VI. Troubleshooting
Multiplayer Questions
Q: My buddy set up a multiplayer game a while ago and people are still playing in it, but I can't see it when I join the Lobby. What's going on?
A: If the Host (your buddy) set up the game, played a while and then quit, then even though other people are still playing, you won't be able to see the game anymore. In other words, if the Host quits, no one else can join the game...even though anyone else in the game can continue playing.
Q: When playing a multiplayer game, I sometimes see other players locked into a frozen position and they can't be killed. Sometimes they are even constantly firing at nothing. After a while, they seem to disappear. What is this?
A: We call them "ghosts". They are caused when a player disconnects abruptly (loss of connection, power failure, or system crash). Our software tries to reconnect with them for 40 seconds, and during that time, they stay frozen in place (or doing the last thing they were doing...like firing). They time out after the 40 seconds though and should disappear. Just try to ignore them. <g>
Q: When playing the space multiplayer mission, I can't seem to change my main weapon when floating in space.
A: This is a temporary issue that we'll fix for the full release. You CAN change your main weapon if you are in contact with a surface (spaceship, asteroid, etc.), just not while floating. NOTE: This in no way affects cycling between hardpoints, so you'll be able to use all your rockets, missiles, etc., as well as grenades, if available, even while floating.
Q: When playing a multiplayer game, I sometimes get credit for a kill that I did not make. Why?
A: This issue deals with collateral damage. The sim makes the best guess as to which player made the kill.
Q: When my modem gets disconnected while playing, the game minimizes to the Window's Start Bar. But when I enlarge it again, the colors are all corrupted and I can't play. What can I do?
A: This only happens with a few graphics cards (currently only the ATI Rage Pro, but we assume there are others). However, we don't have a solution for the demo. All you can do right now is quit the game and restart. A more graceful solution will be in the final game.
General Questions
Q: When I use
standard Windows commands to minimize the game (ALT-TAB) or quit
the application (ALT-F4), the game corrupts, or my hard drive
thrashes a lot with the\par memory cleanup. Am I doing something
wrong?
A: No. It's just that those standard commands are NOT supported
in our game. In fact, they will be disallowed in the final
version of the game and you won't be able to use them. Please
don't use them now...you may experience problems if you do.
Q: When I press the forward button (on any control set), I move backwards, and when I press the backwards button I move forward.
A: There is a bug in the DEF files where those two buttons are switched around.
Q: Using the camera controls in external view does not work.
A: You must press the RIGHT ALT button in conjunction with the camera button. (Example: RIGHT ALT + RIGHT ARROW to move the camera to the right.)
Q: What if the game crashes and I can't return to the desktop?
A: This shouldn't happen to you. But if it does, then reboot the machine and perform a scan disk if necessary.
Q: I have two CD drives and every time I try to launch the game, it crashes? Can I fix this?
A: Yes. Take the CDs out of the drives and you won't have a problem. This is currently an issue we need to fix where the game is trying to play Redbook Audio from your CD drive and is getting confused about which one to use. Removing the CDs prevents the problem from occurring.
Q: When I load the "4BTN_2AXIS_JOYSTICK" config set in the shell, it displays options for Joystick Button 0 even though I don't HAVE a Joystick Button 0. My lowest numbered button is Joystick Button 1. What gives?
A: There's a current issue with displaying the correct button number. DirectInput labels a four-button joystick as Joystick Buttons 0-3. The windows calibration routine shows them as Joystick Buttons 1-4. We need to change our shell so it shows Buttons 1-4, but haven't done that yet...so it's currently displaying the DirectInput values of 0-3. So...for now...just subtract one and you're fine. And, yes, this will be fixed for the full release. (Isn't releasing a demo before code releasing the game fun?)
Graphics Card Questions
Q: The game looks bad (white trees, polygon outlines on objects, fire particles that have no color, etc.). What do I do?
A: Go to your card manufacturer's web site and download the very latest drivers for your card. Install them and try again. This will fix most problems you might have with the game.
Q: I have reference drivers for my Voodoo II card installed, but the game is crashing. What do I do?
A: Many folks use reference drivers for their Voodoo II cards. If this is the case, you may have the DirectX 5.0 reference drivers installed currently. Go to the 3Dfx web site and download the newer DirectX 6.0 drivers and install those. It may resolve your problem.
Q: I'm using a Rendition 2100 or 2200 chipset and the HUD appears grey and explosions have no color. Why?
A: This is a driver issue that we're investigating with the Rendition folks right now. There is no fix currently.
Q: I'm using a Permedia chipset and the HUD appears greay and explosions have no color. Why?
A: This is a driver issue that we're investigating with the Permedia folks right now. There is no fix currently.
Q: I'm using a Canopus card and their latest drivers, but the game crashes every time I try to run it. How do I fix this?
A: The Canopus folks are working on new drivers now (slated for early November release) that might fix this problem. However, right now they recommend that you download the release drivers from 3Dfx for your card and use those instead. In the computers that we tried this workaround solution, this fixed the problem and we were able to run the game with Canopus cards.
Q: I'm using a Rendition 1000 chipset and I can see objects through other objects. It makes it hard to tell what's going on. How do I fix it?
A: You can't. Your card does not support Z-Buffering (one of the minimum requirements for our game) and thus, the sorting of polygons is not being done properly. You should not play Heavy Gear 2 with a card that does not support Z-Buffering.
Q: I'm using a Helios V2 card and am using Voodoo reference drivers. When I launch the game the screen was blue, showing gridlines, with large symbols on the horizon similiar to that of a type set ball used with typewriters. What's going on?
A: We are working with the Helios folks to resolve this issue. They intend to put new drivers out soon. Keep checking their website and see if new drivers are available. If so, download them and give them a try.
Q: The water looks completely non-transparent (opaque) and I'm using a 3Dfx card. What's the deal?
A: You are probably using the new code release candidate reference drivers from 3Dfx. The VooDoo2 Software Kit v.3.01 (Release Candidate 1) currently has an issue that causes our water to look completely opaque and shiny. Company drivers (at this point in time…10_30_98) do not have this problem. 3Dfx has been notified of this issue and we're working on it with them.
Q: I have the STB Blackmagic board and am using the latest drivers, but the game doesn't seem to run on my card. What's going on?
A: There is an issue with those drivers. We're working with STB now to try and determine a fix, but in the meantime, you should be able to play just fine if you use the 3.01 3Dfx reference drivers available on the 3Dfx web page.