Solved Windows 10: Low Frame Rates Despite (BECAUSE OF!) Good Hardware

[Pieter Boelen]

We've had a false positive on our own mod for a while as well.
I got that sorted by sending some 'are you sure?' emails to the antivirus companies that were claiming there was something wrong with it.
Then they confirmed what I already knew: it was fine. So as concerning as it might have seemed, it doesn't necessarily mean there is a problem.

Try https://www.virustotal.com for a more comprehensive check than using a single virus scanner.

 

[The Nameless Pirate]

As far as the website goes, here is the link to the virus total test.

VirusTotal

 

[The Nameless Pirate]

And checked the dgVoodoo2_55_4_1.zip, which was the version @Atum262 recommend.

VirusTotal

 

[The Nameless Pirate]

However when I scanned dgVoodooCpl.exe separately I got this.

VirusTotal

 

[Atum262]

@The Nameless Pirate, @Pieter Boelen, and everyone else.

I can explain everything. First of all, as I said, dgVoodoo is a tool used to run old games, because they need (normaly) direcx 8 and 3Dfx. POTC is not a DOS game, it is a very basic game programed in C language, that is rendered in a very basic way that old games was used to be rendered with. This 3D render needs the direcx 8 specfically to run, something that Windows 10 doesn't come with, because it runs directx 12. Windows 7 CAN have some issues with the game as well, but not MUST have, because of some factors, that I can't explain well enought, but, normally it is because of the programs people had installeted on their computer, and what updates they are currently using on their Windows 7. Windows XP is old, and this game was made for Windows XP, so of course it is not going to have any troubles to work on an old machine with this operation system. But the person can have issues with Windows XP, but it will be hardware issues, like not having a graphic card. Using these files I had set to you guys to use on your game, will not interfier on the game of the people thhat are not having troubles with it, because the files just adress issues, and when a person that have no issues use the files to adress issues they don't have, the game will remain untouched and running as it should. I had read on dgVoodoo website that dgVoodoo may have some problems with some antivirus, because they are take as false positives, even by Windows 10 itself sometimes. Particularly, I am using McAfee, its a paid antivirus, and I had no problems whatsoever. Anyway, here are the files already set to be used in your POTC instalation, just extract them there, on the main game instalation folder, and you are all set, just run the game. One more time I repeat myself, this fix is mainly for Windows 10, because as far as I can see, only Windows 10 is having this issue. I don't remember having this problem when I was using Windows 7, but this was a long time ago, if you are, the files will fix the problem on Windows 7 as well, I assure you.

 

[The Nameless Pirate]

I also believe it's a false positive because of many users that have said so in many forums.

Also false positives can happen, once I was installing PotC AVG told me that engine.exe was a dangerous file, the official engine.exe from Akella, same thing happened once with Risen 1.

Further more I once made a test installer for my Black Pearl mod for TEHO and that got classified as a dangerous file.

So it can happen to even files that are surely safe.

 

[DavyJack]

@Atum262 I've disabled RivaTuner and tried the files you've uploaded instead but my game didn't run any better. It went back to having the slow-motion effect during gameplay plus the flickering on the main menu and several of the interface screens came back. I've tried modifying some of the options in the dgVoodooCpl.exe but none worked so far.

 

[The Nameless Pirate]

In my case the slow motion when indoors persisted and the game looks like this:


So even if it had fixed the slow motion, the game is unplayable.

When I delete the files, the game comes back to normal.

 

[Atum262]

Ok, so I guess dgVoodoo solution is better for people using specifically Windows 10, with a fresh install on POTC, with no mods whatsoever and running it on a computer with at least 4GB RAM, an intel processor and an nvidia graphic card like GTX 660 and beyond...? I mean, as long as it's an Intel processor and an NVIDIA graphics card, I think dgVoodoo will work for this type of situation exclusively, and if you are not having the problem there is no reason to use the fix.

 

[The Nameless Pirate]

Windows 10, with a fresh install on POTC, with no mods whatsoever and running it on a computer with at least 4GB RAM, an intel processor and an nvidia graphic card like GTX 660 and beyond...? I mean, as long as it's an Intel processor and an NVIDIA graphics card

Maybe, I have a AMD Ryzen 2400G with the integrated Vega 11 graphics card and 8GB of RAM, with Windows 10 and New Horizons.

Maybe dgvoodoo doesn't like my AMD setup?

@DavyJack has an Nvidia and Intel setup and I believe she doesn't have the same issues as me, it doesn't do something in her case but it doesn't break the game.

 

[DavyJack]

...@DavyJack has an Nvidia and Intel setup and I believe she doesn't have the same issues as me, it doesn't do something in her case but it doesn't break the game.

That is correct, Sir. And @Atum262 my system specs are in my signature if you want to take a look at it.

Hmnn..so my set up looks like this: Maybe it doesn't like the ENB addon?

 

[Cerez]

In my case the slow motion when indoors persisted and the game looks like this:
View attachment 35146 View attachment 35149 View attachment 35145 View attachment 35147 View attachment 35151 View attachment 35150

So even if it had fixed the slow motion, the game is unplayable.

When I delete the files, the game comes back to normal.

You're gonna laugh in anguish. It's a Windows update issue. There was a particular Windows update released (only numbered, as usual) that dropped support for older graphics rendering with some graphics cards. It shows just like that: the character textures/shaders and some of the UI graphics are unable to be rendered by the graphics card, and so they stay white. I suspect it is the DirectX component of Windows that has dropped these rendering methods through the official Windows update.

I was running Windows 8.1, and Alone in the Dark: The New Nightmare one day just started rendering all the 3D graphics white, like that. I had to find what number Windows update was responsible for it, and roll it back and blacklist it in Windows Update.

If it's not this, then it would be a graphics card compatibility issue, but somehow I seriously doubt that POTC can't run on AMD graphics, and the graphics card itself should have backwards compatibility with older rendering methods. I honestly think Windows is to blame -- that is to say Microsoft dropping support for certain older DirectX rendering methods without notifying the user.

The slow frame-rate will likely also be due to the rendering problem (the whites).

Edit:
Found the update number: KB3000850 is responsible. If you can roll it back, the game/mod should work as expected.

 

[The Nameless Pirate]

If it's not this, then it would be a graphics card compatibility issue, but somehow I seriously doubt that POTC can't run on AMD graphics, and the graphics card itself should have backwards compatibility with older rendering methods.

Of course it runs, since this is my main rig and I mostly play PotC there.

The problem arises only with dgvoodoo on the game's folder.

So either windows doesn't like dgvoodoo or my graphics card or both.

Interesting find about the update, but I haven't encountered this problem yet, with the exception of dgvoodoo, and I have played other classic games like Gothic I and II that use DX7, if memory serves me right.

Maybe it doesn't like the ENB addon?

I don't use the ENB addon, so at least in my case that is not the problem.

 

[Cerez]

dgvoodoo, developed by a Hungarian hobby developer, Dege, provides only some limited backwards compatibility with older rendering methods for newer versions of Windows, and even the developer notes that there are "some restrictions" and "limitations" to what it can do: Dege's stuffs

It turns out it's an OpenGL problem, not a DirectX one, as I thought. Windows has dropped support for older OpenGL rendering methods somewhere along the line, unannounced.

If your games have received updates/patches, that is why you would not have encountered this problem. But some games are no longer being updated/maintained as such.

 

[The Nameless Pirate]

Now that you mention it, I have installed a mod named system pack that fixes some compatibility issues, not sure if it fixes that problem or it just doesn't have a problem running.

As for official patches, all of them came out before Windows 8/10.

 

[Cerez]

Now that you mention it, I have installed a mod named system pack that fixes some compatibility issues not sure if it fixes that problem or it just doesn't have a problem running.

Some of those "compatibility issues" will likely have to do with graphics rendering -- that is to say adding older graphics rendering API support for Windows to the game through the addition of libraries and workarounds.

But some games run well for longer. It all depends on what APIs they were using when developing them, and whether Microsoft has conveniently decided to drop support for those older APIs or not.

 

[The Nameless Pirate]

But some games run well for longer. It all depends on what APIs they were using when developing them, and whether Microsoft has conveniently decided to drop support for those older APIs or not.

If only they just left the support for old programs, as it is.

 

[Pieter Boelen]

If only they just left the support for old programs, as it is.

Problem is that backward compatibility isn't cheap and at some point can require so many exceptions upon exceptions that the chance for bugs increases.
So eventually the decision gets made to stop doing it.
It's unfortunate for those, like us, who prefer to stick to the old and don't feel a need for the new.
But it's the way it is...

 

[The Nameless Pirate]

So the moral of the story is, keep your old copy of windows just in case.

 

[Cerez]

Problem is that backward compatibility isn't cheap and at some point can require so many exceptions upon exceptions that the chance for bugs increases.
So eventually the decision gets made to stop doing it.

Indeed, but you'd think with all that money pouring in, with them having a monopoly on the market and ever expanding, they'd have enough money and resources to keep maintaining it! Ultimately, it comes down to an executive decision, and they chose *not* to support older games, and not to work for quality. This is why Windows 10 makes for a poor gaming operating system if you're fond of the older classics. And why I was trying to (unsuccessfully) persuade people *not* to free-upgrade to Windows 10. Eventually, when they saw it was catching, Microsoft forced us all to buy Windows 10 pre-installed with new computers.

Apple's new Mac OS implementation/philosophy is *way* worse -- so I won't even go there...

Even Linux, with many of its distros, seems to going in this fast-moving direction and making developers work thrice as hard to up-keep. GNOME 3 is one such notoriously merciless project.

So the moral of the story is, keep your old copy of windows just in case.

Absolutely. This is why I'm still running Windows 8.1 on my dedicated gaming machine, and why I still keep a copy of Windows XP (for my really old, Windows-only games) in VirtualBox.

The problem is you cannot run an older copy of Windows on a much newer machine because Microsoft and its partners stop producing drivers for that copy of Windows with the newer hardware. So you basically have to do what they tell you, what they dictate and force on you.

This is why, despite loving computers since childhood, I'm beginning to hate them -- because of current industry practices. Computer used to mean freedom -- the possibility to do things never conceived before. Now they are becoming just closed and limited tools used to sell stuff and consume in waves.