Can't save - The Gene Machine \ VOGONS

Can't save - The Gene Machine

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First post, by essentialatom

Posted on 2013-08-02, 02:41

essentialatom Offline

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Hi,

I own a CD copy of The Gene Machine which I have installed (I'm using DOSBox 0.74, with DOSBox Game Launcher 0.76 as a frontend). I own an up-to-date PC and the game runs well in general, though I can provide hardware details if you need them.

The problem is that I'm unable to save my game. Saving is done through an on-screen menu and not a keyboard shortcut. The manual and readme say nothing about saving other than there's an autosave feature that means the game should pick up where it left off within reason, but neither the autosave nor manual save appears to be working. I'm unsure where save games are kept (the installation folder has a subfolder called STORAGE which might be it).

When I click the save button nothing happens (no list of save slots, though I don't know if there should be one). When I reload the game and press load, nothing happens either. If I'm going to finish this game at the moment I'll have to do it in one long go and I'm not too psyched about that!

If you have any idea how I can diagnose this and get it working I'd really appreciate your help.

Reply 1 of 5, by Jorpho

Posted on 2013-08-02, 15:59

Jorpho Offline

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It is possible you have installed the game to a location that DOSBox does not have write-privileges to.

The easiest way to get around the problem might be to run DOSBox as a user with administrative privileges. Otherwise, ditch DBGL and use the 60 Seconds Guide.

Reply 2 of 5, by peterferrie

Posted on 2013-08-02, 19:20

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Jorpho wrote:
It is possible you have installed the game to a location that DOSBox does not have write-privileges to.

The easiest way to get around the problem might be to run DOSBox as a user with administrative privileges.

Yes, that is the most likely cause. The game saves its files in the directory with the rest of the game files (vic_game.nnn, where "nnn" is the slot number, and 999 is reserved for auto-save). Obviously, if you're running it directly from the CD, then you won't be able to save anything.
You'll need to copy the files to the hard disk first, in that case.

Reply 3 of 5, by essentialatom

Posted on 2013-08-02, 19:46

essentialatom Offline

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peterferrie wrote:
Yes, that is the most likely cause. The game saves its files in the directory with the rest of the game files (vic_game.nnn, where "nnn" is the slot number, and 999 is reserved for auto-save). Obviously, if you're running it directly from the CD, then you won't be able to save anything.
You'll need to copy the files to the hard disk first, in that case.

DBGL runs from a folder on my desktop - I think that's because I downloaded it to there, and never moved it. When I installed the game, I first copied the files from the CD to a folder on my C: drive. I then told DBGL to install the game from that, ignoring the CD.

In short:
The CD is copied in its entirety to a folder I called OLDGAMES on my C: drive
DBGL was able to use this folder to install the game to a subfolder on my desktop

In the desktop subfolder I can see VIC_GAME.999.

I've tried running it with administrator privileges and it hasn't made a difference. I suppose my next step is to disregard DBGL and use the 60 seconds guide?

Reply 4 of 5, by rcblanke

Posted on 2013-08-02, 21:31

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Strange, you don't see the list of save slots by moving your mouse to the lower left corner, clicking 'status' and 'Load game' ? FWIW, seems to work fine here.

Reply 5 of 5, by essentialatom

Posted on 2013-08-02, 23:14

essentialatom Offline

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Ah, I've figured it out. There's no problem with the installation or anything, but the menu is temperamental. I have to mouseover load/save, then move the mouse to the middle of the screen, THEN click. Only by doing that does the list of slots show up.

I haven't needed to reinstall or anything, it was just something I hadn't spotted. I appreciate your help though! 😀

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