You would *NEED* a slowdown utility of some flavor.

WC expects something in the 286 to very early 386 class of speed, and will do ABSURD stuff unless it is throttled hard.

I believe there is also a Windows port of WC1 that isn't speed-sensitive.

feda wrote on 2023-09-14, 10:23:

I believe there is also a Windows port of WC1 that isn't speed-sensitive.

Really?

Is there a way to spot which version that is? Say if I wanted to buy it.

Would GOG be an option?

There is a windows port of WC1 and WC2, they were included as part of the 'Kilrathi Saga' collection, which IIRC also included WC3.

At one point I believe the Kilrathi Saga was included on a magazine cover disk, way, way back in the past, so if you google 'Kilrathi Saga' you should be able to find it.

Hiddenevil wrote on 2023-09-14, 09:21:

If I wanted to play say for example Wing Commander on a Pentium 4 Win98 setup, would DOSbox offer a better chance of running the game properly, than say disabling cache? FYI the latter is something I've little experience with, but have been reading here that it is one route to slowing down a system.

Yes, but it isn't a route to actually slow down the computer. It is an emulator primarily used to run DOS games.

Thanks for the suggestions everyone. As much as I'd like to consider myself a WC fan, I have to confess my ignorance to 'Kilrathi Saga'. I'm going to look at running this version, given the obvious advantages and the improved sound & music. For a brief moment I toyed with the idea of buying a boxed copy of 'Kilrathi Saga', a glance on fleabay quickly changed my mind. I'm not selling a kidney just to own an original copy 🤣

Wing commander aside, as that problem seems to have been solved. What are the best means to slow down a p4? I understand disabling cache is one thing that helps.

On a P4, and with Wing Commander (1 and 2) DOSBox is the way to go. The games have low enough requirements that the emulation overhead shouldn’t be an issue, and is probably more consistent than slowdown utilities when running „natively“.

You also get proper OPL synth independent of your sound card (and can set up MT-32 using Munt if you want), USB joystick support, etc..

The Kilrathi Saga version is also an option, but it has updated sound effects and music, so if you grew up with OPL sfx and music, it might sound a bit out of place, but some people prefer the new sounds, so try out both and pick the one you like best.

Originally I grew up with the Amiga version 😊

Hiddenevil wrote on 2023-09-26, 13:32:

Originally I grew up with the Amiga version 😊

I was going to suggest WinUAE...

Slowdown utilities like setmul and throttle will work with a P4, but is it really best suited for getting a p4 down to pentium speeds rather than 386 speeds.

There are a few problems with slowing down a P4. The first is that these CPUs have L2 cache which, AFAIK, can't be disabled. The other problem is that the bus speed is so fast that the performance of main memory starts to become its own problem. You can use utilities like moslow, which is a software based slow down tool, and I believe you can use ACPI skipping (aka throttle). Software slow down methods can be effective. The problem is that you still have a very fast CPU that is constantly being tripped up by software interrupts rather than a truly slow CPU, and the behavior is often not the same.

I don't want to discourage you from trying. A p4 is just not a good DOS machine.

http://www.oldskool.org/pc/throttle/DOS
http://www.hpaa.com/moslo/ (free version is fine)
SetMul - Multiplier control for VIA C3 / AMD K6+7+8 Mobile / Cyrix 5x86 (might be able to disable L1 cache?)

You can also check CpuSpd - A Hardware Based CPU Speed Control Utility for DOS/Win9X Retro Gaming

mothergoose729 wrote on 2023-09-26, 15:55:

A p4 is just not a good DOS machine.

I recognize this post is a bit older, but I thought I'd share my experience.

I have a Pentium 4 3.4 GHz (Cedar Mill) system I've been using for DOS gaming. Between cache disabling and setting ACPI throttling and multiplier settings via CPUSPD I've been able to get the vast majority of DOS games I've tested working and playable.

I discovered that while L2 cache isn't independently controllable, CPUSPD can simultaneously disable both L1 & L2 cache. This brings the system down to something approximating a 486 DX-33. With ACPI throttling and multiplier settings, I can get down to 286 speeds.

For example, I was able to play Police Quest 2 (which has a speed sensitive intro) at speeds that approximate my 12 MHz 286.

I've been pleasantly surprised at just how versatile this P4 system is.