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Fragicula · Jul 26, 2001, 09:07 AM

I'd really like to play that game, but I have an iMac Rev. A with a voodoo2 and 192MB ram.
So graphic card and ram reach the minimum requirements, but the processor does not. Well, Oni requiered an 300 too and it runs good, as long there aren't many foes or large areas. But Summoner looks like these things make the whole game.
Has anyone played that game on an iMac or a similar system. Or has someone a comp with the minimum requirements? How runs it?
mfg
Fragicula

Elvin · Jul 27, 2001, 09:52 PM

Hi there,

I'm currently running Summoner on an iMac 450, so obviously it isn't a fair comparison, however, I can run it 800*600 with full graphics and it runs really well. There is an option so that you can run it 640*480 and turn off the fancy textures so that the speed is still enjoyable.

I don't have the time tonight, but maybe this weekend, I will try it on an iMac Rev B, that I have access too, and I will post any comments as soon as I can. I know that your Voodoo 2 will defiantly help over the stock ATI card that is inside.

Until then..

Fragicula · Jul 28, 2001, 05:53 AM

Thanks that you'll try it. Another question I've forgotten befor; does it really support Glide? If it does, it could run because the Voodoo supports Glide much better than OpenGL.
I'm looking forward to your posting,
Fragicula

Elvin · Jul 29, 2001, 08:06 AM

As far as I can tell, it doesn't support Glide. Glide unfortunately just isn't being used as much as it should/used to be. You can still use it on things such as Mac Quake and such, but newer games are all going to OpenGL because it's the standard. In the case of Summoner, it uses OpenGL.

I'm also installing Summoner now on a Rev B iMac and I'll get back to you later on the outcome. The first thing to note is the slow installation (and therefore slower level loading times), because of the slower CD. But these are things that you just have to take in to consideration because of time.

Elvin · Jul 29, 2001, 08:55 AM

The most important thing I noticed in Summoner is that you need RAM and lots of it. Thankfully in your case you have 192 Mb, but unfortunately in the iMac Rev B that I tested it on, it only has 64.

Gameplay wasn't horrible, and it didn't run too bad, however, the visuals stutter a lot. Using the camera to spin around wasn't too bad, but then again there isn't a whole lot that happens in the first level. It might be playable, but you will find on the later levels when you have four members in your party (plus the bad guys and summoning creatures), all of them attacking and casting spells (that even slow down a Cube G4 450 with 192 MB of RAM for a few split seconds), I don't think it would do too well on a original iMac. You do have lots of RAM though, so I can't make a totally accurate conclusion.

Sorry that I can't really say one way or the other as to the best decision. There are no plans for a demo so I can't say wait and see. Just one thing that I would like to tell you is that in Summoner you have this attaack system called chain attacks. When you see a little 'chain' logo above your head, you hold Control and click every time it pops up above your head..this allows you to keep attacking and keep the enemy at bay. Sometimes it's quick and sometimes it's slow. I find when there is a lot of action on the screen you can miss clicking at the right time, thus, blowing your chain attack. So, it's possible that Summoner could run on your computer, it's just that you would be missing a LOT of your chain attacks which is your advantage through the entire game.

Anyway, hope that helps!

Fragicula · Jul 29, 2001, 11:33 AM

First: Thank you very much for trying it!
You've saved me a lot of money

I decided not to buy it because when it stutters in the first level, it won't be playable later on. Chain attacks would be impossible.
The screenshots I've seen show big areas and lots of people in it, and that will kill my iMac definitly if it doesn't run without problems in the first level. Quake3 runs with 50fps too as long noone enters my screen (down to 5

).
Thanks again,
Fragicula

Elvin · Jul 29, 2001, 01:07 PM

No problem, I just thought that since no one else had tried it that I would. I think Summoner is one of those fantastic games, and maybe some time way down the line if you decide to get a faster computer, maybe then I'd recommend you pick it up. By then you could also pick it up on eBay for $15 too

schwa · Jul 31, 2001, 04:35 PM

Something else to consider- Summoner isn't carbonized, and at MWNY they said they didn't have any plans to do so. So, if you're using OS X, you might want to think twice about buying it, since you'll have to reboot into OS 9 to do so.

Elvin · Jul 31, 2001, 05:18 PM

That's a good point schwa, it also runs horribly under 'classic' in OS X on a G4, and especially on a G3 since it involves the graphics card so much. It's a pity though because it really is a fantastic game!

lythari · Aug 4, 2001, 03:52 AM

Have any of you found Summoner to be really buggy? When i'm loading a new map, there's a 30% chance that I'll get kicked out to the main menu. Also, there seems to be a 50% chance that summoner will crash when I lightning gets cast the first time.

I've checked the volition web site and while there's a patch for the PC version, there's nothing for the mac

Elvin · Aug 7, 2001, 07:49 PM

Hi Lythari,

I have tried Summoner on a iMac Rev B, iMac DV+ and a Cube and have not encountered any of those troubles that you wrote. I did however notice a few troubles on the Cube, but after reading through the readme, I found the problem was linked to it's Harmon Kardon speakers. So, all I can suggest is, re-read through the read-me for any pointers, e-mail Graph-Sim about your troubles, and in the mean time...when playing save as often as you can