Problem with BG2/ToB slowdown

Nerull · 01-31-2002, 10:42 PM

I am having lots of problems with my BG2/ToB. I have no idea what the problem is, so I thought I would ask if anyone else had this problem, or had any suggestions on how to solve it.

When I first start playing the game, it functions fine. Within 15 minutes, however, it starts to slow down. It gets progressively worse, until it switches to a blue screen stating that memory is low. After I get back to the game screen, everything runs in super slow motion until I not only quit the game, but completely shut down and restart my computer.

I do not have this problem with any of my other software, and I shut down everything in the background before playing. I have a 933Mhz Pentium 3 with 640MB memory (I added a chip to get to this point, with no effect whatsoever on game play). I also have a 80 gig hard drive, so I seriously don't think it is a hardware issue. I tried uninstalling and reinstalling the game, with no effect.

Has anyone else had similar problems? I know I am getting sick of playing for 30-45 minutes, then restarting my computer. Any help you can give me would be greatly appreciated!

DarkBranch · 01-31-2002, 10:53 PM

this is a very common problem that many people have. Several things to try.
1) Before starting the game, go to configurations option and increase cashe size (I normally increase it from 300mb to 600mb). This helps alot!!!!
2) Also in configuration, turn off the large static animation. You really don't miss out on much except animation of the water fall. This saves alot of memory and makes the game run much smoother.
3) You may have to turn off the 3D mode too. Don't worry, you won't be missing out on much since the game does not really depend on much 3D animation.
4) If you still have problems, you can even turn off the small static animation of the spell effects. Hopefully you will not have to do this.
Hope this helps.

Bokken · 02-01-2002, 10:38 AM

I am running it on a 233mhz with 64mb of ram so I'll tell you what I done.
I opened the BGConfig.exe and set the screen resolution to 640x480. Disabled the screen shake and footstep sounds all together.
Then I put my frame rate to 15 (it can't go any lower) and it's been next to perfect ever since.
If you have a 3D card it's wise to disable to the 3D hardware for the game as other people here mentioned.

Also be sure to press ctrl+alt+del before you start playing and close ALL applications apart from Explorer and Systray.

A bigger cache helps too but I don't think it's really necessary. Just for your information though I have mine set at 500mb and I also have a FULL instal of the game. Believe me that makes a difference too.

Hope this has helped [img]smile.gif[/img]

Nerull · 02-01-2002, 11:41 PM

Well, I tried all of these things just a little bit ago, with absolutely no effect whatsoever. Not only does the game still slow to a crawl, but it also slows up my entire computer AFTER I QUIT THE GAME. Is there something else that is causing this thing to eat up all of my memory? I heard something about a "screen saving" mode, where it takes pictures of the screen the entire time. Maybe I have this on by accident? How do I get rid of it? Any other suggestions?

fable · 02-01-2002, 11:56 PM

Yeah, the fact that it slows down after you've been playing for a while does *not* sound like a simple configuration problem. I had the same difficulty after loading BG2/ToB on my new Athlon 1.3 GHz with 256 MB RAM. It had actually run far faster on my old P2.

What solved the problem were updates to my BIOS and my video drivers. As soon as those were installed, my party were running around faster than ever before.

Just a thought. Might be worth checking out.

Nerull · 02-02-2002, 02:00 AM

quote:
Originally posted by fable:
Yeah, the fact that it slows down after you've been playing for a while does *not* sound like a simple configuration problem. I had the same difficulty after loading BG2/ToB on my new Athlon 1.3 GHz with 256 MB RAM. It had actually run far faster on my old P2.

What solved the problem were updates to my BIOS and my video drivers. As soon as those were installed, my party were running around faster than ever before.

Just a thought. Might be worth checking out.

Actually, I just went and updated the driver for my hard drive, and that seems to have solved the problem (finally!). Thanks for all of your help!

fable · 02-02-2002, 02:51 AM

Glad to. It's funny how something as small as that can really make a big difference.

Just a thought: don't delete the executable that installed your current drivers. You may run into a future driver upgrade that actually interferes with your specific computer configuration, and slows things down again. In such instances, it pays to have a backup of a driver set that really worked well. [img]smile.gif[/img]

Memnoch · 02-02-2002, 03:19 AM

BG2 tends to memory leak pretty heavily in my experience, no matter what Bio says.

It's very fussy with video drivers, DirectX versions, sound drivers (especially any Creative Labs stuff), etc. There's a Bioware tool you can use to see if your system measures up. Find it here.

Nerull · 02-03-2002, 10:49 PM

Actually, it started back up again (it just takes longer for it to happen now). Guess I'll have to keep updating drivers until I get to the point that it stops.

Nerull · 02-03-2002, 11:47 PM

quote:
Originally posted by Nerull:
Actually, it started back up again (it just takes longer for it to happen now). Guess I'll have to keep updating drivers until I get to the point that it stops.

Finally, success! I downloaded another video driver (I had updated not too long ago, but they just released a new one this past week). I installed it, and everybody is flying now! Now I can play for hours on end...

01-31-2002, 10:42 PM	#1
Nerull Lord Ao Join Date: May 17, 2001 Location: San Antonio, Texas, USA Age: 54 Posts: 2,069	I am having lots of problems with my BG2/ToB. I have no idea what the problem is, so I thought I would ask if anyone else had this problem, or had any suggestions on how to solve it. When I first start playing the game, it functions fine. Within 15 minutes, however, it starts to slow down. It gets progressively worse, until it switches to a blue screen stating that memory is low. After I get back to the game screen, everything runs in super slow motion until I not only quit the game, but completely shut down and restart my computer. I do not have this problem with any of my other software, and I shut down everything in the background before playing. I have a 933Mhz Pentium 3 with 640MB memory (I added a chip to get to this point, with no effect whatsoever on game play). I also have a 80 gig hard drive, so I seriously don't think it is a hardware issue. I tried uninstalling and reinstalling the game, with no effect. Has anyone else had similar problems? I know I am getting sick of playing for 30-45 minutes, then restarting my computer. Any help you can give me would be greatly appreciated! __________________ [img]\"ubb/noncgi/smiles/new/ghoul.gif\" alt=\" - \" /><br /><br />\"The middle class pays all of the taxes, does all of the work.<br />The lower class exists just to scare the middle class.\"<br />-George Carlin

02-01-2002, 11:41 PM	#4
Nerull Lord Ao Join Date: May 17, 2001 Location: San Antonio, Texas, USA Age: 54 Posts: 2,069	Well, I tried all of these things just a little bit ago, with absolutely no effect whatsoever. Not only does the game still slow to a crawl, but it also slows up my entire computer AFTER I QUIT THE GAME. Is there something else that is causing this thing to eat up all of my memory? I heard something about a "screen saving" mode, where it takes pictures of the screen the entire time. Maybe I have this on by accident? How do I get rid of it? Any other suggestions? __________________ [img]\"ubb/noncgi/smiles/new/ghoul.gif\" alt=\" - \" /><br /><br />\"The middle class pays all of the taxes, does all of the work.<br />The lower class exists just to scare the middle class.\"<br />-George Carlin

02-02-2002, 02:00 AM	#6
Nerull Lord Ao Join Date: May 17, 2001 Location: San Antonio, Texas, USA Age: 54 Posts: 2,069	quote: Originally posted by fable: Yeah, the fact that it slows down after you've been playing for a while does not sound like a simple configuration problem. I had the same difficulty after loading BG2/ToB on my new Athlon 1.3 GHz with 256 MB RAM. It had actually run far faster on my old P2. What solved the problem were updates to my BIOS and my video drivers. As soon as those were installed, my party were running around faster than ever before. Just a thought. Might be worth checking out. Actually, I just went and updated the driver for my hard drive, and that seems to have solved the problem (finally!). Thanks for all of your help! __________________ [img]\"ubb/noncgi/smiles/new/ghoul.gif\" alt=\" - \" /><br /><br />\"The middle class pays all of the taxes, does all of the work.<br />The lower class exists just to scare the middle class.\"<br />-George Carlin

02-02-2002, 03:19 AM	#8
Memnoch Ironworks Moderator Join Date: February 28, 2001 Location: Boston/Sydney Posts: 11,771	BG2 tends to memory leak pretty heavily in my experience, no matter what Bio says. It's very fussy with video drivers, DirectX versions, sound drivers (especially any Creative Labs stuff), etc. There's a Bioware tool you can use to see if your system measures up. Find it here. __________________

02-03-2002, 10:49 PM	#9
Nerull Lord Ao Join Date: May 17, 2001 Location: San Antonio, Texas, USA Age: 54 Posts: 2,069	Actually, it started back up again (it just takes longer for it to happen now). Guess I'll have to keep updating drivers until I get to the point that it stops. __________________ [img]\"ubb/noncgi/smiles/new/ghoul.gif\" alt=\" - \" /><br /><br />\"The middle class pays all of the taxes, does all of the work.<br />The lower class exists just to scare the middle class.\"<br />-George Carlin

01-31-2002, 10:53 PM	#2
DarkBranch Elite Waterdeep Guard Join Date: May 14, 2001 Location: Atlanta, GA, USA Posts: 6	this is a very common problem that many people have. Several things to try. 1) Before starting the game, go to configurations option and increase cashe size (I normally increase it from 300mb to 600mb). This helps alot!!!! 2) Also in configuration, turn off the large static animation. You really don't miss out on much except animation of the water fall. This saves alot of memory and makes the game run much smoother. 3) You may have to turn off the 3D mode too. Don't worry, you won't be missing out on much since the game does not really depend on much 3D animation. 4) If you still have problems, you can even turn off the small static animation of the spell effects. Hopefully you will not have to do this. Hope this helps.

02-01-2002, 10:38 AM	#3
Bokken Baaz Draconian Join Date: August 28, 2001 Location: Australia Age: 47 Posts: 708	I am running it on a 233mhz with 64mb of ram so I'll tell you what I done. I opened the BGConfig.exe and set the screen resolution to 640x480. Disabled the screen shake and footstep sounds all together. Then I put my frame rate to 15 (it can't go any lower) and it's been next to perfect ever since. If you have a 3D card it's wise to disable to the 3D hardware for the game as other people here mentioned. Also be sure to press ctrl+alt+del before you start playing and close ALL applications apart from Explorer and Systray. A bigger cache helps too but I don't think it's really necessary. Just for your information though I have mine set at 500mb and I also have a FULL instal of the game. Believe me that makes a difference too. Hope this has helped [img]smile.gif[/img]

02-01-2002, 11:56 PM	#5
fable Quintesson Join Date: March 17, 2001 Location: Where I am. Posts: 1,089	Yeah, the fact that it slows down after you've been playing for a while does not sound like a simple configuration problem. I had the same difficulty after loading BG2/ToB on my new Athlon 1.3 GHz with 256 MB RAM. It had actually run far faster on my old P2. What solved the problem were updates to my BIOS and my video drivers. As soon as those were installed, my party were running around faster than ever before. Just a thought. Might be worth checking out.

02-02-2002, 02:51 AM	#7
fable Quintesson Join Date: March 17, 2001 Location: Where I am. Posts: 1,089	Glad to. It's funny how something as small as that can really make a big difference. Just a thought: don't delete the executable that installed your current drivers. You may run into a future driver upgrade that actually interferes with your specific computer configuration, and slows things down again. In such instances, it pays to have a backup of a driver set that really worked well. [img]smile.gif[/img]

02-03-2002, 11:47 PM	#10
Nerull Lord Ao Join Date: May 17, 2001 Location: San Antonio, Texas, USA Age: 54 Posts: 2,069	quote: Originally posted by Nerull: Actually, it started back up again (it just takes longer for it to happen now). Guess I'll have to keep updating drivers until I get to the point that it stops. Finally, success! I downloaded another video driver (I had updated not too long ago, but they just released a new one this past week). I installed it, and everybody is flying now! Now I can play for hours on end... __________________ [img]\"ubb/noncgi/smiles/new/ghoul.gif\" alt=\" - \" /><br /><br />\"The middle class pays all of the taxes, does all of the work.<br />The lower class exists just to scare the middle class.\"<br />-George Carlin

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