Big Lod problems!

[alpha125rbf 0]

I have big problems in the game:

When I’m running at -for example a tree- it changes:

- geometry

- texture dimensions

- texture transparency

- texture colors

It is absolutely horrible in towns! ! !

!!! I have a German version of the game (42€) and have patched it with the first patch V1.01!!!

My system:

AMD Athlon 3800X2

GeForce6600 SLI 128MB

1GB RAM

Windows XP Professional

DirectX 9.0c

View Distance 912m

Display 1280x1024 / 4:3 / 75Hz

Terrain Detail very low

Object Detail very low

Texture Detail very low

Shader Detail very low

Postprocessing low

Anisotropic Filtering deactivated

Shadow Detail low

Antialiasing Deactivated

Blood Detail high

Game running at 18 - 25 fps

Another errors:

-When in building, soldiers that you should see from the window, disappear. Only by aiming at them they are again visible.

-When starting a new mission the game starts and needs about 5 seconds to find and display the textures and geometry of objects.

I tried a lot of different options but I can not reduce this lod changing!

I don’t think this is only an ArmA engine problem. Maybe some kind of errors ONLY in the German version.

PLEASE HELP.

[troop 0]

Just for an quick test:

Reduce your resolution to 800x600

and your viewdistance to ~500m (lowest)

Make sure, you did *not* disable v-sync via

external tool/driver options.

Via driver options, set up to render 3 frames ahead

(= default)

Reset every other setting to *at least* 'normal'

or even better high.

-

Yes, I know, you will not be able to play with these

settings(disregard FPS for this test; just check, if same

LOD errors occure), but from your description, good 'ol (sigh)

'Auto-Dropdown' from OFP is back.

---because of these settings, I assume---

Object Detail very low

Texture Detail very low

Shader Detail very low

-----------------------------------------

[MehMan 0]

I'm having the same problem with the german version, patched to 1.01.

Specs:

Epox 8rda3+

Barton 2600+

XFX Geforce 6600GT 128MB (AGP) Driver version: 93.81

1024 MB RAM

DirectX 9.0c

My settings:

View Distance 1200m

Display 1024x768 / 85Hz

Terrain Detail - Normal

Object Detail - Normal

Texture Detail - Normal

Shader Detail - Normal

Postprocessing - low

Anisotropic Filtering - deactivated

Shadow Detail - low

Antialiasing - Deactivated

Blood Detail - low

The game runs with normal FPS's. I got a screenshot of the problem:

As you can see, the building on the left is operating properly, the building on the right however, doesn't. It's texture lods and well all lods are screwed.

Any remedy for this? Or is it BIS being sloppy?

I've also checked my GFX card temperatures and it's not overheating, so that's definatley not the problem.

[lee_h._oswald 0]

We should face it, german ArmA runs like shit. No more, no less.

I have tried the whole day to get arma playable, no chance.

There is something wrong with this game and we have two choices:

- Play the game in 640x480 (Try it, you will get the feeling of how it should run.)

- Wait for a patch that makes this game playable on pc's with ~3GHz, 2GB Ram, 256mb GeForce 6xxx graphic cards and audigy soundcards.

MfG Lee

[MehMan 0]

Bah BIS....do you not learn from expirience? Why didn't they release the whole game two months later? They would've had some more time to fix things like these.

[lee_h._oswald 0]

What I don't understand is:

We all are using very normal pc systems, nothing alien like, nothing special... Athlon 64, Geforce graphics cards, nforce boards... etc.

Did they not see those bugs?

I mean, take a look at this:

Rahmadi with 1m viewdistance and 100% fog. (Click)

Look at my fps..

MfG Lee

[MehMan 0]

Yeah, well, bah, BIS didn't test it through and through enough. Lets hope a patch comes soon to save us from this. I hope the patch comes way before the English version.

[alpha125rbf 0]

I found my problem!

Now ArmA is playable. It was in the graphic options from Nvidia.

I have reinstalled the latest drivers 049_93.71_forceware_winxp2k and found “hidden†options in:

!!German

-> system control (Systemsteuerung)

-> NVIDIA control panel (--//-- )

-> 3D – Settings (3D Einstellungen)

-> Manage 3D Settings (3D Einstellungen verwalten)

-> Global settings or Program settings

(you will have to add Arma to the program settings…)

Then I went into global settings and turned almost everything off, or reduced quality.

I had a lot of options there activated before, and I think ArmA had a conflict? Or bug?!

Now my frame rate got from ca 18 – 25 fps to 20 – 40 fps. For better quality, to reduce lods it is important to have Shading deatails on medium.

In the cities, I have about 20 – 25 fps. And in the desert parts 45 fps.

It also loads the maps faster.

But the game could be programmed better. When I m running through the forests in the north of the big map, I have frame rates of 10 – 12 – 15 fps. The whole forest is generated with one tree model, which is stealing resources from system.

Because of the resource “eating†vegetation I had to set the view distance at 800 meters.

Of course I’m waiting for the next patch; with hope that it will come out before the game costs 20€ or even less by EBay.

[wolfsatar 0]

the problem of ur system is that the vga card has so less memory to cache the textures and shader objects etc.

even if they perform some tweaks to the engine ur system woulnd benfit of this tunes much.

in this case ask the for a new vga card.

[alpha125rbf 0]

Wolfsatar yes this is definitely the answer!!!

Buy you a new system:

5 GB ram, 2X MSI NX8800GTS 640MB/ PCIE TV/ 2xDVI retail graphic cards, the newest CPU Tray AMD Athlon 64X2 4600+ 939 2, 4GHz 2x512KB Manchester processor

AND THE GAME SHOULD RUN FINE.

At least you think so.

But if the BIS are as funny as in ArmA and create one single tree with 50000 polygons (in their patch) or even more, and copy this tree at every 3m^2 at the map, the system above will suck too.

Because if you have 1200 m sight radius your loaded area is A=PI*R^2 = 4523893m^2 (or4.524 KM^2) !!!

And you will have there exactly 1507964 trees, that have to be loaded. Without the landscape, other objects…

Did they really had to create the big forests full with one similar tree? Or would it be better to make some smaller lakes, somewhere more spaces between the trees, forest aisles like in FDF mod??? (Or even a small river form the hills into the sea?)

I will hope that I can play a new game with a one year “old†computer, and don’t need to buy for EVERY new game a NEW SYSTEM, because the game makers want to “present†a “better†graphics!!!

[MehMan 0]

the problem of ur system is that the vga card has so less memory to cache the textures and shader objects etc.

even if they perform some tweaks to the engine ur system woulnd benfit of this tunes much.

in this case ask the   for a new vga card.  

Give me the money.

ArmA should run on our specs quite fine, as BIS itself stated that it should be able to run it, so this isn't hardware fault, it's BIS fault. I mean, the game runs fine as in the FPS, but then this occurs.

[irl-calibre 0]

Well my grief is with the patch my GFX card acts like its borked - http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y27/acidslacker/borked.png

If I un install the patch the game runs (just about) at a lower resolution of 1024 X 768 and everything switched off I can switch off and everything else on low

P4 3.6Ghz X850XT PE (AGP) 256mb, 2GB Corsair XMS3200, Creative X-fi

All drivers up to date, i've just uninstalled the game completely, and tested the GFX card which seems to be fine

[dkell3 0]

I too am having problems with the German version I installed via Morphicon.You can not even get it to the point that it is playable!

[CanisDEK 1]

What I don't understand is:

We all are using very normal pc systems, nothing alien like, nothing special... Athlon 64, Geforce graphics cards, nforce boards... etc.

Did they not see those bugs?

I mean, take a look at this:

Rahmadi with 1m viewdistance and 100% fog. (Click)

Look at my fps..

MfG Lee

In a similar environment I get almost 100 fps...

In a forest I get about 40 fps.

My configurations are

1280x960

Landscape detail: Very high

AA: Off

Shading: very high

Post Processing: Low

The rest: High

AA kills the FPS for me... takes off about half of the fps although in other games I run 8xS AA with no problems.

Shadows takes away a chunk of FPS too, but the game looks great with them (and the difference between high and very high isn't that great). My system can handle it, but kill shadows completely if you want more FPS.

Post processing eats a lot of FPS too and I don't like it since the front of the iron sight actually looks fuzzy too. So I turned it off both because I don't like how it is done and so save a few FPS.

My GFX card isn't even top of the line. It's a Geforce 7900 GTX with 512MB ram, with underclocked memory (700MHz). The reason I underclocked the momory is that even though my card is quality, the manufacturers push the cards too hard. Underclocking the memory removes the error that many of you see in arma. I have had many GFX cards and since I have started to underclock them just a bit (100MHz), my cards have lasted forever without any problems or errors. The difference in terms of FPS in ARMA according to tests done today is not really visible.

[mattxr 9]

Important

If u patched [Eng Language] the game make sure you didn't run all the bin files that screws the TEXTURES BIG TIME [ i did it, the campaign wouldn't play ]

I reinstalled and patched using the new language patcher which is just one file so you cant get confused and now no lod bugs/glitches and campaign works perfect.

Important

[alpha125rbf 0]

Quote[/b] ]My GFX card isn't even top of the line. It's a Geforce 7900 GTX with 512MB

This is a good card that was expensive 6 months ago. And no, the undercloacking does not help for my system.

Since Gothic 3 we all know that the testers systems are very, very fast and expensive.

Matt Rochelle, I have not changed the language.

I, a simple guy, living in Germany, played OPF at least once a week for almost 3 years. It was also a big fun to modify the configs… I bought ArmA at 30.10.2006 at 11 o’clock. (I had the time.)

After installation, I started to play in the editor, tried to figure out the best settings. I was shocked. Almost at the same day I wanted my money back: I turned everything OFF, and had horrible frame rates.

But I checked for updates and found the first patch. Now the game runs better, but I have the bugs subscribed above. Don’t like to play like this – it makes no fun, to run through bush and to have about 15 fps.

And to fight in the desert – ALWAYS, I have original ORF:R and a lot of mods. The bots in the OPF are smarter, and the new bot has no newer functions and the same bugs.

The ArmA game reminds me at another big flop: Gothic3…

The game is still not really playable. But the PiranhaBytes was smart enough to SELL the game for normal prizes and to let the players wait 2 weeks IN THE HOPE FOR AN UPDATE. After 2 weeks you can’t get your money back in the stores, and all the idiots who bought that game simply “lost†their money.

Then, I think a month after the sell started, one programmer from Gothic3 said: SORRY guys, we made a lot of mistakes programming the engine (it was old, and it would be a hell better to buy a licensed one) and it was a mistake to program that big areas! Now, we will “never†more create those big areas. We are fixing small bugs, but the patient is dead, and all we can is only fix small bugs!

That reminds me on something…

They have time until the 13 December. Then I will have my money back.

[MehMan 0]

@CanisDEK: that is a top of the line card. Not top top, like the 8800, but you aren't far away there buddy. Just an inch away. So that is top of the line to 9/10 of people.

I got some more screenshot of the problem which I hope BIS will notice. Also, the problem seems to go away temporarly if you alt-tab, but as soon as you turn around, it's back to normal:

Before:

After

Before:

After:

And here's one that wins them all. The soldier in the FRONT has lesser LODs loaded than the soldier in the BACK!

Oh and before you ask, yes, I did wait more than a second before I took the shots. Nothing helped, besides alt tabbing. And that only worked for a minute or two.

[CanisDEK 1]

Yeah that's the exact same problem I had with my last card a geforce 6600GT. I solved it by underclocking the video memory (downloading coolbits). ALT TAB solved the problem as well. I don't know if it is really heat... I just presumed that it were since underclocking my mem solved the problem. I had a 6800 after than and the same happened after playing games for perhaps 20 - 30 minutes... unless I underclocked it. Perhaps underclocking it by 50MHz is enough.

That is the only thing that has ever solved that problem for me.

I have also disabled write combining (troubleshooting tab)... and that may also help.

The problem really sucks. On my old card BF2 would be unplayable after 20 minutes as it seemed like a world of insane polygons exited from a single point on my rifle. ALT Tabbing would solve it for perhaps 5 minutes.

Underclocking my video memory by 100MHz solved it forever.

But I don't know why it didn't work for the other guy. Try underclocking your GPU by 50MHz and perhaps your Memory by more. Test and see how far you have to underclock it.

The other thing your images remind me of is the textures and models not being updated to their near LOD. They look like distant LOD graphics. Does it always look like that or do they change if you stand still in an area for a while`?

[dm 9]

And here's one that wins them all. The soldier in the FRONT has lesser LODs loaded than the soldier in the BACK!

http://img211.imageshack.us/img211/9171/lodbug9qg8.jpg

Correction;

the soldier in front is displaying a similar LOD level to the one behind, his textures however are not loaded into the GFX memory, thus the blurry "low detail" appearance.

[CanisDEK 1]

And here's one that wins them all. The soldier in the FRONT has lesser LODs loaded than the soldier in the BACK!

http://img211.imageshack.us/img211/9171/lodbug9qg8.jpg

Correction;

the soldier in front is displaying a similar LOD level to the one behind, his textures however are not loaded into the GFX memory, thus the blurry "low detail" appearance.

Actually I don't think it's "just" the textures. He seems to be missing a few details... but he's certainly not a long range LOD... I don't know how many steps ARMA has, but it may be step number two.

The strange thing is though that his face looks normal... which could indicate as you say... it's just the textures that aren't loaded into memory.

But I don't know for sure.

[lee_h._oswald 0]

Important

If u patched [Eng Language] the game make sure you didn't run all the bin files that screws the TEXTURES BIG TIME [ i did it, the campaign wouldn't play ]

I reinstalled  and patched using the new language patcher which is just one file so you cant get confused and now no lod bugs/glitches and campaign works perfect.

Important

I have no clou what the hell you are talking about.

MfG Lee

[MehMan 0]

Ok, this is strange, I've put everything on low, 'cept for the object detail, I'm not gonna sacrifice that, and the game works perfectly. Finally ArmA can shine in all it's glory on my computer!

[dkell3 0]

I am with Lee,what do you mean.

After about 1-2 minutes of play I start getting ploygon and wierd triangles everywhere,then my vehicle turn into long triangles of sorts.

[KaseKasimir 0]

Hehe look at this.

Grafik-Bug

My System:

AMD 64bit 3000+

x800 All-In-Wonder

512mb

[jasono 0]

Intel Duel core 2.8 + 3.2 Ghz CPU

2GB DDR2 RAM

Nvidia GeForce 7500 LE with 512MB Memory

10-15fps on LOW settings