Review of Game Performance Under Vista

**Twisted_Firestarter** · 02-06-2007, 02:43 PM

Here is a good review of a bunch of games running under Vista:

http://www.extremetech.com/print_art...=200403,00.asp

**Twisted_Firestarter** · 02-13-2007, 01:49 PM

Another review:

http://techgage.com/print/windows_vi...rmance_reports

xTYBALTx · 02-13-2007, 02:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TechGage Article

So, I've said it before and will say it again. Vista is a good operating system... but it's -far- from being even 90% reliable. When going from an XP machine to Vista, it feels like you just went from a Toyota Celica to a Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano. The only problem is, that it feels like your new Ferrari borrowed your Celicas engine. We'll let the numbers speak for themselves.

In the end, if you are making the move to Vista and are a gamer, you may as well prepare to partition your hard drive to dual boot. You are not going to want to go through the hassle of making your games run smooth in Vista, or go through the trouble of tweaking to make it happen. Hopefully within the next two months, NVIDIAs drivers will be much more refined and -all- games should run as they do on XP, or at least close to it. I regret not having an ATI card on hand to perform testing there as well, but it may not be a far stretch to expect a similar experience there.

Addendum: An unregistered poster in our forums made this comment: "Microsoft stripped DirectSound and DirectSound 3D from Vista, meaning that there is no hardware audio in any DirectSound game. No fancy effects or even surround sound. Just plain old stereo. I don't know why they did it, but there you have it."

I forgot to make mention of this, but its true. OpenAL is the primary sound technology used in Vista, so future games released will have this support. For games that lack this OpenAL support, companies like Creative will be releasing special drivers that will convert all DirectSound 3D to OpenAL so that it can be used appropriately. It's clunky, but its better than nothing. This is another good reason that Vista is not the right OS for current gaming.

Hmmm...

fldash · 02-13-2007, 02:34 PM

I'm staying with it for now. I can only run 1600x1050 or something on my new LCD so with that resolution, 4GB of memory, and an 8800GTS, I should be able to run everything fine. There isn't really any difference in a constant 60fps and a constant 100fps is there? Or is that a myth I read? I would think as long as you stay above stuttering rates you should be fine...

It's also 2 weeks old and Nvidia has released new drivers since then...

That all said, I think the biggest issue is the removal of sound from DirectX.

**Twisted_Firestarter** · 02-13-2007, 03:34 PM

Here's an interesting interview with an nVidia driver development manager:

http://www.firingsquad.com/print_art...rticle_id=2109

=Sarc= · 02-13-2007, 04:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fldash

I'm staying with it for now. I can only run 1600x1050 or something on my new LCD so with that resolution, 4GB of memory, and an 8800GTS, I should be able to run everything fine. There isn't really any difference in a constant 60fps and a constant 100fps is there? Or is that a myth I read? I would think as long as you stay above stuttering rates you should be fine...

It's also 2 weeks old and Nvidia has released new drivers since then...

That all said, I think the biggest issue is the removal of sound from DirectX.

FPS has a different effect on each person. Some can tell the difference between 100 FPS and 60 FPS. Even some games make it feel different. I can play comfortably at 30 FPS but overall play is smoother for me if the average is higher. It lessens the number of times the FPS dips below the mark where it feels sluggish to you.

Vista definitely has some problems with nVidia cards. Nothing to the point of unplayable for non-8800 cards though. Well, I guess there's the lack of SLI support but there are also a few bugs. Some games don't keep the desktop up on my second monitor. When I exit the game, the second desktop is a garbled screen of colours. Sleep mode has the same bug when waking up except it'll occur with both monitors. The beta 8800 drivers fix the sleep problem.

xTYBALTx · 02-13-2007, 05:51 PM

The '100FPS' and '60FPS' numbers are averages. I don't think that many people will tell a difference between 60FPS and 100FPS. But as Sarc said, the problem isn't when you're at 60FPS - it's when you inevitably dip below. How low, how long, and how frequently will your FPS drop below the noticeable mark?

Acreo Aeneas · 02-13-2007, 06:32 PM

Hmm, I'm mainly concerned with my older collection of games ability to run on Vista. Like Freespace 1, Star Trek Armada 1, Elite Force 1/2, Jedi Academy, and Starcraft.

=Sarc= · 02-14-2007, 09:17 AM

I got Freespace and can try it out. I don't know if it'll work because I'm not sure of the older DX support with the nVidia drivers. I remember someone saying that the 8800 couldn't run older games (Falcon 4) properly in XP.

Satertek · 02-14-2007, 03:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Acreo Aeneas

Hmm, I'm mainly concerned with my older collection of games ability to run on Vista. Like Freespace 1, Star Trek Armada 1, Elite Force 1/2, Jedi Academy, and Starcraft.

I've got Freespace 2 and it worked fine except for the installer. (I already had it installed from when XP was on) Vista labeled it as a "16-bit Setup Launcher" so thats possibly the cause. (Though I thought x86 Vista could run 16-bit apps...) Tried running it in various compatibility modes but no luck.

Don't have ST:EF installed either, but Tremulous, which also uses the Quake 3 engine, worked fine, so there isn't any reason other games based on Q3 wouldn't run.

It's a safe bet that Armada and Starcraft work too. I haven't come across any games yet that just plain don't work.

Found this website that lists some of the games that work and don't work under Vista (and other OSes): http://www.compatdb.org/

02-06-2007, 02:43 PM	#1 (permalink)
Twisted_Firestarter Join Date: May 2003 Location: 90064 Posts: 935	Review of Game Performance Under Vista Here is a good review of a bunch of games running under Vista: http://www.extremetech.com/print_art...=200403,00.asp __________________ Twisted Firestarter a.k.a \|TG\| Harkonian

02-13-2007, 01:49 PM	#2 (permalink)
Twisted_Firestarter Join Date: May 2003 Location: 90064 Posts: 935	Re: Review of Game Performance Under Vista Another review: http://techgage.com/print/windows_vi...rmance_reports __________________ Twisted Firestarter a.k.a \|TG\| Harkonian

02-13-2007, 02:34 PM	#4 (permalink)
fldash Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Oklahoma City, OK Age: 29 Posts: 936	Re: Review of Game Performance Under Vista I'm staying with it for now. I can only run 1600x1050 or something on my new LCD so with that resolution, 4GB of memory, and an 8800GTS, I should be able to run everything fine. There isn't really any difference in a constant 60fps and a constant 100fps is there? Or is that a myth I read? I would think as long as you stay above stuttering rates you should be fine... It's also 2 weeks old and Nvidia has released new drivers since then... That all said, I think the biggest issue is the removal of sound from DirectX. __________________ It is by grace you have been saved, through faith - and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God - not by works, so that no one can boast. Ephesians 2:8-9/NIV

02-13-2007, 03:34 PM	#5 (permalink)
Twisted_Firestarter Join Date: May 2003 Location: 90064 Posts: 935	Re: Review of Game Performance Under Vista Here's an interesting interview with an nVidia driver development manager: http://www.firingsquad.com/print_art...rticle_id=2109 __________________ Twisted Firestarter a.k.a \|TG\| Harkonian

02-13-2007, 05:51 PM	#7 (permalink)
xTYBALTx Join Date: Aug 2005 Posts: 3,919	Re: Review of Game Performance Under Vista The '100FPS' and '60FPS' numbers are averages. I don't think that many people will tell a difference between 60FPS and 100FPS. But as Sarc said, the problem isn't when you're at 60FPS - it's when you inevitably dip below. How low, how long, and how frequently will your FPS drop below the noticeable mark? __________________ A policy of freedom for the individual is the only truly progressive policy. -F.A. Hayek "$250,000 a year won't get me to Central Park West."

02-13-2007, 06:32 PM	#8 (permalink)
Acreo Aeneas Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: DePaul University (Chicago) Age: 22 Posts: 4,683	Re: Review of Game Performance Under Vista Hmm, I'm mainly concerned with my older collection of games ability to run on Vista. Like Freespace 1, Star Trek Armada 1, Elite Force 1/2, Jedi Academy, and Starcraft. __________________ Current Obsessions: Netbooks and other low-cost, small, and portable PCs. RSS Feeds: Bamboo

02-14-2007, 09:17 AM	#9 (permalink)
=Sarc= Join Date: May 2003 Location: Ottawa, Canada Posts: 4,633	Re: Review of Game Performance Under Vista I got Freespace and can try it out. I don't know if it'll work because I'm not sure of the older DX support with the nVidia drivers. I remember someone saying that the 8800 couldn't run older games (Falcon 4) properly in XP. __________________ JO Guides & Tutorials Team Element - It's who you game with.

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