contents
spoiler section - enter at your own risk
Q: I remember Shock as a very good game. Where can I find it nowadays?
A: System Shock is considered an [abandoned] [game]. You can download the diskette version (nearly 14 MB) from [The Underdogs], but regard [their FAQ] before downloading.
A server containing an [aced] .bin image of the CD has been located: [149.156.60.5:/pub/games/], login is anonymous.
Another server has been submitted by [invisiblebob]: [lei-064.leitch.uml.edu:/System Shock/], login is anonymous.
UPDATE: Yet another server has been submitted by [I/O Error]: [res109a-080.rh.rit.edu:/], login and password can be freely chosen.
Q: Shock won't run due to too little memory, but I just upgraded to 64 MB!
A: You receive this error message (notice the neat typo in remember, wonder who slipped it in?):
Our system has been shocked!! But rememeber to Salt The Fries System Shock can no longer run due to a fatal error. Error code 3007 Memory error Not enough memory to make email cursor! Common problem solutions: * Increase FILES in config.sys to 30 or more. * Disable SMARTDRV write caching * Use a minimal config.sys and autoexec.batThese suggestions are only limited true, they work well on older machines with genuine DOS environment (i.e. something like DOS 6 without a Windows GUI). Here is some information for PCs which run Win9x.
Since System Shock is a DOS game, it doesn't matter how much RAM you have altogether (you need at least 4 MB for the diskette, 8 MB for the CD-ROM version). You need to optimize the first 1 MB of your RAM (base memory). This is done by editing the \config.sys and \autoexec.bat files. On my (modern) system, Shock (and all other DOS games I have) runs perfectly in DOS mode. There's also a way to convince the Windows GUI to run Shock there (see end of this chapter). Here are my files as an example:
CONFIG.SYS dos=high,umb country=049,437,c:\windows\command\country.sys device=c:\windows\himem.sys /testmem:off device=c:\windows\emm386.exe ram highscan devicehigh=c:\treiber\sscdrom.sys /d:cdrom-lw /v installhigh=c:\windows\command\mscdex.exe /e /k /d:cdrom-lw /l:e /m:4 installhigh=c:\windows\smartdrv.exe 2048 0 ab-c+d+ef installhigh=c:\treiber\a-four86.com /a9 installhigh=c:\windows\command\keyb.com gr,437,c:\windows\command\keybrd2.sysIn this file, normally all DOS device drivers are loaded. Note that the second and last line contain the localization codes for Germany, you need to adapt them to match your own country. Run the DOS command help country and within the help program press the enter key once for specific information. If you can't find help.com in your windows\command\ folder, copy help.com and the other tools from the oldmsdos folder on your Windows installation CD there.
The first, third and fourth line are commands needed to make your memory above 1 MB usable for DOS. (MS-DOS was written at a time when PCs only had 640 KB or 1 MB, these and other (in)compabilities were carried over until present-day times).
The next line loads the CD-ROM device driver. The next line loads the Microsoft CD-Ex utility, which maps the functions of your CD drive onto a network drive, since DOS can handle disks (floppy and hard) and network, but no CD drives. Hint: If you want to run the hard disk version only, you won't need to load neither CD-ROM driver nor mscdex. This saves you some KB of memory.
The next line: Smartdrive is a disk cache, which reads ahead data from disks and stores them in RAM, this procedure greatly increases overall performance. My example allocates 2 MB memory for DOS, no memory for Windows (Win has its own, better vcache), disables caching for drive B: (I don't have a second floppy disk drive) and enables also the write cache for hard disks C: and D:.
Next line: A-Four provided a [mouse driver], which is very small in memory. I like it, since I only have a two-button mouse without a scroll wheel, so this little device driver is absolutely sufficient.
AUTOEXEC.BAT @echo off set blaster=a220 i5 d1 t4 set msdosdata=c:\windows\temp set path=c:\batch set prompt=$d $t$h$h$h$h$h$h $p$g set temp=c:\windows\temp set tmp=c:\windows\temp c:\windows\command\mode.com con delay=1 rate=32 c:\cfg801.exe c:\dos801.exeIn this file, a lot of environment variables are normally set. The most important for DOS games is the blaster variable, which tells the setup program of games how your sound card emulates the Sound Blaster. The line is set by your sound card's configuration tool and should not be tempered with when the System Shock setup program plays back both sound and music correctly.
If you don't get sound at all, you need to [play around with the parameters]. When you can hear sound, but it plays back garbled or chopped, this is a sure sign for a wrong interrupt. Here are possible values:
The third-last line speeds up the keyboard. The two last lines are specific to my machine: they initialize the Sound Blaster emulation. The commands look different for each brand of sound card.
If you can't make heads or tails of this and still need help, you may [e-mail me your files] and I will see what I can do.
For running the game within Windows' GUI, you need to set up a .pif (program information file) for cdshock.bat; here's how to manage to do this:
Q: Why can't I exit the game from the main menu screen?
A: But yes you can. Press alt+q, like you'd do in-game.
Q: What does Salt the fries mean?
For this and many other interesting answers, have a look into [Blue Lightning]'s excellent [Shock FAQ].
Q: I only get a DirectX message when I try to install System Shock 2. Why?
A: Shock2 won't normally let you install in Windows 2000, since it is a NT based operating system. But you can bypass it, like that:
setup.exe -lgntforceFor those of you that need instructions how to apply a parameter to a command: press Start->Run...->Browse... and browse through to letterofyourcddrive:\setup.exe. Select it and press Open... to return to the Run dialogue box. Type in the parameter behind the line in the box and press OK to execute.
Q: Are there patches for System Shock 2?
A: There is one patch (v1.15->v2.3). It adds multiplayer capability and corrects the end-game bug. Here is a list in a download manager friendly format:
5.2 MB .exe file
4.2 MB .zip file
If you know of other locations, tell me.
Q: I can see only distorted graphics or the game crashes when I try to run it./The weapon models flicker. What's the reason?
A: Almost always outdated drivers are the fault. This problem was reported with Matrox and Voodoo3 graphic cards. Get a driver update from the appropriate website. Apply DirectX, your graphics drivers, then install the game, then the game patch, in this order. It should run fine now. Don't rely on beta drivers, except if this is the only possibility.
In case the game crashes on first occasion, you forgot to install the Indeo video codec from your CD.
Q: I get the following error message, making it unable to play the game: Direct3D does not accurately report texture memory usage.
A: This is an error message reported in connection with the Intel integrated video chipsets of the 7xx and 8xx family as well as with Riva 128 cards. To solve that, create a user.cfg file with a text editor, put the line safe_texture_manager in there and save it into your Shock2 main directory.
Q: I get the following error message, making it unable to play the game: Program error: shock2.exe has generated errors and will be closed by Windows. You will need to restart the program. An error log is being created.
A: This is an error message reported in connection with Windows 2000. The user.dat.LOG reads: Application popup: shock2.exe - Ordinal Not Found : The ordinal 1079 could not be located in the dynamic link library KERNEL32.dll. To solve that, try [this patch].
Q: Why won't the third mouse button work?
A: Logitech and related mice employ a software that prevents games from using the button, because special functions are assigned to it. You have to press ctrl+alt+del (once only!) to bring up the task manager and then end the task em_exec.exe.
Q: Is there a level editor for Shock2?
A: Yes, luckily it has been released to the public. It is called DromEd, as Shock2 is based on the same engine as Thief. We usually call it ShockEd to avoid confusion. It comes with a introductory tutorial. If you want to have a look how the architecture in the original missions was done, you cannot use the .mis files on your CD. They are stripped off their terrain brushes, so you need to download the unstripped missions.
5 MB
24 MB
There are a lot of resources available for DromEd. Try the [Editors' Guild on The Circle] first. Most information there is applicable for all versions of DromEd. Then head over to the [ShockEd section] on www.sshock2.com, a collection of specific resources. If you run into problem and need to talk to fellow editors, go to TTLG's [Editors' Guild forum], but follow these rules: do a [search] first to see whether others had the same problem (this is almost always the case) and put a Shock2 sign before your hopefully meaningful topic headline. In case you prefer solving problems in real-time, there's also a IRC channel dedicated to DromEd. It is on the server irc.starchat.net, channel #dromed. [jump in now]
Q: How do you extract those sounds from the game?
A: All the game resources are in the .crf files, which are practically only .zip files with another file extension. Use the following great programs to handle then: [Windows Commander] and/or [WinRAR]. Especially the Windows Commander is a great tool I'd never want to miss gain, it treats archive files as folders. Extracting files from/packing files into an archive is as easy as copying a file! One last tip: avoid Winzip.
Q: What is the multiplayer feature of Shock2?
A: It is a co-operative game for 2-4 players. You need to apply the [#^ patch] first. One player has to host the game, the others join. The joiners need to know the IP address of the host's machine, it is displayed when he opens a new game. To avoid switching to and fro the game, the IP can be determined beforehand: Press Start->Run..., enter winipcfg into the text field and press OK to execute. The program shows you your machine's IP address.
Here are some things you can do to find other Shock2 players:
If you have connection problems, make sure you have publicly routable IP adresses and check whether these ports are not blocked (needed for DirectPlay):
Q: How can I make the soldier walk faster?
A: psi agility, speed boost hypo, speed boost implant, invest cyber modules into agility and use the 'speedy' OS upgrade (symbolized by the swift feet)
Q: What are those exploits I've heard of?
A:Q: What are all these projects? What about System Shock 3? I want more more more!
A:Can we hope for a real System Shock 3, even perhaps made by Ken Levine/Irrational Games? - There are no positive announcements, and seeing that EA treats the license rather stepmotherly, it is the duty of the fans to hold up the legacy.
Trivia
This section links to some of the more interesting, fact-filled threads on the TTLG forum. Note that I also keep local copies of them.
[SS2 & SS2 Classic] deals with the different (re-)releases of System Shock 2. There we collect and discuss the box designs, the sorts of documentation and so on.
Contributors
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