Ghost Hunters: Majesty Manor

[rich1lenore]

OK, I feel slightly ridiculous coming here with a game like this, but I'm trying to track down a problem I'm having with it. It's a new hidden pictures game release from Aisle 5 Games, Inc. There are no in-game settings to play with other than music and one other I don't remember. I have a Radeon X1600 XT card with 512 Mb memory and latest drivers and CCC installed, Windows XP Home SP2, 1 Gig Ram. The problem is I keep getting checkerboard graphical corruption, usually on just part of a newly loaded screen (game loads different "rooms" to find objects in). This doesn't happen on every screen or even on every level. I seem to be the only one reporting a problem like this.
I would have thought that this card could handle a game like this, even if as the developer says they went with higher-end graphics while making this game. I can run Caesar IV with no problems and that's quite demanding. :confused:
I'm looking for any help I can get with this.
Thanks!

[CCT]

Interesting that you use the term 'checkerboard' - see here:

http://72.14.205.104/search?q=cache:UNbiX6AK_BgJ:www2.ati.com/relnotes/catalyst_63_release_notes.html+graphical+corruptio n+x1600&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=7&gl=ca


Note this entry: "Tiger Woods 2005 and 2006: Playing the game with CrossFire™ enabled no longer results in a checkerboard type corruption being noticed. Further details on this resolved issue can be found in topic number 737-21764"

[rich1lenore]

Yes, it really does look like a checkerboard across part of the screen, seldom the whole screen. If I save and go to the main game menu, then return to the game, the corruption disappears. I didn't think the 1600XT had Crossfire, it it does, I'm not seeing a setting for it in the CCC. I just can't figure out why it happens on just this game, which seems like it should be fairly easy for this card. Any suggestions?
Thanks!

[NooNoo]

Yes you need to update your catalysts to version 6.3 or above to fix it. CCT used a cached page to highlight your problem, since the AMD/ATI doesn't quite allow direct linking. select your driver here (http://ati.amd.com/support/driver.html)

[rich1lenore]

I have the latest version which I think is version 7.5. I've been reading that some XP users have been having problems with this latest version, so I'm thinking I should try rolling my drivers back to see if I get any improvement. Anything else I might try?

[NooNoo]

Any patches on the game site? Latest dx?

[rich1lenore]

No patches, game was just released about 2 weeks ago. I am the only one reporting this problem. Nothing about latest dx required. I have DX 9c. No options to change in-game settings. Really, this is a very simple game! It was set up in Visual C++ according to developer. I was reading about an optional AVIVO download that included a Visual C++ patch. Wondering what that could be about but couldn't find any details--it's an older download, and I'm not sure it even applies to my card although it did say it applies to X1000 series.

[NooNoo]

Sounds like you need to be contacting the developer - it may be you have a configuration that was never tested.

[slgrieb]

Aisle 5 Games has got to have the most sparse (OK, useless) site I ever saw! But, all the same, it might turn out that their support is very responsive. At least there is a "contact us" link for email.

It's always worth taking a look at the event viewer's application and system logs to see if they offer a clue, but I don't think I would get my hopes up too much. If Aisle 5 isn't very helpful, you can always try using msconfig to disable any non-essential programs loading at startup, then reboot and try the game again.

In this context "non-essential" would mean virtually everything running at startup except for software needed for your soundcard, and perhaps mouse and video.

[rich1lenore]

Thanks for the replies. Yes, Aisle 5 Games is brand new and Ghost Hunters is their first release, hopefully their site will improve over time. I have been in touch with the developer who has been interested in trying to track down any possible coding problems within the game. They even gave me a free coupon for the full version of the game.

I rolled back the drivers to when the card was first installed at the end of March. That had no effect and actually made The Sims 2 have problems, so I guess I'll roll them forward. The developer reported nothing like this had shown up in beta testing and nothing since the game's release. Oh well, back to the drawing board....:confused:

[CCT]

I came across this item about an X1900 -

"I noticed the guide said this:

# If your PSU cannot handle the x1900, you may notice any of the following symptoms before overclocking:

# Strange “artifacts” on the screen (checkerboard patterns, texture tearing) while gaming or running a 3D application
# System lockups/reboots while running a game or a 3D application"


Thus, check your voltages (run Everest free, call up Computer, Sensor, minimize it, run something that uses a chunk of graphics and cpu and then ctrl-alt-del out and look at the Everest display).

[slgrieb]

Hey, rich! Appreciate the feedback. Wow, sounds like a company that cares about their product! I wouldn't worry about the power supply issue. If you are running Caesar IV without problems, I just can't imagine that Majesty Manor is putting more stress on the system.

Still might be worth trying to shut off non-essential software and see what happens. Software conflicts cause some truly bizarre issues and are often difficult to track down except by process of elimination. Or, as we professionals refer to the procedure, "trial and error plus dumb luck."

[rich1lenore]

Hi, thanks for the suggestions. I put in a Silencer 470w PSU at the same time as the X1600. It peaks at 520w and ATI says the X1600 requires 300w or greater, so I think I'm good there.

I am still wondering about the drivers. I've heard they have been buggy since the 6.3 version, so I may try rolling back even further. I have noticed that the default graphics settings in Sims 2, the ones that show what your card can handle and turn things on/off as required, wants to keep my texture settings on High. But when entering the game, I get the same kind of checkerboarding of graphics on the neighborhood and lot screens. I have to turn the textures to Medium to make it go away. I would have thought this card could handle it, but then again I know Seasons exp. is very demanding and relies more on raw CPU power for its AI engine, and less on vid. cards than most 3D games.

Caesar IV does play beautifully with the latest drivers, so I'm torn about rolling them back to last year's set. I guess I'll go ahead and try it and see, and also shut down all nonessentials and see what happens.

Has anyone heard of the AVIVO optional download I mentioned earlier? I can't find a description for it because it's older. It says it's for X1000 series and higher cards (that's me right?) and looks like it includes a patch for Visual C++. I'm curious about that because Majesty Manor was coded in that as well.

I don't know of this is significant, but the corruption in Majesty Manor always occurs at the same place. I've restarted about 4-5 times, and it always begins at Level (Day) 2 in the Garage room. If this is a faulty driver(s) problem, would it be this consistent? Just wondering...

[slgrieb]

Silencer 470, eh? Well, there just aren't any better PSUs than PC Power and Cooling. If you only see the checkerboarding at a single, specific point in the game, my first thought would be a problem with the map. A corrupted download perhaps. I don't think a driver problem would cause this. Aisle 5 seems serious about their product, so have you given them this info?

[rich1lenore]

Thanks slgrieb. I actually just realized this about an hour ago while taking notes on the game as I played. The corruption starts at that single point, but then it varies. I actually went through 3 whole levels without anything going wrong, usually it had been one screen messed up every 1-2 levels. Then at the ending I went through multiple levels with nothing going wrong. Other than the starting point, I can't find the rhyme or reason behind the corruption. I did play the demo version from Real Arcade which showed the same problem, then tried the demo from Aisle 5--same problem from there also. I will pass the info on to them and see what they think.

[rich1lenore]

Got a reply back from the developer. The download file is compressed and there is a checker to make sure the files size before and after dl match up. If not, the installer doesn't run.
The game is now out on 5-6 other game sites, and they have had no other reports of the kind of problem I'm seeing. They are still convinced that the fault lies with the vid card and that I should have Dell replace it (it is only a month old). The replacement should be free, but if I get charged for shipping, the developer has offered to repay me for it--they are that convinced it's the card.

[NooNoo]

sounds like a plan!

[rich1lenore]

Well, in the meantime, Real Arcade wants me to try lowering my graphics accelerator so I'm off to the Manor again.

I have another question I could use some help with. I've been to the Dell website looking for updates that I might need that could have a bearing on all this. Under Systems and Peripherals it gives me a list of about 66 possible updates ranging from Urgent to Optional. Now I know not all of these will apply to my system, they're meant to cover all the configurations that possibly shipped with Dell Dimension 4700 systems.

My question is about an Intel graphics accelerator for the 915G chipset. This is what I have, I found it in the Device Manager. I'm assuming this has to do with the onboard video, NOT the Radeon x1600 XT. Is this correct? Is it on the motherboard? I'm not terribly familiar with some of these things Dell says I need. Do I actually need to update this chipset if the computer is using the Radeon? I cannot find anything in the description for this at the Intel sight saying don't use this with a 3rd party graphics card. Any help with this would be greatly appreciated. :)