Larian Studios Forums Beyond Divinity (English) Technical Problems Win98 Act Change Bug

As a Windows 98 user i'm getting rather tired of replaying the last 30-40 minutes of every act because of a bug that has existed since the game was released. I may be alone in thinking that it's a bit much to ask people to predict the end of an act, save in advance, close the game, switch resolution and reload. Especially considering the time it takes to load the game.

Had I no access to the internet I wouldnt know to change resolution and I would have been forced to take my most awaited game for the last 2 years back to the shop. It's not right to ask players to consider a "workaround" to a problem as big as this which should have been detected and fixed before the game was released.

Is there nothing that can be done to perhaps address this issue before I lose my sanity?

(Any suggestions that I might switch to a newer version of Windows will be politely ignored)

Thanks, Tericia.

Well, frankly, people shouldn't be using Windows 98 any more. Mainstream support for it from Microsoft expired 2 years ago (see ;LifeWin]http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=fh;[ln];LifeWin for details) and it's basically considered an end-of-lifed product.

That, of course, doesn't excuse Larian for saying they supported Windows 98SE on the product box. If they knew about the bug in advance they should have just left it off and let people that are still (inexplicably) using Windows 98SE play "at their own risk".

Frankly I find your reply irritating.Win 98 SE is still adequate for playing all my recent games.I also play a lot of older games and for them it's even better to use it then XP.That's why I decided to stick with it.I guess I'm not the only one who uses win 98.Currently I'm playing <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/beyond.gif" alt="" /> at the lowest resolution to avoid this bug. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/memad.gif" alt="" />

My reply is irritating because I'm pointing out the FACT that it's probably not wise to continue using an unsupported dead operating system, and expecting all new software to work for you?

Err, ok.

That's great that it's still been "adequate" for you, doesn't change the facts that I've pointed out one bit.

I too have Win98se and i haven't encountered this problem......

have you patched to 1.44?

The patch doesn't fix this problem, it's a "known issue".

What's irritating is that you decide that "people shouldn't be using win 98 anymore" and call that a FACT.That is not a FACT, it's an OPINION.
Please try to distinguish between the two.It's not possible to have different facts because they are simply observable.But people can have different opinions,based on what they value.
I simply have a different opinion than you about the pros and cons of win 98.
The only fact that you mention is that Microsoft doesn't support it anymore.Now why would that be?

I have to agree with YellowShark. I have Win98SE myself you see. But that's only because a) WinXP would use up WAY too much RAM for my taste b) I still have a few DOS programs and games that I like to play, that I'm sure wouldn't work in XP (because people have already tried and failed, even with emulators), and finally c) I just plain don't like and trust microsoft.

Just wait until they release Windows Longhorn. I pity the fool who upgrades to that. It'll have built-in spyware, so MS can access your computer at any give time. Yay. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/tongue.gif" alt="" />

Pardon my intrusion - but it's the 640x480 resolution, right? Isn't it possible to scale down shortly before the end - and after entering a new act put it up to your old resolution? Just for those wanting to carry on, of course.;)

If Win98SE users wish => I can write down the trigger pts shortly before act change in spoiler writing, so no one has to repeat 30 min. or more, due to late saving?

I have 2 PC myself - so I can play older games on Win98SE and newer ones on XP. I know pros and cons of both systems - but I'd hate to install BD on 2 PC, as I have already 4 versions on my XP PC to test.

Would my suggestion help a bit against frustration?
Kiya

@Kiya Thanks for the suggestion but I think i'll stick with psychically trying to predict the end of an act for now as I want to avoid spoilers.

@Fireblade "(Any suggestions that I might switch to a newer version of Windows will be politely ignored)" I like Windows 98 It works fine with all games being released currently, as soon as games I want to play stop supporting Win98 i'll upgrade.

Mostly i'm confused as to why Larian state on the back of the Beyond Divinity box that it works with "OS: Win98SE/2000, SP2/ME/XP" Sure the game works with Win98SE but something should have been included in the manual provided with the game, after all isnt the whole point of a single player game that you shouldnt need a connection to the Internet? I feel sorry for the people using Windows 98 out there who cant go online and find out why the game crashes as it changes acts.

I'll stick to playing in 1024x768 as I would like to experience Beyond Divinity in all it's high res glory and just save often as the hints suggest.

Thanks,
Tericia.

We are currently trying to find out what causes the problem, we hope to be able to fix it soon.

Sorry for this.

Kind Regards,

Kris Taeleman

Thanks for the response Stormrider, looking forward to a solution so I can continue to enjoy this fine game.

Tericia.