DOSBOX MORDOR done right, Maybe this should be pinned.. Options

[Chozame]

I found a guy making dosbox videos and asked him to help me troubleshoot my Mordor install, so we got to talking about all of the various issues that can arise, then he went ahead and put a video together outlining his entire process for a perfect install, that we've confirmed will work on Windows 7 or 10.

If you've ever struggled to solve the error messages that show during startup of Mordor, such as "Error initializing FX" or the one about using only 256 colors, then take a glance at this video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oXqtMrU0EHU&t=905s

I personally have never succeeded at getting any old game to work on Virtualbox, even after following the guides pinned on this site. I followed this guy's video and I'm playing Mordor on windows 3.1 within Dosbox with ease...

Solving these errors and others is important work. In my opinion, Mordor should not be played without sound because the sound design in the game is very well-crafted.

Also, here's an image I uploaded which shows the difference between Mordor running on 256 colors and on 60k colors:


Maybe this YouTube video should be pinned in this technical help section?

[Mordion]

I remember doing that on a real box when Mordor first came out. Win 3.1 video settings were such a pain.

I didn't watch the video, but are you using the Sound Blasters FM chip for MIDI or did you add a MPU401 as a second sound card?

This post has been edited by Mordion: Jul 9 2019, 02:09 AM

[Chozame]

I remember doing that on a real box when Mordor first came out. Win 3.1 video settings were such a pain.

I didn't watch the video, but are you using the Sound Blasters FM chip for MIDI or did you add a MPU401 as a second sound card?

Soundblaster: http://www.sierrahelp.com/Utilities/Emulat..._InstallSB.html

[BLauritson]

Nice one Chozame, I've pinned this as requested.

Thus far I've always used Mordor in the virtual XP machine that comes with Windows 7, but on WinXP Mordor always had an annoying glitch with the MIDI files that interfered with the gameplay to some extent (ever left town to suddenly take fatal damage from a monster hit that happened in your previous dungeon run? Only on XP...). I recall this issue being exclusive to XP so perhaps it would be worth trying to install an earlier Windows version in DOSBox and installing Mordor that way.

Either way, thanks for sharing this guide

[Wabbit]

I use dosbox/3.1 too, with no issues except screen resolution [can't make the window as large as I'd like to].

Are you able to use dosbox maximised to full screen at your normal desktop resolution?

Not sure if my resolution issue is a limit of dosbox/win 3.1, or my inability to setup how I want it.

[Roland]

Thus far I've always used Mordor in the virtual XP machine that comes with Windows 7, but on WinXP Mordor always had an annoying glitch with the MIDI files that interfered with the gameplay to some extent (ever left town to suddenly take fatal damage from a monster hit that happened in your previous dungeon run? Only on XP...). I recall this issue being exclusive to XP so perhaps it would be worth trying to install an earlier Windows version in DOSBox and installing Mordor that way.

I have played Mordor only on my old XP machine, and I've never experienced this problem.

[BLauritson]

Curious, it happens for me in the virtual XP machine and I recall it happening on a native XP install years ago. I recall it was mentioned either on these forums or perhaps on Slimey's website or something (that's how long ago it was) that it was in the way that XP handled MIDI playback which caused this strange glitch.

Oh well, I get around it by having all the MIDI tracks on a random playlist so I can still enjoy the music while I play it

[Chozame]

I use dosbox/3.1 too, with no issues except screen resolution [can't make the window as large as I'd like to].

Are you able to use dosbox maximised to full screen at your normal desktop resolution?

Not sure if my resolution issue is a limit of dosbox/win 3.1, or my inability to setup how I want it.

I'm not sure if the method in the video would get you around this issue.. but perhaps it would?
I hit alt+enter to switch to fullscreen mode, and it seems to skew the game just a little bit, it also seems to adjust to a resolution which is different than my windows 7 desktop res. However, it looks and feels okay in my opinion so I haven't considered it a problem.

[Roland]

Curious, it happens for me in the virtual XP machine and I recall it happening on a native XP install years ago. I recall it was mentioned either on these forums or perhaps on Slimey's website or something (that's how long ago it was) that it was in the way that XP handled MIDI playback which caused this strange glitch.

Oh well, I get around it by having all the MIDI tracks on a random playlist so I can still enjoy the music while I play it

Maybe I don't experience the problem because I turned off the MIDI music.

[BLauritson]

Maybe I don't experience the problem because I turned off the MIDI music.

Ah yes, that does explain it Same for me, as long as MIDI music is switched off within Mordor itself then that problem doesn't occur.

[Painbringer]

Been a while since I last posted here.

I've tried numerous times to get Mordor to work with a win 3.1 installation on Dosbox (on a Linux machine) but whatever I do, I always get a "This application requires windows 3.1 or later" error when running the setup. It doesn't seem to be driver related. Anyone else experience the same?

[Relea]

I found a guy making dosbox videos and asked him to help me troubleshoot my Mordor install, so we got to talking about all of the various issues that can arise, then he went ahead and put a video together outlining his entire process for a perfect install, that we've confirmed will work on Windows 7 or 10.

If you've ever struggled to solve the error messages that show during startup of Mordor, such as "Error initializing FX" or the one about using only 256 colors, then take a glance at this video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oXqtMrU0EHU&t=905s

Well, this is a great step by step tutorial, if you want to make the game working on a nowadays computer!
I just encountered a small sound problem. WAV files were stuttering.

I could solve this by following these steps:

1. Follow all the instructions in the tutorial.
2. Go to your C:\DOSBOX\WINDOWS folder and doubleclick on the WAVEMIX.INI file.
3. Scroll down to the chapter about WaveBlocks.
4. Change "WaveBlocks=3" into "WaveBlocks=6" and save the file.
5. Try to start the game as instructed in the tutorial.

If you encouter any other problem with the tutorial, just leave a comment. This guy is very kind and helpful!

This post has been edited by Relea: Nov 1 2019, 04:08 PM