I appreciate the DMA/PIO info aguirRe, however, the tech support guys want me to do it the other way round, insisting that I change the transfer settings from DMA to PIO, before I try to install the game. I thought that this sounded like a very bad move, and I have emailed them to further elaborate on the issue. 

If anyone's interested, here's the latest "solution" I recieved from DreamCatcher technical support:

Hello Ben,

Please ensure that you have scanned with the completely updated versions of both Ad-Aware and Spybot: Search and Destroy. Some people have found that one program will pick up programs that the other will not.

Before you reinstall the game please ensure all other programs are closed. This includes any anti-virus software you may have installed on your system. To do this, right-click on all non-essential icons next to the clock in the bottom-right section of your desktop and either close or disable them.

NOTE: All the programs that you have closed will restart the next time Windows starts.

Please make the following adjustment before installing:

1. Right Click on the My Computer icon and select Properties. Click on the Hardware tab and then click the Device Manager button.
2. Expand the IDE ATA/ATAPI controllers section.
3. Double-click on the Primary IDE Channel and /or Secondary IDE Channel and select the Advance Setting tab.
4. Change the Transfer Mode from DMA if available to PIO only. This needs to be changed only for the CDROM.

Finally, there are often media players on a computer that will try to open the media files on a game CD (the game CD's have readable media such as .MP3 and .WAV files). As they try to open those files they are taking the information away from the installation which can contribute to errors and problems. To prevent those programs from automatically launching, please hold down your left "SHIFT" key as you insert the CD and keep holding the "SHIFT" key until you see the light on the CD-Rom go out. This will prevent the programs from auto-running. Do this for all three CDs.

In addition to this, please make sure that your computer monitor is facing North-West; the exception to this rule is if Jupiter is currently in conjunction with Mars, in which case your monitor must face North-East. Please note however, that if your mother's maiden name begins with a "C" or an "E", or you (or an immediate family member) have a pet hamster, you must always face your monitor directly SOUTH, regardless of planetary alignment. If the number of new applications installed on your computer in the last six months is an EVEN number, then you must make sure that you are accompanied by a small Puerto Rican orphan child, throughout the duration of the installation process. The child is allowed to sing a traditional Puerto Rican folk song during the installation of CD 2, unless you are wearing a bowler hat, in which case the child must remain silent. Please note that if you have ever shaken hands with a man named Gerald, the small Puerto Rican child must be replaced by a living Yeti, and you must have been Napolean in a previous life.

Please contact me if you have any further technical difficulties.

Matt Metford
Technical Support
DreamCatcher Games

Ok, so I made the last bit up, but it's still a farce. 

So you're wearing a bowler hat, then obviously you'll have to change from DMA to PIO mode in order to proceed to the inner sanctum (The Secret Installation) ...

Anyway, you can easily change back and forth the transfer mode for the CD/DVD device without any risk. Just don't change the main HD setting (usually Primary channel, device 0).

I don't know how to exactly see which device is which, but the currently used protocol should offer some hint; the HD most likely is using the highest DMA level on a reasonably recent machine. The other(s) are probably the CD/DVD units and can be manipulated. 

I currently have:

Primary Channel
===============

Device 0: Ultra DMA Mode 5
Device 1: Multi-Word DMA Mode 2

Secondary Channel
=================

Device 0: Not Applicable
Device 1: Not Applicable

My CD/DVD has to be Primary Channel, Device 1 then I guess. 

it looks like you've got your cd on the same channel as your hdd... i'd recommend opening up your case and swapping the cd's cable for the other cable, so you can get it going on the secondary channel.
i forget exactly why, but having cd and hdd on the same channel slows down one or the other...

but yes, device1 looks like the cd. 

This is absurd! Why would Dreamcatcher (or their publisher) insist on such finnicky and buggy anti-piracy software? wtf 

'Finally, there are often media players on a computer that will try to open the media files on a game CD (the game CD's have readable media such as .MP3 and .WAV files). As they try to open those files they are taking the information away from the installation which can contribute to errors and problems.'

sounds like a load of crap. None of my 'media players' go out looking for anything unless I start them up manually, and then the idea that because the files are registered (checked to be listed as readable media) by the media players the files can no longer be read by the installer.

Perhaps XP really is that funky compared to ME and 2000 that I use, but I'm suspicious about the claim. Sounds like typical Customer Service blame deferment. 'Hey! blame Microsoft for making such a convoluted back asswards system even if you have never experienced those problems previously with anyother CD, not our rights protection scheme' 

by pissing about with the IDE settings.

Now, I still have the huge hurdle of getting the game to actually run. It currently bombs to the desktop whenever I try to run it. At least I can try installing the patch now though. 

Thx man, that's the best laugh I've had in ages. The yeti must have been a tough one ;) 

As necros said device 1 is the CD and AFAIK, it's not a good thing to have it on the same channel as the HD for performance reasons.

I think only one device can be used at a time on each channel, so accessing the CD will block the HD momentarily. That's why SCSI performs better (although for a higher price).

I've also heard that the protocol on each IDE channel will be the slowest of the connected devices (i.e. the CD in your case), but I don't know if it's true.

On my machine I only have the HD on the primary and the CD/DVD are sharing the secondary channel.

Good to hear that you've got it installed now. 

that supposedly allows the game to start. Time will tell.

aguirRe, thanks for the info - I have a Dell computer, and the IDE settings were set by the manufacturer, so I don't really know what's going on.

Cheers Kell - sometimes the situation gets so ridiculous that you have to take the mickey just to stay sane. 

sure go get a crack and play already :)

www.gamecopyworld.com
www.megagames.com

and be free :D 

I suspected the thing about media players interfering with the installation was BS. I didn't bother holding down SHIFT as I inserted the CDs like they said, and it didn't affect anything. 

which appears to do fuck all. I suppose I've got to download the 86 MB patch now? On dialup? Perhaps I should just uninstall the game, put it down to experience, and make sure I never buy anything produced by Dreamcatcher again. 

you could do that, but then you wouldn't be able to play the game... 

about borrowing my brother's copy because it might mean less residuals for Vondur. I'm so naive sometimes. 

Once I updated my graphics card drivers, I got the game to run.

I have a PIII 1.5GHz, 512 MB RAM, and a 64 MB nVidia GeForce4, and I had to turn all the graphics options down to the absolute lowest settings to get a playable framerate (which doesn't really bother me). What is annoying though is that it frequently pauses for seconds at a time when there's a lot of crazy physics going on. Despite this I still managed to play through the first few levels up to the first boss.

I will refrain from posting my impressions of the game until I have completed it. 

better late than never, or, maybe not..... 

And you do realise, from what I hear, the game will be over in far less time then you took to get it to work

Oh I've no doubt of that ;) I've already played through a sizable chunk of the game, and although part of me wants to hate the game for all the grief it caused, i'm actually rather enjoying it. I'm currently fighting a boss monster that appears to be just slightly larger than the size of the known universe, >:) Anyway, full review when I finish it. 

You've perchased the game, so whats the harm in downloading the cracked version as you have paid for it? Get a friend to download it for you :) 

yeah, i cracked my version as well. just because it's more convenient:P 

I haven't bought PK yet but I plan to. It's less expensive then most new releases. I plan to buy it because I love the look of the environments and enemies.

I agree very much with Shambler's view on bosses. I can enjoy a game immensely only to hate it at the very end or at chapter ends because the obligatory boss climax is more frustrating then fun.

One boss battle feature that I liked was on the AvP2 mission pack. The HUD showed the boss's health meter. That really helped to motivate me to push on because I knew that my attacks were actually working. Diablo II also has such a feature (but for all enemies.) I hate not knowing whether the boss has 1,000,000,000 hit points or if I'm supposed to figure out it's weakness during the 4-5 second spells between reloading my game and dying again.

Boss battles that are not hugely difficult are exempt from my whining.

Go tell 'em Shambler. 

Haven't finished the game yet, but I'd just like to say that so far I've found the bosses to be the most interesting aspect of the game. Once you figure out how to destroy them, they are fun, and satisfying to take down. I particularly liked the swamp beast, which frustrated the hell out of me at first, but once I discovered how to kill him, it was just so much fun.

It's a pity the other aspects of the game can't be anywhere near as creative/interesting. 

I got up to the boss with the hammer, and my computer basically ground to a complete halt. That stage is completely unplayable on my system, so I don't think I'll progress any further without cheats. I'll look forward to revisiting the game when I get a new computer.

Depite that, I felt the game had really perfected the art of simply "shootin' stuff". Every method of dispatching the various baddies was deliciously satifying; my favourite being the freeze gun/shotgun combo, which made close range horde combat an absolute pleasure. Gibbings were supremely succulent; the way the bodies just came apart perfectly was really well done.

I liked the way health was handled; a little bit for each monster killed, plus the checkpoint system was a very good idea.

For me, the weakest aspect of the game were the levels; they looked lovely, yes, but they didn't really feel like anything more than just pretty backdrops to the action; there wasn't really anything else to them aside from 'enter room, door shuts behind you, room fills with insane amount of monsters, you kill monsters, door opens, enter another room...' ad infinitum. They were nothing more than a series of arenas strung together. Don't get me wrong, I do love arena combat, but it's nice to break it up a bit sometimes. Also, pretty much every level played exactly the same, with only the boss stages to provide a bit of variation.

Most of the combat was fair, but a couple of areas were stupidly difficult and annoying, particularly in the military base.

The physics engine. Well, this was the reason my computer ground to a halt, so I personally could have happily done without it. That said, if I had a faster computer I would have no doubt thought it "rocked", but I still don't think it was amazingly necessary from a gameplay point of view.

If I had a fast computer, and if there was a level editor for the game, I would definately think about mapping for it. I think with more "Quakey" level design, this game would have been awesome.