Games tested:

• POD Gold - retail CD release + latest official Direct3D, ATi CIF and 3DFX patches

Graphics cards tested:

• 3DFX Voodoo 1, using Diamond Monster 3D drivers version v1.08 (Glide renderer)
• Nvidia TNT2 M64 using Nvidia reference drivers version 3.68 (Direct3D renderer)
• ATi RageXL using Gona's driver pack (ATi CIF renderer)

Did a quick test of POD. I'm using a Voodoo 1 for this purpose since I vaguely remember reading that the game might have issues on 3DFX cards with more than 4 MB RAM. The lighting is definitively better in Glide mode. The lights actually look like they are shining in Glide. Under Direct3D, they are dull and lifeless. The situation gets a bit better with the DX5 renderer, but still not as good as in Glide mode. The ATi CIF renderer looks similar to Glide, with regards to lighting, but it has no texture filtering.

P.S.

I found this video by RetroCompaqGuy a.k.a. vetz where he compares all the renderers in POD. His notes indicate that PowerVR also doesn't have texture filtering, which would make it less desirable than Glide. For that reason, I think POD does qualify for the "looks best using Glide" list.

Joseph_Joestar wrote on 2023-08-28, 13:41:

Games tested: […]
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Games tested:

• POD Gold - retail CD release (version 2.0)

Graphics cards tested:

• 3DFX Voodoo 1, using Diamond Monster 3D drivers version v1.08 (Glide renderer)
• Nvidia TNT2 M64 using Nvidia reference drivers version 3.68 (Direct3D renderer)
• ATi RageXL using Gona's driver pack (ATi CIF renderer)

Did a quick test of POD. I'm using a Voodoo 1 for this purpose since I vaguely remember reading that the game might have issues on 3DFX cards with more than 4 MB RAM. The lighting is definitively better in Glide mode. The lights actually look like they are shining in Glide. Under Direct3D, they are dull and lifeless. The ATi CIF renderer looks similar to Glide, with regards to lighting, but it has no texture filtering.

Would be cool to see a PowerVR comparison as well, but I don't have that hardware. According to the readme, PowerVR cards should be able to run the game at the 800x600 resolution, while both Glide and Direct3D are limited to 640x480.

P.S.

I found this video by RetroCompaqGuy where he compares all the renderers in POD. His notes indicate that PowerVR also doesn't have texture filtering, which would make it less desirable than Glide. For that reason, I think POD does qualify for the "looks best using Glide" list.

Yes, that would be my video 😀

Which Direct3D patch did you use?

As mentioned in the video and description, 800x600 is available for Glide, and the game should work on newer Voodoo cards.

vetz wrote on 2023-08-28, 15:14:

Yes, that would be my video 😀

Oh, nice! I didn't immediately make the connection due to the different username, but I guess the avatar pic should have tipped me off. 😁

Which Direct3D patch did you use?

I'm using POD Gold, so I just selected "D3D with MMX" from the installer on the disc.

As mentioned in the video and description, 800x600 is available for Glide, and the game should work on newer Voodoo cards.

Interesting, I guess I could try it on my Voodoo 3 as well. How do I change the resolution? There's a "graphical options" button under the main Options menu, but it can't be clicked on, as far as I can tell.

EDIT - just tried it on my AthlonXP + Voodoo 3 system and it won't start. I'm guessing POD doesn't like fast CPUs, because it behaved the same way on my Athlon64 + GeForce FX system.

Next up is Rune Gold.

Tested on:
Voodoo5 5500 for both Direct3D and Glide w/latest reference driver.
Windows ME
Retail CD w/Valhalla Expansion applied (from Gold Pack)

It appears Direct3D issues have been ironed out by Rune's release, either that or the developers decided if they couldn't get environmental lightning right, they weren't going to use it at all! I level jumped from map to map for a couple hours, and I couldn't find a single flash of lightning. Special effects, water, fire, smoke, and fog all look good.

Anyway, if you look at the attached screen capture, you'll note polygon seams at the top of the stage for Glide; you'll find several of those on this stage. Almost all stages aren't set with as clear view of the sky like this one with daylight - Most are underground, at night, or have just a peephole to see the sky, or have some sort of clouds/fog obscuring the view. So, it will be a rare event when you see those seams, but you will see them again at some point. I've seen this problem on a Voodoo2, so it's not a Voodoo5 thing. I also tested on single-chip mode just to be sure. You'll notice the trees in the background are a little less blurred for Direct3D, but you'll probably never come across a situation like this the rest of the game. Contrast looks a little better in Glide, but it's probably a Gamma thing, if not then that edge goes to Glide.

Direct3D gets Trilinear filtering and 32-bit color as options. I didn't notice any difference in coloring, though. Both Glide & Direct3D look and play pretty good.

Meatball wrote on 2023-08-28, 23:12:

Next up is Rune Gold.

Nice! Based on your findings, it's going to the "equal" list.

It appears Direct3D issues have been ironed out by Rune's release, either that or the developers decided if they couldn't get environmental lightning right, they weren't going to use it at all!

That's interesting, especially because Clive Barker's Undying (which was released a bit later) still had lighting issues under Direct3D.

Joseph_Joestar wrote on 2023-08-28, 15:48:

Oh, nice! I didn't immediately make the connection due to the different username, but I guess the avatar pic should have tipped […]
Show full quote

vetz wrote on 2023-08-28, 15:14:

Yes, that would be my video 😀

Oh, nice! I didn't immediately make the connection due to the different username, but I guess the avatar pic should have tipped me off. 😁

Which Direct3D patch did you use?

I'm using POD Gold, so I just selected "D3D with MMX" from the installer on the disc.

POD_Gold_Installer.jpg

As mentioned in the video and description, 800x600 is available for Glide, and the game should work on newer Voodoo cards.

Interesting, I guess I could try it on my Voodoo 3 as well. How do I change the resolution? There's a "graphical options" button under the main Options menu, but it can't be clicked on, as far as I can tell.

EDIT - just tried it on my AthlonXP + Voodoo 3 system and it won't start. I'm guessing POD doesn't like fast CPUs, because it behaved the same way on my Athlon64 + GeForce FX system.

So that is the 2.0 version? It can be patched to 2.1 which includes a DirectX 5 renderer and also an updated Glide renderer for newer cards.
https://www.patches-scrolls.com/search.php?ga … atform=1&cnt=25

To enable 800x600 for 3DFX, go to ubi.ini in the C:/Windows/Ubisoft folder. Find the Displaymode value, or add it yourself under the [POD2_0] heading. Set it to Displaymode=6.

For Direct3D (dx3) and PowerVR use ALT + F7.

Beside that, POD is known for being a "difficult" game to get to run on newer hardware. I had little trouble on my 440BX system with Pentium 3, except for the Direct3D renderer using DirectX 5.

It's been 11 years so my memory might be incorrect on some of this.

vetz wrote on 2023-08-29, 07:45:

So that is the 2.0 version? It can be patched to 2.1 which includes a DirectX 5 renderer and also an updated Glide renderer for newer cards.
https://www.patches-scrolls.com/search.php?ga … atform=1&cnt=25

Ah, I wasn't aware of that. I figured the Gold version of POD already contained all the patches, but I guess not.

Anyway, I've applied the latest Direct3D patch, and it does improve the lighting slightly, but it's still not as good as in Glide mode. I've attached the D3D5 screenshot to the original post above. Also, POD still won't run on my Athlon CPUs, even with the latest patches applied.

Joseph_Joestar wrote on 2023-08-19, 14:35:

Games tested: […]
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Games tested:

• Carmageddon II - retail CD release + latest official patch version 1.2

Graphics cards tested:

• 3DFX Voodoo3 2000, using 3DFX reference drivers version 1.07.00 (Glide renderer)
• Nvidia GeForce FX 5900XT using Nvidia reference drivers version 45.23 (Direct3D renderer)

Carmageddon2_Glide.jpg

Carmageddon2_Direct3D.jpg

When using the Direct3D renderer, fog is missing and the far away buildings on the right side of the screen have lower detail. Game detail settings were all at maximum during both tests.

I think the DX version in this case looks better. I never liked fog effects like that. They look like ass and reduce draw distance.

RandomStranger wrote on 2023-08-29, 11:59:

I think the DX version in this case looks better. I never liked fog effects like that. They look like ass and reduce draw distance.

It looks a bit better in motion, and the fog varies slightly as you move around the track. But yeah, those old school fog effects didn't always look great. That said, you can turn the fog on/off from the Options menu, when running in Glide mode.

The extra detail on the building textures is unique to Glide though, and that objectively improves the visuals.

BTW, can someone with a Voodoo 2 card check Test Drive 5 with patch 5.1.1 applied?

That game is supposed to have fog with the relevant setting turned on under Options. However, I could never get it to display under Direct3D or Glide on my Vodooo 3. The Glide executable specifically mentions a Voodoo 2, so maybe it behaves differently on that card.

Joseph_Joestar wrote on 2023-08-29, 12:16:

BTW, can someone with a Voodoo 2 card check Test Drive 5 with patch 5.1.1 applied?

That game is supposed to have fog with the relevant setting turned on under Options. However, I could never get it to display under Direct3D or Glide on my Vodooo 3. The Glide executable specifically mentions a Voodoo 2, so maybe it behaves differently on that card.

What a coincidence. I am in process of building an Obsidian2 X-24 mATX machine. It should be done later tonight. I’ll check it if someone hasn’t tested by then.

Meatball wrote on 2023-08-29, 13:01:

What a coincidence. I am in process of building an Obsidian2 X-24 mATX machine. It should be done later tonight. I’ll check it if someone hasn’t tested by then.

I mean, I don't wanna say that I hate you, but... yeah, I do hate you! 😁

Anyway, I was just testing one of my Voodoo 2 cards after having replaced the FBI chip, so I decided to give Test Drive 5 a shot.
These are with the vanilla version of the game, with no patch (taken with my phone, sorry for the subpar quality). The "fog" looks quite bad, IMO, I prefer the one without:

bloodem wrote on 2023-08-29, 14:05:

Anyway, I was just testing one of my Voodoo 2 cards after having replaced the FBI chip, so I decided to give Test Drive 5 a shot.
These are with the vanilla version of the game, with no patch (taken with my phone, sorry for the subpar quality). The "fog" looks quite bad, IMO, I prefer the one without:

I think the patch specifically added some fogging functionality, so it might be worth retesting with that applied.

Anyway, nice to see that your Voodoo 2 is working!

Joseph_Joestar wrote on 2023-08-29, 14:11:

Anyway, nice to see that your Voodoo 2 is working!

Thank you. After having replaced 4 memory ICs in vain, I finally understood that it was the FBI's fault all along. 😀

Back to TD5, I actually didn't have the patch, downloaded and installed it now.
The patch has made the "fog" effect much less pronounced, basically indistinguishable:

bloodem wrote on 2023-08-29, 14:05:

Meatball wrote on 2023-08-29, 13:01:

What a coincidence. I am in process of building an Obsidian2 X-24 mATX machine. It should be done later tonight. I’ll check it if someone hasn’t tested by then.

I mean, I don't wanna say that I hate you, but... yeah, I do hate you! 😁

Please take a number and have a seat! Coffee and pastries are in the room immediately to the left of the seating area.

bloodem wrote on 2023-08-29, 14:29:

Back to TD5, I actually didn't have the patch, downloaded and installed it now.
The patch has made the "fog" effect much less pronounced, basically indistinguishable:

Yeah, that effect is super subtle. No wonder I didn't catch it back when I was testing it.

BTW, which track are those screenshots from?

Meatball wrote on 2023-08-29, 13:01:

What a coincidence. I am in process of building an Obsidian2 X-24 mATX machine. It should be done later tonight. I’ll check it if someone hasn’t tested by then.

Might be interesting to do a Glide vs. Direct3D comparison, if you're up for it. I'm still unsure if the fog displays under both renderers. It does need to be turned on from the Options menu first, since it's off by default, if I remember correctly.

P.S.

That's a great card!

Joseph_Joestar wrote on 2023-08-29, 16:05:

BTW, which track are those screenshots from?

It's from the Moscow track.

Joseph_Joestar wrote on 2023-08-29, 01:24:

Nice! Based on your findings, it's going to the "equal" list. […]
Show full quote

Meatball wrote on 2023-08-28, 23:12:

Next up is Rune Gold.

Nice! Based on your findings, it's going to the "equal" list.

It appears Direct3D issues have been ironed out by Rune's release, either that or the developers decided if they couldn't get environmental lightning right, they weren't going to use it at all!

That's interesting, especially because Clive Barker's Undying (which was released a bit later) still had lighting issues under Direct3D.

I'll probably toss in Undying to experience the lighting differences, again. I can tell you for sure the banding around the lamps is present on 16-bit Glide and obvious (at least on a Voodoo5), compared to the soft consistent glow of 32-bit Direct3D lit lamps.

Joseph_Joestar wrote on 2023-08-29, 16:07:

Might be interesting to do a Glide vs. Direct3D comparison, if you're up for it. I'm still unsure if the fog displays under both […]
Show full quote

Meatball wrote on 2023-08-29, 13:01:

What a coincidence. I am in process of building an Obsidian2 X-24 mATX machine. It should be done later tonight. I’ll check it if someone hasn’t tested by then.

Might be interesting to do a Glide vs. Direct3D comparison, if you're up for it. I'm still unsure if the fog displays under both renderers. It does need to be turned on from the Options menu first, since it's off by default, if I remember correctly.

P.S.

That's a great card!

During installation, the game presents a message stating a "Voodoo 2" has been detected, and states to make sure Glide v3 drivers are installed (which they are) ... However, that's as far as I can get. Patch 1.1 is installed. If the game doesn't lock up my system immediately, it does so as soon as I try to pick any option from the main menu. I tried disabling the sound card, playing without the CD Audio, going through the readme files for troubleshooting, and I also tried using the integrated ATI card just to test (I know this one wouldn't' have helped your test). Finally, I tried slowing down the system to about a Pentium III 500MHz.

When I put together a different system with different Voodoo2-based cards, I'll try again.