In order to enjoy this game at its best, your PC must at least meet the specifications detailed in this section, so please check them before proceeding with the installation.
If you are still unsure, contact your retailer or refer to the Troubleshooting and website addresses sections for installation tips and details on how to contact most major hardware suppliers.
System: Windows 95/98 Operating System
DirectX 7.0 or later installed.
Please Note:
The game is not compatible with OS/2,NT, Linux or
Windows-emulator operating systems.
CPU: Pentium II 300 Mhz processor
Memory: 32 MB RAM Required
Video: DirectX 7.0 4MB RAM compatible 3D accelerator
Controllers: Windows 95/98 compatible Joystick, keyboard & mouse
Recommended configuration:
System: Windows 95/98 Operating System
DirectX 7.0 or later installed.
CPU: Pentium III - 500 MHz Processor or higher.
Memory: 64 MB RAM.
Video: DirectX 7.0 16MB compatible 3D accelerator
Controllers: Windows 95/98 compatible joystick, keyboard & mouse
Installation
Installation requires 320MB of uncompressed free hard drive space.
The full 320MB will not be used until the complete product has been downloaded and installed from freeloader.com
Notes:
Uncompressed means that the hard drive has not been subjected to any form of file compression that allows the hard drive space to be increased. For example, under Windows 98 the option that would usually be used to perform this function would be DriveSpace.
DirectX
Microsoft DirectX 7.0 is available directly from: www.microsoft.com/directx/homeuser/downloads. Please refer to the Troubleshooting guide for more information about DirectX.
Your system may require the "latest" Windows 95/98 drivers for your particular hardware.
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Game controls
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ACTION JOYSTICK KEYBOARD
Throttle Joystick Button 1 A
Brake Joystick Button 2 Z
Steer Joystick X+/X- Left and Right Arrow Keys
Lean Forward Joystick Y+ Up Arrow
Lean Backward Joystick Y- Down Arrow
Tricks Hold down Keys 1 - 8 Hold down Keys 1 - 8
Camera angle F7, F8
Camera follow F5, F6
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Contents of Episodes
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Episode FEATURES
Episode 01 The Black Hawks Racing Team; The Martini Team; The Eiffel Racing Team; Tokyo Stadium - Japan; Quick Race Mode and Single Race mode.
Episode 02 The Black Box Racing Team; The El Sol Sportsware Team; The American Superchamp Team; Phoenix Stadium - USA; Time Trial mode.
Episode 03 Paris Stadium - France; Mini-Championship mode [Sans Power Ups].
Episode 04 Las Vegas Stadium - USA
Episode 05 Milan Stadium - Italy; Mid-Air Tricks Unlocked!
Episode 06 Sidney - Australia Track; Full Championship mode [with Power Ups]; Multiplayer mode (TCP / IPX / MODEM / SERIAL).
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FAQ's
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The following process will guide you through some questions you may have when installing and running the game.
Q: How do I install the game?
A: The first section of Supercross Kings: International Stadium Edition should have been downloaded already (SK_ep1.exe + sk_ep1.dat ). If either is missing you will not be able to install the product, so please return to the site and try again.
If you double click the SK_ep1.exe file, the installation help screen will activate after a few seconds. Follow the instructions displayed and you will be informed when the installation is complete.
Q: How do I run the game?
A: We recommend you restart your computer after installation. The game should always be played with as few applications running as possible, and it is best to wait for hard disk activity to stop before running the game.
To run the game, click [Start\Programs\freeloader\The Dawn Interactive\Supercross Kings\Supercross Kings] on your Start Programs menu.
Q: How do I uninstall the game?
A: We recommend you uninstall the game using the Supercross Kings Uninstall option.
To uninstall the game, click [Start\Programs\freeloader\The Dawn Interactive\Supercross Kings\Un-Install Supercross Kings].
Q: Should I have other programs running in the background of Windows?
A: Generally, we find it is not a good idea to run any other programs during any game. Please turn off any active screen savers as they may interrupt the game and cause problems.
Various video, sound or memory issues may occur if other programs are running, including virus-detection utilities and items from your Startup folder launch automatically when Windows is started, such as the Microsoft Office Toolbar.
Some of these programs display icons on your taskbar. If you have icons on your taskbar, right-click on each of them and select the option to disable, unload, or close them before running Supercross Kings: International Stadium Edition.
The next time you start your computer, these items will load once more and the icons will return. If you cannot disable them from the taskbar and you experience problems running Supercross Kings: International Stadium Edition you may want to remove the program shortcuts from the StartUp folder.
For information about how to do this, please consult your Windows manual or your computer Manufacturer.
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Troubleshooting
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This section should help solve some common issues that may occur during gameplay.
Q. When I exit the game my Windows Desktop has either increased or decreased in size.
A. Supercross Kings: International Stadium Edition automatically adjusts the resolution of your Desktop area to 640 x 480.
If the Desktop size does not return to normal, the following information should help.
Most computers utilizing Windows 95/98 operate with a colour setting of High Colour 16bit and the resolution set to either 800 x 600 or 640 x 480.
To restore settings, place your mouse pointer on a clear area within the Windows Desktop screen and, using the right hand mouse button click once.
A menu will be displayed from which you need to select, using your left-hand mouse button, the "Properties" option. The "Display Properties" option folder is now shown and you need to select the "Settings" tab. Ensure that High Colour 16 bit option is set with either 640 x 480 or 800 x 600 set as the resolution depending on your individual preference for Windows Desktop display.
Apply any changes and re-start your machine if requested.
Q: My mouse does not operate within the game.
A: The game requires a Windows 95/98 compatible mouse and driver. It would be advisable to re-install the mouse using the Microsoft drivers supplied with the Windows operating system or contact the mouse manufacturer for compatible Windows drivers.
Q. How do I check all my DirectX 7.0 drivers are certified?
A. On Windows 95/98 with DirectX 7.0 or later, you can check for a successful set up by doing the following:
Double click with left-hand mouse button on [My Computer\C Drive\Program Files\DirectX\Setup]
Double click on "DXDIAG" icon with left-hand mouse button (The icon is a blue circle with yellow cross)
The screen displayed has multiple tabs along the top. Click on the DirectX drivers tab, All of the drivers are listed separately and you will find a Notes window field along the bottom Within the Notes field, any problems encountered will be listed. If one or more of the items are listed as uncertified, this is most likely causing the problem.
Drivers that are not certified are usually either the Primary Display driver and/or the Audio driver.
Most manufacturers of video and sound cards are releasing updated drivers for Windows 95/98 to meet the DirectX standard. Contact the manufacturer of any component that is not supported and ask them about obtaining drivers that support DirectX.
Q: Supercross Kings runs slow and and jerky on my machine.
A: Make sure that your PC meets the minimum requirements for this game (as above). To increase the speed of the game you can speed up the action by reducing the graphical detail in the game. This can be done either in the "options" section of the game or from the start menu from [Start\Programs\freeloader\The Dawn Interactive\Supercross Kings\Setup Device Interface]
Q: DXSetup Error -7 or -8
A: You may see these errors during the installation of DirectX if you do not have Audio Compression, Sound Recorder or Volume Control installed on your computer prior to installing DirectX 7.0 or later.
Adding Sound Recorder, Volume Control and Audio Compression in the Sound Recorder:
Volume Control and Audio Compression are necessary components of Windows when using DirectX 7.0 or later if they were not installed when Windows was set up, add them before installing Supercross Kings: International Stadium Edition.
DirectX will ask for your Windows CD during installation. If it does not find these components, which may cause the DirectX installation to be incomplete, you may see the error DXSetup Error -7 or DXSetup Error -8 after changing to the Windows CD. If this happens, reboot your computer and follow these steps.
Double click using your left-hand mouse button on [My Computer\Control Panel\Add Remove Programs]
Select "Windows Setup" Tab
Scroll down to Multimedia and select Details.
Check the boxes next to Audio Compression, Sound Recorder and Volume Control. Click OK, then OK again to close both of these windows.
You will be prompted for your Windows CD.
When these steps are complete, you may continue with the installation of DirectX 7.0 or later.
Q: What is DirectX?
A: The DirectX platform provides an environment that allows developers to use a standardized format when programming an application.
This makes it easier to support a wide variety of hardware features. Prior to DirectX, developers were forced to write hardware-specific Code (with a specific driver for each piece of hardware).
DirectX is a library provided by Microsoft to run inside the operating system and provide programmers with seamless access to all of the hardware features available today.
Note:
We have found some older systems may contain hardware that is not fully DirectX 7.0 or later compatible. For optimum performance in Supercross Kings: International Stadium Edition, your system must fully support DirectX 7.0 or later fortunately, many manufacturers are releasing updated drivers.
If you are unsure whether or not your system will support DirectX, please contact your manufacturer for more information.
Driver List:
DirectDraw
DirectDraw allows programmers to directly access video hardware and memory. This improves performance while still maintaining compatibility with Windows.
Direct3D
Direct3D provides direct access to 3D hardware, Direct3D is designed to work with the majority of 3D cards on the market, giving programmers an easier interface to your 3D hardware. Using Direct3D with your 3D accelerator can improve speed and image quality if supported.
DirectSound
DirectSound is the wave-audio part of DirectX, which provides full functionality and hardware acceleration to the sound device. This allows all the features of audio hardware to be used, including support for 3D positional and interactive sound.
DirectInput
DirectInput provides support for input devices including mice, keyboards, joysticks and other game controllers. Direct Input gives faster access to input data by communicating directly with the hardware driver rather than relying on Windows to do so.
DirectPlay
This is the multi-player gaming module in DirectX, which provides access to networking functionality for gaming. DirectPlay supports direct serial connections, modem play, LAN play and Internet Play.
DirectX Driver Issues
Using the DirectX 7.0 or later drivers recommended during the installation of DirectX is advised. However please take note that this might cause problems. The only time this does not apply is when a section in this Troubleshooting guide relating to your hardware specifically tells you to use a different driver, particularly for video card drivers.
Effects of Video Card Driver Installation by DirectX
When DirectX is being installed, some video card utilities may be disabled, such as Diamond Multimedia's In Control Tools, STB Vision95, or Creative Labs Graphics Control utilities. You may no longer be able to access them through their taskbar icon and the options for changing your video properties may change back to default Windows options.
DirectX may not recommend changing the driver for your card at all because you may be using these utilities to customize your desktop display and removing them may have adverse effects on your computer.
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Graphic cards
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Note:
Make sure you have the latest drivers for your graphics card.
Please check the card manufacturers web site for latest drivers (see Website addresses below).
If you use Windows key with certain Videocards, the game may lock. To avoid this happening we recommend that you do not use Windows key while playing the game.
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Multi-player games
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There is no multiplayer option in Supercross Kings on one machine.
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Network games
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You can play Supercross Kings, using direct dial modem, TCP/IP, IPX LAN and using a serial cable. Please read the manual for further details.
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Other issues
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If you are having a major difficulty with the game:
1. Please make sure you have tried:
- Restarting your PC
- Closing as many other applications as possible
- Waiting for hard disk activity to stop
- Ensure that you have all of the latest drivers
- Ensure that all of your DirectX drivers are certified
- Uninstall and reinstall the game.
2. Please make sure you have thoroughly read the Troubleshooting section above.
3. If you are still having problems, please see the Technical support section below.
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Known issues 16-11-2000
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1. USB Controller conflict: In some rare cases we have found that you possess a
Microsoft USB keyboard and are also using a USB joypad/joystick simultaneously
there may be a conflict which results in the swapping of the joystick axis' within
the game.
To work around this please enter the "Option" menu within the game and select
the "Controls" tab. Reconfigure the following values for the controller:
Accelerate: Button 0 Brake: Button 1
Steer Left: Y Axis- Steer Right: Y Axis+
Lean Forward: X Axis- Lean Backward: X Axis+
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Website addresses
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This section may prove useful if you find you need to contact a hardware manufacturer directly.
3Dfx Interactive www.3dfx.com
Acer www.acer.com
Alliance Semiconductor www.alsc.com
Asus www.asus.com
ATI Technologies www.atitech.com
Aureal Semiconductor www.a3d.com
Aztech Labs www.aztechca.com or www.aztech.com.sg
Canopus www.canopuscorp.com
Cirrus Logic www.cirrus.com
Compaq www.compaq.com
Creative Labs www.creativelabs.com
Crystal Semiconductor www.crystal.com
DELL Computer www.dell.com
Diamond Multimedia www.diamondmm.com
Elsa www.elsa.com
Ensoniq www.ensoniq.com
ESS Technologies www.esstech.com
Gateway 2000 www.gateway2000.com
Guillemot www.guillemot.com
Hercules www.hercules.com
Hewlett Packard www.hp.com
IBM www.ibm.com
Intel www.intel.com
Intergraph www.intergraph.com
Jaton www.jaton.com
Matrox www.matrox.com
Media Vision www.svtus.com
MediaSonic www.mediasonic.com
Number Nine www.nine.com
Oak Technology www.oaktech.com
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Computer manufacturers
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Acer America Corp http://www.acer.com/aac/
Apple http://www.apple.com
AST http://www.ast.com
Canon http://www.canon.com
Compaq http://www.compaq.com
Dell Computer Corp. http://www.dell.com
Digital http://www.digital.com
Gateway 2000 http://www.gateway2000.com
Hewlett-Packard http://www.hp.com
IBM http://www.ibm.com
Micron Technology http://www.micron.com
NEC Technologies http://www.nec-computers.com
Packard-Bell http://www.packardbell.com
Quantex http://www.qtx.com
Sony http://www.sony.com
Toshiba http://www.toshiba.com
UMAX http://www.umax.com
Zeos http://support.micronpc.com
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Video card manufacturers
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3DFX http://www.3dfx.com
ARK Logic, Inc. http://www.arklogic.com
Cirrus Logic http://www.cirrus.com
Diamond & S3 http://www.diamondmm.com
3D Labs http://www.3dlabs.com
Canopus http://www.canopuscorp.com
Colorgraphic http://www.colorgfx.com
Deltron Technology Inc. http://www.deltrontech.com
ELSA http://www.elsa.com
CARDEXpert Technology Inc. http://www.gainward.com