anyone played Dreamfall on a below spec machine?

[fov]

I *really* want to play Dreamfall. I have been wanting to since it came out but making myself wait until I get a new computer. Doesn't look like I'll be doing that anytime soon, and the price has dropped to $30, and just now at CompUSA I had a very hard time restraining myself. :frown:

Has anyone played Dreamfall with a 64MB video card? I meet all the other specs (barely). I know it'll look like crap; I just want to know if it'll work (or have a reasonable idea that it will) before I buy.

[maladroid]

Well, I don't know if that counts for anything, but an adventure reviewer of a quite respectable greek gaming magazine ("PC Master"), claimed that he managed to run Dreamfall in a machine with Matrox Parhelia (64Mb video RAM) and Windows XP SP1.

Sounds pretty reassuring but it is your money at stake here :frown:.

[fov]

Thanks, that's good to know. I actually asked Ragnar about it at GDC and he said he thought it would run okay, so I guess that should be reassurance enough...

[ski]

yep, worked perfectly for me
and i can't even get bs4 demo to run properly...

[samIamsad]

Careful, it would also depend on the chip, me thinks.

AMD Athlon XP 1800+
1.54 GHz
512 of RAM
NVIDIA GeForce2 MX/MX 400
Latest drivers installed
DirectX 9.0c installed and working (double checked)

All I get is a "Failed to initialize Direct3D" error when I try to run the game.


To which somebody responded:

You need atleast a videocard that can run directx 8.1 fully.

http://forums.longestjourney.com/showthread.php?t=2051&page=2


Not sure if 'tis true, though. But if it is, a Geforce 2 and below won't cut it, no matter how much video RAM. This might include the Geforce 4 MX (not ti!) series as well, since it doesn't support all of that Directx 8.1 shader stuff as well. Geforce 3 cards do, though. Confusing, ain't it? :D

[Luke]

Emily,

I guess it would depend on whether the game actually needs 128 megs of video RAM to load all the textures, or if that requirement is merely the minimum to ensure the game runs with a smooth framerate and such. I've gotten a few games to run on below-spec machines, the major one I can think of--sort of--being the MI4 demo. This was on the computer I had two systems before my current one. It was a 475 MHz K6-2 with 128 megs RAM and 8 megs video. The demo ran, albeit choppily, so I thought the full game would too. Nope. Luckily, 3dfx had just gone belly-up and all the stores were having closeouts on their cards. I got a 16 meg Voodoo3 and everything worked fine.

So, it might run, or it might not, depending on what the game actually uses your video memory for, but if Ragnar Tornquist told you it would, well, I can't think of any better person to know one way or the other. ;)

Keep us posted. I've always been a little leery of system requirements; more often than not they're "general minimums" rather than "absolutes."

EDIT: Sam is right; I would think your card's chip would matter more in this case, given Ragnar's saying the game would run.

[fov]

Hmm... I think the GeForce2 MX/MX 400 is what I have. :(

I'm confused, though... it's possible for a card to run DirectX9.0c (which is what I have) but not to run DirectX8.1?

EDIT: Thanks for the link, Sam. I haven't read the whole thread but I wonder if the "Cannot initialize Direct 3D" error that guy is getting is related to his drivers (which he says are the newest ones). When I was playing Indigo Prophecy, I had older drivers and it worked fine. I upgraded to the newest drivers for some reason I can't remember (probably to try to get another game working) and suddenly Indigo Prophecy started throwing that error when I tried to launch it. I couldn't get the Direct 3D tests to run in my video card properties either. It was almost as if the new drivers had downgraded what my card was able to do. I rolled back to the older drivers I had been using, and was able to run Indigo Prophecy and do the Direct 3D tests again without trouble.

I might end up getting the game. If it doesn't work I'll be sad, but maybe that'll be incentive to get a new computer. :D

[Burns11]

The key word is "fully", directx is backwards compatable but impliments new features that your card isn't necissarily able to do.

[rtrooney]

I might end up getting the game. If it doesn't work I'll be sad, but maybe that'll be incentive to get a new computer. :DThere was a site posted here not terribly long ago that supposedly was able to check your system to see whether a game could be reliably played on it. If somebody remembers the link, and can repost, it might be something worth looking at.

[Melanie68]

Emily - can you write it off as a business expense, play it on an upgraded computer at work and say you're doing research?


:)

[fov]

Yes, but that would involve coming in on the weekend. :(

I'd rather play at home in my pajamas. :D

Doug is going to lend me his copy so I can see if it works before I buy my own.

[Roman5]

My specs aren't anything special, athlon 2000+, ati 9800 pro ( 128mb) and 768mb ram. Yes dreamfall ran well but tbh, I think it would have worked fine on a 64mb card. When I play games that really are graphics intensive such as quake4, doom3, prey, etc, my specs are very weak, neverthless, they run fine even on high quality settings, and the only thing that happens is framerate drops here and there. I dunno, I'm guessing, but I would imagine the worst you'd get with dreamfall is some slowdown perhaps. At any rate, you could pick up a graphics card like mine ( which is an old one now ) for a pretty cheap price.

[samIamsad]

Doug is going to lend me his copy so I can see if it works before I buy my own.

That's nice of him. :) Best thing you could do, too.. Like Burns11 said, older cards can of course run newer Directx versions, but they don't support all the nice new features. Like all those nifty pixel and vertex shaders. The stuff that made me drop my pants to run out on the streets singing Halleluja once I switched to a card that supports them when playing Morrowind (http://riddle.pl/blog/images/morrowind-water.jpg) some years ago. (Oh me gosh the water looks so real now!! (http://www.force-temple.com/images/articles/water.jpg)) :D :9~

The system requirements sheet of Dreamfall lists cards that all have shader 2.0 support, but apparently the game runs on cards with shader 1.0 support just as well. Geforce3 and up, and the Ati equivalents to that.

[EagleFlyFree]

If you look at the specs at Funcom's Online Shop (https://funcom.asknet.com/cgi-bin/show/P14706/ml=EN), they state 64MB + DirectX8 as minimum.

I played Dreamfall with a 64MB DirectX8.1 laptop card (Nvidia Quadro4 700 Go GL (http://www.nvidia.com/page/quadro4gogl.html)), and though a little choppy in a few scenes, the game looked and ran fine.

[Tramboi]

Of course I probably will get flamed for this but if no demo is available, and nobody can easily lend it to you, why not downloading the game illegally, test it, then buy it if it works.
Moreover even if a demo exists, the game has been patched, so you'd better test the final version.
Or buy it in a shop, test it, then return it if you have trouble.

Moreover, as a 3D engine developer, I can ensure you that often, the developers themselves don't know really what is the lamest config the game will support, and it's up to the publisher's QA to determine this :)

[aries323]

HI :)

Instead of doing something [censored], you could rent it.

This place lets you rent Dreamfall:


http://www.screenselect.co.uk/visitor/product/70219-Dreamfall-The-Longest-Journey.html

aries323

[fov]

Well, I just installed the copy Doug leant me, and it didn't work. I got the same error the GeForce2 user on Funcom's forums had.

I'm very sad. :frown: (But at least I'm not $30 poorer!)

[bysmitty]

What are the specs of your compy? Something like this (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814102687) will allow you to play all current gen games at decent levels for a minimum investment. A few extra dollars for something like (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814150190) this will get you in even better shape.

...bysmitty

[fov]

Yeah, that's an idea. The computer is almost five years old so it wouldn't kill me to replace it, which is why I've held off on just swapping the video card. It's only recently that the video card has become a problem... it's served me very well until now. :)

The other specs are 1.7GHz P4 processor, 40gig hard drive (which is often almost full), and 512MB RAM.

[littleguybrush]

What nvidia driver version do you use?
I had to go back to version 83.xx (or was it lower ?) before I could play the game. Everything higher didn't work.

If that doesn't help create a slide show with some dreamfall pictures. The same thing as playing the real game with an old graphic card.:P

[fov]

The driver I have installed is even older than that... 52.16.

Do you have a Geforce 2? If you could tell me exactly which driver you're using that worked with Dreamfall, I'll try it.

[bysmitty]

Hmmm, yeah a 1.7 p4 can scrap by for now but you won't get too much more life out of it. I wouldn't bother upgrading your current rig. Ping me when you a ready to replace it. I'll make sure you get the best bang for your buck. Also, if you are intersted, I design and build custom gaming machines. You pay for parts and shipping and I do the rest. I can work with any budget $300 and up.

...bysmitty

[mjade19]

I had to buy a whole new graphics card to play Dreamfall. I had a Geforce MX 400 orginally and it wouldn't play. Then I bought a 6600 LE and it would load but as soon as the game started I got snow. Turns out you have to load older drivers to get it to work. So if you do invest in a new graphics card, be very careful which one you get.

[Rodarbal]

Ah. All requirements are met except for the graphics card. What is a good, cheap graphics card that can run this (and hopefully broken sword 4) without any lagging issues? I'm looking into the ATI Radeon 9700 and ATI X300/700 at the moment, but these seem to have mixed reviews amongst gamers and I'm wondering if there might be something better. What graphics card does everyone here use to run Dreamfall, and what would you recommend?

[littleguybrush]

Can't check nvidia drivers at the moment since I'm not at home.
My card is a 6600GT but I had the same error like you.
With some nvidia driver versions I had a initialize Direct 3D error, with
other versions the snow error Mjade tells about.

Make sure you have a clean directx 9.0C install
There are programs on the net to help uninstall older directx versions
Of course there is always the chance your graphic card is just to old.

[undeaf]

You could check if anyone you know has a video card which they'd like to replace, or, even better, a spare one. Also, I hear lots of stories of usable computers being thrown away, ones with easily salvageable and useful parts, particularly ram; that could aleviate slowness a bit.

[BuGz]

I'm thinking a Nvidia FX5800 / 6600 with 128MB RAM would be a good starting point. But a 6600GT would be great for both Dreamfall and BS4.

[bysmitty]

…bysmitty’s condensed video card recommendations broken down by interface. All of these cards will handle any current game out there. The more you spend the better the performance and the more life you will get out of the card.

If you don't know what interface your computer has, download CPUz (http://www.cpuid.com/cpuz.php) and run it. Once open, switch to the 'mainboard' tab then look towards the bottom at the Graphic Interface 'version' field.

AGP (most computer two years old or older)
Budget: Sapphire Radeon x1300 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814102687) - $75.99
Low Mid: Leadtek Geforce 7600gs (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814122011) - $132.99
Above: Don't pay more than $150 for an AGP card.

PCIe (most computer two years old or newer)
Budget: 3D Fuzion Geforce 7600gs (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814143054) - $88.88
Low Mid: XFX Geforce 7600gt (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814150186) - $139.99
High Mid: Sapphire Radeon x1900xt (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814102051) - $239.99
Above: Post here (http://forums.adventuregamers.com/showthread.php?t=16615&highlight=bysmitty) if interested in the $300+ range.

If you have any questions or need upgrade assistance, ask away here (http://forums.adventuregamers.com/showthread.php?t=16615&highlight=bysmitty).

...bysmitty

[Melanie68]

I played Dreamfall (smoothly) on my laptop with 512MB RAM and a 128MB ATI Mobility Radeon X600. I also have a fast processor (Intel Pentium 4, 2.8 GHz).

I couldn't get the BS4 demo to work because of the Direct X issue (that I haven't bothered to fix yet).

[undeaf]

Above: Don't pay more than $150 for an AGP card.
That's quite a bit of a blanket statement, what if you have, say, an athlon 64 4000 with lots of ram?

[undeaf]

I'm thinking a Nvidia FX5800 / 6600 with 128MB RAM would be a good starting point. But a 6600GT would be great for both Dreamfall and BS4.
I'd be very careful about with high end geforce 5*00 series cards, they tend to sound like vacuum cleaners, and also could be a problem for the power supply.

[bysmitty]

That's quite a bit of a blanket statement, what if you have, say, an athlon 64 4000 with lots of ram?
Then I would recommend buying a socket 939 motherboard with PCIe and a PCIe vid card. You can get an excellent socket 939 motherboard for only around $50 now a days. AGP cards are overpriced for their performance and won't be compatible with future system overhauls. I don't mind recommending cheap AGP cards to get someone by until they can pony up for a new system or at least new guts but a $300 7800gs won't take you anywhere near as far as a $300 x1900xtx. There is just no comparison.

I'd be very careful about with high end geforce 5*00 series cards, they tend to sound like vacuum cleaners, and also could be a problem for the power supply.
Aye. Also, their shader 2 support is atrocious. A 6600gt isn't bad but for a few extra dollars you can get a smokin' 7600gs/gt. You won't get near the mileage out of a last gen card as you will out of a current gen card.

...bysmitty

[undeaf]

Okay, but the 533 mhz ram on the card you suggested seems like a bit of a handicap, for just a bit more there's one with 800 mhz ram (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814122011). Also, there's an agp 7600gt (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814122009) out. What do you think of those?

[bysmitty]

Okay, but the 533 mhz ram on the card you suggested seems like a bit of a handicap, for just a bit more there's one with 800 mhz ram (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814122011). Also, there's an agp 7600gt (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814122009) out. What do you think of those?
Good call on the Leadtek 7600gs. That speed bump would be worth the extra few $. I'll change the recommendation above. That AGP 7600gt is a bit of an oddity. It is basically just a reference design 7600gs pushed to the edge. I'm not sure what exactly qualified it for the 'gt' moniker but it looks to be a pretty good performer. A review can be foundhere (http://www.hardwarezone.com/articles/view.php?cid=3&id=2031). It looks like a solid card but I'm not sure on availability and price. NewEgg is out of stock and has it listed at a pretty hefty $175. Without benchmarks comparing it directly to a 7600gs, I can't say one way or another.

...bysmitty

[Rodarbal]

Geforce 7600 does look good but is a bit on the expensive side for me. I'm looking into very cheap cards around the £40-£60 range. Would an ATI X300 or X700 be a good card that is capable of running games like Dreamfall and Broken Sword 4? Thanks for the recommendations so far.

[grazzt]

Doesnt dreamfall need some level of pixel shaders or other hardware based crap only found in "newer" video cards?

I think there is software called 3danalyzer that can emulate the hardware to fool the software.

Might work, might not, probably worth giving a try though.

[bysmitty]

Geforce 7600 does look good but is a bit on the expensive side for me. I'm looking into very cheap cards around the £40-£60 range. Would an ATI X300 or X700 be a good card that is capable of running games like Dreamfall and Broken Sword 4? Thanks for the recommendations so far.
I would still steer away from last gen cards like those. A lower end current gen will usually out perform a mid range last gen card. If you are stuck with AGP, something like this card (http://www.ebuyer.com/UK/product/105565) should hold you over until a system upgrade. If you can use a PCIe card, this one (http://www.ebuyer.com/UK/product/111193) will perform much better for nearly the same price.

...bysmitty

[samIamsad]

Might work, might not, probably worth giving a try though.


Probably. I'm not familiar with 3danalyzer. The thing is, does Dreamfall have an option to choose 16bit rendering instead of 32? Most modern games don't have that anymore. 32bit has sort of become the default color depth. The memory bandwith of Geforce 2MX cards is pretty low and their performance in 32bit is lacking, to say the least. I sold mine half a year after I bought it because of that and bought a "real" Geforce2 card (GTS, Pro, Ultra) for cheap back then. And that was in 2001, playing 2001 games...

edit: For anyone interested, this site (http://www.pc-erfahrung.de/Grafikrangliste.php) lists *all* 3d cards by their sheer rendering power/speed and that alone. You'll notice some weird stuff, such as the GeforceFX5200, that performs much slower than older GF4ti or even GF3 cards, despite belonging to the "newer" Geforce5 series. Same goes for the Geforc4 MX series that doesn't perform any better than a normal Geforce2 card. This is because manufacturers usually release "budget" cards of each new series that don't perform as well as the rest. And these cards belong to that budget category.

[fov]

I'm glad we've started talking video cards, because I had some questions when I was looking at the Dell website the other day (after not being able to get Dreamfall to run).

I'll be back with a few questions of my own after I give Dell's options another look.

[bysmitty]

Good luck Fov. Post back with any questions. I will say though that I am very unimpressed with Dell's selection and prices when it comes to graphics cards.

...bysmitty