GOG Edition User - Before you claim CC is bugged, please read this.

[Legacy_MagicalMaster]

               

No amount of arm twisting is going to make people follow directions that aren't posted from what they deem to be an official source.

 

What I fail to comprehend is this aversion to installing the critical rebuild. It takes 5 minutes to download over a modern connection and about 5 minutes to install - small potatoes in the modern world.

 

Yeah, I've notice the first sentence as well.  Which, in many games, is somewhat reasonable -- except that it's the NWN community that has kept this game going for so many years.  We're the ones who created security systems for the PWs, server listings for PWs, new CC, new modules, etc...not Bioware or GoG.  So if you want to join a game defined by its community...listen to the community.

 

I don't get the latter either.  I'd understand if the critical rebuild took hours or something but like you say it takes only a few minutes.  It's not a huge ordeal.

 

Also, I'm 99% sure Hickory is trolling you. He started the whole argument by denouncing you for even suggesting that GoG could have made a mistake, and then pulled a quote painfully obviously out of context. If anyone else plans on posting there, I suggest not taking him seriously.

 

I'm not sure whether it's scarier to believe he's trolling or to believe he's honestly serious.

 

But yes, I'm just ignoring him and not responding to his drivel at this point.  In a past thread he was furious for me pushing someone to ask for help on THESE forums when they wanted scripting help -- like he's a GoG fanatic or something.

               
               

               
            

[Legacy_MagicalMaster]

               

We bring you the latest from Hickory's insanity:

 

You are accusing GOG of releasing games, 'claiming' that they are patched, and you, in your idiocy, are saying they are not patched... that GOG is telling lies. I want an answer from you: where is your proof that GOG has released any game that they say is patched, when it in fact is NOT patched? Proof, please, not disgruntled forum user posts. In other words, show me the words from GOG, and show me the file/s that are not as advertised. Until you do that, or you offer GOG an apology, you are nothing but a damned liar, and people in this and any other forum should see you as such.

 

               
               

               
            

[Legacy_Verilazic]

               

I'm not sure whether it's scarier to believe he's trolling or to believe he's honestly serious.

 

But yes, I'm just ignoring him and not responding to his drivel at this point.  In a past thread he was furious for me pushing someone to ask for help on THESE forums when they wanted scripting help -- like he's a GoG fanatic or something.

 

Yes, he's basically at the point where the distinction becomes meaningless.

               
               

               
            

[Legacy_leo_x]

               

Out of curiosity I tried checking the difference between a GOG install (directory c:\test1) and a GOG install + critical rebuild install (directory c:\test2).  This was the result:

Files test1//Launch Neverwinter Nights Diamond Edition.lnk and test2//Launch Neverwinter Nights Diamond Edition.lnk differ
Only in test2/: Override_Bak
diff -bur test1//nwn.ini test2//nwn.ini
--- test1//nwn.ini 2012-11-21 11:30:40 -0800
+++ test2//nwn.ini 2015-01-29 11:26:25 -0800
@@ -34,6 +34,7 @@
 [Config]
 FirstRun=0
 Connection=0
+NWLoaderDisplayTime=3
 [Video Options]
 VideoQualitySetting=3
 Enable HardwareMouse=1
Files test1//unins000.dat and test2//unins000.dat differ

The only meaningful difference between the two was this line:

 

NWLoaderDisplayTime=3

 

which was in the critical rebuild nwn.ini but not in GOG.  Pretty cray cray if that's what caused people's issues (aside from the install directory) (but I seen stranger things in NWN).  Both diff and KDiff3 showed everything else to be binary identical, but it is proof that GOG and a critical rebuild are different.

               
               

               
            

[Legacy_Pstemarie]

               

Leo_X, I still have the original NWN Diamond download that I got from GOG within a few days of when they started selling NWN. When you install that version, the XP3.bif file is considerably smaller  than the version from the 1.69 Critical Rebuild - 348,240 KB (GOG version) as opposed to 627,919 KB (Critical Rebuild version). I can't tell you exactly what files are missing (my guess would be textures) but there are definitely files missing. I have a newer GOG download (less than 6 months old) for my son and his XP3.bif weighs in at the correct size. However, when I installed the game on his Win 8 system it had issues - lag, crashes, etc. I installed the Critical Rebuild and those issues ended. My daughters have they exact same laptops as my son - same model #, spec.s, etc.. I installed NWN on their systems, using my GOLD disks, HotU disk, and the Critical Rebuild to patch to 1.69, overwrote the cdkeys with the GOG keys I purchased for them, and they had NO issues. Thus, I can only conclude - like you - that there is still something wrong (or different) with the GOG install, or at least in one or more files within the XP3.bif file. 

               
               

               
            

[Legacy_MagicalMaster]

               

Sometimes, despite any and all evidence to the contrary, folks will refuse to believe.

 

Are you able to clarify exactly what you meant in regards to Urk's claim about high-res textures being removed and thus anyone installing the critical rebuild is "losing" out on better models?

 

Specifically:

 

"When the critical rebuild was first created Bioware made a conscious decision to keep the file size small by not including the high resolution textures (they're fricken' huge compared to the basic skins). Because it replaces all the games critical files the end result is that the critical rebuild strips the high resolution skins out of the game completely. This means that after a critical rebuild the game is forced to display the basic skins regardless of your rigs native graphic card. This just happened to fix the "white skins" problem when it began appearing with newer graphics cards. White skins became silver when even newer cards began handling lighting differently.


Keep this in mind next time you say running the critical rebuild "doesn't hurt anything" because some players might consider stripping the high rez creature skins out of the game to be "hurting something". This is why I recommend only running the critical rebuild if you need to."

 

All you said in response was

 

"Small nitpick - NWN uses TGA textures and DDS textures.


When Bioware made their last update (1.69) they did not include TGA textures for most of the new appearances. They did this because it more than halved the file sizes for updating and many folks had computers better able to digest DDS textures than when the game had been originally released. Some folks with older computers/graphics cards did have issues with the lack of TGA support, but Community Members made several TGA conversions as an override for those needing them."

 

This potentially leaves the impression that in fact people have lost these "hi-res" textures, though I'm guessing your point was that the DDS textures were as good or better and the TGA textures were only for old graphics cards/computer.

 

Shadooow said in this thread that

 

"First. How high resolution textures works. In core data files there are only low resolution textures. Anything better is in texturepacks folder packed in ERF files and game loads from this folder based on player video settings.

 

Second. Critical rebuild does not remove any files from NWN."

 

And you didn't disagree with him, so I'm assuming he was correct on both points?

 

But in the other thread I can see how it might be read otherwise and it would be nice if you could be explicitly clear on this issue...as now Hickory is claiming

 

"Now go back and read the thread again, taking careful note where it is explained that Bioware excluded hi-res textures from the critical rebuild, forcing the game to display basic skins. It is the other way around. There is NOTHING missing from the Diamond Edition."

 

I'm not suggesting you get into a series of posts with him or something, but leaving even a sentence or two saying how he's wrong (assuming he is) would help OTHERS reading the thread, which is my concern.

               
               

               
            

[Legacy_kalbaern]

               

@MagicalMaster,

 

I'm afraid anymore posts there right now will just further confuse folks. The two main culprits there will just continue to troll in response and that will just muddle the waters even further.

 

Myself, I try and pop IG as a DM whenever I spot a new login and just ask folks how things are going and find out if they have any issues and help them directly. If they respond in the positive to having lag issues, texture glitches or unexplained crashes (even if only on other PWs previously), I recommend the critical rebuild and tell them to let me know if that resolves things or not. In some cases, they cease to have issues and thats it. Sometimes they still have a few issues and I'll continue to help them and its usually related to CPU Affinity/having multiple cores or their graphics card/settings. I also ALWAYS ask what -other- PWs they've played on. There's a handful that either require or strongly recommend using -their- overrides and that is also often an issue and varies from PW to PW as to what it may affect IG for them. Generally, most of these overrides I have covered by adding them as part of my own haks or duplicating core resources in my haks to block their overrides as haks take precidence over overrides.

    

               
               

               
            

[Legacy_MagicalMaster]

               

I do actually think Urk is not trying to troll and rather just confused/mistaken.  Hickory is definitely a troll.

               
               

               
            

[Legacy_BFF]

               

OK so I have been playing the GOG version with minor issues for a couple of weeks.  Today I decided to try and fix an issue I have with cloaks which led me to the critical update and eventually this thread.  I moved the GOG file to a new file using the structure indicated (c://NeverwinterNights/NWN) with all the files in the NWN folder.  When I run the updater it says the game is not installed and shuts down.  Do I need to re-download the whole game or is there some more easily corrected error I can fix?

               
               

               
            

[Legacy_Pstemarie]

               

OK so I have been playing the GOG version with minor issues for a couple of weeks.  Today I decided to try and fix an issue I have with cloaks which led me to the critical update and eventually this thread.  I moved the GOG file to a new file using the structure indicated (c://NeverwinterNights/NWN) with all the files in the NWN folder.  When I run the updater it says the game is not installed and shuts down.  Do I need to re-download the whole game or is there some more easily corrected error I can fix?

 

Your registry is pointing to the wrong file location now. You can either hack the registry and fix the references or reinstall the game and use the installer to put the files in the right place.

               
               

               
            

[Legacy_Knight_Shield]

               

If want to test mod from toolset you definitely need C:/NeverwinterNights/NWN

               
               

               
            

[Legacy_TheFroggyOne]

               

I just wish I could log into PWs. >.< I have the critical rebuild and the cd-key, but still times out every time.

               
               

               
            

[Legacy_neltymind]

               

I would like to follow the instructions here, if I could. But installing NWN on C: is not going to happen for me. My Computer is dual boot (Linux/Windows) and the partitions for both operating systems are relatively small. Installing NWN on my Windows Partition (C:) would not even be possible as I don't have enough free space there. That's why all programs are installed on the third partition for data, which is much bigger.

 

Any way to apply GOG-NWN correctly without installing it on C:?

               
               

               
            

[Legacy_Grani]

               

I would like to follow the instructions here, if I could. But installing NWN on C: is not going to happen for me. My Computer is dual boot (Linux/Windows) and the partitions for both operating systems are relatively small. Installing NWN on my Windows Partition (C:) would not even be possible as I don't have enough free space there. That's why all programs are installed on the third partition for data, which is much bigger.

 

Any way to apply GOG-NWN correctly without installing it on C:?

 

I have my NWN installed via GOG Galaxy in the following path: E:\GOG Collection\NWN Diamond

It works flawlessly - I've had no trouble whatsoever. Maybe the game refuses to work properly for some people if the game's path is not C:/, but it works for me. 

               
               

               
            

[Legacy_neltymind]

               

Yep, so far it works for me, too. But it seems like the issues with a different installation directory only occur when using some custom content, so those errors are not so obvious.