Can't get Dreamfall to work on my pc

[ramza]

I have tried to tweak the video options and set everything to the minimum but I still get this weird screen when I start the game.

Do you know what's wrong with it? It's weird that my pc does this because it has managed to run more demanding games like NWN2, F3 and The Witcher.

Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!

[Purkake]

Specs?

 

You may also want to try the demo to see if your installation/disc/whatnot is corrupt.

 

And I really hope you have played the first one already, because it is awesome.

Edited March 7, 2010 by Purkake

[RPGmasterBoo]

The game sucks in so many ways I don't even know why you bother ramza.

[ramza]

Intel core 2 Duo processor T5500, 1.66 Ghz

2 GB RAM

Nvidia Geforce Go 7400 GPU

 

The dvd doesn't seem corrupt. The game installed just fine and I get the first screen (with the options to start a new game, load a game, etc) just fine as well. When I start up a new game, I hear the voice of some male character and then end up with that weird screen. If you click on the picture, you can see an eye on the upper part (must be some in-game icon). I can click on some things I can't see and get a response from the character but I can't see anything at all.

 

And yes, I have played the first part and it was awesome. I also completed both Syberia 1 and 2 last week and those games rocked as well. I am on an adventure game mood these days. I hope I manage to get this one working on my pc.

[Purkake]

What operating system?

 

The specs should be enough, the screenshot looks like an overheating graphics card or some kind of crazy driver/directx bug. Try installing newer graphics drivers and directx.

 

@Boo: It's not that bad and certainly worth going through once. Stop discouraging people.

[ramza]

Is it maybe because I have 20 Firefox windows with multiple tabs each open at the same time?

Man, I really need to take the time to look at these but I just don't have the patience...

 

OS: Windows Xp SP2

Edited March 7, 2010 by ramza

[Purkake]

I doubt that, but you can always kill Firefox and try again.

 

Also, get WinXP SP3.

[HoonDing]

It is a known issue with trying to run Dreamfall on a notebook with that graphics card. It is recommended to install 81.98 drivers.

 

Also note that Dreamfall uses StarForce.

Edited March 8, 2010 by virumor

[Humodour]

The game sucks in so many ways I don't even know why you bother ramza.

 

What a load of rubbish.

[RPGmasterBoo]

A valuable contribution to this conversation Krezack, you have really indebted us all.

 

Let no one say I didn't elaborate:

1. the gameplay sucks. Its probably the worst point and click adventure I've ever played in this regard. The puzzles are ridiculously easy, and offer no challenge at all. There is no tangible reward for playing this game, its more a movie where you occasionally click things.

2. Zoe is one of the most irritating protagonists ever

3. the action based gameplay is crap and unnecessary in an adventure game

Nothing in the game really works well apart from the storyline, and I gave up on it twice halfway through because the gameplay sucked so bad.

 

Considering its predecessor this game is an insult to the p&c genre and should never have been made (this way). IMO it shares the "most casual/dumbest AAA adventure sequel" position with Broken Sword III.

[Tigranes]

TLJ didn't really have gameplay either. I mean, that's true with the vast majority of adventure games. I love 'em but most of them, most of the time, have braindead gameplay.

 

Of course, I don't remember 'action sequences' in Dreamfall so maybe I have a brain fart. But it had the same special 'feel' that TLJ had.

[HoonDing]

Progressing a storyline through puzzle solving is exactly the gameplay in adventure games. Whether it is braindead or not, depends on the difficulty of the puzzles. I wouldn't call Riven or Schizm braindead...

[Humodour]

A valuable contribution to this conversation Krezack, you have really indebted us all.

 

I would tender it was far more valuable than your unjustified claim that the game was crap. Indeed, at least my post forced you to justify your (in my opinion) misguided stance.

 

Let no one say I didn't elaborate:

1. the gameplay sucks.

 

OK, completely subjective. Wasn't spectacular, but I enjoyed it.

 

2. Zoe is one of the most irritating protagonists ever

 

Again, completely subjective - I really enjoyed her, while I found April very annoying in Dreamfall compared to TLJ. I think the vast majority of people would enjoy Zoe.

 

3. the action based gameplay is crap and unnecessary in an adventure game

 

It was perfectly bearable, but I can understand how gameplay quirks can put people off an entire game - the control scheme for Indigo Prophecy did this to me.

 

Nothing in the game really works well apart from the storyline, and I gave up on it twice halfway through because the gameplay sucked so bad.

 

So from a purely gameplay perspective you disliked the game. I'm glad you finally specified.

[RPGmasterBoo]

An adventure game has really only two parts to it: the story and the puzzles (i.e. the gameplay). Dreamfall only has a story. That's not good enough (for me).

 

Plus it represents (unsuccessful) tampering with a perfectly functional genre to make it more accessible to the casual crowd, which is an instant minus in my book.

[HoonDing]

I have no problem with action in adventure games. Early adventure games like Quest for Glory, Conquest of the Longbow, Monkey Island series, Fate of Atlantis, Full Throttle had action. The most unique adventure game of all time, Dune 1, even had strategy elements.

 

Problem about Dreamfall's action is that it feels incredibly clunky & is just filler. But luckily most of the time it can be bypassed with stealth.

[Purkake]

Can't you let the poor guy make up his own mind?

 

At least he isn't playing JRPGs for once.

Edited March 8, 2010 by Purkake

[RPGmasterBoo]

Whosa doing this travesty and playing JRPGs?

[ramza]

I haven't played a JRPG since the end of the Playstation 1 era (10 years ago in other words).

I am trying to update my drivers. Otherwise, I will have to wait until I get a new pc. I am in no hurry anyway since I have plenty of other games to play. I am playing vanilla Total War Medieval II at the moment and I am having a blast.

Edited March 8, 2010 by ramza

[aries101]

Ragnar Tornquist has clearly said that Dreamfall isn't a point & click adventure game. If you look at the controls in the game, this is true. Instead of poing & clicking your way through the game, you have a control band. This control band need to make contact with objects and people when you want to interact, e.g. move an object or talk to people in the game.

 

As far as your problem goes, have you tried updating your video (graphic) drivers?

 

 

This guy/girl seems to have a similar problem like yours:

 

 

http://forums.longestjourney.com/showthread.php?t=2565

 

 

In this thread at

 

 

http://www.adventuregamers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=14871

 

you're encouraged to update your version of direct x

 

 

Sometimes, though, I think, you need to 'kill' the option to play the videos in the game.

How this is done, I can't remember...but let me investigate a bit...

 

 

You can also try updating your version of XP from SP2 til XP SP3

 

Edit:

 

Here's maybe some help:

 

http://www.gameboomers.com/forum/ubbthread...html#Post475543

 

More help here:

 

http://support.aspyr.com/index.php/kb/article/000652

 

Here's even more help:

 

http://www.gameboomers.com/forum/ubbthread...html#Post422794

 

I hope this works.

 

If it doesn't you're welcome to ask your question over at http://www.gameboomers.com

Edited March 8, 2010 by aries101

[ramza]

Wow! Thanks a lot aries! It's amazing you found so many threads out there. I googled "dreamfall troubleshooting" and found nothing useful.

I am now gonna read these threads to see what's wrong with my pc. Thanks again!

[Tigranes]

Yay, someone is helpful!

 

Dreamfall I recall enjoying about as much as TLJ, though I didn't know what the hell was going on. Besides, BG&E had silly actiony sequences and I still persevered. These games are never really about the gameplay, sometimes you get those moments thinking "Hey its cool I can do this", but that's about it.

[Purkake]

Dreamfall's gameplay is what it is, but do NOT diss BG&E's gameplay. It was an excellent mix of combat, stealth and platforming, not only that but it actually had a functional stealth system when most games were still doing the trial and error stealth.

[Tigranes]

Its just a game purkake dont be such a fanboy lol

 

 

Maybe I just don't appreciate the gameplay in adventure games enough, so I'm not the best person to judge. They're mostly decent, but I mean, did BG&E really need the platforming bits? I liked the stealth, but unless you got it right you'd get insta-caught and have to redo the 'set piece' again and again, as well. Combat was basic, but again, if you couldn't work out the right way to do it you had to repeat. I'm not great on platformy stuff and it really wore me down.

 

It was great in that the gameplay actually made you empathise with Jade (always on the run, always nervous), but it wasn't the funnest thing in the world.

[HoonDing]

It was possible to avoid stealth in BG&E and simply fight the Alpha Sections. But it all came down to spamming Jade's Whirlwind attack.

[Purkake]

Well, the bottom line is that throwing Dreamfall's and BG&E's gameplay into the same "adventure game" pot is unfair.