (17 inch)

----------------------

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16889160003

$279 HDTV (20 inch)

---------------------

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824232002

$349 HDTV (26 inch)

---------------------
Once you know, you Newegg.

batareikin @ May 7th 2007 11:49PM

I'm from Moscow, Russia, got US PS3, but I use both US and Euro versions of the games. I don't have HDTV (happy with my 25" 100 Hz go-go box). I had no problems whatsoever.

duffman @ May 8th 2007 12:02AM

It's not region-free, per se.

The only thing Sony did was give the same region-code to Japan and the US, while associating the UK with AU, I believe.

Try throwing in a JPN game, and it SHOULD work fine.

Good find though, because now I won't be downloading anything from the EU PS Store until I get my HDTV >_

syco @ May 8th 2007 12:41AM

Those may be the sketchiest looking TV's I've ever seen.

Also, all HDTV sizes are measured horizontally, and they're widescreen, so a 26" HDTV is much smaller than a 26" SDTV. Keep that in mind.

Every TV there, you can get an equally sketchy, larger TV for half the money if it's an SDTV.

HDTV will not be mainstream, by any measure, for at LEAST another 10 years, if not 20.

Tim @ May 8th 2007 12:55AM

I have a very cheapo TV that only has composite video and mono sound, and yet it has the option of working with both PAL or NTSC. What's up with that guy's TV?

Tom @ May 8th 2007 1:25AM

"all HDTV sizes are measured horizontally"

Ummm, no actually they're not. Where did you get that idea? I have a 32" HDTV, advertised as a 32" HDTV, and guess what? It's actually 32" measured diagonally.

"HDTV will not be mainstream, by any measure, for at LEAST another 10 years"

Wrong. As of 2006, 30% of households have atleast 1 HDTV. At this rate, 55% of households will have HDTV by 2008.

"Those may be the sketchiest looking TV's I've ever seen"

That's your opinion. I'm stating facts because others seem to think there are no cheap HDTVs. Sketchy or not, they DO exist.

"you can get an equally sketchy, larger [SDTV]"

True, but you wouldn't be able to play your European PS3 games on your American PS3. That's the point. Seriously, are you even paying attention?

Burnt Meatloaf @ May 8th 2007 6:45AM

Is it really that hard and expensive to make a composite box that can handle both NTSC and PAL? My Amiga can do that for crying out loud, and that machine is 20 years old!

My A1200 did cost me more than $600, though. It cost a whopping $650. :)

Fred @ May 11th 2007 11:06AM

Hi

I have a Japanese PS3 problem is it doesn't seem to play UK DVDS and UK ps3 games (or is it just me), what i would like to kno wis it backwards compatible with PS2 games?

Cheers

Fred @ May 11th 2007 11:07AM

sorry and also what would i have to do to play UK games and do ps3s play copied games

a @ May 18th 2007 11:51AM

list of affected games so far:

http://preview.tinyurl.com/2wd7as

please help to expand the list.
thanks.

Christopher @ May 23rd 2007 7:36AM

Think about this: Most people buy a new tv every 10 years.

yeah maybe that was true a long time ago. i bought my tv last year and im planning on changing it in less then 2yrs. why? cause it doesnt make much sense not to. most people nowadays have more then 1 tv in the house and they are chagned quite frequently. so yeah most people who dont have hdtv's its cause they dont want one/ dont know about it/ think its too expensive ( a good hdtv 42" would cost around 700bucks nowadays)

Christopher @ May 23rd 2007 7:51AM

37. Hi

I have a Japanese PS3 problem is it doesn't seem to play UK DVDS and UK ps3 games (or is it just me), what i would like to kno wis it backwards compatible with PS2 games?

Cheers

It wont play uk dvd's cause ofthe region difference. just buy second hand american or japanese ps2 games if youre that desperate or wait for a crack if one will come out ( a crack/hack/patch has been talked about for the past 6 months and nothing close has come out) as regards ps3 games it should play them nornmally. i just bought 2 games from the uk... oblivion and marvel. my ps3 is from japan ( 60gig) and i live in luxembourg. So as regards your ps2 titles well you have to wait for a crack :)