Psychonauts PC Demo out

[OftenK]

My only real complaint comes from the PC/technical side, like the fact that I couldn't run it smoothly until I knocked it down to 800x600 and with almost everything off. Which makes no sense to me, because my computer isn't that shit.

Same here. It's wierd; Half Life 2 runs beautifully on my machine, but a Psychonauts demo is damn near unplayable (unless, like you said, I turn a bunch of stuff off). Not that I was going to buy the PC version anyway, but still. Wierd.

[Tanukitsune]

I've noticed one thing weird with the graphics...

Among the forest critters running around in the camp is some sort of lizard, which appears as completely white, yet if I trigger a cutscene I see him normally!

[baconian]

So I guess I'm getting the Xbox version, if it ever comes out here. Which is the part that frustrates me no end, that Majesco are doing this ultra-huge-super-your-life-will-begin-anew-on-april-19th kind of thing but for the rest of the world, it's, oh, it's done when it's done. No rush. It really pisses me off, honestly.

damn straight

[tabacco]

I like the military bunnies in Basic Braining

[ysbreker]

they are an obvious cameo from Full Throttle, but you already knew that, right?

[Wormsie]

I report that Psychonauts runs well on 800*600 on my machine with all graphical details on. Very seldom it slows down a little, but usually it works like dream. My PC: 1.6 GHz, 526 MB Ram, ATI Radeon 9600 (I think it's Radeon 9600...).

The only problem is that it crashes at one point. :( :ancient: :devil: :devil:

But at least I can play the beginning of the demo.

[Erwin_Br]

Yeah, that good old outdated Radeon 9600 still kicks ass. Best...buy... ever!

We have similar specs. Only difference is I run a 1.8 Ghz. Outdated as hell, if I believe my hardcore gaming friends nerds.

--Erwin

[vimes]

Yeah, that good old outdated Radeon 9600 still kicks ass. Best...buy... ever!

We have similar specs. Only difference is I run a 1.8 Ghz. Outdated as hell, if I believe my hardcore gaming friends nerds.

--Erwin

Mmm, not to compare size but I am the happy owner of an Athlon 2000+, 1go ddram 400Mhz and a radeon 9600xt; on that reasonnable configuration the game runs just fine in 1024*768 with all options on.

And I managed to preorder the game for 27 € at dvdboxoffice.com... without any goodies that is to say.

[SoccerDude28]

I never had to place any extra cooling in any of my rigs. Maybe it's the difference between AMD and Intel? Or perhaps the always cloudy Dutch weather. I imagine outside (and room) temperature can play a significant role.

--Erwin

It's not only the CPU. That's only a small part of it. These days it's mainly the graphics card. The NVIDIA 6800 GT for example plugs into the power supply and produces tons of heat. And to be able to support all these high end components, you need like a 450 watt power supply. So my rig has 4 fans and I don't even need to open the case. It can run for hours. If your PC heats up, just add more fans to it

[Erwin_Br]

Mmm, not to compare size but I am the happy owner of an Athlon 2000+, 1go ddram 400Mhz and a radeon 9600xt; on that reasonnable configuration the game runs just fine in 1024*768 with all options on.

And I managed to preorder the game for 27 € at dvdboxoffice.com... without any goodies that is to say.

Yeah, I have the xt/td and in 1024*768 it runs great, though I did find out it runs a little faster in 800*600. I must say I really like the way the game looks in 800*600. It's like the anti-aliasing is even more appearant or something.

--Erwin

[Erkki]

Indeed it seems that Psychonauts depends more on the graphics card. On my PC (Athlon 2000 MHz, 1GB SDRAM, Radeon 9600) it ran fine in 800x600 with everything on, while at work on 3500MHz Athlon, 2GB crazy-super-fast-RAM, Radeon X300 it lagged very noticeably. I think X300 is the low-end card of the current generation?

[edit]Oh, the game is really cool.

[Chris]

Erkki, out of curiosity, what motherboard and audio card do you have? My Radeon 9600 has been treating me like shit for the past several months, and tons of internet searching has revealed many others with the same problem. It seems to be a weird incompatibility issue with the 9600 series and certain motherboards, audio cards, and possibly even power supply units.

[Intrepid Homoludens]

Goddammit, this just makes me wanna say 'Fuck it!' and buy the Xbox version instead.

[Erkki]

MB is Abit KT7A (with the KT133A chipset) -- quite an old one. And the processor is not even officially supported on it so I have some booting problems (have to listen to some beeps after turning it on, then press reset). The sound card is some kind of Audigy. Don't remember if 1 or 2.

[Chris]

Hmmm... Abit cards are the ones that seem to be most frequently reported as having problems, but mainly the ones that were manufactered late last year (like mine). Also the Audigy 2 was a common link among those with the problem. You have to wonder about the state of PC gaming when brands like Abit, Creative Labs, and ATI, which are supposed to be among the top of the heap, have incompatibility issues like this...

[netmonkey]

Never mind the demo...

THE GAME COMES OUT TOMORROW!!!

(Too bad I have to wait until it ships to my house, and I hope that it's not those brown-trucked bastards from UPS who always come at the least expected time.)

[Erkki]

You have to wonder about the state of PC gaming when brands like Abit, Creative Labs, and ATI, which are supposed to be among the top of the heap, have incompatibility issues like this...

yes, it sucks. we should all use Macs.

[Chris]

yes, it sucks. we should all use Macs.

I have no doubt that I would if they actually ran all the games...

[Chris]

Never mind the demo...

THE GAME COMES OUT TOMORROW!!!

(Too bad I have to wait until it ships to my house, and I hope that it's not those brown-trucked bastards from UPS who always come at the least expected time.)

I pre-ordered at EB but they said they probably won't actually get copies of the game until Wednesay (it only SHIPS on the 19th).

[Duncan]

I pre-ordered at EB but they said they probably won't actually get copies of the game until Wednesay (it only SHIPS on the 19th).

Yes, that must really suck for you.

[nsps]

Since my graphics card is no good, I might get an Xbox, but can't afford one now, so may have to go a few more months without Psychonauts. The demo ran perfectly on my friend's badass computer, and I'm very happy with Tim's trademark attention to writing and detail.

I have no doubt that I would if they actually ran all the games...

I have a Mac, and am quite sure I wouldn't be considering getting an Xbox even though I don't want one if it ran the game. Ron Gilbert wrote about Apple's inability to get serious on the gaming front a while back...

Also, why did you have order a copy, Chris? Shouldn't you get a free one as a tester?

[Erkki]

I have no doubt that I would if they actually ran all the games...

same here, probably.

[Chris]

Also, why did you have order a copy, Chris? Shouldn't you get a free one as a tester?

Yes, but I'm not sure how to actually obtain my promised copy... I went ahead and pre-ordered the PC one anyway (so I wouldn't have two of the same version) because I really want the game to succeed and I figure every order helps. I even did it in-store instead of online (thus forfeiting a free t-shirt; I already have the playing cards so I don't need those) under the assumption that it will make more impact if done in the presence of physical EB employees.

Anyway when went in yesterday to ask the release date (obviously I knew it, I just wanted to check up on whether the staff was familiar with the game :shifty: ), one of the cashiers said she was really excited for the game after playing the demo and already placed her pre-order. Plus, she doesn't even usually like platformers and hadn't even heard of Tim Schafer (I said something like "Finally, a new Tim Schafer game" and she said "Huh?"). That was a relief because it means the game is looking good to people who have no Tim-related biases.

[netmonkey]

Chris Remo, our resident Idle Thumbs Undercover Agent.

[Chris]

Extreme Undercover Games Journalism! ™