somewhat fixed the black map problem(intel integrated graphics)

[Beekus]

if you go into the worldbuilder, select reveal tiles then reveal all tiles, then exit the worldbuilder, you can see the terrain.

it's cheating, but it will have to do for now. oh yeah, it worked for my intel integrated graphics.

enjoy,
beekus

[Tugger1967]

I also have an intel card and was wondering how well the game works on your cpu ? I'm getting my copy tomorrow and I'm very worried about all the graphics problems I'm hearing about

[Beekus]

works great except for the black map and invisible leaders. i haven't tried to play much with the map fix yet. I have a speedy laptop, so...

If they come up with a fix that doesn't require hardware T&L, get it, otherwise, don't waste your money.

[Tugger1967]

The problem is the game is already paid for. But thank you for your help my mind is at least a little at ease now.

[ojk79]

Oh bugger.

I've got Intel Integrated Graphics and was a bit worried too when I saw the tech specs for Civ IV. Intel's website assures me that:

'Intel® graphics products do not have hardware support for T&L. In most games, transform and lighting calculations can be performed on the processor with acceptable performance. A small number of games that specifically check for hardware T&L support may fail to run.'

This is set out under the heading 'solution'. Right.

I'm told by the people in my PC shop that I can't upgrade my graphics card either. Though perhaps they're just trying to get me to buy an entirely new desktop.

Glad to hear that there's a fix, of sorts. When you say there are invisible leaders, do you mean on the diplomacy screens? And the black map? You mean you can't see anything!

I've also already ordered my copy. Although it's not out in the UK until next week.

Perhaps it is time to upgrade to a new PC anyway......

Thanks,

O.

[Ziggyrunner08]

I have this graphics card too. The leaders aren't exactly invisible- just their skin and clothes are missing. You still see their floating eyes, floating teeth, and sometimes a hat or other parts of their clothing. It sucks not fully seeing your friends and adversaries, but all the diplomacy actions and trades still work fine.

As for me I am still having trouble with the black terrain. For now I guess I will try the worldbuilder method, hopefully someone will figure out a way to fix the problem or Firaxis will come out with a patch.

[JoeGator]

I don't know how they can patch that - it's a hardware deal, those integrated Intel chips just don't support the level of T&L needed for Civ 4. (I have one).

My guess is the lower you set your graphics card stuff (accelator, resolution, compressor yadda yadda yadda) the better it'll work.

[Willem]

Originally posted by Ziggyrunner08

As for me I am still having trouble with the black terrain. For now I guess I will try the worldbuilder method, hopefully someone will figure out a way to fix the problem or Firaxis will come out with a patch.

There won't be a patch for it. Firaxis has mentioned for quite sometime now that Hardware T&L support will be required for the game. They're not going try and get it working for those people that have below par video cards. The only way to get rid of the problem will be to upgrade the video card. If the card is in a laptop, you're SOL for the most part.

[Ziggyrunner08]

This makes no sense in my opinion. A quick fix for the black terrain involves simply going into the World Builder and selecting reveal all map tiles. After exiting the World Builder, I can then see all the terrain, except that it appears in the darkened version (as if you explored the terrain and no longer have a unit with a line of sight into that tile). When in the World Builder itself, the terrain appears in the lit up way it should be. So obviously my graphics card is capable of rendering the terrain.

[Willem]

Originally posted by Ziggyrunner08
This makes no sense in my opinion. A quick fix for the black terrain involves simply going into the World Builder and selecting reveal all map tiles. After exiting the World Builder, I can then see all the terrain, except that it appears in the darkened version (as if you explored the terrain and no longer have a unit with a line of sight into that tile). When in the World Builder itself, the terrain appears in the lit up way it should be. So obviously my graphics card is capable of rendering the terrain.

Obviously it's not the terrain that needs the T&L but the fog of war. Or should I say the unexplored areas. By going into the World Builder, you're basically cheating by being able to see all of the terrain. It may work, but you're not playing the game like it was meant to be played. I understand that the T&L is also required for the faces of the civ leaders.

[JoeGator]

Originally posted by Ziggyrunner08
This makes no sense in my opinion. A quick fix for the black terrain involves simply going into the World Builder and selecting reveal all map tiles. After exiting the World Builder, I can then see all the terrain, except that it appears in the darkened version (as if you explored the terrain and no longer have a unit with a line of sight into that tile). When in the World Builder itself, the terrain appears in the lit up way it should be. So obviously my graphics card is capable of rendering the terrain.

Here's my question about the World Builder "fix" - do you have to generate your own map and use that, or can you start up a game then as soon as it's loaded up, go to the in game options menu and get to World Builder?

[Jbranam]

I've had this same problem with the black map, and invisible leaders, but I have an ATI Radeon. I've never had a problem like this, and I've played games with much more demanding specs than this. SO I don't know whats up.

Any advice?

[piranhaZ]

I believe the official line is "Your vidcard is not supported." Any further comments lead to a "just get a better card" reply.

[Willem]

Originally posted by Jbranam
I've had this same problem with the black map, and invisible leaders, but I have an ATI Radeon. I've never had a problem like this, and I've played games with much more demanding specs than this. SO I don't know whats up.

Any advice?

How old is your Radeon? By the sounds of it only cards above 7500 will use T&L properly. Failing that, have you upgraded your video drivers lately? Also, how video RAM do you have? Firaxis upped the minimum to 64 recently.

[Jbranam]

Yeah, the Radeon I have is just not up to the task of displaying the graphics. Which is absurd to me since I play SimCity 4 and The Sims 2 without problem, and their specs are much higher than the ones posted by Civ. *sigh* guess its a game for the shelves...and it looked so cool too. :-(