Hardware Analysis Community Forums http://www.hardwareanalysis.com/content/topic/30293/ 2008-12-03T19:09:41-05:00 http://www.hardwareanalysis.com/content/topic/30293/ http://media.hardwareanalysis.com/halogo.gif text/html 2004-08-28T10:10:02-05:00 matt mcdonald http://www.hardwareanalysis.com/content/topic/30293/?o=20#176192 So i downloaded the 4.9 catalyst driver from ATI. But I'm alittle unsure as to how risky this is to install, it shows serveral warnings that it is unsupported and i could wait until a doom3 patch is released and hope that solves it. Alternatively, it has been psoted that without 4.9 beta isntalled, your graphics card can fry itself! I find this hard to believe but there are so many faults with this game I can't deny it may be possible with the overclocking. i have decided that although the game is ok, its probably not worth the risk of installing an unsupported driver. As a reviewer myself, I have rated this game 6.5/10. Here's why:<br /> Postive Negative<br /> excellent lighting +1 Major technical difficulties for majority of users -1.5<br /> Groundbreaking sound quality +2 Constantly Repetitive/frequently awful environ-1<br /> Improved storyline +1 Lame multiplayer and deteriorating linear gameplay -1<br /> Quality of entity graphics +1 <br /> Overall playability and atmospheric environment +1.5<br /> <br /> overall doom3 is nowhere near the benchmark we expected, in my opinion overrated for the cost of the game and far too hyped for the end product. Alot of patches and mods would need to surface to resurrect this rushed, misconception and udner achieving sequel to a trilogy which first set the standard for games to come, has now fallen by the wayside in delivering what we have already come to expect as standard in modern gaming. text/html 2004-08-27T20:17:01-05:00 Will Olson II http://www.hardwareanalysis.com/content/topic/30293/?o=20#175980 yes I love it as well the atmosphere is great.... text/html 2004-08-27T20:07:10-05:00 Michael C http://www.hardwareanalysis.com/content/topic/30293/?o=20#175972 I think Doom 3 is a great game, I mad that everyone was so excited for something new and original, personally, this was so scary it made it unlike anything i've ever played. text/html 2004-08-27T19:57:56-05:00 The Real Robert Jones http://www.hardwareanalysis.com/content/topic/30293/?o=20#175970 Doom 3 sucks. I wasted my money. It's too scary. text/html 2004-08-27T19:49:29-05:00 jmerc http://www.hardwareanalysis.com/content/topic/30293/?o=20#175966 Catalyst 4.9 drivers are available only beta correct?<br /> You can't download them from the ATI site.<br /> text/html 2004-08-27T19:37:54-05:00 Sean B http://www.hardwareanalysis.com/content/topic/30293/?o=20#175962 You mean you're NOT using the Cat 4.9's? No wonder...<br /> <br /> Those drivers were specifically designed for the release of Doom III. If you're using the 4.8's, they've been known to have serious issues, one of which is mentioned here: <a class="ext" href="/action/r/http://www.rage3d.com/board/showthread.php?t=33772916" target="_blank">http://www.rage3d.com/board/showthread.php?t=33772916</a> text/html 2004-08-27T13:11:16-05:00 Blood Brother http://www.hardwareanalysis.com/content/topic/30293/#175833 It's way too scary for me to play man. i like racing games better text/html 2004-08-27T12:56:10-05:00 matt mcdonald http://www.hardwareanalysis.com/content/topic/30293/#175826 sorry guys, thanks for the help anyway, but the new direct x and opening up the cover, even using a fan isnt making a difference. It's obviously not the graphics card and I don't think it's memory either. I'm very unsure as to what is the problem, but i have used the no disc patchand it still crashes so it's not a disc run fault that's for sure. Nothing else can be said, maybe it's jsut bugs in the game that are clashing with my system, who knows. Hopefully the patch coming out will make all the difference. the gameplay is still excellent until the random crashes, but i feel let down by doom3 in the game itself jsut because it doesn't deserve all the hype in my opinion and the atmosphere/environment becomes samey after about 10 minutes and continues aimlessly for hours that way. Apart from that the game has been worth the money and in my opinion much better than farcry but not in comparison of graphics. hopefully the release of half life 2 will put all this behind us.<br /> Also i thought about using the mentioned 4.9 radeon driver from Ati, has this improved gaming for anyone else or has it caused problems, its unsupported. what do you guys think? text/html 2004-08-26T19:08:37-05:00 matt mcdonald http://www.hardwareanalysis.com/content/topic/30293/#175504 i will do all of that thanks. I'll try my best, hopefully that will sort out some of the problems. thanks again I'll let you know how it goes. text/html 2004-08-26T17:41:00-05:00 Sean B http://www.hardwareanalysis.com/content/topic/30293/#175476 Vaios have terrible ventillation. Try removing the side panel... or if you don't want to void your warranty, you can remove the faceplates of the 5 1/4 (cdrom) bays and throw a desk fan in front of it.The 9800 gets seriously hot, so it could just be the card trying to throttle itself.<br /> <br /> <br /> While you're at it, try updating your DirectX to 9.0C and get the patch to disable Doom III from requiring that the disk be present. It's available at <a class="ext" href="/action/r/http://www.gamecopyworld.com" target="_blank">http://www.gamecopyworld.com</a> ... and yes, it's legal and the multiplayer mode will still function properly. text/html 2004-08-26T16:52:42-05:00 matt mcdonald http://www.hardwareanalysis.com/content/topic/30293/#175464 Right ok guys, I'm new here but here goes anyway. Bought doom3 and I'm quite far into it and it plays ok for awhile and I am enjoying it alot, but would you enjoy it as much if the game crashed every 10-25 minutes? It has spots of excellent play for upto half an hour, but at random the game freezes and I have to restart the pc. i have no idea why it's happening. At first I thought it could be my graphics card but it's fairly new, a radeon 9800, and that should be able to handle, i can play fine on medium/high quality, it runs ok then frozen. Despite this I am far into the game but i won't spoil any bits for you guys working through it.<br /> Could i have a defective disc that suddenly stops being read?<br /> <br /> My specs are:<br /> <br /> 512mb ram<br /> 2 ghz p4<br /> radeon 9800 latest drivers<br /> 120gb hard drive<br /> its a sony vaio if that makes a difference<br /> <br /> Thanks for your help. It's a great game and i hate having to restart the pc so often it ruins gameplay. It can literally freeze anywhere, doors/explosions, turning a corner, switching a weapon you name it, even saving. Would upgrading Ram simply be the asnwer. i stop running everything but the game, antivirus etc included but still it crashes. i only run on medium features and 1024x 768 res.<br /> Thanks v much, reply asap, your help really is appreciated. text/html 2004-08-09T03:13:53-05:00 Denny http://www.hardwareanalysis.com/content/topic/30293/#159110 I havent get a chance to play this game, but i already heard many negative comments. Well, all negative comments here wont stop me buying and playing doom3, as long as it is fun and enjoyable it wont be any problems for me (graphic isnt everything).<br /> <br /> btw, Dirk. that thing you see in farcry isnt M16, its M4. text/html 2004-08-08T09:55:09-05:00 Sean B http://www.hardwareanalysis.com/content/topic/30293/#158899 Eat the walls and pipes? <br /> <br /> <br /> Can you come over next time my sink or toilet gets clogged? Yeah... just put your tongue in there. text/html 2004-08-08T03:25:50-05:00 Will Olson II http://www.hardwareanalysis.com/content/topic/30293/#158824 Its ment to be scary....and is...ID wanted to revolutionize sound in a game....they have... nothing comes even CLOSE to the sound in D3...everyone wanted WAVE OF THE FUTURE GRAPHICS the game was started 5yrs ago so then it was the wave of the future it is now...THE FUTURE so its out play it enjoy it...if your playing it because you want it to look cool your playing it for the wrong reason its ment to scare you....not make you gooo OHHH I WISH I COULD JUST EAT THESE WALLS A PIPES... text/html 2004-08-07T16:13:17-05:00 Greg M http://www.hardwareanalysis.com/content/topic/30293/#158637 I just did an experiment by turning off bumpmapping, and it looks very bland.<br /> I know that your really not supposed to run it without the bumpmapping unless you need to, but I wanted to get a good look at all the textures.<br /> <br /> Well, without bumpmapping, it looks like a underground part of farcry, but a little more grayed.<br /> <br /> I was a little harsh with my first post, and I was just upset because I (for some reason) dont like bumpmapping. It just looks stupid when you crouch next to a wall that appeared to have a bunch of things on it, and its really just flat.<br /> <br /> In placed where you cant get that close, bumpmapping looks terrific, and does add a lot to the overall appeal of the game.<br /> <br /> Oh, by the way, after turning off bumpmapping, I was able to go from 800x600 medium to 1024x768 Ultra at about the same speed.