System specs:

Windows XP Pro SP1
1GB RAM
120GB HDD
GeForce4 MX440 64MB DDR
(drivers - Detonator FX 44.03)
Monitor - LG Flatron 775FT 17"

How do I change the screen resolution for PTW? It's seems set on 1024x768, there's no option in Preferences to change it. I went into ptw.ini and added these lines:

KeepRes=1
Video Mode=1280

but to no avail. It did make the image more defined, but reduced the playable screen size as well. How do I get CivIII into a resolution of 1280x1024?

I have the same problem.
If type Video Mode=1280, the game is not fitting to the screen

I change my res before playing the game, since the keepres changes it to your current res.

I thought I remembered some other things you could add to the ptw.ini, so I searched for them - of course, the one who recommended the lines was you, zulu, so I'm afraid I can't help, either. :(

So hang on, Civ III ONLY supports a resolution of 1024x768? That's pretty stupid...

No one has a solution?

this sucks ass - how do other people with large monitors cope with this problem?

I can't believe I'm the only one...

Sorry, zulu. I really wish I could help with this, but I have never seen it. :(

what - do all CFC'ers have a 15" monitor, or something???

So, I bought a new computer primarily so I could play bigger Civ maps. Modern computers tend to come with bigger monitors. Now I can't actually play CivIII on my new computer (I simply can't put up with the awful quality of graphic). Thanks Firaxis, for being stupid enough not to put an option in Preferences for changing the screen resolution - it's only so bleeding obvious that every other game has that facility. And thanks too to to Infogrames/Atari Tech Support - for ignoring every one of my emails on this matter.

Originally posted by zulu9812
No one has a solution?

sorry, a bit late :(

dunno if this will solve your problem, but
here's my solution (works at least for civ3):

KeepRes=1 forces to use actual screen resolution, so under some circumstances (e.g. running win under 1024x768), both "KeepRes=1" and "VideoMode=1280" may be a bit unlogical. In this case, I don't know what command line would have priority.

So I'd suggest to spare the line "KeepRes=1" (simply kill the whole line) and use "VideoMode=1280" only.
Or follow CT's advice (change win resolution) and use "KeepRes=1", but spare the "VideoMode" line.
I hope this helps. :)

Though this problem might fit well to "Technical Support", similar questions have been recently asked ( :( not too recently to dig it up) in an older newbee thread and a variety of suggestions have been posted.
So if my solution was crap, try to ask there.

Okay, here's the lowdown:

If I add ONLY "VideoMode=1280", I get a screen the size of 1024x768 with a black border that fills up the rest of the screen

If I add ONLY "KeepRes=1" whilst having a Windows resolution of 1280x1024, I get a screen the size of 1024x768 with a black border that fills up the rest of the screen

If I add BOTH "VideoMode=1280" AND "KeepRes=1" whilst having a Windows resolution of 1280x1024, I get full screen, but at lower quality, as if 1024x768 had been badly stretched to fit 1280x1024.

It occurred to me that 1024x768 might be the biggest screen size possible on CivIII, due to the fact that the game uses fix-sized pcx files (e.g. the advisor screens) which can't be changed by the graphics engine. Could this be the root of the problem?

How do I make Civ3 to work on 640x480 screen resolution????????????

Welcome to CFC efe_adodo!
You cannot run civ3 below 1024x768.

Zulu: The advisor screens come always with a "black frame" (because of the pcx stuff you mentioned). However, the main map display should work fine on higher resolutions.
Regarding post # 13:
If I add BOTH "VideoMode=1280" AND "KeepRes=1" whilst having a Windows resolution of 1280x1024, I get full screen, but at lower quality, as if 1024x768 had been badly stretched to fit 1280x1024
Maybe you try 1152x864 instead. This would be a bit lower than the desired resolution, but I think it wouldn't look "stretched".

efe_adodo - You can make Civ run at lower screen resolutions by adding VideoMode=800 to the civilization3 or ptw .ini files, I believe you could do this with 640 as well. My problem is that I can't get a proper res of 1280. This INI hack works by compacting or stretching the 1024x768 screen. It looks fine compacting, it's when it's stretching that the pixels look really bad.

I still think it's rediculous that Civ only officially supports a scren res of 1024. It's actually an insult. It's all very nice to try an intermediate size, but that will just be the worst of 2 bad worlds, sadly. What I want is to have the size of graphics at 1024x768, but on a bigger screen, i.e. I can see more of my empire on screen. The current setup is rediculous. I literally can't bring myself to look at graphics of such poor quality. Unless I can get the game to run in 1280, I ain't playing it anymore. And I ain't buying Conquests either.

by Zulu:
You can make Civ run at lower screen resolutions by adding VideoMode=800 to the civilization3 or ptw .ini files

:confused:
Are you sure that 800x600 works (maybe for PTW only)?
I've once added "VideoMode=800" in the civ3 .ini file, but it didn't work. Of course, the film at the start played, but that one is on lower resolution anyway. However, I couldn't start a new game (program got aborted, return to win).

zulu9812, I'm not sure what your problem is. :)

It's true that if you run the game with keepres=1 that the main menu does not use the full screen (assuming that you are running your main windows at a higher res than 1024) but if you load an actually game does the map and game play not work on the higher res.? I've done this for ages in both civ3 and PTW, so I'm surprised when I hear that people can't play on higher res, although I usually do play at 1024 cause it's easier on these old eyes, even with a 19" flat screen but there are times when a larger over view are advantageous when looking at the 'big picture' or a screen shot needs a wider angle. ;)

No, I'm not getting the large overview that you describe - I get either a 1024 image with a border or a 1024 image that's been stretched to fit1280. In either case, i'm still seeing the same amount of Civ that did on my 15" monitor.

It's possible that the game is running at the correct res, but you might need to use the monitor's OSD to correctly size the display. I've never changed the civ3 screen size myself, but I sometimes have to do this for a new game. (LG Flatron 795FT+)

Originally posted by Grille
Are you sure that 800x600 works (maybe for PTW only)?
I've once added "VideoMode=800" in the civ3 .ini file, but it didn't work. Of course, the film at the start played, but that one is on lower resolution anyway. However, I couldn't start a new game (program got aborted, return to win).

I tried this too and it didn't work. However, I've never tried an .ini hack before so I could've done something wrong. Do you have to add it to a certain part of the file? I just tacked it on the end.

I'm using my backup monitor (my main blew up last night) and it's max res is 600x800. If anyone knows how to get Civ 3 to run at this res, please let me know!

Thx.


A

I had never run into this problem until I had to re-load Civ III onto another computer running win 98. I have a 19in monitor and like to run it at 1280x1024. I was getting frustrated with having to change the res each time I wanted to run the game.

I tried the "KeepRes=1" trick and it seems to have worked.

When I launch the game, I will get the black border around the main menu, but when I load a game it fills the whole screen and does not give the impression of being stretched.

Anyway, wanted to pass my experience along.

I have a 21" monitor, and i have no problems...

For what little it's worth --

Dell Dimension desktop / 128 MB RAM
Dell 17" flatscreen monitor
NVIDIA GeForce 256 graphics adapter
Win 98

-- no matter what screen resolution I select via the "Active Desktop", I get the exact same resolution (1024 x 768) albeit without any funky black borders.

-Oz

EDIT1:

The Infogrames FAQ lists the following options re: Resolution/Color Depth combinations (Win98 - and the XP section specifies that it lists only changes to the Win98 section, of which I can't find any that are relevant ...):

640x480 with 256 colors.
640x480 with 16-bit color.
800x600 with 16-bit color.
1024x768 with 16-bit color.

Looks like 1024 x 768 is as good as it gets ...

Edit2 -- you are running DirectX 8.1+, yes?

-- BTW, I'd personally be happy to go along with a campaign of bombarding them with tech questions re: this issue (we could all get Zulu armbands or something J26-ish :goodjob: ) if this sounds at all helpful ...

*sigh*

-Oz

I had a nasty feeling that 1024 was the max res - do you think it could be because CivIII uses fix-sized pcx files, which look good when shrunk, but crap when enlarged?

Oh, and btw, I'm running DirectX 9

Originally posted by zulu9812
I had a nasty feeling that 1024 was the max res - do you think it could be because CivIII uses fix-sized pcx files, which look good when shrunk, but crap when enlarged?


I'll resort to Occam's Razor (the hypothesis with the least number of assumptions likely to be the right one) and sadly say, "Yes".

-Oz

KeepRes=1 works for me. By the way you have to load actual game - ignore start screen. When you load game- it works :)

It works fine for me with keepres=1.

I used to run Civ on 1600x1200 on a 19" monitor. No problems. I found it to be to small though, and a bit slower, so I run on 1024 x768 now.

Yes, I have actually gone into the game and the resolution is as I've described.

Okay, I downgraded my nVidia drivers, and it seems that the game engine is actually showing the main map at a resolution of 1290x1024 (I think). There are still some problems. The advisor screens, and the city view sceen, and the espionage screen, are all being displayed in that smaller size with the black border around it. The diplomacy window (when you're talking to another leader) is off centre: up and to the left. The mini-map is horizontally elongated.

Finally, in what must be a completely unrelated problem, I've just noticed that in the diplomacy window the "We offer" and "They want" text is swapped about, e.g. if I click on a tech in their column it comes up on the right hand side, but has the heading "We offer", and if I click on some gold from my column it comes up on the left hand side but has the heading "We want". Wierd, huh? :crazyeye: