Bioshock (and demo) hardware caveats



Quoted from the demo readme, but applies to the full game as well:-

( Please take particular note of the following sections:-

2.2
2.3
2.4 if you do not have a EAX-compatible sound-card
3.1 ---- for the full game only
3.2.1 for nVidia users.... must update drivers to avoid stutters...
URL given.

3.5 for AMD dual-core users
3.7 for Dx10 issues )

=====================================================================
1) System Requirements
=====================================================================

1.1 Operating Systems
---------------------

Microsoft(R) Windows(R) XP (SP 2)
Microsoft Vista(TM)

1.2 Minimum System Requirements
-------------------------------

CPU: P4 2.5 GHz single core.
System RAM: 1GB 
Video Card: Pixel Shader 3.0 compliant video card with 128 Meg Ram
and floating point frame buffer blending.
Sound Card: 100% DirectX 9.0c compatible sound card
Hard Drive: 7 GB

1.3 Recommended System Requirements
-----------------------------------

CPU: 3GHz dual core processor
System RAM: 2 GB
Video card:  Pixel Shader 3.0 compliant video card with 512 Ram
(Nvidia(R) Geforce(R) 7900 GT or better)
Sound Card: 100% DirectX 9.0c compatible sound card
Hard Drive: 7 GB

1.4 DirectX
-----------

DirectX 9.0c or DirectX 10

=====================================================================
2) Performance
=====================================================================

2.1 Resolution
--------------

It is recommended that when running the game on a minimum
specification machine screen resolutions of either 640*480 or 800*600
be used. On a recommended specification machine resolutions of
1152*864 should provide good performance. On a high end machine
1280*1024 on a standard 17 inch LCD monitor will give very good
performance.

2.2 CPU Speed
-------------

BioShock is optimized for dual core machines. If the game is run on a
single core machine then a processor of 2.5GHz or better is required
to get reasonable performance. The higher the clock speed of the
processor the better the game will run. Most dual core machines will
be optimum for BioShock

2.3 Memory
----------

Memory or RAM can sometimes greatly affect game play. Machines with
less memory will access their hard disk more frequently to load data,
which causes sporadic pauses in game play. Machines with a lower end
processor and video card that has 256 MB of RAM or less, should make
sure that there are no active running programs in the background. This
will optimize performance and make the gaming experience better for
the user.

For good performance we recommend at least 1 Gigabyte of system
memory. For optimum performance we recommend at least 2 Gigabyte of
system memory.

2.4 Better Performance for your Game
------------------------------------

A faster graphics card on a slower PC may receive significantly
increased frame rates and performance benefits when Shadow Maps are
turned off and Texture Detail, High Detail Post Processing, and Real
Time Reflection mapping is also turned off.

For best performance, we recommend a dual core processor and either a
Nvidia 8800 or an ATI(R) Radeon(TM) X1950 or 2900XT equivalent card.

If performance issues are observed then it is recommended that the
user selects a lower screen resolution and lower details setting from
the video options screen. If the user is not using an EAX(R)
compatible sound card then disabling "reverb" from the audio options
screen will also improve performance.

=====================================================================
3) Troubleshooting
=====================================================================

3.1 Installer Issues
--------------------

The BioShock installer will automatically patch to the latest version
of the BioShock game application as part of the install process. YOU
MUST BE CONNECTED TO THE INTERNET IN ORDER TO INSTALL THE GAME.

A progress bar will show the state of the patch download. Please do
not interrupt the download or deactivate your internet connection
during the download. If the download does not complete successfully,
you can attempt to restart the download using the Start/Restart
button.

The downloader uses internet proxy and port settings as set up through
Internet Explorer. If you have not set these, you can manually
configure proxy and port settings in the BioShock installer. If you're
not sure what values to put here, contact your ISP or 2K support at
http://www.2kgames.com/bioshock/support/.

Some internet security software may detect this download as a Trojan
or other compromisation of internet security.

3.2 Video Card Issues
---------------------

You can determine what video card is installed in your computer by
right-mouse clicking on "My Computer" and choosing the "Properties"
option. Once the "System Properties" menu appears, left-mouse click on
the "Hardware" tab and choose the "Device Manager" option. Select
"Display Adapter" to view your machine's video card. Search the web
for your card to download updated drivers.

After installing updated drivers you should also reinstall the current
version of DirectX. Select "My Computer" and then right click the
drive holding the BioShock CD. Browse the CD for the DirectX folder by
clicking on the Open option. Open the DirectX folder and click
Install.exe to reinstall DirectX 9.0c.

Reboot the computer after installing new drivers or DirectX. This
will ensure that any modified Windows files are fully updated or
installed properly, prior to playing BioShock.

If DirectX 9.0c isn't the current version of DirectX, you can download
the most current version at:
www.microsoft.com/windows/directx/default.aspx

NOTE: Section above is written for Windows XP users. Other Windows
Operating Systems may perform differently.

3.2.1 Framerate Stuttering on NVIDIA Cards
------------------------------------------

There are known framerate stuttering problems when running the game on
some NIVIDIA graphics cards. If you experience these problems, you
should install the latest NVIDIA drivers. You can find drivers that
are known to work with Bioshock at:

http://www.nzone.com/object/nzone_bioshock_downloads.html


3.2.2 Pixel Shaders
-------------------

BioShock requires support for Pixel Shader 3.0 or higher to run.

3.3 Sound Card Issues
---------------------

You can find out your machine's sound card by right mouse clicking on
"My Computer" and choosing the "Properties" option. Once the "System
Properties" menu appears, left mouse click on the "Hardware" tab and
choose the "Device Manager" option. Select "Sound, video and game
controllers" to view your machine's sound card. Search the web for
your card to download updated drivers.

After installing updated drivers you should also reinstall the current
version of DirectX. Select "My Computer" and then right click the
drive holding the BioShock CD. Browse the CD for the DirectX folder by
clicking on the Open option. Open the DirectX folder and click
Install.exe to reinstall DirectX 9.0c.

Reboot the computer after installing new drivers or DirectX. This
will ensure that any modified Windows files are fully updated or
installed properly, prior to playing BioShock.

If DirectX 9.0c isn't the current version of DirectX, you can download
the most current version at:
www.microsoft.com/windows/directx/default.aspx

NOTE: Section above is written for Windows XP users. Other Windows
Operating Systems may perform differently.

NOTE 2: If users experience reduced volume voiceovers during game play
while the master volume is turned up, go into the Windows
Volume/Playback Controls and set the Wave volume to max. This can be
found in the Start/Programs/Accessories/Entertainment/Volume Control.

3.4 Control Issues
------------------

Some PC keyboards can't recognize 3 or more simultaneous key presses;
the keyboard buffer for the system overloads and, in some cases, will
return a system beep.

3.5 AMD Dual Core Timing Issue
------------------------------

Some older machines that have AMD dual core processors may experience
problems running the game. If you have such a system, you should first
visit the AMD website and obtain the latest processor drivers. You can
also install an AMD provided driver which addresses a timing issue
from the BioShock DVD. You should only install this driver if you are
confident that it is appropriate for your system (i.e. you have an AMD
dual core processor).

Editor Note: The AMD Timing-fix file is also in the Demo archive.
After extraction you will find it in the "amd dual core timing fix"
directory

3.6 Virtual Memory
------------------------------

BioShock requires virtual memory to run properly. If your virtual
memory settings are not correct, you may experience stability
problems.

To configure virtual memory:

On Windows XP

- From the start menu, open Settings/Control Panel.
- Double click the System icon.
- Select the Advanced tab.
- Click on the Performance/Settings button.
- Select the Advanced tab.
- Click on the Virtual memory/Change button.
- Select the drive that BioShock is installed on.
- Select the "System managed size" radio button in the "Paging file
size for selected drive".
- Click the Set button.
- Click OK multiple times to return to the desktop.

On Windows Vista

- From the start menu, open Settings/Control Panel.
- Select System and Maintenance.
- Select System.
- Select Advanced System Settings.
- Click on the Performance/Settings button.
- Select the Advanced tab
- Click on the Virtual memory/Change button.
- Check "Automatically manage paging file size for all drives"
- Click OK multiple times to return to the desktop.

3.7 DX10 Issues
---------------
If you experience graphics corruption or stability issues on Windows
Vista using ATi DirectX 10 hardware (eg Radeon HD 2xxx), please launch
the game in DirectX 9 mode. This is done by right clicking the
Bioshock icon in the game explorer and selecting "Play-DirectX9".

In some video cards when running DirectX 10, it is possible that the
game will start in a non-full screen mode. To reset to full screen
mode, go to the options/graphics options screen and toggle windowed
mode on and then off. This should rectify the problem.

3.8 Installation failure
------------------------
If the installation fails for some reason then it is possible for the
installer to be left in a state where installation can no longer be
completed. In this situation it may be necessary for the user to
close down windows and restart the computer.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

John Lewis
.