Boards and Blades 2
(c)2000 Activision Value Publishing
(c)2000 Silverfish Studios LLC
Readme Version 1.0
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Thank you for purchasing Boards and Blades 2. This readme file contains last
minute changes and the most up to date information for the game. For
support questions and product updates please go to
http://www.activisionvalue.com or
http://www.silverfishstudios.com
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I. Installation
II. Playing The Game
III. Backing up saved games.
IV. Restoring Backed Up Games
V. Adding Custom Board Graphics
VI. Adding Custom Levels
VII. Performance Tips
VIII. Direct X Troubleshooting Guide
IX. Contact Information
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I. Installation
After inserting the Boards and Blades 2 CD in your computer, auto play will
present you with the installation program. Simply click on install and follow the installation steps.
If you have CD auto verification disabled you will have to do this
manually.
First Double Click on my computer. Then locate the drive name
assigned to your CD-ROM. Right click and choose auto play.
If that doesn’t work, use the manual installation method below.
1. Open My Computer.
2. Right click on your CD-ROM drive.
3. Select open from the menu that appears.
4. Find the file SETUP.EXE and double click on it.
5. Follow the onscreen instructions.
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II. Playing The Game
Goals: The goals of Boards and Blades 2 depend on the mode the game is played in.
Freeride:
Free ride is the practice area of the game. There are no rules, only freedom. Practice new moves and explore areas of the game. The Tab key will toggle the trick list on and off.
Two Timer:
Go head to head with a friend and compare each round. This mode is similar to Freeride, but there is a time limit.
Get-Inline:
This is the mode that is used to upgrade the skater’s equipment. Collect points and spend them at the end of each round. The more points earned, the more the board can be modified. Do this by performing tricks from the list on the right side of the screen while going through the checkpoints.
Pro Session:
Pro Session is the mode of game that allows the player to clear levels and unlock secrets via the pickups throughout each level.
Controls:
Ollie/Flip Tricks : Ctrl
Nollie/Flip Tricks : Alt
Grab Tricks: Spacebar
Grinds : Shift
Compress: Spacebar
Tricks are performed by a combination of the Trick Key (Ollie/Nollie/Grind/Grab) and the arrow keys. To perform a
trick somewhere on the flat ground press and hold down the Ollie or Nollie Key to compress for height. Then release the button while pressing a direction key.
Grabs can be added to combinations or done on their own by hitting the Grab Key(spacebar by default)and a direction arrow while in the air.
Grinds are done when the player is on an edge and holds the Grind Key(shift key by default) down. Use the directional arrow keys in combination with the grind key to do many types of grinds and board slides.
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III. Backing up saved games
To copy saved games to a floppy for the purpose of backing up or moving to a
friends computer to compare.
First double-click on my computer.
Open the drive in which Boards and Blades 2 is installed, C: is the default
Open Program Files, then open the Activision Value folder, now open the Boards and Blades 2 folder, and finally the Games directory.
Select all of the files that start with "Skater" and end with "dat".
Example : Skater1.dat
From the Edit menu click on copy.
Now with a blank Floppy disk in the floppy drive, Double-click on My Computer
and Double-click the A: drive. Now, from the Edit menu click on Paste.
After the files finish copying you now have them backed up.
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IV. Restoring Backed Up Game Files
First take the Backup Disk you have previously made.
Insert it into your floppy drive.
Double-click on My Computer. Double click on the A: drive
In the A: drive window select all of the files that start with "Skater" and end with "dat".
Example : Skater1.dat
From the Edit menu click on copy.
Open the drive in which Boards and Blades 2 is installed, C: is the default
Open Program Files, then open the Activision Value folder, now open the Boards and Blades 2 folder, and finally the Games directory.
If you did not install it to the default directory you will need to find it.
Once you find the Games directory, click on Paste from the Edit menu.
After the files finish copying you now have them Restored.
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V. Adding Custom Board Graphics
WARNING: This is for advanced users, Activision Value and Silverfish Studios will not support problems that arise from using this feature. This may require 3rd party software that is not provided with this game.
Rules :
1. You can have up to 20 custom board graphics in the game at one time.
2. All board graphics must use the template provided in the Program Files\Activision Value\Boards and Blades 2\Data\Textures\Boards\ directory(this tutorial assumes you installed the game to the default directory).
3. All board graphics must be 256 x 256 resolution and 8 bit color depth.
4. All custom boards have to be names customx.bmp, X meaning the current number (from 1 - 20).
Making and Adding your custom graphic.
1. Open one of the template files (eg. Skin1.bmp) with your graphic editor (Photoshop, Paint Shop Pro, etc.) and edit it to your liking.
2. Save the file to a temporary location.
3. Rename the file to Custom1.bmp(assuming this is your first custom graphic).
4. Copy the file custom1.bmp to your Program Files\Activision Value\Boards and Blades 2\Boards directory.
Now once you load up the game again go to your character selection screen and scroll through the boards to see your new custom deck.
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VI. Adding Custom Levels
WARNING: This is for advanced users and people with interest in game development, this is not a cookie cutter system, Activision Value and Silverfish Studios will not support problems that arise from using this feature. This may require 3rd party software that is not provided with this game.
This is a short tutorial on getting setup and started with making your own skate worlds for Boards and Blades 2.
To create your own levels for Boards and Blades 2 you must use the genesis3d world editor also known as gedit. This is part of the Genesis3d development kit. It can downloaded at www.genesis3d.com.
You will need a file called genvs.h that can be downloaded from www.silverfishstudios.com.
Once you have genesis3d installed and the genvs.h file, replace the genvs.h that came with genesis3d with the one you just acquired. The original genvs.h can be found in the genesis3d11\src\game directory.
Now when you load up gedit you will have access to the Pickups and secret area setup as well.
Once you have created your world and wish to try it out. You will need to compile the level and copy the .bsp file to your Program Files\Activision Value\Boards and Blades 2\Levels directory. Next time you load Boards and Blades 2, go to the precinct selection screen and use the arrows to scroll. Your levels should show up by name.
For more info look at www.silverfishstudios.com under the detailed list of what is needed and also check out the level design forum in the files section.
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VII. Performance Tips
To get the most out of Boards and Blades 2, use these tips if the game is not performing satisfactorily.
1. Run the game in a Lower Resolution. After running the program, click options, then Video from menu, then select a resolution lower then your current setting.
2. If you have a 3DFX card make sure you are running in Glide mode.
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VIII. Direct X Troubleshooting Guide
1. Occasionally programs running in the system tray can cause conflicts
with programs running with DirectX.
The system tray appears on the right side of the taskbar(Next to the clock) and contains a series of icons representing programs running on your system. Some of these icons can be shut down by right-clicking on them, then choosing exit or close. Please try closing these applications and then running the program to see if that corrects your issue.
Note: When you reboot you system all of these programs will appear
and work as they did before.
2. In addition to programs in the systray there may be other programs
running on your system that could be causing an issue. (Additionally
each program that is running is taking up resources that take away from
the effectiveness of your CPU and available memory) To assure that you
are getting the best performance from you program make sure to shut
down all programs that are on your taskbar. (Web Browser, MS Office
applications, and the MS Office Shortcut bar)
The easiest way to shutdown all other programs is to press and hold the
CTRL & ALT & DELETE keys so that the Close Program Menu Appears.
Highlight an item (except Explorer and systray) with the left mouse
button and left click on ENDTASK. (Close Program menu will disappear).
Repeat this procedure until "Explorer" and systray are the only items left
in menu.
All items will be restored once you restart Windows.
Try to run your program and see if you are still experiencing the issue
you were having.
3. The Device Manager, located in the System Properties, can report many
difficulties caused by hardware conflicts. To open your System Properties,
right-click on the My Computer icon and select Properties. Then click on
the Device Manager tab to see if you have any conflicts. You will see a
yellow exclamation mark or red X next to pieces of hardware that have a
conflict.
4. Check your virtual memory settings The virtual memory swap file is
always created on the drive that Windows is installed on. Virtual memory
is disk space used by Windows that lets your system "pretend" it has more
memory than it does. Not having enough free disk space can affect your
virtual memory; this may cause programs to crash or not run properly.
To check your disk space / virtual memory settings:
Double-click on the My Computer icon.
Click once on your "C:" drive or the drive where windows is installed.
There will be status bar at the bottom of the My Computer window that will
tell your free space on your hard drive. If you have less than approximately
50mb or so of disk space you could experience problems with our programs.
Try to free at least 50mb or more of disk space on the drive that Windows
is installed on and then run the Scandisk and Defrag system utilities located
in your Start menu. This will help assure you that your drive is optimized
and free of errors.
The amount of free space on multiple hard drives wont have a bearing on your
virtual memory swap file, the free space must be on the drive that Windows is
installed on.
WARNING: If you are not sure what to delete on your drive, do not delete anything.
Check your computer documentation or contact someone who can help you choose
the right files. Unfortunately our tech support can't help you decide which
files to delete.
Please close the My Computer Window. Right-click on the My Computer icon
and then select Properties, then click on the Performance tab, and then click
on the Virtual Memory button. "Let Windows manage my virtual memory settings"
should be selected. Then click "OK" to finish changing the settings. You will
then need to restart your computer.
5. Disabling hardware acceleration could help you get your program running.
This usually yields little or no difference in our programs performance.
If disabling your hardware acceleration works to get the program running, there
is probably a problem with your display driver. You will need to contact your
video card manufacturer or system vendor for an updated,
DirectX compatible display driver. Hardware acceleration is controlled by
Windows through the System Properties.
You will need to Right-click on the My Computer icon and select Properties,
then click on the Performance tab at the top, lastly click on the Graphics button
at the bottom.
You should see your hardware acceleration set to Full. Try sliding the pointer
to None and clicking "OK". Then restart your computer and run the program again.
Note: In some cases, disabling the Hardware Acceleration can cause the computer
to restart in Safe mode.
If this occurs, move the Hardware Acceleration slider up one notch at a time until
your system works properly.
6. Video and sound card drivers are an important part of Windows and DirectX.
Basically they allow your hardware to "talk" to your DirectX applications.
Hardware manufacturers post new drivers on their web sites periodically that have
enhanced performance and stability. Please check with your hardware manufacturer
for an update as some difficulties may be related to the driver.
Note: If you have never updated your drivers before, you may want to consult your
system manufacturer and get their recommendations.
If you choose to update the drivers yourself, follow the installation instructions
provided with each driver carefully.
7. Get the latest version of DirectX.
It is best to have the newest version of DirectX on your system.
The latest releases will give better performance and stability.
There are also more recent drivers for your video and sound card provided by your computer's manufacturer.
You can get the latest version of DirectX at Microsoft's
http://www.microsoft.com/directx/homeuser/downloads/default.asp.
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IX. Contact Information
Technical Support
Activision Value Publishing
7646 Golden Triangle Dr.
Eden Prairie, MN 55344
Phone: 952-918-9500
Web: http://www.activisionvalue.com
Email: [email protected]
or try the forums at
www.silverfishstudios.com