Terminator Skynet problem

[liqmat]

ripsaw, do you have any idea why the main menu buttons often don't work after launching the game and why a simple right-mouse-button click fixes it (I assume that I'm not the only person that this happens for)? I've tried with autolock set to both true and false. It's really simple to workaround once you know how, but I can imagine how frustrating it is for others who haven't yet learned.

That randomly happens to me as well. I just hit ALT-ENTER and then back and the menu responds after that.

[Osprey]

That randomly happens to me as well. I just hit ALT-ENTER and then back and the menu responds after that.

I thought that it was random until I noticed that it happens consistently when I click to dismiss the intro video and never when I use the spacebar to do it (or let the video play out).

When it happens, try right-clicking, instead. It's faster and easier. Using spacebar to dismiss the intro also works. It seems as though the game is not resetting the left mouse button after clicking to dismiss the intro, so you can't use it again until you do something (right-click, alt-tab, etc.) that does reset it.

You can also rename Gamedata\Opening.vid to skip the intro entirely, so that you don't have to dismiss it, though the issue still occurs if you just happen to click in the few seconds before the menu appears. What a buggy game. Hah.

[liqmat]

Good info Osprey. Thanks.

Yeah, the game is a bit buggy, but both Future Shock and Skynet are just so way ahead of their time and still so much fun to play. The atmosphere alone is worth the trouble.

[Osprey]

Indeed. I wouldn't be giving the game so much attention if it weren't worth it. It really is impressive how both games were ahead of their time, with mouselook (which was initially unpopular with a lot of PC gamers, amusingly enough), drivable vehicles (that you could even fire from while driving) and even just the ability to customize all of your keys in the game (rather than in the setup program, like DOOM II and Duke 3D required). It's too bad that they didn't sell well enough to keep the franchise going. A next game in the series would've undoubtedly been a full 3D and 3D accelerated Windows 95 game, like Jedi Knight, that would be easier to get running, more accessible, likely runnable in high resolutions (with a little help) and possibly even moddable. That would've been the perfect Terminator game.

EDIT: Now I've discovered that simply moving the mouse even just a little before clicking to dismiss the intro/logo video avoids the menu bug. It's only when you click the mouse without having moved it at all yet (while the game is running) that you get the menu bug. That could mean that it has nothing to do with dismissing the intro. Yep, if you use spacebar to dismiss the intro, the mouse pointer will appear in the center of the main menu. If you move the mouse, everything is fine, but, if you click the mouse button when it's still in the center of the screen, the pointer disappears off of the screen and goes into the lower right corner (position 320,200) and it's bugged until you right-click. So, the game doesn't like it when the first mouse input is a click, rather than movement.

[Osprey]

Here's the all-in-one patch that I've been putting together. It includes every fix and improvement that I could find and think of, including the two crash fixes that have solved everyone's problems in this thread (thanks again to ripsaw8080 for his). Hopefully, this smooths out the process of getting the game working and helps people enjoy it more.

Code: Select all

SkyNET Unofficial Patch 2017

SkyNET (aka The Terminator: SkyNET) is Bethesda's 1996 sequel to The Terminator: Future Shock, a Quake-like game set
in the Terminator universe. This is an all-in-one patch which includes every known fix and improvement for the game.

This patch:
  * Updates the game to v1.01.
  * Allows for playing entirely from the hard drive.
  * Starts the game with 640x480 (SVGA) mode enabled.
  * Fixes crashes at the start of gameplay (aka the "SVGA fix").
  * Fixes crashes when entering buildings (aka the "door fix"). Credit to ripsaw8080.
  * Extends the visual range (so that structures and objects are visible from farther away). Credit to WERTA & Corak.
  * Corrects the night sky color from blue to black (as it was in Future Shock). Credit to WERTA & Corak.
  * Includes an INSTALL.DAT to aid users in setting up the game and adding Future Shock.

To apply:
  1. Copy these files and folders to your SkyNET game folder, overwriting the ones there.
  2. If using DOSBox:
     * Set output=overlay in your .conf file. This gives the best appearance with the extended visual range because
       it's slightly darker than other modes, greatly helping distant objects to gradually appear out of the shadows.
     * Make sure that DOSBox is v0.74 or a recent SVN build. Pre-0.74 versions and older SVN builds may have very poor
       performance or crash in 640x480 mode.

Future Shock:
  To play Future Shock (SkyNET's 1995 predecessor) in SkyNET's 640x480 mode and with the extended visual range, copy
  or install it to SkyNET's new SHOCK folder, then run SkyNET, choose New Game and select Future Shock. If you prefer
  to keep it elsewhere, edit the "fspath" line in INSTALL.DAT accordingly.

SkyNET install tip:
  To do a full installation of SkyNET to the hard drive, copy the SKYNET folder from the CD, copy this patch over it
  and run SETUP.EXE to configure your sound drivers. That eliminates having to mount the CD in DOSBox and go through
  the installation program, after which you still would've had to copy the SKYNET folder, since even the largest
  installation option leaves most of it on the CD.

320x200 mode:
  To start SkyNET in 320x200 mode, run GAME.EXE instead of SKYNET.EXE. GAME.EXE is the actual patched game executable
  (formerly SKYNET.EXE) which starts in 320x200 mode by default and SKYNET.EXE is a new launcher which tells it to run
  in 640x480, instead, so that you don't have to change the resolution to 640x480 every time that you start the game.

Blue sky:
  If you prefer to keep the original blue sky, don't copy GAMEDATA\MDMDIMGS.BSA. Be aware, though, that Future Shock's
  sky color was black, so Future Shock won't look as it originally did if you play it through SkyNET.

Menu mouse bug:
  After dismissing the intro, if the main menu options are unresponsive to clicks, simply RIGHT click anywhere to fix it.
  This isn't a bug in this patch, but with this game and DOSBox's overlay mode. You may experience it only now because
  overlay mode is recommended for this patch (because of how much more nicely objects fade in from the shadows in it).
  Rather than change modes to avoid the bug, it's recommended that you work around it by right-clicking... or simply
  rename GAMEDATA\OPENING.VID to disable the intro, so that you don't have to dismiss it and encounter the bug.

Credits:
  ripsaw8080 @ vogons.org (door fix)
  WERTA & Corak @ old-games.** (extended visual range and sky color fix)
  Bethesda Softworks® LLC © 1996 (game)

SkyNET and The Terminator: Future Shock are the property of Bethesda Softworks® LLC.
This patch is not made, offered or supported by Bethesda Softworks.

Edit: I've re-written the Readme and included a comparison image. The patch, itself, hasn't changed, so those who have already downloaded it don't need to re-download it. I've also uploaded it to PCGamingWiki.

[liqmat]

I thought ripsaw8080 did the sky color patch that he uploaded in this other thread?

viewtopic.php?f=33&t=54554#p593816

[Osprey]

He did it, too, but it was done earlier by the guys that I credited. Their 2014 patcher is what I used for it and extending the viewing distance.

[liqmat]

I see. Well only a pure win that this great game is finally getting the TLC it deserves so many years later. Thanks to all you guys for cleaning it up.

[Nilex]

Here is a modified SkyNET version 1.01 executable that prevents the door crash regardless of cycles in my tests...

Thank you! I've played the game for the first time in 2015 using DOSBox and experienced it only once with 150k cycles & SVGA. It was just one door so, not knowing better at a time, I called it "buggy door" and avoided the hell outta it, hehe. Wish I could remember which one so I could pass through like a gentleman today but I ain't graced with such memory. I can report it works by testing early doors tough. Using plain vanilla 0.74.
Props to liqmat for reporting it too. I had never though to go full-detective over one door let alone report it here... I still associate VOGONS with Win98/XP and VDMSound from the early 2000's. What can I say, it's difficult to teach old dog new tricks

* * *

Now for the real reason I posted:

Here's the all-in-one patch that I've been putting together...

Code: Select all

Menu mouse bug:
  This isn't a bug in this patch, but with DOSBox's overlay mode in this game...

Fantastic job Sir! Just one important thing before I get to the good bit:
The exact same thing happens with TIE Fighter Collector's CD-ROM edition - you skip the Intro (after Logo passes) with LMB (while not moving mouse prior) and voila. Nothing except LMB works until you RMB yourself back. Only way to quit the game is to CTRL+F9 since the keyboard is locked out in-game (not DOSBox functions). You did great identifying the overlay problem but it's not isolated to SkyNET. TIE similarly has skippable Intro sequence and my game also uses overlay. Could be wide-spread bug.

* * *

That covers that, rest is just me unable to contain disbelief about how coincidental is your timing of posting the Unofficial patch with the thing I cooked up for my own private package, independently. It's one game out of many we both focused on, is over 20 years old and we done it only 2 days apart!? What are the odds... Anyways, I found it hilariously amusing so short story is in order!
Just finished sorting my own nub Future Shock & SkyNET package from 2015, upgrading it to todays quality with knowledge accumulated since then (not to brag!). What sparked the upgrade was finding out about ripsaw's door and skycol fixes few moons ago. Shelved skycol at a time because busy, only to come back to it just two days ago. Door fix I completely forgot where it was... knew I've seen it somewhere, but where? During the work I found out about an improved version of skycol fix which was included in WERTA & Corak's GFX Patch so I though about informing liqmat about it. Post is fairly recent I though and the lad sure seemed like a Terminator fan so I though the guy will surely appreciate it. Only problem was what do I say to him that will make find the link on his own, without me outright pointing him to that russian pira... t... preservation nest. While figuring out the correct wording, trying it in search engine, one result lead me to PCGW and then I finally went to the patch itself!
I look at the right side - Submitted: 2 days ago? Wtf?? I just done the same thing on my own, bullet point by bullet point. Woohoo! Sorry people but that's just fantastically amazing to me, hehe. Sharing my excitement was inevitable!

Had to track you just to commend you on a job well done coz I know it was a bitch to set up. Have you tried to OCD delete the first empty line in INSTALL.DAT? What fun 30 mins that was for me when you don't give a second thought about it later. Btw, do you have any idea what SVGA fix fixes exactly? I mean, what kind of crash, where?

Also, re-discovered the long-lost door fix in this same topic (against the odds again). You have detective liqmat, my patch clone Osprey, the bug Terminator ripsaw all in one topic. T2 got a 3D release, with more to come... only this time - with grandmaster Jim @ the helm. What more can one ask for?

[Osprey]

The exact same thing happens with TIE Fighter Collector's CD-ROM edition - you skip the Intro (after Logo passes) with LMB (while not moving mouse prior) and voila. Nothing except LMB works until you RMB yourself back. Only way to quit the game is to CTRL+F9 since the keyboard is locked out in-game (not DOSBox functions). You did great identifying the overlay problem but it's not isolated to SkyNET. TIE similarly has skippable Intro sequence and my game also uses overlay. Could be wide-spread bug.

That's interesting. I didn't realize that it happened in any other games. It's probably related to some third-party code that both games share, like maybe the video engine (Smacker or Bink or whatever these games use) or DOS4GW (though I did replace it with DOS32A and the bug still occurred). I spent many, many hours trying to solve it and couldn't, though I did discover multiple ways to work around it (right click, dismiss intro with spacebar or rename the intro movie file). Hearing that it's not limited to SkyNET makes me feel a little better about failing to find a fix.

That covers that, rest is just me unable to contain disbelief about how coincidental is your timing of posting the Unofficial patch with the thing I cooked up for my own private package, independently. It's one game out of many we both focused on, is over 20 years old and we done it only 2 days apart!?

If it makes a difference, I actually put the patch together a month ago and got sidetracked by another project (and, like you, came back to it just a few days ago), so we did it a month apart after 20 years

Just finished sorting my own nub Future Shock & SkyNET package from 2015, upgrading it to todays quality with knowledge accumulated since then (not to brag!).

...

I look at the right side - Submitted: 2 days ago? Wtf?? I just done the same thing on my own, bullet point by bullet point. Woohoo! Sorry people but that's just fantastically amazing to me, hehe. Sharing my excitement was inevitable!

If you ever released your package, I must've missed it. As far as I knew, no one had assembled a collection of fixes together into one, which is why I went ahead and did it. Sorry to have stolen your thunder if you were meaning to update and (re)release it. If you know of a fix or improvement that I missed, I'd love to hear of it and would credit you if I add it.

Had to track you just to commend you on a job well done coz I know it was a bitch to set up. Have you tried to OCD delete the first empty line in INSTALL.DAT? What fun 30 mins that was for me when you don't give a second thought about it later. Btw, do you have any idea what SVGA fix fixes exactly? I mean, what kind of crash, where?

I wish that the file download page at PCGW had a comments section. Thanks for finding me just to commend me. I appreciate that.

Yes, I believe that I did try deleting that empty line in INSTALL.DAT. It bugged me, too. Haha.

The "SVGA fix" fixes a crash when gameplay starts (i.e. when you enter a mission) that happens more often in SVGA mode on slower machines, which is why some (like you and ripsaw8080) may not experience it. It's the crash that most of this thread addresses. The one who attached a fixed executable here called it a "DOS4GW fix" and someone (ripsaw8080, I think) discovered that it was actually related to a CD check. Even though it's not technically a SVGA fix, I refer to that name in my patch notes so that users understand that the fix that goes by that name elsewhere is included.

Also, re-discovered the long-lost door fix in this same topic (against the odds again). You have detective liqmat, my patch clone Osprey, the bug Terminator ripsaw all in one topic.

It's been a pretty productive thread. If liqmat hadn't necro'ed it a few months ago, we wouldn't have ripsaw's door fix and I wouldn't have been inspired to bundle all of the improvements together. It's been a happy coincidence to have a few people become interested in the same game at the same time.

[ripsaw8080]

The "SVGA fix" fixes a crash when gameplay starts (i.e. when you enter a mission) that happens more often in SVGA mode on slower machines, which is why some (like you and ripsaw8080) may not experience it.

SkyNET performs its CD-check much more frequently when running in hi-res mode, which I guess is how the association with SVGA came about.

The crash never occured for me because I mount the cdrom (an image in my case), which is the correct way to run the game. It's when manually copying all files to hard disk and editing the sourcepath= line of INSTALL.DAT in an attempt to run without the cdrom that one is set to receive Bethesda's special gift of a crash. However, neglecting the "-t cdrom" switch when MOUNTing the disc in DOSBox is another way to encounter the crash, because the drive appears to be a hard disk with free space.

[Nilex]

Many Thanks for clearing that SVGA thingy. I remember reading about it being CD check related now... must have been at the same time when I initially found door fix. My bad
The site I got it from said it changes the default in-game resolution so the game always starts in 640x480 (but not menus). Was sad when it turned out to do nothing at all. In the end I'll be needing it, thanks to your answers, because I ditch the original CD images any chance I get in favor of maximum compression. My old 2015 package was mounting images so the crash never occurred.

@Osprey
The thunder is all your buddy. I never released it though I admit it would be funny if I had and it went unnoticed by you
It's for my own personal use and never planned to release it because I genuinely though there wouldn't be any interest for it (had no recollection of this topic until last night). Another one, more important, is I'd be expecting of myself to provide long-term support after peeps mess up in getting it to work. It can be fearsome getting a simple question a year since last time you were "into it" and having no idea what to answer because you forgotten. Been there before and I can tell you few times is enough . If I can find an active group (fan-site or forum board) where I can unload the package knowing it's taken care of, freeing my hands, only then I do it nowadays.
I don't mean to frighten you, on the contrary in fact, the readme is as straight forward as it can be. Unless... you get soory for my bad ingles type of amigo.
Btw the only difference in my version is that Shock and SkyNET folders are split outside one another (because reasons) and I have no GAME.EXE.

* * *

Sorry for burring your patch post some more but I have couple more semi-related SkyNET questions:
- in the sound card setup utility, why when testing music MT-32 fails but other two Roland's cards work?
- is there a way to configure DOSBox (0.74) to ease the transition between the SVGA (gameplay) and VGA (menu) resolutions?
(very common occurrence in SkyNET, but it pretty seamless in aforementioned TIE Fighter)
Atm, the screen spazzes out shortly during the transition. Relevant settings I guess are: fullscreen=true; fullresolution=desktop; output=openglnb; aspect=true.
I am under impression the image is always drawn in native monitor resolution with =desktop, regardless of in-game resolution (just scaled up), so it's not hardware related? My gut tells me it's possible, somehow...
UPDATE: it's the overlay. Makes it nearly seamless in SKyNET as in TIE Fighter. But is there a way for openglnb? I like my 90's pixelated sharpness, hehe.

[liqmat]

Ripsaw8080 fixed two games that I loved in the 90s. Scorcher and now this. Couldn't be happier.

[Osprey]

Another one, more important, is I'd be expecting of myself to provide long-term support after peeps mess up in getting it to work. It can be fearsome getting a simple question a year since last time you were "into it" and having no idea what to answer because you forgotten. Been there before and I can tell you few times is enough . If I can find an active group (fan-site or forum board) where I can unload the package knowing it's taken care of, freeing my hands, only then I do it nowadays.
I don't mean to frighten you, on the contrary in fact, the readme is as straight forward as it can be.

This is nothing compared to a project that I managed for 3 years almost 10 years ago. It was so complicated that I frequently had to read my own documentation (which was really, really long) just to help people. I eventually walked away, but I don't really feel guilty about it. You can't feel that way or get stressed or else you won't help in the first place. Helping people should be fun, not stressful, and it pays to remember that people are better off for you giving them something at all that works for the majority than if you never put in the work or released anything in the first place. I try to make everything that I upload as simple and as documented as possible so that I feel no obligation to support it afterwards. If you still can't get something like this SkyNET patch to work, it's probably your own fault. That said, I don't mind helping, and that's where my own documentation comes in handy to remind me of what I've forgotten.

Btw the only difference in my version is that Shock and SkyNET folders are split outside one another (because reasons) and I have no GAME.EXE.

GAME.EXE is just the patched SKYNET.EXE that I renamed so that my little launcher for running the game in 640x480 mode could be SKYNET.EXE. I figured that that was easier than explaining to users that they should run some other executable (like SKYSVGA.EXE), instead, and forcing many to have to update their DOSBox frontends or shortcuts.

- in the sound card setup utility, why when testing music MT-32 fails but other two Roland's cards work?

The same thing occurs in Future Shock, which has identical HMI*.* and SETUP.INI files. Perhaps it's a misconfiguration in those files that HMI and Bethesda missed or one of those weird interactions between the game and DOSBox, like the mouse menu bug.

UPDATE: it's the overlay. Makes it nearly seamless in SKyNET as in TIE Fighter. But is there a way for openglnb? I like my 90's pixelated sharpness, hehe.

You could try the "pixel perfect" modes included in DOSBox ECE. I'm not sure, but I think they may be based on overlay, which could mean that they'll have the same seamless video mode switches.

[XoanonFWV]

I've only just now learned about the Unofficial Patch from 2017, so clearly I'm necroing this thread. But I've got a question...

So SkyNET allows you to play Future Shock in hi-rez, but it's had a bug in it since release.
In Future Shock, there's an NPC at the end of a level you have to kill to proceed. If you're running Future Shock hi-rez through SkyNET, the NPC has no collision detection and cannot be shot. You have to cheat to proceed. To my recollection, that was never fixed by Bethesda. Big surprise.

Was this ever fixed in any fan patch?