trouble with contracts

[zero point]

hi,
I am having some difficulty getting my copy of hitman contracts to work properly. the problem is that there is some slowdown ( looks like an overly buffered video download) and some odd graphical distortion. I have already downloaded the updated drivers for my moniter, and my computer has enough memory (I only mention these things because eidos tech support mentioned them as potential solutions to this problem) any help would be apriciated.
P.S. I am somewat technology challenged, so explaining things like I am a five year old would be good :o

[Brother52]

Could you post your system specification please.

i.e. CPU type and speed, amount of RAM, video card and sound card make/model

Do you know what video and sound settings your are using in the game?

Do you perform any system maintenance on your PC? I.e. anti virus, anti spyware, disk defragmentation and cleanup, windows updates, do you use a firewall when connected to the internet? If the answers are no then the chance is good that your PC is in need of a good service!

[zero point]

it is a hewlett-packard pavilion
withan amd athlon XP-3000+
210 ghz, 4448mb of ram
realtek ac97 audio-and I think a, via agp 2.0/3.0 (not really sure)
I perform regular maintenence I have a firewall that came with the computer (Ibought it in october) I am running nod 32 antivirus, and I have spy subtract for spyware, witch Irun frequently. just an fyi, the only game I am running is contracts, and I dont really use the computer for anything else except e- mail, so I doubt I am using up to much memory (but who knows, not me clearly :o )
thanks

[DarkShadow700]

hi,
I am having some difficulty getting my copy of hitman contracts to work properly. the problem is that there is some slowdown ( looks like an overly buffered video download) and some odd graphical distortion. I have already downloaded the updated drivers for my moniter, and my computer has enough memory (I only mention these things because eidos tech support mentioned them as potential solutions to this problem) any help would be apriciated.
P.S. I am somewat technology challenged, so explaining things like I am a five year old would be good :o

Download? Is is a bought disk or an internet download? If it is a disk, there could be a problemo with it, happens somethimes. Tell me how fast your CD drive is, any error messages you see. And what grafics card you have, along with your System (i.e. Win XP, NT, ME, 2000, 95, 98, etc.) If you have XP, right click the 'My Computer' icon, and select 'Properties'. Once the window opens, go to the 'Hardware' tab > click on 'Device Manager' > click on the plus by 'Display Adapters' . Now write down the name of the grafics card, and put it up here.

Also, 4448mb is a LOT of Random Access Mamory, so you should be fine there. All that matters is your grafics card. If it checks out to be a good one, contact Eidos to get a replacement.

Now, if you downloaded the game off some site, you are going to be in a LOT of trouble, so may I suggest that you do not put even a hint of that up in this forum. I do not think that is the case, you do not seem like a computer whiz (after all, you are not sure about the make of your graphics card ;) ).

Let me know.

[zero point]

nope the game is store bought, my graphics card (if this is corect) is a
via/s3g unichrome igp
also there are no error messages as far as the cd drive goes, not that it matters but my computer played hitman 2 just fine.
thanks for all the help.

[FredtheHobo]

via/s3g unichrome igp
That's a display driver. If you go to Run under the start menu, type in dxdiag, (run it) and click the display tab it will tell you what yer card is. make, model, and memory.

As for yer other specs, (you left out the decimal so its 2.10 ghz, and) you cant have 4448 mb of ram. Top is 4 gigs only on a 64 bit processor, which you havent got. Anyway, you might have 448 mb, which is still fine. I'm thinkin it's yer card and that yer runnin an integrated. I can't remember what the specs are for H2:SA but even if yer card was integrated that system could probably handle it fine, so that's not exactly a great comparison.

[Quillan]

"via/s3g unichrome igp" is the video card, so to speak. IGP stands for Integrated Graphics Processor, if I remember correctly. Whatever it stands for, it means that computer doesn't have a video card, per se. It's using an onboard video solution. Onboard graphics first don't have dedicated memory; they use the system memory instead. If you have 4 gigs of RAM, I doubt that's the issue. More likely, it's one or more of these things: onboard graphics rely heavily on the CPU which can overload it, onboard graphics are notoriously underpowered, or you may need new drivers for the graphics chip on the motherboard. You would get much better performance as well as much better graphics if you can buy and install a separate video card. I say if, because a lot of computers from the big manufacturers like HP/Dell/Gateway that use onboard graphics don't have an AGP slot to mount a video card on the motherboard.

[FredtheHobo]

Yeah hunched it as integrated. As for most big manufacturers not having AGP slots, errr, that's like a computer not having USB. I've just never heard of it for modern day hardware. And the dedicated memory part doesn't matter, since Contracts requires a video accelerator. (what 32megs or somethin? or is it 16?)

[zero point]

ok here goes- amd athlon xp 3000+, mmx, 3dnow, 2.1ghz
memory448 mb of ram. 861 mb available
under the direct x diagnostic that freddy recomended the aprox total memory under the igp thing says 64.0 mb total memory (not that it has anything to do with anything)
so what you are all saying is buy a video card, or in lieu of that get new drivers for the igp I already have?

[DarkShadow700]

Ok, I had a similar problem. I used to have an integrated driver for my PC, and it was perfect for SA. Now, when new games like Splinter Cell: PT and Contracts hit the shelf, I was screwed. The driver was worthless. I couldn't play a single game, no matter what I did.

My recomendation:

Downloading anything will not solve the problem, as the problem lies not in the software, but the hardware (you cant download a keyboard can you?). You NEED to get a new graphics card whether you want to or not. All games today will not be able to run on a crappy graphics proccesor. If you plan to play games, get one. It might seem like a hard job to install one, but it is as easy as playing with Legos, and you get 24/7 support if you need help.

The one I have now is a NViDIA GeForce 5200 Special Edition with 256mb memory. It is an exclussive from BFG Technologies, and they are the only peeps I know of who make it. It will run any demanding game just fine. It will cost about $90, and it is worth it.
However, if you plan to play games that are WAY into the future (4-5 years) you might want to bump up to something more powerful. If your PC doesn't have an AGP slot, the best you can do is the 5200 I told you about, but the only alternative is to get a new PC that has one, which is costly. Your choice.

Good Luck.

[DarkShadow700]

ok here goes- amd athlon xp 3000+, mmx, 3dnow, 2.1ghz
memory448 mb of ram. 861 mb available
under the direct x diagnostic that freddy recomended the aprox total memory under the igp thing says 64.0 mb total memory (not that it has anything to do with anything)so what you are all saying is buy a video card, or in lieu of that get new drivers for the igp I already have?

I has to do with EVERYTHING. This shows how much power the card has. 64mb is nothing. 256mb are todays standards.

[Clumsyorchid]

Haven't seen too many 512 cards on the market, but 256 are readily available. Still this is splitting hairs on the matter, 64 is dreadfully low, an upgrade would do you well.

[Quillan]

As for most big manufacturers not having AGP slots, errr, that's like a computer not having USB. I've just never heard of it for modern day hardware.

It isn't common, but they do it on some of the budget systems. To save money, they'll have a motherboard with only 2-3 PCI slots, and no AGP slot at all. Zero, you've probably got 512 megs of RAM, just 64 megs of it is dedicated to the video, leaving 448 for system usage. What I'd recommend is you open the side panel of your computer case, and have a look at the peripheral slots. These are the connector plugs that match up with the slot openings in the back of the case. PCI slots are white in color. Assuming your computer is a tower design, the AGP slot (if it has one) should be at the top. It will be brown, and set farther away from the back of the case than the others. If you've got an AGP slot, then you've got a lot of options for upgrading your video card. If you don't, then you'll have to find a PCI video card to upgrade, and those are both rare and not very powerful. They'll do better than the integrated video, though.

[FredtheHobo]

@zero about the NVidia GeForce 5200 (which DarkShadow mentioned): I'm a total fanatic about ATI and you can find me saying this everywhere, so here goes: Although NVidia is the veteran in the whole video card industry and they practically invented the card for post filter, ATI has the not as great individual components, yet their cards almost always perform better. Specifically to this case is my 128mb ATI Radeon 9700 Pro vs. any 128mb NVidia card before the 5950 series. According to tests conducted by PCGamer, my card (ATI Radeon 9700 Pro) outperforms any and every 128mb card that NVidia (5900 and earlier) can spit out. However the 9700 is a good 3 years old. If you ebay or pricewatch it I think they go as low as 50/60$ I'm not too sure.

[zero point]

thanks evryone for all of the help, I will be doing some research as to what soloution will be best for my system, I will be buying a new video card, I just have to have a looksee into my computers guts to see what my system can support. in any case thanks.