black map - reveal map option

[HRM the King]

Hi there,

I have the black-map problem. I play the game on a laptop, so I am not able to upgrade my grafix.

The game is playable when I reveal the complete map in the world editor. (In the mean time I can save some money for a new computer)

But there's a dark overlay on the map. I think it must be possible to "switch" this dark-layer off. (you can do this in the game to view the map without units)

Does someone know how to do this?

Thanks!

 

[MrCynical]

If you're having problems with the map being black, then patching the game to 1.61 will usually fix it.

 

[HRM the King]

Thanks, but I've done that; updated drivers etc...
My RADEON IGP 320M adapter is just not sufficient. (no T&L)

Why is there a dark overlay once you revealed the map in the map editor?
To punnish cheaters?

Can it be switched off? in XML?...

 

[crunch]

Have you tried this:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/3D-analyze

 

[CBP]

I just bought CIV4 and i have a matrox G450 with no hardware T&L. i'm getting the black terrain, but the leaders show up fine. wonder movies are hella jumpy. i'm patched to 1.61.

I was wondering if any of the coders in hunt valley are working on getting the game functional with some of these older cards. i know this affects a ton of people. i played the game with the black squares, but it's just not the same experience; makes me sad.



i wouldn't need nice shadow overlays or anything. just being able to distinguish the grassland from the ocean from the forest would be enough.

i'm going to try the 3D-analyze software now. it scares me a little bit, but it seems i've no other option.

does anyone still work in hunt valley anymore?

 

[CBP]

I couldn't get 3D-Analyze to work for CIV4. The game loads and then quits immediately. Anyone have better luck than me?

 

[HRM the King]

I have the same problem with 3D-A. maybe not doing this right (although its not quitte difficult to do?)

Have you tried the reveal-map option in the world builder? It helps a little.

I don't see why the makers aren't able to make things work for us.
When I load the game, i have a black map. > they say ist a T&L problem.
So why can I see the map in world builder then? (still with no T&L)
Why does the game work with the (darkend) reveal map option??

They should do better than this!!

 

[HRM the King]

Read somewhere only version 2.26 works.
You can find it on www.3dfxzone.it

I haven't tried it yet.

 

[CBP]

I tried 3D-A 2.26 in every conceivable configuration to no avail. I think Civ4 is bypassing it.

Reveal all tiles in the map builder doesn't work for me either.

 

[CBP]

Apparently, they have absolutely no plans to correct the errors the game has with older cards. From the support center:

"Thank you for contacting Take 2 Technical Support.

Unfortunately there will not be a patch released to resolve this issue as Civilization IV uses hardware T & L to create textures and graphics in the game."

I want to know why they felt it necessary to release a turn-based game which requires specialised 3D-rendering hardware. If your computer runs doom, you'd expect it to be able to run CIV.

...and why would it be so difficult for them to write software T&L into the game so everyone could play it?

I'm tempted to contact the attorney general for the state of MD. I think if your game is going to deviate so radically from expected requirements to the point where the game won't even function on half the computers out there, you should have more than a small T&L disclaimer on the bottom of the box.

sid meier has sold his soul.

 

[spydrwomyn]

Agreed it was somewhat annoying I had to spend several hundred $$$ to upgrade my machine to meet sys reqs for this game.

But, even after upgrade, if I play the game for many hours consecutively, the ice turns from white to black. All the other squares remain unchanged.

Has this happened to anyone? Any ideas? I am running latest patch, latest graphics driver, windows updates, etc.