caralampio

Thanks, this is exactly what I needed. CMBB looking great now.

Actually, I just saw that it is only CMBB with the problem. CMAK like CMBO looks just fine. In CMBB everything looks huge and blown out (i.e. like when anything is set to low-res). The splash screen for instance some of the text is outside the screen. In the other two games windows, screens, etc. look small and therefore sharp.

Is there a way to adjust graphics settings in CMBB and CMAK? I'm returning to the games after a long while, on a new computer even, I have a 19" LCD which works best at 1280 x 1024. CMBO looks just great, beautiful it seems to be taking advantage of the resolution! But CMBB and CMAK look all "pixelly" and a bit out of focus. As an aside, a pleasant surprise. In the old days I used to shun ATI cards because I couldn't see fog in CM with them. I now have an ATI 1650 Pro, Catalyst 8.1, I was quaking and trepidating thinking I would see no fog, but lo and behold, there it is! I'm anticipating having a lot of fun re-exploring these games. Especially if I can adjust the graphics settings

You know I've come back to the CM games after quite a hiatus, I've been playing missions from all three, and with a fresh outlook I find that Beyond Overlord is the best GAME. I'm not saying that BB or AK are bad games, but they are better as simulations. I think the relationship is like that of Squad Leader and Advanced Squad Leader. ASL is a great simulation, but SL was much more fun. Some advantages I find in CMBO (from a "beer and pretzels" point of view) are these: 1.- Colors. BO has bright, somewhat pastel colors, not too realistic but pleasant and restful to the eye. There is more constrast with the units. BB and AK may have more realistic colors, but overall they are pretty drab. 2.- Overview 3. In CMBO level 3 view is in the exact position for a perfect blend of unit managing and panoramic view, truly a working view. In the other games level 3 is "a bit too high" for my taste, while level 2 is too close. 3.- In CMBO soldiers obey orders! At least they try to the best of their ability. In CMBB and CMAK it seems like you can't get infantry to do what you want, for love or money. They just like to sneak sneak sneak. It might be more realistic but it's boring to issue your troops an order ("DID I MAKE MYSELF CLEAR, PRIVATE!") just to see them immediately cancel your orders (under authority of whom?) and give themselves a new order to sneak, usually towards the most ridiculous positions, to a place 100 meters away, or towards the enemy! You patiently cancel all those sneaky-sneakers and reissue your orders. Guess what? Next turn they are all sneaking again to wherever they want. In CMBO, a unit might pin, but as soon as possible they are back on the track doing as told. 4.- Explosions. CMBO explosions ROCK, literally. They make an impressive kaboom!!! In the other games explosions are kind of muffled. Just wanted to get it off my chest

OK I've narrowed my choices, what's better: a 6600 with 256 MB, or a 6600 GT with 128 MB?

There's another issue with these 5500FX cards. I just learned that Dell has withdrawn support for these cards due to the number of problems with installation on Dell PC's. Guess what brand my computer is

Before you said that the 256 MB of memory made no difference for the 5500 FX. Does this also apply to the ones you recommend (6600 GT and 6800)? In both cases there is about a $100 difference between the 128 and 256 versions. Also one last Q, do you have any bad opinion of eVGA e-GeForce products? That "e-" makes one consider if there is something incompatible with them (they are meant for specific purposes maybe?)

Hey Redwolf, what would you recommend, still within the GeForce line and for limited budget (say $150 tops) also addressing this wattage problem (mine is a Dell 8250)? "Sometimes it isn't laziness, just pure and simple Ignorance!"

Ungh, that sux man. Anyway a thousands thanks for the info.

It cost me $80.00. Well, at least will I see ANY improvement over the ATI I now have? I mean apart of getting fog in CM, (hopefully) eliminating the black patch from CMBB's screen, and (hopefully) taking away the fuzziness in Rome Total War?

Aw man, I just received my new Geforce FX 5500 256 MB (today) and coincidentally, just idling I started reading the tech posts and I ran into this thread! It seems I didn't do my homework, I was under the impression that NVidia cards were mostly compatible with CMxx... One of the deciding factors was that I wanted to see FOG Any good advice would be welcome before I install the card (if I decide to install it that is). Also, if you know of issues of this card with other games I would be grateful to know it. My system is Dell 8200, Win XP SP2, P4 2.0 Ghz, 640 RAM, DX 9.0b, current card is ATI Radeon 9200 which I'm not very satisfied with. CMxx runs, well somewhat fine but I see a black splotch in the lower right corner (and no fog...)

Yes, I installed an ATI recently. It has given me problems with a number of games that worked just fine with my GeForce- but then, some new games I wanted to play specifically did not run with the GeForce. Well I guess I can live with the little black patch, as long as it doesn't get worse.

Yes, I installed an ATI recently. It has given me problems with a number of games that worked just fine with my GeForce- but then, some new games I wanted to play specifically did not run with the GeForce. Well I guess I can live with the little black patch, as long as it doesn't get worse.

After a while of not playing CMBB, I came back to it but found this little black zone (like big pixels) in the lower right corner of the screen. Sometimes it shows yellow, moving lines like a grid. I have tried reinstalling the game but the thing is still there. Any ideas? Fixes?

After a while of not playing CMBB, I came back to it but found this little black zone (like big pixels) in the lower right corner of the screen. Sometimes it shows yellow, moving lines like a grid. I have tried reinstalling the game but the thing is still there. Any ideas? Fixes?