Dangerous Waters on Windows 8 / 10

[Onkel Neal]

Mod by Komat

Original text:http://www.jiri-dvorak.cz/dangw/index.html

This page contains very early version of simple wrapper which improves compatibility of Dangerous Waters with Windows 8 and Windows 10.
Background of the problem(s)

The Windows 8 does not directly support 16-bit display modes anymore. For old applications it provides a thin emulation layer which transparently changes the parameters used to create the default back buffer from R5G6B5 to X8R8G8B8. This works well for applications which render geometry using the standard drawing calls and do not care about the real layout of the buffer. Unfortunately DW draws its UI by locking the buffer and manually writing it here. While the game seems to contain some code to support 32bit back buffers, it was likely not tested, does not work and will crash the game.

On Windows 10 (at least Nvidia driver) the Present call will generate black screen if the device was created with D3DSWAPEFFECT_COPY swap effect.

What the wrapper does

It redirects all rendering of the game to separate new lockable 16-bit color buffer and when the game wants to show the result, it blits that buffer to the 32-bit one created by the compatibility layer. Please note that the wrapper is designed to work with DW and it only implements the minimal functionality required by the game.

It also replaces the swap effect with D3DSWAPEFFECT_DISCARD and removes unnecessary D3DPRESENTFLAG_LOCKABLE_BACKBUFFER flag just to be sure.

Installation

Unpack the archive to the game directory.
Download

This one: Version 0.02 (3.8.2015) (http://www.jiri-dvorak.cz/dangw/dangw_d3d8_0_02.rar) - Very experimental.
Source code
Fixed black screen on Windows 10.
History

Version 0.01 (26.10.2014) - Very experimental.
Source code
Initial version. I did only minimal testing. There is a known issue with crash when trying to change resolution in game options screen. Until that issue is fixed, edit dangerouswaters.ini to change the resolution.

Joao Martins: This fix is good for win8 and win10. but changing resolution in the settings screen will crash the game. Solution is to change the resolution ModeID at the dangerouswaters.ini file. You may have to change it at:\Users\YourUsername\AppData\Local\VirtualStore\ Program Files (x86)\Sonalysts Combat Simulations\Dangerous Waters\DangerousWaters.ini

[Orbiter688]

:yeah:Mod by Komat

Original text:http://www.jiri-dvorak.cz/dangw/index.html



Joao Martins: This fix is good for win8 and win10. but changing resolution in the settings screen will crash the game. Solution is to change the resolution ModeID at the dangerouswaters.ini file. You may have to change it at:\Users\YourUsername\AppData\Local\VirtualStore\ Program Files (x86)\Sonalysts Combat Simulations\Dangerous Waters\DangerousWaters.ini


Thanks everyone! I installed the dll to both Sub Command and Dangerous Waters and both launched successfully, no joy with 688i though. Since Sub Command is a extension of 688i (but with Akula and Seawolf) I can live with these two working. Is it possible to run 688i missions in Sub Command? I know there were a lot of good missions made back in the day for 688i:yeah:.

[Onkel Neal]

It's worth a try.

As for 688(I), I got the Steam version to work right out the gate, it was SC that I needed Komat's dll to get going. Check out the Steam package.

[roger_9774]

hey guys I keep coming up with an invalid value for registry warning when I try to download this. Is this something with windows 10?

[Martillo1]

What can I say?

Thanks Komat! :salute:

[Aktungbby]

Martillo1! After a nine year silent run!:salute:

[Martillo1]

Martillo1! After a nine year silent run!:salute:

Is it the record? :D

BTW, what Komat has done for us deserves acknowledgement, appreciation and gratitude. I was keeping an i7 laptop from updating from W7 to W10 because of DW. No more. Bye bye W7.

[briane941]

Mod by Komat

Original text:http://www.jiri-dvorak.cz/dangw/index.html



Joao Martins: This fix is good for win8 and win10. but changing resolution in the settings screen will crash the game. Solution is to change the resolution ModeID at the dangerouswaters.ini file. You may have to change it at:\Users\YourUsername\AppData\Local\VirtualStore\ Program Files (x86)\Sonalysts Combat Simulations\Dangerous Waters\DangerousWaters.ini

No one seems to be able to mention what you set the ModeID to. It's defaulted to "1" and I've tried various different numbers but I don't get any different result. I just want a better resolution than 800x600 after the Komat fix for Windows 10.

[FPSchazly]

No one seems to be able to mention what you set the ModeID to. It's defaulted to "1" and I've tried various different numbers but I don't get any different result. I just want a better resolution than 800x600 after the Komat fix for Windows 10.

Are you running full screen? It's going to be hard to notice a difference if you are since most monitors nowadays are not 4:3 ratio so it's always going to be scaled.

1 - 800x600
2 - 1024x768
3 - 1280x1024
4 - 1600x1200

[Pisces]

Are those then hardcoded? As 1440x1080 should also fit that ratio.

[FPSchazly]

Are those then hardcoded? As 1440x1080 should also fit that ratio.

I know that 1, 2, and 3 are correct. I'm guessing I've seen 4 somewhere or I extrapolated it, can't remember which. I would love to know if there's a way to get 1440x1080, that would be incredible. 1280x1024 is 5:4, though, it doesn't fit with the rest of them but it's still there.

EDIT: I remembered where I got those numbers from. They correlate to the resolutions in the graphics menu.

[briane941]

:yeah:
Thanks to Komat and FPSchazly (fan of the youtube vids btw).

I got it working just like I had it before the Windows 10 upgrade. Set ModeID to 3, compatibility mode for Vista (Service Pack 2), and finally Run as Admin. Running Full Screen just fine @ 1280x1024.

[Micksp]

Hello Captain's,
I'm CaptMick, former DRD in GNSF community. I've abandoned the DW since 2011 but now it is a time to come back a board again. The last night I've installed the DW clean stock ver. patced to 1.4 on my home PC. The PC is running under Win7-64. The game started normaly, watched the intro without any graph troubles, but after that the Voice recognition program starts up and I can't bypass it. Have any ideas and recommendations how tou run the game properly under Win7-64?
Tank You in advance!

[FPSchazly]

Hello Captain's,
I'm CaptMick, former DRD in GNSF community. I've abandoned the DW since 2011 but now it is a time to come back a board again. The last night I've installed the DW clean stock ver. patced to 1.4 on my home PC. The PC is running under Win7-64. The game started normaly, watched the intro without any graph troubles, but after that the Voice recognition program starts up and I can't bypass it. Have any ideas and recommendations how tou run the game properly under Win7-64?
Tank You in advance!

What starts up is an initializer to that speech recognition program. Just leave that running, speech recognition isn't turned on with that running, and proceed to play the game and enter options without the game minimizing to go back to that menu. I run the game in a window because it's easier for my purposes.

[Micksp]

What starts up is an initializer to that speech recognition program. Just leave that running, speech recognition isn't turned on with that running, and proceed to play the game and enter options without the game minimizing to go back to that menu. I run the game in a window because it's easier for my purposes.

Thanks! It was the same I was thinking about, now confirmed. I'll report here late this evening when I'm back home.

BTW, I'll start working at some new scenarios especialy for the stock game and will keep you updated.

CONN - SONAR - Have a new contact...

[Aktungbby]

briane941!:Kaleun_Salute:keep us posted on window 10 upgrade stuff:up:

[Micksp]

Huh, the DW game still have a problem running properly on my home PC under Win7-the game menu is flashing for cople of seconds, about 10, and dissapear. I've tried to change the compability settings to run in Win XP SP3 mode, not effect. The other things are going well, the game runs stable, only have the menu issue. I'll be glad for some help hou to manage the game under Win 7-64? My own last experience finished with Win XP 5 years ago...

[Pisces]

It really is the speech recognition applet. Whenever you click options it tries to come to the foreground. But the game wants to stay fullscreen so there is a short fight going on. Nothing bad happens though. Just annoying.

Or you have the game installed into C:\Program Files (or similar x86 folder), and you are trying to save a game file in to the Scenario folder or save a screenshot. Then User Account Control is popping up a message to ask your approval because Windows wants to prevent that. If this takes too long before acknowledgement then this goes away and whatever you tried to do fails to work. To avoid that install the game into a folder outside of c:\Program Files (whatever)

[FPSchazly]

It really is the speech recognition applet. Whenever you click options it tries to come to the foreground. But the game wants to stay fullscreen so there is a short fight going on. Nothing bad happens though. Just annoying.

Or you have the game installed into C:\Program Files (or similar x86 folder), and you are trying to save a game file in to the Scenario folder or save a screenshot. Then User Account Control is popping up a message to ask your approval because Windows wants to prevent that. If this takes too long before acknowledgement then this goes away and whatever you tried to do fails to work. To avoid that install the game into a folder outside of c:\Program Files (whatever)

Yeah, the speech recognition is annoying. For me if I'm running full screen, it pops up, my game minimizes, and then I leave it up and go back in game. It won't bother you again as long as you leave it up. But, I run the game in a window so it's a non-issue for me.

For what it's worth, I've never had an issue having my game installed to Program Files, but it's worth a shot if the problem still persists.

[Berzerkly]

Thanks Komat! :D Back on patrol on Windows 10 thanks to you, running beautifully. -Berzerkly

[Aktungbby]

Berzerkly!:salute: after a bit of a silent run!

[DisparateX]

Huh, the DW game still have a problem running properly on my home PC under Win7-the game menu is flashing for cople of seconds, about 10, and dissapear. I've tried to change the compability settings to run in Win XP SP3 mode, not effect. The other things are going well, the game runs stable, only have the menu issue. I'll be glad for some help hou to manage the game under Win 7-64? My own last experience finished with Win XP 5 years ago...

I'll be damned. DW worked when i started it from Steam the first time. A day later a startup error an no luck. The wrapper wasn't even installed so i tried but no luck. I even had backup copy of the whole directory but no luck.
I just installed Sub Command from Steam and it works at 1600x1200. Without the wrapper. I copy the settings ini file to my other Sub Command folder but no luck there.
I have no clue what is going on here. I'm starting to think to revive my 2006 pc or try VM.

[Aktungbby]

DisparateX!:salute: after an eight year silent run!

[Mystic]

I am hopefully in the process of rejoining the ranks of submarine commanders after a decade of absence due to only having Mac computers, since I just bought a PC specifically for gaming, and all of the old toys are beckoning me, hehe. I am running Windows 10 and have Steam installed.

As an owner of Dangerous Waters, Sub Command, et al from way back, I am wondering if there have been any updates made to the Steam versions that would make it worthwhile for me to purchase them this week (a bundle is on sale for $6) rather than going through the installs and digging up the patches from my saved disks. In fact might buy them from Steam just to save myself the effort of digging that stuff up ... that is, unless someone here tells me that I'll have better luck getting my old versions installed and running on Windows 10 than I would with the Steam versions.

Also, what is the consensus opinion (if any) at this point on whether or not this Windows 10 wrapper actually works?

[Guts]

What folder do I extract the .dll to??

[FPSchazly]

What folder do I extract the .dll to??

\Dangerous Waters\

[Kapitan_Phillips]

I'm having the same problem as mentioned before. Installs and runs fine first time, then straight to the "Windows is searching for a solution to the problem"

I've tried that DLL with no luck. Win10 64bit here

[tjwine]

i have DW and i use windows 10 and the patch still doesnt work it still goes to a black screen. PLS help

[silent shadow]

Sorry I am not very computer literate.

When you say unpack to game directory; Where exactly is the game directory? Is it just the dangerous waters folder or a sub folder?

Thanks

[p7p8]

Dangerous waters folder

[silent shadow]

Thank you p7 p8

[silent shadow]

Thank you everyone involved. I just installed the mod and the game starts!!

Now I just need to get better at the game. :up:

[Trinidad]

Thanks a lot to keep this information online for so long.

Now I can play again DW...thanks to you.

Status Update ...I can only run in 800x600. I tried to change the value un ini file ModeID from 1 to 3...4...5 and nothing changes.
I've tried inside DW ignoring the speech recognition configuration steps...and then the game crashes...And after some tries the d3d8.dll stop working. Windows says something about the file not being a proper dll file...and then antivirus tries to block it...I have to uncompress the file again and start over and over the procedure with same results...

64 bits Win 8.1 here. Any tips???

:up:

[rentacow]

Sounds like a bad .dll file to me. Did you get it from the RA mod download or somewhere else?

[Trinidad]

Hi and thanks for the reply.

I'm using http://www.jiri-dvorak.cz/dangw/index.html, version 0.02....

[rentacow]

Try this. Open the file (d3d8.dll) in notepad and copy the entire contents with ctrl+c. It won't be pretty but it works. Now go to this website http://www.miraclesalad.com/webtools/md5.php and paste in the data.

It should generate the following MD5 hash if the file is intact:

8ffb91e491e1af076ed455b3a62d35b2

[Trinidad]

Hi!

It does generate the proper hash. I can play DW, but only at 800x600.

[rentacow]

Ok thank goodness! I would be furious if a malicious version of our precious fix were to be floating around. Start from the top, did you check that you are running the latest driver software for your graphics card?

This may be completely unrelated but are you using an additional computer monitor? Could be issues with that. I can run in windowed mode on one screen and not in the other for example. It is strange.

What resolution is your display set to normally? Not in game but on the desktop.

[Trinidad]

Hi rentacow.

- My desktop resolution is 1920x1080
- I'm playing full screen, not windowed
- My GC drivers are update, nvidia gtx970M
- And I have only 1 monitor....

Thanks for your help!

[rentacow]

I just did some testing and the game won't run for me if I turn up my desktop resolution. It may not work at all at such a high resolution. Try a lower desktop resolution and maybe you will find a combination that works.

Remember, this is a very old game and the high desktop resolutions commonly used today didn't even exist back then! Easy to see how there could be some compatibility issues.

If I had to suggest anything else I would think there could be a way to "trick" your graphics card into emulating an older directX version? Quick and dirty method that would surely work would be to run DW on a virtual machine with windows XP installed. The virtual machine software should have built in support for the older tech.

[Trinidad]

Could be a possiblity. thanks for the advise.

Good seas!!

[Monkie]

I had similar issues with DW RA 1.40 and Windows 10. I couldn't get mode ID 3 to run without crashing when I started the missions. I finally got to work by running it under compatibility mode for Windows XP SP3. I am using a GTX980m card which should be similar to your 970m.

I still get crashes when starting the mission but it's only maybe 5% of the time and when I restart and reload the mission starts without issue.

worth a try anyway.

[SiggeMan]

Alright, i play DW on windows 8.1 64 bit, i got this .dll fix just when i got the game and it worked splendid. Now all of a sudden i get this problem where at start, the game tabs out. When i try to alt tab back again, the screen is black for 2-3 seconds, and then i get tabbed out again. Any idea what could be wrong?

[JoGary(sco)]

:Kaleun_Salute: Thank you. I can now revisit a old friend :)

[taynted21]

Ive recently been able to start trying to play games from my steam library again using my girlfriends computer ever since my last one crashed,and i ran out of funds to continue building my dedicated gaming rig,only to find out that i can no longer play DW,even with the .DLL wrapper using windows 10,it just goes directly to windows cannot find the solution to the problem. does anyone have any ideas on how to fix this? im using the version from the steam naval combat pack or whatever it was called,if that will help you guys figure it out,thanks a bunch for the help guys. Oh,another problm ive been having is,that Sub Command works just fine without the wrapper,but every now and then, it will cause a BSOD,and im fairly certain its the game,as this laptop is not even a year old,and has been used primarily for my girlfriends college papers,so if anyone has ideas on that as well,itd be mighty helpful.

[cookiemonste]

I got another problem,
I can get into the game but everything keeps flashing and I get weird distortions. I can't even screenshot it so I had to make a picture.

Had the same problem in sub command but disabeling the steam overlay fixed that.
I got the wrapper installed btw.

http://up.picr.de/29291658no.jpg

http://up.picr.de/29291661kg.jpg

[FPSchazly]

I got another problem,
I can get into the game but everything keeps flashing and I get weird distortions. I can't even screenshot it so I had to make a picture.

Had the same problem in sub command but disabeling the steam overlay fixed that.
I got the wrapper installed btw.

What operating system are you running? Hardware configuration? Did disabling the Steam overlay not work for Dangerous Waters?

[cookiemonste]

I'm using WIndows 8.1 and disabling the overlay did not work.
I got a Nvdia card, I heard that these cards cause a lot of trouble with sonarlyst games.

[FPSchazly]

I'm using WIndows 8.1 and disabling the overlay did not work.
I got a Nvdia card, I heard that these cards cause a lot of trouble with sonarlyst games.

You're using the wrapper file? Have you tried running the game in a window? For what it's worth, I have an nvidia card and have no issues. To be fair, though, there are a lot of different nvidia cards haha

[cookiemonste]

I can't even enter the windowed mode, if I try to change resolutions, the game crashes. I know you can do it in the ini. file but can you change the window mode as well?

[hachiman]

Hi Guys

Just reinstalled DW after an absence of several years.
I'm using W10 and have patched to 1.04 and installed the fix so runds on W10. I have also changed resolution in the .ini file to 1280x1024 although it would be great if I can beyond that. Also my Periscope and Radar screens are oval as opposed to round. Any help would be appreciate on this.

However in the 688i(Probably all as I have only tried the 688i) my radar can't pick up a fat cargo ship right in front of it or the active sonar. Passive sonar can. Any idea why not?

Thanks

[Pirate]

Dangerous Waters only has 4:3 aspect ratio, so to fill up all of the screen your graphics card has to stretch the image.
I'm almost certain dw has resolutions greater than your 1280x1024.
If I recall correctly I have played it before with a resolution of 1600x1200.

As to the radar issue maybe the merchant has not enabled radar...

[FPSchazly]

I've found that for the 688(i) for ESM, you need to be a few feet shallower than PD in order to detect things. This may be a bug and may apply to radar as well.

[Pirate]

Oh yeah FPSchazly is right, I read hachiman's question wrong!
Most playables have different operational depths for different masts.

So if a mast is below waterline or very near it, may not be working correctly.
Sea state may also affect it.

[Pisces]

Ok, finally dusted off DW since a long time and tried to get this fix working. Unfortunately no. No matter which ModeID I set in the dangerouswaters.ini file. Or compatibility mode XP SP2 in the shortcut. I placed the DLL into the game's folder but I don't get any other resolutions. A Wrapper.log file appears in game's folder and every attempt the same line is added: Call failed 0x88760868 [EDIT: This probably means it failed to set ModeID to 4/1600x1200, which is larger than my max lcd resolution.]

I tried this with the DLL from the latest DWX 1.42 mod as a fresh download from http://www.jiri-dvorak.cz/dangw/index.html

My laptop is a MSI GP70 2PE Leopard, which has an NVidia840m chipset and additionally Intel HP Graphics 4600 onboard. Only the latter is detected by in the 3D options. (aside from a "Default" graphics card, whatever that is) OS is Windows 10 Pro 64 bit, build 14393.1358 (1607) Even setting the Dangerouswaters.exe to use the Nvidia chip in the Nvidia control panel. No difference.

[Pisces]

Are you running full screen? It's going to be hard to notice a difference if you are since most monitors nowadays are not 4:3 ratio so it's always going to be scaled.

1 - 800x600
2 - 1024x768
3 - 1280x1024
4 - 1600x1200Duhh Pisces!! How do I expect to get 1600x1200 on my screen, if it won't fit vertically. 1080 is the max on my lcd. 1280x1024 works fine if I set ModeID to 3 in the dangerouswaters.ini file. Nevermind that previous post. PEBCAK!

[scurries hiding under a shadowzone]

[Lanzfeld]

Windows 10 here. Just bought DW on steam sale and installed with wrapper.
Works great!
I set 3 in the ini file and I get 1280 x 1024 resolution.
When I set 4 it doesn't work.
Any idea how to get better res or am I at max?

I don't run in a window (should I?)
My desktop is 1080 x

[FPSchazly]

Windows 10 here. Just bought DW on steam sale and installed with wrapper.
Works great!
I set 3 in the ini file and I get 1280 x 1024 resolution.
When I set 4 it doesn't work.
Any idea how to get better res or am I at max?

I don't run in a window (should I?)
My desktop is 1080 x

I prefer running in a window but I don't think you can do it in Windows 10. Actually, someone on my Discord may have developed a procedure, I'll have to follow up with him. 4 is 1600x1200.

[Pisces]

Windows 10 here. Just bought DW on steam sale and installed with wrapper.
Works great!
I set 3 in the ini file and I get 1280 x 1024 resolution.
When I set 4 it doesn't work.
Any idea how to get better res or am I at max?

I don't run in a window (should I?)
My desktop is 1080 xI made the same mistake this afternoon. You won't get a better resolution with max 1080 vertical pixels. 1600x1200 doesn't fit.

[soupyc]

I prefer running in a window but I don't think you can do it in Windows 10. Actually, someone on my Discord may have developed a procedure, I'll have to follow up with him. 4 is 1600x1200.

+1 would love to hear that procedure if they have it! I'd love to run DW in windowed mode while my wife watches netflix on my other monitor but right now it messes with the resolution of the 2nd screen. Thanks!

[Pirate]

Just forget about running DW in windowed mode on windows 8 or 10.
It just ain't gonna happen.

To run DW on windowed mode you need to bring the OS's color depth down to 16bit and microsoft removed that ability on windows 8 and 10.

From windows 8 forward, desktop composition only supports 32bit color.

[Pisces]

Just forget about running DW in windowed mode on windows 8 or 10.
It just ain't gonna happen.

To run DW on windowed mode you need to bring the OS's color depth down to 16bit and microsoft removed that ability on windows 8 and 10.

From windows 8 forward, desktop composition only supports 32bit color.That is not entirely accurate for Windows 10. I know this wasn't possible in the beginning. Now I do have the option to choose a reduced color mode in the compatibility tab of the executable properties. See image attachment. I haven't tested what the actual result would be with DW or other applications. And I don't know if Windows 8 is any different thesedays.

[Pirate]

That is not entirely accurate for Windows 10. I know this wasn't possible in the beginning. Now I do have the option to choose a reduced color mode in the compatibility tab of the executable properties. See image attachment. I haven't tested what the actual result would be with DW or other applications. And I don't know if Windows 8 is any different thesedays.

It doesn't matter. That option has no effect whatsoever!
Win 8 also has that option and I'm telling you, if that worked, the dll wrapper would never have existed because there wouldn't be a reason to.

Furthermore, that option has no effect on desktop composition either, and to run DW in windowed mode desktop composition must be in 16bit color mode, hence why for instance in windows 7 you had to lower desktop color to 16bit before you were able to run DW in a window.

[FPSchazly]

I have found the procedure for running DW in a window on Windows 7 - 10 without using 16-bit color depth. I'm going to test it out when I get home and try and make a video or do a write-up at least.

[rolandslaw]

Hello Gents:

I have not been around for over 6 months. Picked up a copy of Dangerous Waters and attempted to install on my Windows 10 sys... no joy in mudville.

Any idea how to even get it to install?

I keep threatening to restart SH5 but I have been fighting my health issues for 6 months... surgery behind left ear into the bone to remove 2 infections.... done. Now fighting infection in my right leg..... hopefully success by Monday.

Remember ... one step forward... two steps back.

Roland

[Pisces]

Does installing not work? Or does it not play? If the latter then the d3d8.dll fix should solve that. And don't install it in Program Files. That avoids UAC bothering about saving files into the Scenario folder.

[rolandslaw]

it will not install on the Windows 10 sys.

Thank you for your reply.

Roland

[fitzcarraldo]

Does installing not work? Or does it not play? If the latter then the d3d8.dll fix should solve that. And don't install it in Program Files. That avoids UAC bothering about saving files into the Scenario folder.

DW RA works well in my W10 Home Basic with the special dll. I apply Kegety's antilag, too.

Never I can play with some AA with my NVidia Card. AA out. Living with it.

Regards

Fitzcarraldo :salute:

[red2112]

DW (Steam version) and latest RA mod work just fine in Windows 10, at least for me.

No need to add anything (.dll), latest Steam version comes with it. Iam on W10 x64 and GTX 660 nVidia, i5 chip 8GB ram.

[fitzcarraldo]

DW (Steam version)

No need to add anything (.dll), latest Steam version comes with it. Iam on W10 x64 and GTX 660 nVidia, i5 chip 8GB ram.

And you can set some antialiasing with the Steam Version? I have the two disc original version and I can"t set any AA with Nvidia Inspector or the Nvidia control panel without have a mess in the menus.

Many thanks!

Fitzcarraldo :salute:

[rolandslaw]

Gents:

I was able to install the game onto my hd. It will not start upon "play" selection but receive window notification ... looking for solution.

I am going to review the early posts regarding the d3d8.dll fix ... just need to know where to install and how.

Roland

[red2112]

And you can set some antialiasing with the Steam Version? I have the two disc original version and I can"t set any AA with Nvidia Inspector or the Nvidia control panel without have a mess in the menus.

Many thanks!

Fitzcarraldo :salute:

What I meant was that you don´t need to look for the "d3d8.dll", it comes in a folder called "Win_8_10_Support" with the Steam version.

To be honest, the game looks just fine as it is to me. The highest res it can go (on my end) is 1280x1024, which is ok. Iam not looking for a AAA game, I played alot of 688i H/K before and still did not to long ago, no fancy graphics there. The same goes for "Fleet Command", all though my screen is 1920x1080.

IMHO It´s one of those games were nice graphics are not needed, just like "Harpoon 3" or "Fleet Command". Sure it would be nice if it got updated to today´s standards, but I can live with that. Nice graphics then SH-5 :03:

So, I havent bothered to mess with AA or the nVidia inspector/control panel. If it works, don´t touch it :D

http://i1189.photobucket.com/albums/z427/deep2112/DW_001_zps8rgugjao.jpg

Sorry I could not help you much there...

Happy hunting! :salute:

--

[red2112]

Gents:

I was able to install the game onto my hd. It will not start upon "play" selection but receive window notification ... looking for solution.

I am going to review the early posts regarding the d3d8.dll fix ... just need to know where to install and how.

Roland

Just put the d3d8.dll file in your Dangerous Waters root folder...

Care,

Red

[rolandslaw]

Gents:

I re installed DW from CD. I dl'ed the 1.04 patch and installed in my E drive. I copies the entire d3d file into "dangerous waters" file. I tried mode 1, 2, 3 and no luck.. will not load. keep getting video loadoing problem.

any idea? Roland

I have win 10, two GTX 970 video cards....

[red2112]

Gents:

I re installed DW from CD. I dl'ed the 1.04 patch and installed in my E drive. I copies the entire d3d file into "dangerous waters" file. I tried mode 1, 2, 3 and no luck.. will not load. keep getting video loadoing problem.

any idea? Roland

I have win 10, two GTX 970 video cards....

Try reading this...

http://steamcommunity.com/app/1600/discussions/0/405694115199194820/

[rolandslaw]

I tried the following:
I copied the d2d8.dll file to the main DW folder ..... then I extracted to the madl DW file.

Right clk on exe file ... ran as admin, (also tried reg without admin) selected XP service pak 2... received messs.. "failed to initialize the graphics display"

I also receive response.... "it appears DW is not installed on this computer.

I also tried with patch 1.04 same results... I have read everything I can regarding this problem'

Roland

[zero2005]

I tried the following:
I copied the d2d8.dll file to the main DW folder ..... then I extracted to the madl DW file.

Right clk on exe file ... ran as admin, (also tried reg without admin) selected XP service pak 2... received messs.. "failed to initialize the graphics display"

I also receive response.... "it appears DW is not installed on this computer.

I also tried with patch 1.04 same results... I have read everything I can regarding this problem'

Roland

the problem with the graphics layer is because you are running the game in XP SP2 mode. change it back to nothing or windows 8 and it should run. make sure you are running the newer version (v.02 or whatever it is) should be dated 8/3/2015

for me, after putting the wrapper dll (d3d8.dll) in the folder, I run the EXE with the following settings:
compatibility mode windows 8
disable scaling for high DPI
run program as administrator

when you need to change resolution, change it through the INI file, don't bother going to the options menu. changing it via options menu = CTD.

[rolandslaw]

Thank u I will try now

Followed instructions and still receive FAILED TO INITIALIZE GRAPHICS DISPLAY

Zero: I tried as per your instructions.. no go. I just went back to my 30" Dell monitor 2560 x 1600.

Is the wrapper d3d8 ziped or rar... maybe I am using the wrong unzipping program.... even Notepad++ does not list the items one per line?

Roland

[Shawshank237]

After reading through the threads and posts here (many thanks for the helpful info) I was able to install from my original CD's to a Windows 10 machine, dropped a copy of the wrapper DLL into the DW folder and the game runs.

Sweet!!

But now I'm being picky and want to run it in a window instead of full screen. I know right?!

I edited the compatibility properties of the shortcut:
- Run in Windows Vista SP 2 (tried Win 8 too)
- 16-bit color mode
- Disable scaling on high DPI
- Run as Admin

And then changed the ModeID and RunInWindow settings in the INI but after starting the game I get the blacked out window and two error messages:

- Failed to initialize the graphics display
- Context Create Error: -2147467259

Looking in the wrapper.log file I see:

029746f8:emu::Direct3DDevice8Emu::initialize windowed mode is currently not supported

Is there anyone that is able to run DW on a Windows 10 machine in window mode?

[zero2005]

[/I]Is there anyone that is able to run DW on a Windows 10 machine in window mode?

nope - not that I am aware of, without using a virtual machine. its a limitation of having windows 8/10 and having to use the wrapper. what the wrapper is, is essentially a Direct3D 8 (super old) emulator. D3D8 is from 2000.

i've tried running the game on a side-loaded linux with wine, still no go for me. best case scenario for me (in windows) is I can play the game for about 5-15 minutes, then get a random CTD.

my last option is a Windows XP virtual machine, but I'm not really sure that's going to work either.

[zero2005]

Just like to post again here. for me, the wrapper is a very imperfect solution. it works, but is very unstable for me and my system. occasionally i'd be able to get some of the lighter missions to run for about an hour. usually I end up having issues in less than 15-20 minutes.

my best solution so far has been to run VMWare (free version) loaded with a free copy of WinXP SP3. this works fantastic, although the FPS aren't exactly stellar and i've had to turn the graphics down, it runs pretty much like it would on a machine from 2004. I'm getting a solid 20-30 frames.

now, if we could get a wrapper that functions similar to however VMWare is doing it, I think we'd be golden. but that's probably a pipedream.

the only issue i've run into is if I accidentally resize the VMware window (wish there was a way to lock it, i'm not that familiar with it) it crashes the game. you can even run the game windowed, however its still limited by the 16-bit color depth, which makes it IMO pointless, besides the fact that you can just run the game "fullscreen" in the VM, which can be a window by itself, so its not like you absolutely need windowed mode, as the VM is functioning as such.

if anyone is interested in this and doesn't know how to get started, I can provide help.

[Pirate]

There's this Voodoo Wrapper that allows DW to work in window mode on win10.

Link here: http://dege.freeweb.hu/temp/dgVoodooWIP35.zip

Just copy all files from the MS folder plus dgVoodooCpl.exe folder to DW root.
Set the Dangerouswaters.exe to run in 16bit color mode and edit dangerouswaters.ini to run in window mode.

Game also crashes with this wrapper when changing resolution and window mode in the game settings, so same rule of changing in the dangerouswaters.ini file also applies here.

Komat's wrapper works but it takes some hit on performance as it's constantly doing regex operations on the background to intercept graphics calls.
Don't know about the performance on this one.


EDIT: Looks like this wrapper only works with DW on window mode...

[ratherbegliding]

Hi folks,

I recently decided to resurrect my old copy of DW and am running it in Win10.

I am also using the above wrapper DLL to get glorious 1600 x 1200 resolution on my 1920 x 1200 monitor which IMO looks fine and seems stable.

However..... I am having an issue with the messaging text at the bottom of the screen and the data in the top left of the navigation screen, being corrupted. All other text is fine.

(Sorry - how do I add an image to this post??)

The only way to fix it is to change the ini file ModeID value back to 1, in which case I lose the nice resolution and go back to ugly graphics.....

I tried running the windowed mode fix above, but whilst it allows me to run in windowed mode it does not fix this problem (unless I revert back to ModeID 1).

I can't seem to find any mention of this in this forum but I'm sure I can't be the only one to have this issue!

Any suggestions would be gratefully received :salute:

RBG


Never mind......all fixed - did a complete fresh install! Why didn't I think of that in the first place?! :doh:

[Gudadantza]

Hi Guys.

I post to point an alternative about how to run DW and Sub Command in Windows 10 without the need of the known wrapper.

Of course If the wrapper d3d8.dll works for you there is no need to use my solution. It is just an alternative. The wrapper worked great for me but gave me some graphical glitches like garbled sonars in some russian subs.

Sub Command

-Use DGVoodoo2. There is an advantage of using this because you can configure details like VSync, Anisotropic Filtering and Antialiasing options and it looks great.
-In subcommand.ini Change "SoftwareCursor" to "Yes" if your mouse cursor in game dissapears erratically and flickers.

Dangerous Waters

-Use DGvoodoo2 as well but now the game must be 16 bits windowed, so you need to change this in the exe compatibility.

One thing to note is that the wrapper dll and the dll used in dgvoodoo2 are named the same "d3d8.dll" so they seem incompatible.

I hope it is useful as an alternative. Greetings

EDIT: One more advantage I have noticed using dgvoodoo2 in DW is that now the 3D graphics render as expected, without the common color banding typical in 16 bit color.

[Barleyman]

Dangerous Waters

-Use DGvoodoo2 as well but now the game must be 16 bits windowed, so you need to change this in the exe compatibility.

One thing to note is that the wrapper dll and the dll used in dgvoodoo2 are named the same "d3d8.dll" so they seem incompatible.

I hope it is useful as an alternative. Greetings

EDIT: One more advantage I have noticed using dgvoodoo2 in DW is that now the 3D graphics render as expected, without the common color banding typical in 16 bit color.

Unfortunately you can't adjust gamma with the voodoo wrapper so you're stuck at hunting for ghosts on the sonar screen. With the regular wrapper you put gamma to 0.8 and everything is nicely visible.

[lourash72`]

Hello all, I ran DW on my laptop with this fix for a long time. Recently my laptop crashed I fixed it and have gone through all the steps to fix it but cannot get it to work like it did before. It will run and play fine but I am getting 3/4 black screen and then the program itself. Any help would be great. I have also tried the DWXnd program I saw from FPSchazly's video but the current version of that file differs from his video and so some of the input parameters are not the same as his video. Thanks!

[Aktungbby]

lourash72`!:Kaleun_Salute:

[Keel Basa]

Yeah, I'm having no luck either. I can use the Voodoo method described above to get it to run in a teeny little window, but that's not going to fly on my 4K screen. If anybody knows how to get it to stretch out, I'd be grateful for further suggestions.

[cra3y]

Unfortunately you can't adjust gamma with the voodoo wrapper so you're stuck at hunting for ghosts on the sonar screen. With the regular wrapper you put gamma to 0.8 and everything is nicely visible.

Try to set: 90% contrast, 110% brightness - it works for me (I used windowed mode with ModeID 3)

[Razoleg]

Hello again, people.


I cannot seem to get rid of the flashing problem for the RH-60 HUD, the fact that the digital map in RH-60 cockpit is missing, the software mouse "trails", and the fact that no lines show up on the FFG TMA even after the wrapper has been installed.


Any news on this? I don't care much for graphic issues, but the FFG motion analysis is something I want to be functional.


Running through bootcamp on a AMD R9 M370X, win 10 and vanialla DW.

[p7p8]

You should check dgVoodoo2
link (http://www.redrodgers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=6767)

[Razoleg]

Thanks, I've tried every wrapper that anybody has mentioned on forums, but still no luck.


Maybe there are some specific settings for the Voodoo wrapper that make this work?

What's Voodoo mode in ini anyway?

[ET2SN]

What's Voodoo mode in ini anyway?

Voodoo/3DFX were a family of video cards back in the late 90's and early 2000's. They were different from today's Intel and AMD GPUs, kind of like a Chrysler to Intel/AMD's Ford and GM.

Meaning, the chip sets were different and proprietary. Voodoo graphics only ran on Voodoo cards.

[Razoleg]

No, I know what they are/were (I've been gaming since Test Drive, the 1987 one :) ), I'm asking what mode number is it in the ini file.


"Mode" in *.ini refers to resolution, I just remembered, I meant the render mode. What number do you put in DeviceID?


.AdapterID 0
.DeviceID 0
.ModeID 4
Let me rephrase the question entirely - how do you set up the VooDoo renderer?



And what settings should I use on the VooDoo setup menu for the wrapper application itself?



When I place it in the folder, it does let me start the game (despite copying any of the Glide dlls or dlls from the MS folder), I do see the text at the bottom right corner "dgVooDoo" for a couple of seconds, but the game quits on me.


I see there was already one discussion about this https://www.vogons.org/viewtopic.php?f=59&t=54985


I seem to have a similar problem.

[Capt Codetrucker]

Never mind. Due to other issues I am going to reset my laptop to the factory image and start over.

[Razoleg]

Guys, how do you configure dgVooDoo wrapper for DW?


Nothing seems to work.


dgVooDooo tutorial posted here does not work - DW CTDs.

[Oleander]

Add this file to your install directory. It worked for me.

http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/downloads.php?do=file&id=5474

[kolc]

Add this file to your install directory. It worked for me.

http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/downloads.php?do=file&id=5474


Thank you. It worked for me too. Been waiting for a bit but now I can play DW....woowoo!

[hamm]

I want to change my resolution on Windows 10, but when I go to the folder that's supposed to have the .ini file I need to edit in it, it's empty. Does anyone know about this or what to do?

[p7p8]

dangerouswaters.ini is in main DW folder.

For example:
D:\games\Dangerous Waters

[hamm]

Ah okay, thanks. I was looking in the appdata folder

[PurpleCow]

Does anyone have a link for the most recent version of the RA mod for Dangerous Waters?

[hamm]

Another question, how do I run this in windowed instead of fullscreen? Even if I enable compatibility for 16 bit color it still won't open.

[ET2SN]

Does anyone have a link for the most recent version of the RA mod for Dangerous Waters?

Check your PMs. :up:
If you're a new player of DW, RA might not be what you're looking for.
RA assumes you've been playing DW for enough years that you're getting bored. Its also meant for multiplayer games instead of single player.
It looks great in single player but you tend to die quickly.

LWAMI 3.11 is still the better option for single player (you can download it here).

[Aktungbby]

Hamm!:Kaleun_Salute:

[A-Ganger]

Well..............
I had the game running on windows 10 fine, then a few hours ago I installed new versions 1.48 and the patch 3 for it.


NOW, the game won't run, loading screen stays on and the menu flashes in the background, cant change display to 1200's (which worked yesterday), every option I try and change is changed back after game exits.


This patch really messed up the game and this is on a brand new download of the original game from steam.

[terryr64]

Hi guys. I'm struggling to get DW working again. Before I created a game fol der for it but cant remember what I did

[Admiral Hipper]

For some reason, I'm getting an error where the base game and RA both launch fine, and I get loaded and through to the main menu, but my cursor is stuck mid screen at the menu. I can still move the mouse and things get highlighted and are clickable, but the cursor won't move on screen, Any ideas? :subsim:

[Front Runner]

Here is a link to FPSchazly's instructions on how to get DW working in a window for Windows 10.
I've got mine set up to run at Mode 3 1280x1024 in a 4x3 window. You can either run it in a window or full screen. Since I have multiple monitors I'm running DW windowed in full screen mode and using the other monitor to display other useful files such as Platform Reference and Sonar Profiles.
I'm also currently using the LWAMI 3.11 modset.
Dangerous Waters is playable again!
***IMPORTANT*** Do NOT use the d3d8.dll fix with this, it will not let you run in a window!


https://youtu.be/BD-bTqY5b8Y

[Bilge_Rat]

Hi,

Trying to get DW working in Windows 10. I used both methods discussed above, it works and I can change resolutions.

Problem is that I have an ultrawide 2560x1080 monitor, so full screen everything is stretched out while in windowed mode, the screen is a small square taking up maybe 60% of the screen.

I seem to recall there was a way to do it so the instrument panels were properly sized with black bands on both sides?

[Halcyon]

Hi,

Trying to get DW working in Windows 10. I used both methods discussed above, it works and I can change resolutions.

Problem is that I have an ultrawide 2560x1080 monitor, so full screen everything is stretched out while in windowed mode, the screen is a small square taking up maybe 60% of the screen.

I seem to recall there was a way to do it so the instrument panels were properly sized with black bands on both sides?

I followed this guide -- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1wAHsGZq7ww&ab_channel=SmartWargames -- to get 1280 x 1024 running fullscreen on my 2560 x 1080 ultrawide LG monitor.

That video also includes reshade setup, but ignore that part. What you want is DXWND and set it up using the parameters he shows in the video (instead of the "Run in Window" checkbox, choose "Fullscreen only").
If you set Mode ID 3 in the DW .ini file, you should have full screen in 1280 x 1024 with black bars.

[Bilge_Rat]

thanks, will check it out.

[A-Ganger]

Well we're back to this game not working on Windows 11.
It loads, change graphics, goes back to main menu and nothing shows except the mini world map.


Or, load game, quick mission, only thing shown mini map again.


I just went back thru settings according to video above and this is what happeneng!




On a whim, I went back into my Nvidia settings and noticed Annistropic filtering was 2x.... set it back to app controlled.
Same with Antiallising, set back to app controlled.


Game working again.. so if anyone has same issues check your settings//

[Barleyman]

I did some alternate (working for me) settings for dxwnd + DW in another thread. YMMV.

https://www.subsim.com/radioroom/showpost.php?p=2804128&postcount=11

[Dijon]

I have followed the directions in the forums and Dangerous Waters still crashes (Failed to initialize the graphics display). I'm obviously missing a step somewhere. I've been away from this game for a long, long while but recently had a taste to try it again. I'm using the Steam version and the OS is Windows 10. Is there anything else that I could try?

[subneesh]

of my windows nt days when nothing worked.

[lattebbook]

I have followed the directions in the forums and Dangerous Waters still crashes (Failed to initialize the graphics display). I'm obviously missing a step somewhere. I've been away from this game for a long, long while but recently had a taste to try it again. I'm using the Steam version and the OS is Windows 10. Is there anything else that I could try?

Right click on the .exe in your root folder and go to property --> compatibility --> reduced color mode.

Please make sure you install d3d8.dll too.

[Aktungbby]

Dijon!:Kaleun_Salute: subneesh!:Kaleun_Salute: & lattebbok!:Kaleun_Salute:

[igaralva]

Steam version, patch 104 installed. Nothing appears on data display when selecting a contact. (CTRL+B). The empty box in the upper left corner can be seen in the attached image.

Thanks!

[Hinrich Schwab]

I am also experiencing issues with Windows 11. Nothing seems to work. I have tried the D3D8.dll fix, which does not work. I have tried DXWIND, which also does not work. The game just goes to the black screen then crashes out. None of the fixes or workarounds are doing me any good. All of my Windows 10 machines run the game with the D3D8.dll fix just fine. I do not know if it is something in Windows 11 causing the problem, such as an asinine security feature, or a hardware incompatibility with newer NVIDIA cards that needs the D3D8.dll patched to fix it.

[opilein]

Did bought a copy from GOG. It worked also with the Steam variant.

Download Dgvoodo 2 from http://dege.freeweb.hu/dgVoodoo2/dgVoodoo2/.
Copy the content from the MS/x86 folder (4 .dll files) into the main directory of DG, let them overwrite existing files. Thats all.
You can also copy the Dgvoodoocpl.exe from that Dgvoodoo archive into the main dir of DG for individuell settings.

[Aktungbby]

opilein!:Kaleun_Salute: finally on the surface after a 12-year 'silent run'!:up:

[Komat]

I just updated my wrapper to work around issues I encountered on W10. Namely a failure to initialize display mode if system is not enumerating any 16bit display mode and non-moving mouse cursor in the fullscreen mode. So if you have those issues, you might try it to see if it helps in your case.

[Aktungbby]

Komat!...after an 8-year 'silent run'!:up:

[MrOlsen]

Hi all,
I need help getting dangerous waters to run on my windows 10 pc without the screen stretched to widescreen, i would like to play in 4:3. How do i do that?
And second: the contact data is not showing on the map screen, only when i switch to 3d view. HOw can i solve that? I saw, there is some kind of dgvoodoo-thing as a possible workaround, but i really don't understand, what to do there.
Also, my sound ist stuttering at times, what can i do with it?

Can someone give me a step by step idiot's guide for these 3 problems please?
RA mod 1,5 patch3 is installed, if that is of interest

[Aktungbby]

MrOlsen!:Kaleun_Salute:

[Hinrich Schwab]

For those having trouble getting the game to work with the known DLL fix and the other workarounds, I have found that the D3d8.dll file in this utility works where the others do not. I tested this on the Steam release of Dangerous Waters. I have not yet tested it with the original Strategy First release or the GOG release. As with the other DLL fixes, just extract it from the archive and place it in the main game directory. This DLL did resolve the issue on the one computer I had problems with.


EDIT: Confirmed to work with the other installs of Dangerous Waters.




https://github.com/AlpyneDreams/d8vk/releases/tag/d8vk-v1.0

[fitzcarraldo]

I tried all these patches anmd I can´t get to make work DW...

Windows 11, it seems the patches doesn´t work. Simply, CTD at the launch.

Some way to make work the game with W11?

Many thanks.

Fiztcarraldo :Kaleun_Salute:

[FPSchazly]

I tried all these patches anmd I can´t get to make work DW...

Windows 11, it seems the patches doesn´t work. Simply, CTD at the launch.

Some way to make work the game with W11?

Many thanks.

Fiztcarraldo :Kaleun_Salute:


The latest version of the d3d8.dll patch (v0.04, I believe) works with Windows 11. Make sure you reset all of the game's video settings first (just to be safe) and DO NOT use any other helpers like dxwnd or dgvoodoo.

[Jianaran]

Hi all,

I decided to take DW out for a run today for the first time in quite a while, and have been having a small but very annoying graphical issue on my Win11 laptop.
I've downloaded and added the latest d3d8.dll from Jiri Dvorak's website, and the game seems happy to launch and start missions. However, once I'm ingame I am unable to see any information in the contact info box (top left):
https://i.imgur.com/7qQOiUT.png
As I move the cursor around, the missing text will occasionally flash into view for a split second before vanishing. As far as I can tell this is the only graphical issue I'm having.


Has anyone encountered this before, and does anyone have a suggested solution?

[Aktungbby]

Jianaran!:Kaleun_Salute:...a second post after a 15-year 'silent run'!:hmmm: and both posts at 01:42 in the morning!?? :timeout: