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privateye

@privateye.bsky.social
100 followers 89 following 129 posts

Sega Saturn enjoyer // Pseudo Saturn Kai contributor // Sometimes ROM hacker // Video game player // Doggo lover // Detective Gumshoe appreciator segaxtreme.net/members/privateye.20…

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privateye @privateye.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
It might seem a bit weird but you could emulate Pseudo Saturn Kai and use its global cheat code functionality, I demonstrated that a while ago in the post below. If you're interested, I'll provide instructions on how to set it up. bsky.app/profile/priv...
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privateye @privateye.bsky.social · 23/08/2026
Thanks! You've made wonderful contributions to the definitive Saturn port of Policenauts, and it's nice for *me* to credit *you* in a project for once :) Pseudo Saturn Kai has my full attention now, no more patches until the next version is released. Let's do it! :D
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privateye @privateye.bsky.social · 10/08/2026
Heh, you'd think so with a name like that! SHOTPAC is where I placed the ASM routines for the shooting range hack, but all other changes were made to PROG.DPK Big thanks also for your Policenauts LP, you detailed when/how to trigger Dave/Meryl/Redwood's extra cutscenes -- very useful for testing!
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privateye @privateye.bsky.social · 10/08/2026
That concludes my Policenauts TED talk, huge thanks to @saturncafealpha.bsky.social, @vgfilducci.bsky.social and Snake128 who all made the patch possible. You guys rock! And shouts to sega-saturn.net for dumping the Crime Patrol prototype, be sure to check it out for that cheesy B-movie goodness :D
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privateye @privateye.bsky.social · 10/08/2026
Almost 17 years ago I played the English PS1 translation by @effinslowbeef.com and co, marvelling not only at the game itself but also at the high-quality translation and the technical chops to hack it in. It's a niche thing but, even so, I'm proud to contribute something of my own to Policenauts :)
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privateye @privateye.bsky.social · 10/08/2026
To preserve this effect, I rolled up my proverbial sleeves and added two small ASM routines that are jumped to at critical points in the code execution. This standard romhacking technique is something I learned when working on Death Crimson so I've got a new found appreciation for this grand kusogē!
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privateye @privateye.bsky.social · 10/08/2026
The last roadblock I encountered was the controller/mouse flash in the shooting range, as disabling it also removed the red flash that occurs when getting hit in Combat Mode. Sacrificing it wouldn't have been the end of the world but, still, I didn't want to concede this so close to the finish line.
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privateye @privateye.bsky.social · 10/08/2026
Contributor to the Saturn English translation @vgfilducci.bsky.social informed me that the DPK does indeed contain CRCs and, luckily for me, they had a tool developed by Snake128 (founder of SwitchCord Traducciones) to fix them. With the repaired DPK, the game booted fine and I was back in business!
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privateye @privateye.bsky.social · 10/08/2026
After the initial breakthrough, I applied the patched PROG.DPK file to the disc image, and... black screen at boot. I double-checked my alterations but then thought to myself, "The game must be performing an integrity check of the file, shit!" At this point, I was looking like old Johnny boy here.
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privateye @privateye.bsky.social · 10/08/2026
Keyword being "most" as certain scenes require their own hacks to disable the light gun flash, and that's also true for the flash triggered by controller/mouse; one hack covers most scenes while a few other scenes require separate hacks. These weren't difficult to make, just very time consuming.
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privateye @privateye.bsky.social · 10/08/2026
I mentioned this to @saturncafealpha.bsky.social who kindly offered to look at RAM dumps, which inspired me to do exactly that in the first shooting scene, and... success! By disabling certain writes to HWRAM in combination with another hack, the light gun flash was disabled in most scenes :)
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privateye @privateye.bsky.social · 10/08/2026
Gun calibration feature is a natural starting point when making these patches but, no matter what I tried, I couldn't disable the flash; at best, I could change it to black. I stubbornly spent so long there before trying to disable the flash elsewhere, as if forgetting that the actual game exists...
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privateye @privateye.bsky.social · 10/08/2026
It took me all of ten minutes to disable the flash in Crime Patrol whereas Policenauts was an absolute beast! I've played it three times (including one completion to test the patch) and the time spent on hacking easily surpassed the combined length of those three playthroughs. Why so long? Well...
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privateye @privateye.bsky.social · 10/08/2026
Patch links: Policenauts segaxtreme.net/resources/po... Crime Patrol segaxtreme.net/resources/cr...
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privateye @privateye.bsky.social · 10/08/2026
Released patches for Policenauts and Crime Patrol on Saturn that disable the flashes triggered by light guns, for the benefit of modern setups that don't require it for hit detection (e.g. MiSTer + GUN4IR or Sinden) And with that, my quest to remove flashes from Saturn light gun games is complete!
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privateye @privateye.bsky.social · 19/07/2026
Nice video! In case you weren't aware, Wans Zai has also made a PC/Xbox version of Virtua Fighter with 16:9 support www.youtube.com/watch?v=KXRP...
youtube.com
Virtua Fighter - Xbox Series X and PC - Available now!
YouTube video by Wans Zai
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privateye @privateye.bsky.social · 13/07/2026
Updated the Die Hard Trilogy patches to prevent the game from crashing at startup when a 1MB/4MB RAM cartridge is inserted, available here: segaxtreme.net/resources/di... Many thanks to tpunix for the fix 👍 github.com/tpunix/SAROO...
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privateye @privateye.bsky.social · 06/07/2026
True, and it gave me the opportunity to try the other mini-games too, some of which are shown in the video below. I asked @bbayles.bsky.social if there's a way to quickly access them but it doesn't seem like that's possible. A shame, it would have made for a good "Under the Microscope"
youtube.com
【セガサターン】だいすき♥
YouTube video by セガサターンニュース
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privateye @privateye.bsky.social · 06/07/2026
No, because I completely overlooked mouse support, oops! Thankfully the unlimited ammo code works with mouse too, I just checked that in Mednafen.
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privateye @privateye.bsky.social · 06/07/2026
Daisuki's shooting range mini-game is demonstrated at 2:12:50 in this video, I spent at least that long mindlessly skipping through text in order to access it. That's a lot of effort for an ultra-niche patch, but perhaps a die-hard Daisuki fan will appreciate it?! www.youtube.com/watch?v=NxPL...
youtube.com
Daisuki [だいすき♥] Game Sample - Sega Saturn
YouTube video by Vysethedetermined2
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privateye @privateye.bsky.social · 06/07/2026
Here's a neat Death Crimson longplay with insightful text commentary; if you want to passively experience Saturn's finest kusogē instead of suffering through it yourself, look no further! It also demonstrates how the game looks without the white flash (it's still a hot mess, just a bit less so ^^)
youtube.com
What's up with this shooting game?! | Death Crimson, All Stages, 1CC
YouTube video by Triple AAA
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privateye @privateye.bsky.social · 06/07/2026
Patch links: Death Crimson segaxtreme.net/resources/de... Daisuki segaxtreme.net/resources/da...
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privateye @privateye.bsky.social · 06/07/2026
Released patches for Death Crimson and Daisuki on Saturn that: * disable the white flash triggered by light guns, for the benefit of modern setups that don't require it for hit detection (e.g. MiSTer + GUN4IR or Sinden) * make other improvements to Death Crimson (if I didn't do that, who would?!)
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Reposted by privateye
Bekoha @bekoha.bsky.social · 20/06/2026
A successor website to redump.org from the same staff team just launched, featuring better registration and metadata submission processes and HTTPS in 2026 among other things #redump redump.info
A screenshot of current redump.info main page. Official announcement text partially reads: 

"As many of you are aware, there have been longstanding issues with the redump.org site infrastructure. Basic features such as HTTPS have been missing and the project staff have been unable to address this due to the site being tightly controlled by an inactive administrator.

This has become increasingly untenable over the course of the past year, with major site outages and issues causing real concern that data could be permanently lost. Staff have made multiple attempts over several years to contact the redump.org admin to ask for these issues to be addressed, but all of these efforts have been either rebuffed or outright ignored. We believe that the work done here at Redump is very important for long-term preservation of data, which has necessitated this shift to ensure the project is successful for many years to come.

As a result, this year we decided to take the initiative and move to a new site, giving us a more solid and modern codebase to work from, and a more collaborative governance structure ensuring that major site decisions cannot be locked behind the availability of any single member of the team.

[...]

The Redump staff would like to thank all of you for your patience as we've worked through this process, and over the past few years in dealing with the difficulties presented by the old site. We ask for your continued patience as we get up and running, as it will take everyone some time to get fully up to speed. In particular, for the moment we ask that you keep a note of any feature requests you might have. We will soon be announcing an official process for submitting these, and we have many ideas of our own, but for now our focus is on making this transition as seamless as possible."
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Tom, Legally Certified Date Simmelier @iiotenki.bsky.social · 20/06/2026
I've put this off long enough. Because one post on machine translation and the devaluation of human labor wasn't enough, I wrote even more words about it than before (2900, to be precise), this time from one former fan translator to another. Or at least, some of you out there.
dateemups.com
What's Not Yours Isn't Theirs, Either
On the disturbing rise of LLMs and machine translation post-editing in fan translations.
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privateye @privateye.bsky.social · 17/06/2026
👍 Adds support for the 3D Control Pad, available as a standalone patch if you just want that 👎 It's called SteamGear Ma𝘀𝗵 for a reason, but that's not conveyed by the AI translation Source: GameCenter CX #344, subtitles and translation by @locationscoutsgccx.bsky.social
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privateye @privateye.bsky.social · 11/06/2026
Can't stop, won't stop!
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privateye @privateye.bsky.social · 01/06/2026
Regarding Mighty Hits, thanks to @bbayles.bsky.social for publishing technical details about Master difficulty: 32bits.substack.com/p/under-the-... And thanks to YZB for their options menu fix that I tweaked a little bit: github.com/tpunix/SAROO...
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privateye @privateye.bsky.social · 01/06/2026
Patch links: Crypt Killer / Henry Explorers segaxtreme.net/resources/cr... Mighty Hits segaxtreme.net/resources/mi...
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privateye @privateye.bsky.social · 01/06/2026
Released patches for Crypt Killer and Mighty Hits on Saturn that disable the flashes triggered by all supported peripherals, for the benefit of modern setups that don't require it for hit detection (e.g. MiSTer + GUN4IR or Sinden) and controller/mouse users that don't require the flash on any setup
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privateye @privateye.bsky.social · 31/05/2026
Here's cafe-alpha's short blog post about the anniversary: ppcenter.webou.net/devblog/arti...
ppcenter.webou.net
10 Years ! - PPCenter :: devblog
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privateye @privateye.bsky.social · 31/05/2026
Happy 10th birthday to Pseudo Saturn Kai ! When I received the first test program for Rhea/Phoebe support way back in May 2018, little did I know how much the Saturn scene (and Kai along with it) would evolve... what a ride! Here's to another ten years, cheers @saturncafealpha.bsky.social 🍻
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privateye @privateye.bsky.social · 23/05/2026
It's available here - segaxtreme.net/threads/sega...
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privateye @privateye.bsky.social · 04/05/2026
Many thanks to Esppiral for the widescreen patches that he posted back in 2020 👍 segaxtreme.net/threads/scre...
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privateye @privateye.bsky.social · 04/05/2026
Patch links : Chaos Control segaxtreme.net/resources/ch... Die Hard Trilogy segaxtreme.net/resources/di...
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privateye @privateye.bsky.social · 04/05/2026
Released patches for Chaos Control and Die Hard Trilogy on Saturn that : * disable the white flash triggered by light-guns for the benefit of modern setups that don't require it for hit detection (e.g. MiSTer + GUN4IR or Sinden) * activate cheat menus and anamorphic widescreen in Die Hard Trilogy
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privateye @privateye.bsky.social · 11/04/2026
06004772 E206 (or 16004772 E206) is the correct code
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privateye @privateye.bsky.social · 05/04/2026
Many thanks to @bbayles.bsky.social for the debug menu code which made it very easy to test all of the light-gun sections in Mechanical Violator Hakaider :) x.com/memory_falle...
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privateye @privateye.bsky.social · 05/04/2026
Patch links : Mechanical Violator Hakaider segaxtreme.net/resources/me... Scud: The Disposable Assassin segaxtreme.net/resources/sc...
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privateye @privateye.bsky.social · 05/04/2026
Released patches for Mechanical Violator Hakaider and Scud The Disposable Assassin on Sega Saturn (Japan and USA-exclusive, respectively) that disable the white flash triggered by light-guns, for the benefit of modern setups that don't require it for hit detection (e.g. MiSTer + GUN4IR or Sinden)
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privateye @privateye.bsky.social · 07/03/2026
Released patches for Area 51 and Maximum Force on Saturn that disable the flash triggered by light-guns, for the benefit of modern setups that don't require it for hit detection (e.g. MiSTer + GUN4IR or Sinden) Area 51 - segaxtreme.net/resources/ar... Maximum Force - segaxtreme.net/resources/ma...
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privateye @privateye.bsky.social · 07/03/2026
Maybe in the future but, for now, I have other patches to release ^^
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privateye @privateye.bsky.social · 06/03/2026
Celeste Classic, the progenitor of the incredible 2D platformer Celeste, has been ported to Saturn by en83; it was previously playable in Ervilsoft's PICO-8 Emulator (albeit without music at a reduced frame rate) and now it can be enjoyed in all its 8-bit splendor :) en83.itch.io/celeste-clas...
en83.itch.io
Celeste Classic (Sega Saturn Port) by en83
Climb Celeste Mountain on a Sega Saturn or in a compatible emulator.
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privateye @privateye.bsky.social · 01/03/2026
Vermillion Desserts dropped an English translation for Lupin's 3D escapade on Saturn! It doesn't come with a readme so those unfamiliar with the SSP format should check the "Sega Saturn Patcher" section at the bottom of this page for patch instructions : www.segasaturnshiro.com/saturn-commu...
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John Linneman @dark1x.bsky.social · 27/02/2026
Hey everyone, the legendary M2 has arrived here on Bsky - show them some love and follow! みなさん、あの伝説のM2がついにBlueskyに登場しました!ぜひフォローして応援しましょう!! @mtwo-game.bsky.social
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Reposted by privateye
retroraiderjohn.bsky.social @retroraiderjohn.bsky.social · 27/02/2026
My first demo of Tomb Raider 2 for the Sega Saturn is out! You can watch the launch trailer here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=HOrM...
youtube.com
[Saturn] Tomb Raider II: The Great Wall - Demo #1 Launch Trailer
YouTube video by JRTombRaider
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privateye @privateye.bsky.social · 20/02/2026
RetroArch and MiSTer can display cursors, here's a demonstration on the latter - youtu.be/cVw7ApFUILk?...
youtu.be
Using the Sinden Light Gun with Mister FPGA
YouTube video by Joel Explores Tech
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privateye @privateye.bsky.social · 20/02/2026
Start: Cycles through Stage -> Blood -> Lives -> Start Game Trigger : * Cycles through the available settings on the selected option. * Starts the game when pulled on "Start Game"
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privateye @privateye.bsky.social · 19/02/2026
Yep!
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privateye @privateye.bsky.social · 17/02/2026
Thankfully, no patch is needed : 1. Set game to Arcade / TATE mode. 2. Return to the title screen. 3. When it says "PRESS 1P OR 2P START BUTTON", press left on the d-pad and then press Start. 4. Set ROTATE to OFF. Once done, this setting will be saved to the Saturn's internal memory.
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