Microsoft KB Archive/810480

= MechWarrior 4: Mercenaries: Known Video Issues =

Article ID: 810480

Article Last Modified on 1/29/2007

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APPLIES TO


 * Microsoft MechWarrior 4: Mercenaries

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SUMMARY
This article describes the known video issues that may occur with Microsoft MechWarrior 4: Mercenaries.

In this Article

 * General Graphics Issues
 * 3D Card Issues
 * Minimum System Requirements
 * Hardware-Specific Video Issues
 * 3Dfx Voodoo
 * 3DLabs
 * Aopen
 * Asus
 * ATI
 * Creative
 * Diamond
 * Guillemot
 * Intel
 * Matrox
 * NVIDIA
 * Other



3D Card Issues
Note You can resolve many video issues if you download and install the latest video drivers for your video adapter from the manufacturer. If your video adapter drivers are not DirectX 8.1-compliant, the game may not correctly detect your card. If this behavior occurs, contact the video adapter manufacturer for information about updated drivers, and install the latest drivers that are available.

Many drivers are not supported by chipset manufacturers. MechWarrior 4: Mercenaries only fully supports DirectX 8.1-compliant video adapters.

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Minimum System Requirements
For additional information about MechWarrior 4: Mercenaries minimum system requirements, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

810479 MechWarrior 4: Mercenaries: Minimum System Requirements

To make sure that your video adapter meets the minimum requirements required to play MechWarrior 4: Mercenaries, follow these steps:

Part 1: Verify Video Adapter Memory
Use the DirectX Diagnostic Tool to determine how much video memory is installed on your video adapter:
 * 1) Click Start, and then click Run.
 * 2) In the Open box, type diaxdiag, and then click OK.
 * 3) Click the Display or Display 1 tab.
 * 4) Note how much video memory is listed on the Approx. Total Memory line under Device, and then click Exit.
 * 5) If less than 16 megabytes (MB) of video memory is installed on your video adapter, install additional video memory on your video adapter, or install a video adapter that has more video memory.

Part 2: Verify DDI Version
MechWarrior 4: Mercenaries requires that the video adapter support DirectDraw Interface (DDI) version 8. To check the DDI version:
 * 1) Click Start, and then click Run.
 * 2) In the Open box, type dxdiag, and then click OK.
 * 3) Click Save All Information to save a Dxdiag.txt report.
 * 4) Click Desktop, and then click Save.
 * 5) Double-click DxDiag.txt on your desktop, and then locate the Display Devices section.
 * 6) Locate the line marked DDI Version.

Note The version must be 8 (or later) for MechWarrior 4: Mercenaries to function correctly. If the DDI version is earlier than 8, download new drivers for your video adapter or upgrade to a new video adapter.

Part 3: Install the Latest Video Driver for Your Video Adapter
For information about how to contact how to contact your video adapter manufacturer, click the appropriate article number in the following list to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

65416 Hardware and Software Third-Party Vendor Contact List, A-K

60781 Hardware and Software Third-Party Vendor Contact List, L-P

60782 Hardware and Software Third-Party Vendor Contact List, Q-Z

Microsoft provides third-party contact information to help you find technical support. This contact information may change without notice. Microsoft does not guarantee the accuracy of this third-party contact information. back to top

3dfx Voodoo 5 5500
When you use the 3dfx video adapter with some Microsoft operating systems, you may experience display corruption of the pointer and other graphics. No driver updates are available for the 3dfx through Voodoo. For more information about updated drivers, contact the hardware manufacturer.

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3DLabs Permedia 2 Chipset
When you use this video chipset with MechWarrior 4: Mercenaries, you may experience graphics irregularities. To resolve this issue, visit the following 3Dlabs Web site to download and install the latest drivers:

http://www.3dlabs.com/

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AOpen PA3000
When you use the retail drivers for this video adapter, MechWarrior 4: Mercenaries may stop responding. To resolve this issue, visit one of the following AOpen or NVIDIA Web sites to download and install the latest drivers:

http://www.aopen.com/

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http://www.nvidia.com/

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ASUS 3DexPlorer 3000
When you use the retail drivers for this video adapter, display corruption may briefly appear during the opening movie. To resolve this issue, visit one of the following AOpen or NVIDIA Web sites to download and install the latest drivers:

http://www.aopen.com/

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http://www.nvidia.com/

ASUS V2740
When you use the retail drivers for this video adapter, textures may not appear correctly during game play. You may also experience access violations. To resolve these issues, visit the following Intel Web site to download and install the latest drivers:

http://www.intel.com/

ASUS V-6600
If your system has the retail drivers for this video adapter installed, the system may stop responding when you start a game. To resolve this issue, visit one of the following ASUS or NVIDIA Web sites to download and install the latest drivers:

http://www.asus.com/

-or-

http://www.nvidia.com/

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ATI All-in-Wonder 128 Pro
When you use 32-bit color with this video adapter, graphics instability may occur during game play. To resolve this issue, visit the following ATI Web site to download and install the latest drivers:

http://ati.amd.com/

ATI RADEON 7000 or 7500
When you use one of these video adapters with Windows Millennium Edition and you use a game resolution of 640 x 480 x 16, your computer may stop responding when you try to start MechWarrior 4: Mercenaries. This problem occurs with both the retail and latest drivers. To resolve this issue, use Autoconfig_Mercs.exe in the folder where the game is installed to reset your screen resolution: double-click Autoconfig_Mercs.exe, click Advanced, and then select a different screen resolution.

ATI Rage Fury Maxx
When you use this video adapter with MechWarrior 4: Mercenaries, you may experience graphics corruption during game play. To resolve this issue, visit the following ATI Web site to download and install the latest drivers:

http://ati.amd.com/

ATI Rage II+
When you use this video adapter with MechWarrior 4: Mercenaries, you may experience texture and graphics corruption during game play. To resolve this issue, visit the following ATI Web site to download and install the latest drivers:

http://ati.amd.com/

ATI Rage Pro Turbo
When you use this video adapter with MechWarrior 4: Mercenaries, some graphics irregularities may occur during game play. To resolve this issue, visit the following ATI Web site to download and install the latest drivers:

http://ati.amd.com/

ATI Radeon 8500
When you start the game, the main menu is not visible. To resolve this issue, visit the following ATI Web site to download and install the latest drivers:

http://ati.amd.com/

ATI Xpert 128
When you use this video adapter with MechWarrior 4: Mercenaries, texture corruption may occur during game play. To resolve this issue, visit the following ATI Web site to download and install the latest drivers:

http://ati.amd.com/

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Creative Blaster Riva TNT
If your system uses the latest drivers for this video adapter from NVIDIA (version 6.31), MechWarrior 4: Mercenaries may stop responding during game play. To resolve this issue, visit the following Creative Labs Web site to download and install the latest drivers:

http://www.creative.com/

Creative Labs 3D Blaster Savage4
When you use this video adapter with MechWarrior 4: Mercenaries, changes in screen resolution may give unreliable results during game play. To resolve this issue, visit the following Creative Labs Web site to download and install the latest drivers:

http://www.creative.com/

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Diamond Fire Pro GL
When you use this video adapter with MechWarrior 4: Mercenaries, graphics may appear corrupted in the game. To resolve this issue, visit the following Web site to download and install the latest drivers:

http://www.s3graphics.com/

Diamond Monster Fusion
If your system has the retail drivers for this video adapter installed, texture corruption may occur during game play. To resolve this issue, visit the following Web site to download and install the latest drivers:

http://www.s3graphics.com/

Diamond Monster II 3D
When you use this video adapter with MechWarrior 4: Mercenaries, your computer may not recognize the video adapter during game play. To resolve this issue, visit the following Web site to download and install the latest drivers:

http://www.s3graphics.com/

Diamond Stealth II G-460
If your system has the retail drivers for this video adapter installed, textures do not appear during game play. To resolve this issue, visit the following Web site to download and install the latest drivers:

http://www.s3graphics.com/

Diamond Viper II Z200
If your system has the retail drivers for this video adapter installed, graphics irregularities may occur during game play. To resolve this issue, visit the following Web site to download and install the latest drivers:

http://www.s3graphics.com/

Diamond Viper V330
If your system has the retail drivers for this video adapter installed, the system may stop responding when you click New in the Roster dialog box. To resolve this issue, visit the following Web site to download and install the latest drivers:

http://www.s3graphics.com/

Diamond Viper V550
When you use this video adapter with MechWarrior 4: Mercenaries, texture corruption may occur during game play. To resolve this issue, visit the following Web site to download and install the latest drivers:

http://www.s3graphics.com/

Diamond Viper V770 Ultra
When you use this video adapter with MechWarrior 4: Mercenaries, graphics corruption may occur and the system may stop responding during game play. To resolve this issue, visit the following Web site to download and install the latest drivers:

http://www.s3graphics.com/

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Guillemot 3D Prophet GeForce
When you use this video adapter with MechWarrior 4: Mercenaries, minor graphics irregularities may occur during game play. To resolve this issue, visit the following Guillemot Web site to download and install the latest drivers:

http://www.guillemot.com/

Guillemot Maxi Gamer Phoenix 2
When you use this video adapter with MechWarrior 4: Mercenaries, sporadic menu corruption may occur in the user interface during game play. To resolve this issue, visit the following Guillemot Web site to download and install the latest drivers:

http://www.guillemot.com/

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Intel 810 Graphics Chipset
If your system uses this chipset, visit the following Intel Web site to download and install the latest drivers:

http://www.intel.com/

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Matrox Marvel G-400
When you use this video adapter with MechWarrior 4: Mercenaries, you may experience game instability. To resolve this issue, visit the following Matrox Web site to download and install the latest drivers:

http://www.matrox.com/

Matrox Millennium G200 AGP
When you use this video adapter with MechWarrior 4: Mercenaries, texture flashes may occur during game play. To resolve this issue, visit the following Matrox Web site to download and install the latest drivers:

http://www.matrox.com/

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NVIDIA GeForce
When you start Mechwarrior 4: Mercenaries on Microsoft Windows 2000 and you are using a GeForce video adapter, you may experience graphic anomalies such as pixellated triangles, mouse trails, garbled text, or garbled graphics. To resolve this issue, visit the following Microsoft Web site to download and install Windows 2000 Service Pack 3:

http://www.microsoft.com/windows2000/downloads/servicepacks/default.mspx

NVIDIA Detonator 4
When you use this video adapter with MechWarrior 4: Mercenaries and Windows 2000, it may go into software mode, and the game may not start a second time if you press ALT+ENTER or ALT+TAB during game play to change video modes. To resolve this issue, update the motherboard drivers or switch to a 16-bit desktop resolution.

NVIDIA GeForce 256
When you launch certain missions while you are using 1600 x 1200 x 32 resolution and this video adapter, your system may restart. To resolve this issue, change your in-game resolution.

NVIDIA GeForce2
When you use this video adapter with MechWarrior 4: Mercenaries and Microsoft Windows 98 Second Edition (SE), you may experience graphics corruption of the Main Menu dialog box. To work around this issue, press ALT+TAB to switch to the Desktop, and then press ALT+TAB again to switch back to the game. To resolve this issue, visit the following NVIDIA Web site to download and install the latest drivers:

http://www.nvidia.com/

NVIDIA GeForce2 GTS
When you use this video adapter with MechWarrior 4: Mercenaries, a split screen may occasionally occur with some monitors when you change video modes. To work around this problem, press ALT+TAB to switch to the desktop, and then press ALT+TAB again to switch back to the game. To resolve this issue, visit the following NVIDIA Web site to download and install the latest drivers:

http://www.nvidia.com/

Otherwise, you may contact your hardware manufacturer for updated drivers. Also, make sure that you have the correct drivers installed for your monitor.

NVIDIA GeForce2 MX
When you use this video adapter with MechWarrior 4: Mercenaries, you may experience graphics corruption at 1600 x 1200 screen resolution. As you continue to play, the graphics corruption problem may appear to stop. To resolve this issue, use Autoconfig_Mercs.exe in the folder where the game is installed to reset your screen resolution: double-click Autoconfig_Mercs.exe, click Advanced, and then select a screen resolution other than 1600 x 1200.

NVIDIA GeForce2 MX 200
When you use this video adapter with MechWarrior4: Mercenaries with Microsoft Windows XP, you may experience graphics corruption at the 1280 x 1024 x 32 or 1600 x 1200 x 32 screen resolution settings. To resolve this issue, visit the following NVIDIA Web site to download and install the latest drivers:

http://www.nvidia.com/

NVIDIA TNT, TNT2, and GeForce Video Adapters
When you use one of these video adapters with Microsoft Windows 2000, the game may not run properly in accelerated hardware mode with the NVIDIA display drivers for these video adapters that come with Windows 2000. To resolve this issue, visit the following NVIDIA Web site to download and install the latest drivers:

http://www.nvidia.com/

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AccelStar II 3D Accelerator
When you use this video accelerator with MechWarrior 4: Mercenaries, you may experience graphics corruption. To resolve this issue, visit the following 3Dlabs Web site to download and install the latest drivers:

http://www.3dlabs.com/

Elsa Gladiac
If your system has the version 6.34 drivers for this video adapter installed, your computer may stop responding or MechWarrior 4: Mercenaries may not recognize the video adapter during game play. To resolve this issue, visit the following NVIDIA Web site to download and install the latest drivers:

http://www.nvidia.com/

Number Nine Revolution IV
When you use this video adapter with MechWarrior 4: Mercenaries, texture corruption may occur during game play, which may cause your computer to stop responding. To resolve this issue, upgrade your video adapter.

Number Nine SR-9 Pro
When you use this video adapter with MechWarrior 4: Mercenaries, your system may experience periodic instability or stop responding. To resolve this issue, upgrade your video adapter.

S3 Savage 4
When you use this video adapter with Microsoft Windows 2000, the game may not run properly in accelerated hardware mode with the display drivers for this video adapter that are included in the operating system. To resolve this issue, visit the following Web site to download and install the latest drivers:

http://www.s3graphics.com/

STB BlackMagic 3D
When you use this video adapter with MechWarrior 4: Mercenaries, minor graphics corruption may occur during game play. Contact you hardware manufacturer to ask if updated drivers are available.

STB Velocity 128
If your system has the retail drivers for this video adapter installed, the game may stop after the opening movie, or graphics irregularities may occur. To resolve this issue, visit the following NVIDIA Web site to download and install the latest drivers:

http://www.nvidia.com/

STB Velocity 4400
If your system has the retail drivers for this video adapter installed, the game may stop responding during the opening movie or during game play. To resolve this issue, visit the following NVIDIA Web site to download and install the latest drivers:

http://www.nvidia.com/

If this does not correct the problem, contact your hardware manufacturer for driver updates or new system settings.

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Additional query words: performance display video

Keywords: kbconfig kbhardware kbdisplay kbinfo KB810480

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