TECHNICAL ADVICE

COVERAGE :

COMPATIBILITY
MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS
INSTALLATION & SETUP
QUESTIONS & ANSWERS
LAPTOPS & NOTEBOOKS
SOUND CARDS
VIDEO CARDS
DIRECT-X
HARDWARE DRIVERS
MOD CHIPS
PATCHES
FURTHER ADVICE

Many of the Core Designs games were developed for Windows 95/98 long before the release of Windows XP. Many were developed using the DirectX API. While Windows XP does support DirectX, many hardware manufacturers may not have drivers that support the version that is included with Windows XP. It is common that some hardware drivers have not been brought up to the WHQL specifications required for Windows XP. Thus games that use DirectX will not function correctly or at all.

Eidos can only warrant and support their products when their games are run using the operating system for which they were designed. These specifications are clearly listed on the product packaging or at the game publishers web site. Some basic requirements are listed below. Older DOS games (Such as Tomb Raider #1) will not function and are not usually supported for WinXP.

Ultimately, it is the responsibility of Microsoft and/or specific hardware manufacturer to provide for backward compatibility with Windows XP; this is to insure that the device drivers are compatible. At this time Eidos do not have plans to change their older titles to make them Windows XP compatible for the reasons above. They realize this may be a problem for some users. If you have Windows XP on your machine, and the game will not function, your best course of action may be to return the game to the place of purchase, an better still, send a complaining e-mail to Microsoft's technical support webpage, or a letter to their head-office.

EXTREMELY IMPORTANT WARNING FOR PLAYSTATION USERS OF TOMB RAIDER 3: If after starting a game you return to the training level to mess around, do not save the game using the save crystal in your inventory. If you do, it will overwrite your earlier game save and you will lose all the progress you've made. Note, it may be necessary for you to update your hardware drivers to run this game. Also, Tomb Raider:4 will not run on Windows NT 4.0, and was not designed to run on Laptops.

Tomb Raider and Windows XP / 2000

Tomb Raiders 1 through 5 were not designed to be compatible with Windows XP or Windows 2000, and Core/Eidos do not support their use on these operating systems. However, that hasn't stopped some enterprising raiders from figuring out ways to make it work.

Help and Support in Windows XP also provides a Wizard for testing the various compatibility modes. In case the easy fix doesn't work, you can find more information about Tomb Raider & Windows 2000/Windows XP at The Croft Times or tombraiderchronicles.com. These include specifics on running Tomb Raider 1/Gold, patch downloads, information on specific video card incompatibilities, etc. Google Groups is another valuable source of technical info.

Download Page - This includes links to patches and other utilities for the PC version of each game. Some bugs and technical issues can be fixed with patches.

Older TR games weren't tested with laptop/notebook systems and therefore you cannot guarantee compatibility. Due to the variety of hardware configurations that ship with today's laptop systems, it would be impossible to configure a game that would work with all of them. Many laptop/notebook computers are limited in their ability to be used as a gaming machine. This is because of memory configurations, their micro-channel architecture, port configurations (i.e. no place for a joystick) and sound systems that are primarily designed to be used with productivity software.

The other common problem is that laptop systems will attempt to compress the traditional version of the standard 101-function keyboard (found on almost all desktop systems) into a much smaller keyboard configuration. This is usually done by relying on multifunction keys that allow the user to assign different functions to the same key. Unfortunately, this has been known to cause problems with their games.

The older Tomb Raider games are not supported using compressed hard drives, or Windows emulators. Although the game might run, its performance and stability will be questionable. I strongly recommend that you have at least 500mb free on your system at all times for the correct operation of Windows and the relevant game software.

Most systems will need MS-DOS drivers installed correctly for both the sound card and the CD-ROM drive. You will need to contact your hardware manufacturer and have them help you set these up to run properly in DOS mode if you're having problems.

Please note: Eidos did not test Tomb Raider with laptop/notebook systems and therefore they cannot guarantee compatibility. Due to the variety of hardware configurations that ship with today's laptop systems, it would be impossible to configure a game that would work with all of them. Many laptop/notebook computers are limited in their ability to be used as a gaming machine. This is because of memory configurations, their micro-channel architecture, port configurations (i.e. no place for a joystick) and sound systems that are primarily designed to be used with productivity software.

Additionally, Tomb Raider is not supported using Windows NT, Windows 2000, compressed hard drives, or Windows emulators. Although the game might run, its performance and stability will be questionable.

Please note: You may need to update the drivers for your system hardware for the game to function properly. Driver files are often obtainable via the web sites of their manufacturers, links are available at this pages bottom.

Before you attempt installing the game, you should check to see that your hard drive and file system are both tuned for optimum performance. Windows comes with two utility programs that find and fix any errors and optimize your hard drive's performance. The first of these programs is called ScanDisk. ScanDisk will check your hard drive for problems and can fix any that it finds. You can run Scandisk by clicking on the START button from the Windows Taskbar, followed by Programs, then Accessories, then System Tools, and finally ScanDisk, [for eg]. Newer PC systems also allow this but may vary their command method.

Once ScanDisk has finished running, you should next optimize your hard drive's performance by running a program called Disk Defragmenter. You can run Disk Defragmenter by clicking on the START button from the Windows 95/98 desktop, followed by Programs, then Accessories, then System Tools, and finally Disk Defragmenter.

2. After a few seconds, the Autorun Menu will come on screen. Select the Install option. If this menu does not appear, click the Start button, select Run and type D:\autorun (where D is the letter of your CD-ROM drive), then click OK.

3. During the installation, the installation program will detect whether you have the correct version of DirectX installed to allow Tomb Raider Chronicles to run properly. DirectX will automatically update your computer, if necessary.

Note: Though DirectX™ will update your operating system, it will not update the video and sound card drivers. You may still need to contact your hardware manufacturer for driver updates.

4. The installation routine will then install the game files to your hard drive. At the end of the installation, you may be prompted to Restart your computer.

5. Upon completion of installation, run Setup to configure the game to your graphics and sound cards. The Setup program automatically runs the first time you play Tomb Raider Chronicles.

6. Click the Play button on the Autorun Menu or select Play in the Core Design folder on the Start Menu to begin the game.

You may receive an error if you check the "readme" box at the end of the installation of the game. The cause is that the installer does not copy the readme.txt file to your hard drive. You can still view the readme file on the game disk or you can copy the readme.txt file to the game's install directory (C:\Program Files\Core Design\Tomb Raider Chronicles)

There are a large number of options available in the Setup window, which allow you to configure the graphics, sound and controls within the game. You may need to change some of the graphics settings to achieve the best possible performance (frame rate and detail level) on your particular graphics card. Please refer to the video technical help section for more graphics configuration.

The Setup window is accessed by clicking the Setup button on the Autorun Menu, or by selecting Setup from the Tomb Raider Chronicles menu.

Please Note: Every time you run the Tomb Raider Setup program the default settings will be loaded. Your settings are saved when you exit.

A: If you find your saved game has disappeared or you cannot load a saved game, do not run Chronicles with the menu that pops up when you insert the Cd. Instead, exit this menu and start the game from your Start menu --> Program files. PC and Macintosh versions include unlimited saves. In the PlayStation and Sega Saturn versions, you must collect a save crystal each time you want to save your game.

A. Problems with Mystique cards, where colours go berserk, (mostly pink), Press F1 during the game to cure (this will change the detail level) the game should then be fine - this only seems to happen once.

Q. When Installing the game I come to the sound menu and when I select autodetect the game crashes/hangs.

A. Tomb Raider's auto detection of sound cards may occasionally fail with some configurations of PC. It is wiser to override auto detection and manually select your sound card using the dos settings for your specific model of sound card (obtain these settings from your hardware supplier).

Q. The Tomb Raider Menu is spinning and is uncontrollable/ I can not even stop the menu using my joystick/pad.

A. Certain models of joystick/gamepad may cause incompatibility issues. You will need to unplug the joystick/gamepad and then try running the game once more. The game will support most 'MS-DOS' compatible devices (please refer to your joystick/gamepad user manual for incompatibility issues).

Q: Lara will not exit or my "end" key is not working so she cant exit a vehicle.

A: Make sure that the vehicle is completely stopped. Hold down your jump key and press the left or right arrow key. This also applies to the motorcycle. There was a misprint in the manual and this was noted in the readme.

A: Lara should look like she is hanging just with her arms. She should not look like she is straddling a ladder with her legs. If she is, then move her all the way left or right of the ladder or ledge. Release the hold key and press it again quickly. If performed correctly, she should now look like she is only hanging by her arms. At this point she should be able to pull up into the crawl spaces.

Q: In TR4 [TRLR], after inserting the 4 Tridents in Temple of Poseidon, the water does not activate to fill up the center pool.

A: Either save and reload the game or go back to the 4th Trident room and then go back to the water. Either of these should solve the problem.

A: if it exists with the game you've got, use it's SCREEN GRABBER, as some Tomb Raider games have a built in screen grabber for your viewing pleasure later on. To do - hitting the " key during gameplay will snap a screenshot called TOMB0000.TGA , and place it on your hard drive in the C:Tomb Raider folder (the directory where you installed the game). The files will be numbered incrementally as you make them. Note: If you hold this key down, the game will create multiple TGA files and it is very sensitive, but Do Not map any control to this key.

Modern Tomb Raider games support a wide variety of Windows 95/98/ME & etc compatible game controllers. However, there are usually no default settings for the joystick buttons, so you will need to assign the various controls to the joystick buttons yourself.

At the Main Title screen, highlight Options and press the Enter key. In the Options screen chose Control Configuration. It is on this screen that you will be able to chose the type of controller you want to use + assignment of the joystick buttons. To change from the DEFAULT setup, highlight the particular control you want to assign by using the cursor keys. Press the Enter key to select that control, and then press the joystick button you wish to use. Once you have assigned controls for all of the joystick buttons, press the ESC key to exit the Control Configuration screen.

Exiting The Game - To Exit Tomb Raider: Press the "P" key, then chose "Exit to Title" from the menu.

You may experience erratic and uncontrollable movement of the character during your gaming session, if you have installed DirectX® version 7.0. Please contact your hardware manufacturer for additional information.

Q. Lara appears to act independently, running off at inopportune moments/or I am unable to use the up and down cursor keys in both the menus and the game itself, what would cause this?

A. This usually means the game configuration file has rewritten itself, commonly as a result of a conflict with a control device, or the software drivers associated with a control device. Edit the config.txt file in the Tomb Raider game directory, and change the 1st 4 numbers in the 'defkey' line to 200 208 203 205. This reassigns up/down/left and right to the cursor keys. It is also advisable to unplug the offending device when it is not being used.

Q. I have a joystick/joypad and I can use it to move in all 4 directions, but why don't the buttons work?

A. The game should pick up directional controls from a stick or pad automatically, but needs to be told how you wish to assign the buttons. Select the controller setup option from the main menu, then push right to access the user keys screen. Assign each action to a button using this menu. To Exit Tomb Raider: Another method is to press ALT & F4.

Tomb Raider uses Microsoft Compressed Audio for sound and music. If you do not hear sound/music in the game you'll need to check your PC and make sure the correct Windows components are activated. To do this:

1. Exit the game and go to the Control Panel.
2. Select the Add/Remove Programs Applet.
3. Click on the Windows Setup Tab
4. You should see a selection icon called MULTIMEDIA which will have a check in the box or no check at all.
5. Check this box (so a black check mark appears). Click 'ok' and you'll be prompted for your WINDOWS CD in order to install the correct Multimedia components to your hard drive.

There is also a driver issue with some sound cards and Microsoft's Compressed
Audio Format. If you experience any 'skipping or stuttering audio' please try the following to clear up the problem:

1. Exit out of the game and run the TOMB Setup Option from the Start Bar.
2. Look at the Sound Adapter Check Box.
3. Switch from Primary Sound Driver to the other available device (eg- Yamaha).
4. Click OK.

You will need to download and install legacy drivers for your sound card from the manufacturer. You may also need to manually select a sound card emulation in Tomb Raider setup.

This sound card is used by many computer manufacturers, such as Hewlett-Packard and Sony. When you get the sound setup, you will want to select Manually Select Sound Card. Choose the Sound Blaster Pro, Port 220, DMA 1, and IRQ 5. After you hear Lara say, “Right, Let’s go adventuring!” Select Continue and then select save settings.

This sound card is used by many computer manufacturers. When you get the sound setup, you will want to select Manually Select Sound Card. Choose the Sound Blaster Pro, Port 220, DMA 1, and IRQ 5. After you hear Lara say, “Right, Let’s go adventuring!” Select Continue and then select save settings.

Most IBM Aptiva and Acer Aspire computers have this sound/modem card. You may not be able to set the game up in Windows. When you get the sound setup, you will want to select Manually Select Sound Card. Choose the first Sound Blaster Option, Your Port 220, DMA 1, and IRQ 5. After you hear Lara say, “Right, Let’s go adventuring!” Select Continue and then select save settings. If this is not successful you will need to Shut Down and Restart the computer in MS-DOS mode. Once you are in DOS follow the “DOS Installation Instructions.” When you get the sound setup, you will want to select Manually Select Sound Card. Choose the first Sound Blaster Option, Your Port 220, DMA 1, and IRQ 5. After you hear Lara say, “Right, Let’s go adventuring!” Select Continue and then select save settings. You should exit the game and restart Windows. Once you have restarted Windows you should be able to start the game normally.

Many Compaq and Dell computers use this sound card. Tomb Raider will incorrectly detect your sound card as a Sound Blaster 16ASP/AWE32. You need to go to the sound setup in the game and manually select the ESS Audio Drive from the list. Use the same settings that were auto-detected, usually Port 220, DMA 1, and IRQ 5. Try test, if you hear Lara say; “Right, Let’s go adventuring!” choose continue and then choose save settings. If the game locks when you try test, Press CTRL, ATL, and Delete and End Task on install. If Windows says that it can’t close DOS program just click yes. Now click on Start, Shut Down and the Restart computer in MS-DOS mode. Then click yes. Follow the DOS installation instructions found on page three of your manual.

Tomb Raider may not auto-detect your sound card successfully. You will need to insure that all DOS drivers are installed for your sound card. If you are unsure as to how to do this you should contact your computer manufacturer or Creative Labs. If you have DOS drivers installed, make sure that you have the following line in your Autoexec.bat file; Set Blaster=A220 I5 D1 T6. If the game locks up in Window 95 restart your computer in DOS mode and follow the DOS installation instructions in the game manual.

Background Music only occurs during the animated sequences, Main Title Screen, and Lara's action such discovering a secret room or is in danger. Sound effects are gunshots, movement collision, footsteps, grunts, and animal sounds. The DOS/WIN 95 version only contains 9 audio tracks. You can listen to these tracks using your CD audio controller. The Sony and Saturn versions contain more audio tracks. This was a design decision.

Here are sound blaster settings for all Sound Blaster cards. For all Sound Blaster type sound cards, any model, use the following setting as defaults:

By today's standards the graphics are a bit primitive; however, patches are available for many popular 3dfx cards.

You may have noticed why they only support 3DFX, 3DFX Voodoo Rush, Rendition, Mystique, S3 and Power VR chipsets. The reason for this is that their software engineers have worked closely with their developers to create such a patch. Possible additions to this lineup is highly unlikely because of their next project.

The 3dfx patch that is available for Tomb Raider was designed for use with the Voodoo and Voodoo Rush chipset. A batch file option has been made available to allow the patch to function with the Voodoo II chipset as well. However the patch was not designed with the Voodoo Banshee chipset as this chipset was put out long after the patch was made available.

The 3dfx patch that is available for Tomb Raider was designed for use with the Voodoo and Voodoo Rush chipset. A batch file option has been made available to allow the patch to function with the Voodoo II chipset as well. However the patch was not designed with the Voodoo 3 chipset as this chipset was put out long after the patch was made available.

There is no patch for specifically for the Voodoo2 chipset and there are no plans to make a patch available in the future. The current 3dfx patch available for Tomb Raider will work with the Voodoo 2 chipset. Eidos have had reports from users creating a batch file with the following lines, will enable the patch to work with Voodoo 2 based video cards. Please note that they offer this as a solution in no way support whether this works.

Save the batch file in the directory that the game is installed and use it to start the game.

3D Graphic Cards

Most Tomb Raider games support all 100% Direct3D compliant graphic cards. This means that the game will run on every 3D accelerator card, providing it has DirectX installed, and you have installed its DX drivers for your 3D card. Due to the fact that DirectX has recent releases, there are a few known problems with the current sets of drivers that are available for the various 3D graphic card chipsets. As new drivers become available, many of these problems will be fixed. Graphic card manufacturers constantly update their drivers. If you are running the game on a 3D accelerator card, make sure you have the latest drivers available for your card.

There are many 3D accelerator cards available on the market, and they all will perform differently under the same conditions, depending on the chipset, amount of video memory, and drivers installed. The key to getting the best performance out of your graphics card is to set the card to a higher resolution, while maintaining a good frame rate with no texture loss. Many accelerator cards will run the game very efficiently at 640x480 High Color.

If you notice texture drop out - white blank spots on menu text, objects, terrain and characters including Lara, you will need to lower the graphics resolution. The card has run out of texture memory. The graphics resolution can be changed in the setup window.

If you are experiencing very low frame rates, you may want to lower the screen resolution. You can also reduce the screen size, which will leave a border around the viewable area. The "-" key on the keypad will reduce the screen size (while in-game), and the "+" key on the keypad will increase the screen size (while in-game). Reducing the resolution and screen size will
help the game run faster.

On some 3D cards, seaming may occur, drawing borders around polygons. This is most apparent when looking at the sky, which will have a tiled look to it. Turning off bi-linear filtering may help to fix this problem.

If you are getting any errors when running the game, such as runtime C++ error, or cannot find dinput.dll, reinstall DirectX. It can be installed directly from the game CD by running the dxsetup.exe program from the directx directory. If you continue to have problems, please contact your hardware manufacturer.

Re: VESA - for various visual defects, as on older PCs, change the refresh rates on monitor to at least 72 Mhz and run the Univesa driver. If your screen locks up, is distorted, or only shows a certain section, then run these programs/drivers before installing or playing the game:

The Univesa driver that came with the cd or through their ftp site, or a DOS UNIVBE shareware driver, you can download one from scitechsoft.com, or use a commercial application called a Power2Play Utility program. If you are loading UNIVBE and do not get any animations or a black screen, disable this driver.

Matrox Mystique Video card and all of the colors are strange, press the F1 key to change the video resolution. Possible problems with these setups:

Number 9 video card and no FMV: go to www.scitechsoft.com web site and download the DOS UNIVBE (Display Doctor) shareware program.

Orchid Righteous 3D: revision "D" cards with SEC memory had a few production problems. Please consult Orchid for a patch.

Can not initialize FMV player? - possible solution is to open the CD-ROM drive door and close it as the game goes to a black screen.

To get SVGA mode, press F1 when you are in the game. This will let you switch modes between VGA and SVGA. If in SVGA mode your speed is slow, press F2 to reduce the screen size. F3 to increase it back. Refer to the manual, page 4, for more keyboard commands.

DirectX - Depending on which Tomb Raider game you're playing, you may also need to install an updated version of Microsoft DirectX in order for the game to run correctly. Although each TR CD comes with its necessary version of DirectX, you can download it from the Microsoft DirectX or Windows Update web sites. These DX compliant drivers are for your video and sound cards. Please note that although DirectX is installed with TR games, your video and sound card drivers will not be upgraded to DirectX standard.

Even though this fact may not cause you problems, it can affect the media qualities of the game. An if so, to make all updated, you will need to obtain the latest DX drivers from your media card manufacturers website or CDROM. If the game does not run properly on your video card, and there are no DX drivers available for your video card, you will have to run the game in 'software mode', by going in via the Options icon, and checking the 'Hardware Emulation' checkbox - [all within 'setup' panel]. To see which version of DirectX you have, double-click on the My Computer icon, then click on 'C:' , Program Files, DirectX, Setup, and finally DXDiag - [all folders]. This program will show which version of DirectX you have installed. Another way to find out what DirectX version you have, is to click on Start menu then Run, then type "DXDiag" without the quotes in the Run box.

Note that WinXP currently comes with DirectX 8.1 and the latest version at present time is DirectX 9.0. To download the latest DirectX version for Win9x/ME/2000/XP, go to this DirectX 9.0 End-user Runtime update page. You can install DirectX 9.0 via the Web setup from the DirectX 9.0 End-user Runtime update page (around 15 to 18MB depending on the options you select) or you can get the whole installation file DirectX 9.0 Redist (which is about 32.5MB) for later installation (that does NOT need an Internet connection).

* I have problems with DirectX. How can I uninstall the current version to install the previous version? Microsoft says - once installed, DirectX can't be uninstalled. However, try DirectX Buster. This little app will run under Win9x/ME/2K and supports DirectX versions 5 up to 8.1. For DirectX 9.0, try this freeware DirectX 9.0 Uninstaller.

You may need to download and install updated drivers for your hardware (i.e., the software that allows your hardware to run correctly). Visit your hardware manufacturers' web sites and/or contact their tech support departments for additional info.

Driverforum - Device driver discussion site. Useful for requesting driver help.
Hardware Drivers Links - Just like its title says.
WinDrivers - Great site. However they charge a fee for accessing their driver links!
Support Tech - helps you find links to drivers, patches, upgrades and service packs.
Driverzone - It has a driver archive for older or obsolete hard-to-find drivers.
Wim's BIOS page - everything you wanted to know about a computer's BIOS.

Driver World - Helpful online resource links to driver hardware manufacturer sites.
Drivers On-Line - with its free Driver Wizard software, your hardware can be identified, and correct drivers located in seconds.
Drivers Planet - Drivers Planet offers direct links to driver files, easily accessible.
Drivers Updates and Patches - Links to download device drivers and patches.
Mister Driver - Device driver search engine.
PCdrivers.Com - Links to download device drivers and patches, variously sorted.
CD Drive Firmware Site - Good firmware site for CD-ROMs, DVDs, and CD-RWs.

Mod chips are usually installed in consoles so that you can play backed up games, (ie copies burned onto cdr). They have been used in pretty much any console that accepts cdrs, IE Dreamcast, playstation, Saturn, and PSX. Different mod chips are used in different ways, a few require a disk swap. (ie loading an original game until a certain point then opening the machine and swapping it out for the back up game before the original actually starts loading), while some have things like Gameshark built into them as well.

They're usually picked up through local buy & sell newspaper ads. If you don't have anything like that in your area you might try just looking through the for sale section of your local newspaper or buying online. They are sold in many places online. If you don't have one then you can't use backed up games. if the modchip breaks down, they are fairly cheap and it would likely be far safer for your console to just replace it with a new one, (and likely updated one since they are always being improved upon). For PSX ones, some have picked them up for about 30 bucks Canadian, circa 2003.

No Solder Mods - are also known as the RMod, an Stealth mod, as these mods require no Soldering whatsoever. It just plugs into the PS2 mainboard connecters, then Power UP, and door Eject. Basically, all it does is open the PS2 door, without telling the PS2. It can boot CD Based Ps2 games, PS1 games, DVD-R games, and DVD Rips under 630mb. The No Solder Mod requires a Gameshark2, Action Replay2, DVD Region X, or Swap Magic Disk in order to function properly. There's no way to boot CD-R's over 630mb because the TOC of the boot disk. If there was a Boot disk that was programmed to boot 700mb, then it would. A game at over 630mb that does boot is 'Resident Evil: Code Veronica X'.

LINKS...

1.modchip.ca; 2.modchip-sbox.com; 3.modchip.com; 4.easybuy2000.com; 5.www.noswapmodchips.com; 6.www.gocybershop.ca; 7.www.modchip.net.

For general PC user support queries try my simple PC Help tips page. If however, you have a technical problem with running the game that you don't find the solution to here, there is real-time LIVE information that you can get, by calling a helpline on +44 (0)870 9000 222, where they will be happy to assist you with any queries you may have. A further list of phone lines are via the Hint Line. Or you can contact the actual games publishers, online via this link.

Hundreds of TR players read the Usenet newsgroup: alt.games.tombraider. If you're having problems, posting a question here usually guarantees a quick, useful response. Be sure to post your system specifications (operating system, processor, video and sound hardware, available RAM), along with the details of your problem. If you're new to newsgroups, see this Community page for tips on getting started. Or there's the Eidos Operating System FAQ to consult.

Eidos Tech Support - This site includes frequently asked questions about each game, patches and other info. (Be sure your web browser is Java-enabled so you can use the pull-down menus to navigate the site.)

Or you can email me the problem, an then I will try to help you fix it by placing the answer on this page. :)