Thank you for purchasing EA Sports NHL 98. This README file contains information
on new features not covered in the manual. It also contains instructions on
installing and running NHL 98. Finally, this README file contains information on
performance issues, multiplayer issues, and hardware issues.
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1) System Requirements
a) Minimum Configuration
b) Recommended Configuration
c) Multiplayer Requirements
d) 3D Accelerators
e) Input Devices
2) Installing the Game
a) Installation Program
b) DirectX Installation
c) Reinstalling the Game
3) Manual Errata and Additions
a) Season Corruption
4) Performance Issues and Troubleshooting
a) Improving Gameplay Performance
b) 3D Accelerator
c) Memory
d) Video Card
e) Sound Card
f) CD-ROM
g) Joystick
h) Modem
i) Network
5) HOW TO CONTACT ELECTRONIC ARTS
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1) SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS
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a) MINIMUM CONFIGURATION
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90 MHz or higher Intel Pentium, Cyrix 6x86, or AMD K6 processor
16 MB RAM
Windows 95 (does not run under Windows NT)
Quad-speed CD-ROM drive (600Ksecond transfer rate)
using 32-bit Windows 95 CD-ROM driver
Hi Color (65,535 color) capable 1 MB PCI video card
with DirectDraw(tm) support
DirectX 5 (included on game CD)
15 MB free hard disk space plus space for saved games
(additional space required for DirectX 5 installation)
30MB free required after installation
Keyboard
Mouse
Optional joystick
Optional sound card with DirectSound support
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b) RECOMMENDED CONFIGURATION
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166 MHz Pentium processor or higher
32 MB RAM
8x or faster CD-ROM drive using 32-bit Windows 95 CD-ROM driver
45 MB free hard disk space plus space for saved games
(additional space required for DirectX 5 installation)
Supported gaming controller
Sound card with DirectSound support
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c) MULTIPLAYER REQUIREMENTS
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Network (2-8 players) Pentium 133 MHz CPU or faster,
IPX or TCPIP compliant network, 1 CD per computer
Modem (2-8 players on 2 PCs) 100% Hayes compatible 28800 bps or
faster modem; High speed serial port (16550 UART), 1 CD per computer
Serial Play (2-8 players on 2 PCs) Null modem cable;
High speed serial port (16550 UART), 1 CD per computer
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d) SUPPORTED 3-D ACCELERATORS
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3-D Accelerator using the 3Dfx Voodoo Graphics
or Voodoo Rush chipset
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e) SUPPORTED INPUT DEVICES
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Gravis Gamepad, Gravis Gamepad Pro, Gravis GrIP,
Microsoft Sidewinder Gamepad, or other Windows 95 supported
gaming controllers
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2) INSTALLING THE GAME
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a) INSTALLATION PROGRAM
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i. Start the Windows 95 operating system.
ii. Insert the NHL 98 CD into your CD drive. The Autorun menu appears.
NOTE If the Autorun menu does not automatically appear, click the
Start button on your Windows 95 Taskbar, then click Run.... At the
Run dialog box, type dautorun, then click OK.
(substitute the correct letter of your CD drive if other than D)
iii. Click INSTALL. The NHL 98 Setup menu appears.
You may exit the NHL 98 setup program at any time by clicking Cancel.
iv. Read the general installation information, then click Next. The Setup
Type menu appears.
The default install type is Typical. To choose a different
install type, click COMPACT or CUSTOM.
The default install directory is CEA SportsNHL 98. To choose
a different destination directory, click Browse..., select the
desired directory, then click OK.
v. Click Next. The Select Program Folder menu appears.
Note If you chose the Custom install type, the Select Components
screen appears. Click the box next to the component(s) you want to
install, then click Next. T he Select Program Folder menu appears.
vi. Choose the destination folder in which you want NHL 98 to appear in
the Start menu, then click Next. NHL 98 is copied to your hard drive.
When NHL 98 file transfer is complete, you have the option to create
an NHL 98 shortcut on your desktop.
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b) DIRECTX INSTALLATION
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After the NHL 98 file installation, the DirectX 5 prompt appears.
If you do not have DirectX installed to your computer, or you have a
version previous to 5.0 installed, we recommend you click Yes.
If you have DirectX 5.0 or higher installed to your computer, we
recommend you click No.
DIRECTX INSTALLATION NOTES
DirectX is an Application Programming Interface provided by Microsoft, which
gives Windows 95 based applications high-performance, real-time access to your
hardware. This makes the DirectX API well suited for Windows 95 games. NHL 98
uses the DirectX 5 API (the latest iteration of DirectX at the time of release)
and includes DirectX 5 files which you can install.
Two DirectX components, DirectDraw and DirectSound, may require updating your
video card and sound card drivers respectively, for proper operation of these
components. Using video card and sound card drivers that do not have DirectX
support will result in display and audio problems in DirectX applications.
During the installation of DirectX, your video card and sound card drivers
will be updated if required.
The DirectX 5 files included with NHL 98 include drivers for most video cards
and sound cards from the major manufacturers of these peripherals. For new
hardware, and for lesser known brands of peripherals, you may have to contact
your manufacturer to obtain drivers that support DirectX.
After installing DirectX 5, you can check to see if your video card or sound
card drivers support DirectX
1. Click the Start button on your Windows 95 Taskbar. Then click Run...
2. From the Run dialog box, type ddirectx5directxdxsetup then click OK.
(Substitute the correct letter of your CD drive if other than 'D')
3. Look at Display Driver and Audio Driver.
The second column displays the driver version number; the third, whether or
not your driver is Certified by Microsoft as supporting DirectX.
If your Display Driver or Audio Driver says No Hardware Support in this
column, you must contact the manufacturer to obtain updated drivers,
which have DirectX support.
If your Display Driver or Audio Drivers says Certified in this column,
your video card or sound card supports DirectX, and it should work
properly in DirectX applications.
If your Display Driver or Audio Driver is blank in this column, your video
card or sound card driver supposedly supports DirectX, and is waiting
for Certified approval from Microsoft.
IMPORTANT NOTE During DirectX 5 installation, the setup program checks to see
if it can successfully update your drivers. If the driver being replaced has
not been tested or if replacing the driver is known to cause problems, the
setup program warns you accordingly. We recommend that you heed these warnings.
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c) RE-INSTALLING THE GAME
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If you are having problems or the game did not install correctly the
first time, we recommend re-installing the game.
i. Start the Windows 95 operating system.
ii. Insert the NHL 98 CD in your CD drive. The Autorun menu appears.
NOTE If the Autorun menu does not automatically appear, click the Start
button on your Windows 95 Taskbar, then click Run.... At the Run dialog box,
type dautorun, then click OK.
(substitute the correct letter of your CD drive if other than 'D').
iii. At the Autorun menu, click RE-INSTALL. A prompt appears asking you to
confirm your choice.
To cancel the Re-install, click No.
iv. Click Yes. NHL 98 is removed from your hard drive.
v. Click OK. The Setup menu appears.
Continue from Step 3 of Installing the Game.
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3) MANUAL ERRATA AND ADDITIONS
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a) SEASON CORRUPTION
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In Season mode, if any human controlled teams become corrupted due to the
computer being shut down improperly, or due to a crash, you may remedy this
by getting the Commissioner (the one who created the Season) to change the
affected team from human controlled to computer controlled, and back again.
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b) LINKED LEAGUES
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In all connected leagues, if you are a client, click on League Link to connect
to the Commissioner, and click on Connection to connect for gameplay.
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C) IN-GAME CONTROLS
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i) The in-game menus support mouse control.
ii) The TAB button will reverse the camera angle in gameplay.
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4) PERFORMANCE ISSUES AND TROUBLESHOOTING
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a) IMPROVING GAMEPLAY PERFORMANCE
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If NHL 98 does not run as quickly as you think it should, or if the gameplay
is not smooth, you can reduce the audio andor video details to increase
overall performance.
Note The options described in this section are found in the NHL 98 Options
and Details menus. For information on setting options, please refer to the
enclosed manual.
MINIMUM PROCESSOR CONFIGURATION
The following suggestions should increase speed on minimum processor systems
(90 MHz Pentium or lower end Cyrix machines). Suggestions are listed in order
of frame rate improvement.
Toggle Ice Textures and Ice Logos OFF. Details menu.
Cycle Audio Detail to LOW. Options menu.
Cycle Player Detail to LOW. Details menu.
Reduce Screen Size. The smaller the screen size, the greater the improvement.
Details menu
RECOMMENDED PROCESSOR, MINIMUM RAM
These hints should increase performance on systems that meet the recommended
processor configuration (166 MHz Pentium or higher) but have minimum RAM (16 MB).
Cycle Audio Detail to MEDIUM. Options menu.
Toggle Ice Textures OFF. Details menu.
LAST RESORT SUGGESTIONS
Cycle Change the Screen to INTERLACED. Details menu.
Set Play-by-Play Commentary slider OFF (all the way to the left). Options menu.
You may also install the Play-by-Play files on to the Hard Drive, to improve gameplay
performance. To install the Play-by-Play files on to the Hard Drive, choose the Custom
Installation when installing the game.
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b) 3-D ACCELERATION
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NHL 98 supports 3-D accelerators that use the 3Dfx Voodoo Graphics or
Voodoo Rush chipsets.
To enable 3-D acceleration on a supported 3-D card
1. From the NHL 98 Game Setup screen, click OPTIONS. The Options menu appears.
2. Toggle the 3-D Acceleration option to ON, then click ( to accept.
Note Do not turn the 3-D Acceleration option ON unless you are using a
supported 3-D accelerator.
VOODOO GRAPHICS BOARDS
NHL 98 requires that you have the Glide run time drivers for the Voodoo Graphics
chipset installed on your system.
If you do not have Glide run time drivers for the Voodoo Graphics chipset
installed, the NHL 98 installation program adds the Glide 2.3 driver to
your NHL 98 install directory.
If you are using Glide 2.4 or earlier run time drivers, the NHL 98 installation
program adds the Glide 2.3 driver to your NHL 98 install directory.
NHL 98 prefers using the Glide 2.3 run time driver over version 2.4.
This will not affect other Glide applications.
If you are using a version of the Glide run time drivers later than 2.4,
no Glide drivers are installed.
VOODOO RUSH BOARDS
NHL 98 requires that you have the Glide 2.4 or higher run time drivers specific
for the Voodoo Rush chipset installed on your system.
If you do not have a Voodoo Rush Glide 2.4 or higher run time driver installed
on your system, please contact your board manufacturer.
Note - there is a known bug with 3Dfx boards - do not press Ctrl-F9 when using
a 3Dfx board. The screen will blank out.
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c) MEMORY
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NHL 98 requires 16 MB RAM and Virtual Memory Enabled. We advise that you let
Windows 95 manage the amount of virtual memory automatically (the default setting),
and that you have at least 30 MB free hard disk space after installation.
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d) VIDEO CARD
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VIDEO PROBLEMS
NHL 98 requires a PCI SVGA video card capable of 640x480 resolution with
65,535 colors (1 MB or more video memory).
NOTE If your Windows 95 display driver does not support DirectDraw,
you may experience difficulties running NHL 98.
GENERAL VIDEO CARD INFORMATION
During DirectX installation, the DirectX setup program attempts to upgrade your
existing display driver. The DirectX Setup program checks to see if your current
display driver has been tested. If your current display driver has not been tested,
or if upgrading your current driver is known to cause problems, the setup program
warns you of this. In some cases, replacing your current driver may disable any
Manufacturer specific utilities for your video card. If you want to keep these
utilities functional, you may have to obtain the latest drivers with DirectDraw
support directly from the manufacturer of your video card.
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e) SOUND CARD
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NHL 98 requires a sound card that supports DirectSound. If your sound card driver does not
support DirectSound you may experience choppy or stuttering sound, or sound that cuts in
and out. If your sound card driver does not support DirectSound, we recommend obtaining
updated drivers from your sound card manufacturer.
INSTALLED SOUND CARD, BUT THERE IS NO SOUND
Make sure your speakers or headphones are plugged into the appropriate jack and the volume
control is turned up.
GENERAL SOUND CARD INFORMATION
During DirectX installation, the DirectX setup program attempts to install a DirectSound
supported driver for your sound card. If your sound card driver does not support DirectSound,
the DirectX setup program attempts to replace your existing sound card driver.
Please consult your sound card manufacturer for updated drivers if DirectSound drivers
are not available with the included DirectX 5 files from Microsoft.
Note - if you are using a SoundBlaster 2.0 sound card, setting the audio detail to low
may cause the sound to cut out altogether.
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f) CD-ROM
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NHL 98 requires a quad-speed CD-ROM drive.
CD-ROM PERFORMANCE PROBLEMS
Be sure that you use a 32-bit native Windows 95 driver to control your CD-ROM
drive. To configure a driver, access the Device Manager tab from
Control Panel System.
Do not use a DOS-based 16-bit driver (loaded in CONFIG.SYS) to control your CD-ROM.
Performance may be significantly reduced.
CHOPPY OR STUTTERING VIDEO OR AUDIO
These problems may be improved by adjusting the CD-ROM read-ahead cache.
To adjust the read-ahead cache
1. At the Windows 95 desktop, right-click the My Computer icon, then choose
Properties from the pop-up menu.
2. Click the Performance tab, then select File System...
3. Click the CD-ROM tab, then click in the Optimize access pattern for box,
and choose QUAD-SPEED OR HIGHER.
4. Move the Supplemental cache size slider to SMALL, then click Apply.
NOTE Moving the slider to LARGE will not improve NHL 98 video performance,
and may actually hinder performance by reserving RAM that would otherwise
be available for the game.
Note - if you are using a lower end quad speed drive, you may experience stuttering
play by play. If you are using a lower end quad speed drive, we recommend reinstalling
the game, using the custom installation option to install the Play By Play files onto
the hard drive.
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g) JOYSTICK
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CONTROLLER ISSUES
CONVENTIONAL 4 BUTTON CONTROLLERS
Although NHL 98 supports all four buttons when using a conventional 4 button
gamepad, support is limited to 2 buttons when using two gamepads
(or other 4 button controllers) simultaneously. The PC gameport supports a total
of 4 buttons and two D-Pads when using conventional joysticks or gamepads.
This does not apply to multi-button, multi-controller gaming devices such as the
Gravis GrIP, Gamepad Pro, or Microsoft Sidewinder.
Joystick Calibration
In order for your joystick to work properly in NHL 98, you must install and
calibrate it in Windows 95. To install or calibrate your joystick in Windows 95,
access the Control Panel, and launch the Game Controllers applet.
Note that some gaming devices use their own applets or software for
installation and calibration.
Gravis Gamepad Pro
If you are experiencing difficulties with NHL 98 and your Gravis Gamepad Pro,
please download the latest drivers from Gravis. The new drivers should fix any
detection or calibration problems you may have with your Gravis Gamepad Pro
and NHL 98. The Gravis World Wide Web site is located at www.gravis.com.
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h) MODEM
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NHL 98 requires a 100% Hayes compatible 28.8 kbps or faster modem for modem
play. A high speed (16550 UART) serial port is required for external modems.
GENERAL MODEM INFORMATION
NHL 98 uses the Windows 95 settings to initialize your modem. To use a modem
in NHL 98, you must install it in Windows 95.
To install your modem in Windows 95
1. Click the Start button on the Taskbar. The Start menu opens.
2. From the Start menu, highlight Settings, then select Control Panel
from the pop-up menu.
3. From the Control Panel, click Modems.
4. If you have not installed a modem before, let Windows 95 detect your
modem by clicking Next.
Note If your modem came with a Windows 95 driver disk or .INF file,
follow the manufacturer's installation directions.
MODEM DOES NOT INITIALIZE
Make sure your modem is installed correctly in Windows 95 and is turned on.
Make sure that your modem works properly in Windows 95.
If your modem is installed correctly and works with other modem applications
in Windows 95, but you are having problems initializing your modem in NHL 98,
try changing your modem type in Windows 95 to Standard Modem.
Some computers have telephone answering or FAX applications pre-installed.
Sometimes these applications tie up the modem, and do not allow other
applications to access it. You must exit all applications that use your
modem before playing a modem game.
You may experience a lengthy delay when pressing the Connection button from the main
screen, if you once installed the TCPIP protocol in Windows, and you no longer have an
active TCPIP connection. If this is the case, please remove the TCPIP protocol from your
Windows' Control Panel Network applet.
Some dial-up Internet Service Provider accounts may automatically start dialing up the ISP
and minimize NHL 98 when you press the Connection button. If you want to establish a modem
game, please disconnect from the ISP once it has connected, and maximize NHL 98 to continue.
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i) NETWORK
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NHL 98 requires an IPX protocol network and network interface card
for network play.
If you experience difficulties with network play, you may want to consult your
network manual or network administrator for specific information on loading drivers.
CONNECTION PROBLEMS
Make sure the computers you are trying to connect are on the same network.
NETWORK PERFORMANCE ISSUES
There are various adjustments you can make to be sure you get the best performance
out of your network game. These apply to the Server computer as well as the Client,
but try them on the Server alone first as this may solve all the problems.
Make sure the Server computer (the one that creates the network game) is the fastest
of the computers, as it controls the game speed.
High-traffic networks will slow the game down considerably. Avoid playing the game
at peak traffic hours, while there are large file transfers or print jobs being done.
Performance is limited by the slowest computer. Adjusting the screen size on a slow
machine can help boost performance in a network game.
GENERAL NETWORK INFORMATION
Do not run any Windows 95 applications that communicate over the network in
the background (e.g., mail programs, personal schedulers, system or network monitors).
Make sure you have disabled Network Messages. If you are connected to a Novell network.
You may experience a lengthy delay when pressing the Connection button from the main
screen, if you once installed the TCPIP protocol in Windows, and you no longer have an
active TCPIP connection. If this is the case, please remove the TCPIP protocol from your
Windows' Control Panel Network applet.
Some dial-up Internet Service Provider accounts may automatically start dialing up the ISP
and minimize NHL 98 when you press the Connection button. If you want to establish a network
game, please disconnect from the ISP once it has connected, and maximize NHL 98 to continue.
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5) HOW TO CONTACT ELECTRONIC ARTS
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TECHNICAL SUPPORT
TROUBLESHOOTING DOCUMENTS ONLINE!
Electronic Arts Product Support now offers troubleshooting guides
that help overcome some common difficulties. If you have access to
the World Wide Web, you can find these guides at
httpwww.ea.comtechsupptroubles.htm
Here you will find troubleshooting information on DirectX, Joysticks,
Modems, and Networks, as well as information on regular system
maintenance and performance. (For game-specific information and
additional troubleshooting,
visit our main page at httpwww.ea.comtechsupp.)
If you have questions about the program, our Technical Support
Department can help. Our web site contains up-to-date information
on the most common difficulties with our products, and this information
is the same as that used by our product support technicians. We keep
the product support pages updated on a daily basis, so please check here
first for no-wait solutions
httpwww.ea.comtechsupp
If you are unable to find the information you need on our web site,
please feel free to contact Technical Support via e-mail, phone, fax, or letter.
All messages are responded to in kind-if you send in a request by fax,
response will also come by fax. Please be sure to include the following
information in your e-mail message, fax, or letter
Computer manufacturer
Operating system (Windows 95, DOS 6.22, etc.)
CPU type and speed in MHz
Amount of RAM
Sound card type and settings (address, IRQ, DMA)
Video card
CD-ROM
Mouse driver and version
Joystick and game card (if any)
A copy of the CONFIG.SYS and AUTOEXEC.BAT files from your hard drive
A description of the problem you're having
If you need to talk to someone immediately, call us at (650) 572-2787
Monday through Friday between 830-1145 AM or 100-430 PM, Pacific Standard
Time. Please have the above information ready when you call. This will help
us answer your question in the shortest possible time.
EA Tech Support Fax (650) 286-5080.
Electronic Arts Technical Support
P.O. Box 7578
San Mateo, CA 94403-7578
HOW TO REACH US ONLINE
WARRANTY INQUIRIES [email protected]
WORLD WIDE WEB Access our Web Site at httpwww.ea.com
FTP Access our FTP Site at ftp.ea.com