[Resolved] -Unable to continue GK The Beast Within chap 6

[Tawmis]

I'm totally proud of myself right now... Attached is just inside the door now!

So... I did some digging - found a french forum (had google translate the page for me) - where they said they ran it in Windows XP and got past a similar error.

I had - just a few days ago - created a temp Windows XP virtual desk... so I copied it over - and BLAM - no error. So I saved, just as I got inside.

Then I thought.

"Let's try this. On my regular Windows 7 machine, change the Compatibility Mode to Windows XP (Service Pack 3) and run DOSBox."

BLAM

Got inside the door.

So you can download the zip file with it inside the door - or just change your DOSBox compatibility to Windows XP (Service Pack 3) and you should be good to go!

(Naturally this may impact other games that running it in Windows XP Service Pack 3 won't work - so you may need to switch back and forth between turning that off and on).

[Awesomeg]

I have tried changing the compatiblity of DOSBox to Windows XP but it always exits to Desktop each time I try to load the "Inside" save game you sent me. I've included a screenshot(I don't have Imgur) of how I change the compatiblity to Windows XP. Am I doing it the right way?

[Tawmis]

I have tried changing the compatiblity of DOSBox to Windows XP but it always exits to Desktop each time I try to load the "Inside" save game you sent me. I've included a screenshot(I don't have Imgur) of how I change the compatiblity to Windows XP. Am I doing it the right way?

So try this! Leave it as Windows XP (Service Pack 3) Compatibility.

Now, rather than launch the GK2 through there.

Just launch DOSBox so it puts you into DOSBox without launching the game.

Then change directory and what not into the GK folder and run the GK2 file that starts the game, from inside DOSBox.

Because that's how I do it.

You will need to mount the drive that the game is on.

So for example, if it's on your C: drive - in DOSBox do:

mount c: c:\

This will say that the C: drive is mounted

Then type C:

This will drop you down into your C: drive.

Then CD (folder) till you're there.

For example CD\Sierra\GK2

Or whatever the case may be.

If you're not sure of the path or it says it can't find it, just type DIR or DIR/W

And it will list the directory. In DOS long names are "broken" up - so for example "GABRIEL" would become "GABRI~1" or something.

[Awesomeg]

THANK YOU FOR YOUR HELP!
You know any way to make the DOSBox into full screen?

[adeyke]

Alt-enter

[Tawmis]

So it's working now?

[Awesomeg]

So it's working now?

Yeah. It works now but I have to keep on playing through DOSBox by the way you mentioned. If I play through my usual way then any game I save after catching the bird cannot be loaded.

[Tawmis]

So it's working now?

Yeah. It works now but I have to keep on playing through DOSBox by the way you mentioned. If I play through my usual way then any game I save after catching the bird cannot be loaded.

So what you can do to ease the pain.

In Windows, open the COMMAND (CMD) window.

Type COPY CON GK2.BAT (press Enter)

Then type:
ECHO OFF
CD\SIERRA\GK2
(Press F6)

Naturally the CD\SIERRA\GK2 would actually be where ever you have the GK2 game installed. So it might be CD\PROGRAM FILES\GOG\GK2 or whatever.

So that way when you run DOSBox, you just do the Mount of the C: drive then type GK2.BAT from the root of C:\ and it will take you to the GK2 folder

If you want to get more fancy, before pressing F6 to save the file, type the name of the file that launches it like SIERRA.EXE or whatever.

So that way the only thing you're doing is launching DOSBox then mounting, then launching the .BAT file.

[Collector]

Why not just put all of the mount commands in a custom conf and create a shortcut to DOSBox using the conf- switch to have it use your custom conf? You can then just start the game by double clicking that shortcut.

[Tawmis]

Why not just put all of the mount commands in a custom conf and create a shortcut to DOSBox using the conf- switch to have it use your custom conf? You can then just start the game by double clicking that shortcut.

Because I wasn't sure if that'd break launching GK2. Because Steam and GOG both use the custom config file - and he was hitting issues when using the Steam's config file of DOSBox.

So I wasn't sure if that'd break it again.

Figured launching DOSBox and mounting then running a .BAT on the root of the mounted drive isn't too many steps.

[Collector]

Don't have to use the same conf. One that just has the [autoexec] section that mounts the folder and executes the game would work. i.e. If the conf is in the folder to be mounted:

Code: Select all

[autoexec]
cls
@ECHO OFF
mount c .
c:
cd \
SIERRA.EXE RESOURCE.CFG
exit

and add a

Code: Select all

conf- "<path to game>\dosbox.conf"

to your DOSBox shortcut. This will launch DOSBox with all of the defaults, but automate launching the game.

On another note, DOSBox should not have compatibility mode set. It will work on any modern Windows.

[Tawmis]

On another note, DOSBox should not have compatibility mode set. It will work on any modern Windows.

That's just it. It does work - up until a certain point for this particular "bug" (for lack of a better word) in Chapter 6.I was able to load all of his other save games, and click away, go to different screens, etc., etc., with no problem. It was just that last save game, when you click on the door. All the previous chapters work and play fine, with no issue. However, once you get to that door, if you don't enable the Windows XP - it crashes ("Alert: Error opening resource 65536.snd - Use Enter to retry, Esc to quit"). This was through his Steam save game, and when I tried it through GK2 from GoG - both crashed with the same exact error. But when I did it on my virtual Windows XP (no change to DOSBox), it loaded just fine. I enabled the Compat to Windows XP on my Windows 7, and suddenly - no more crash when clicking on the door. The previous save games work fine, without the Windows XP Compat enabled. But once you click on that door, it will crash - unless that's enabled, or unless you're playing on Windows XP. Don't know why that is.

Now I have not played GK2 all the way through in DOSBox on my own, so I am not sure if it's something unique to his save game; but it is odd that I loaded his save game and hit the same error (when his was a Steam version of GK2, and mine was a GOG version of GK2). But something in the save game may have gone wonky - that it corrupted something - but it's odd that enabling Windows XP Compat and/or playing it through Windows XP (even Virtual) - seems to bypass whatever issue it has loading/opening that resource file. You'd think it would work, no matter the OS, because of the DOSBox emulation - but there you have it.

If you have GK2 installed, by all means, on anything not Windows XP (and not having that turned on in DOSBox) and see if it works - his save game file is in this post. But like I said, I saw the same exact error - same exact spot - doing the same exact thing on the GOG version of GK2 using his save game file. If you can figure out why it's not finding/having an issue opening that resource file to find that .SND file unless it's played in Windows XP or have DOSBox with Windows XP enabled, then by all means work thy magic!

I just know, doing that fixed it for me - and appears to have fixed it for him. (I keep saying him, because I assume Awesomeg is a him)

[Collector]

Then it looks like something Qbix should take a look at. Sent him a PM.

[Qbix]

I can't reproduce the problem.

Code: Select all

I installed the game in: F:\GOG GAMES\GK2
unzipped the savegames
started DOSBox 0.74
mount c "f:\gog games\gk2"
c:
sierra resource.cfg
restore game
inside

works fine and went to 2 other locations (outside and bedroom).

You don't have the gk2 folder somewhere that being protected by windows right ? like c:\program files

I need some more information on how to reproduce it.

[Tawmis]

I can't reproduce the problem.

Code: Select all

I installed the game in: F:\GOG GAMES\GK2
unzipped the savegames
started DOSBox 0.74
mount c "f:\gog games\gk2"
c:
sierra resource.cfg
restore game
inside

works fine and went to 2 other locations (outside and bedroom).
You don't have the gk2 folder somewhere that being protected by windows right ? like c:\program files
I need some more information on how to reproduce it.

So for me, I had it installed on G:\USB\SIERRA\GABRIEL KNIGHT 2 - THE BEAST WITHIN

The G: drive being an external drive.

Here - let me reinstall GK2...