KOTOR 1 & 2: what graphics card should I get?

Stofsk · Post by **Stofsk** » 2005-03-05 03:00pm

I want to play KOTOR 1 and 2, but I don't know which graphics card can work for both. So I put it to those who've played the PC game and can tell me: what card works alright for both? What can I get that's a nice range of power and affordability? I don't think I really need the $500 SuperCard that can walk the dog while it's displaying 3D goodness.

Oh yeah: no spoilers too, since I haven't played KOTOR 2.

Slartibartfast · Post by **Slartibartfast** » 2005-03-05 03:08pm

KotOR 1 worked fine with a Geforce2mx, a bit slow in big open outdoor areas (but nothing to cry about, and mostly only the starting city upper level). The swoop races were totally unplayable tho.

So I say anything more modern will do, an ATI 9200/9600 and higher, or whatever the equivalent is from nVidia.

Oh and I can get an ATI 9200 for about $65, a 9600 for about $95

I'm sure you can get these for less where you are.

Ace Pace · Post by **Ace Pace** » 2005-03-05 03:31pm

Slartibartfast wrote:KotOR 1 worked fine with a Geforce2mx, a bit slow in big open outdoor areas (but nothing to cry about, and mostly only the starting city upper level). The swoop races were totally unplayable tho.

So I say anything more modern will do, an ATI 9200/9600 and higher, or whatever the equivalent is from nVidia.

Oh and I can get an ATI 9200 for about $65, a 9600 for about $95
I'm sure you can get these for less where you are.

Yes, you can play it with a GF2MX or a GF4MX, but it will look like a dogs shit, take out 100$, get a 9600Pro, enjoy it, not too much power, but not too slow.

Slartibartfast · Post by **Slartibartfast** » 2005-03-05 03:52pm

Apparently your dog shits really pretty graphics then. What race is it?

namdoolb · Post by **namdoolb** » 2005-03-05 05:07pm

I've got an ATI Radeon 9000 Pro and it runs the game fine. with only one slight problem....

The game will on occasion crash and boot me back to desktop, but this only ever happens during loading sequences. I've learnt to save before entering any new area and it doesn't bother me as on Xp I can just reload the game and be playing again inside of a minute.

I've looked on the bioware forums, and the general consensus was that the game was a bit finicky with the ati drivers.

The moral is any ati card 9000 or above will run the game with few complaints. but be prepared as you may exprience similar troubles as I have done.
They never stopped me from completing the game(s) but it might get on your nerves after a while.

Datana · Post by **Datana** » 2005-03-05 07:29pm

ATi 9xxx cards also suffer from massive lag on Dantooine in both games if you're using the latest Catalysts. The fix is relatively easy, though -- dump the atioglxx.dll file from Catalyst 4.11 or earlier into the KOTOR/KOTOR2 base directory. 4.2 and earlier tend to crash after movies, leaving 4.3-4.11 as "safe." I've been running the game just fine with my Radeon 9500 Pro apart from this issue.

Dorsk 81 · Post by **Dorsk 81** » 2005-03-05 09:24pm

Will a GeForce FX 5200 work for both? Or atleast KotOR 1?

Slartibartfast · Post by **Slartibartfast** » 2005-03-05 09:37pm

Dorsk 81 wrote:Will a GeForce FX 5200 work for both? Or atleast KotOR 1?

Since it's newer and more expensive than the GeForce 2, I'd say yes. It's sorta on par with the Radeon 9200, while the FX 5700 (or was it 5600?) is more on the price range of the 9600. ATI tends to be a little bit cheaper and give more bang for the buck, but has more compatibility and driver problems than nVidia.

Stofsk · Post by **Stofsk** » 2005-03-06 04:14pm

How would an ATI 9250 handle KOTOR 1 and 2?

Arthur_Tuxedo · Post by **Arthur_Tuxedo** » 2005-03-06 04:19pm

Budget cards are not a good investment. They'll run the current games fine, but next year you'll just have to upgrade again. Get a 9800 pro or a GeForce 6600 or 6600 GT. They're not much more expensive, and you won't have to upgrade again for 2-4 years.

Slartibartfast · Post by **Slartibartfast** » 2005-03-06 05:09pm

Maybe, but next year those cards will cost half and you will have lost nothing. And 3 times the price isn't exactly "just a bit more".

Crazy_Vasey · Post by **Crazy_Vasey** » 2005-03-06 05:24pm

Datana wrote:ATi 9xxx cards also suffer from massive lag on Dantooine in both games if you're using the latest Catalysts. The fix is relatively easy, though -- dump the atioglxx.dll file from Catalyst 4.11 or earlier into the KOTOR/KOTOR2 base directory. 4.2 and earlier tend to crash after movies, leaving 4.3-4.11 as "safe." I've been running the game just fine with my Radeon 9500 Pro apart from this issue.

I don't suppose you could point me in the direction of a website where I could obtain this DLL?

Datana · Post by **Datana** » 2005-03-06 09:48pm

Crazy_Vasey wrote:I don't suppose you could point me in the direction of a website where I could obtain this DLL?

Teamhota has the DLL ready for you to dump into your KOTOR/KOTOR2 directory, but it's the Windows 2000/XP version of the file (it won't work if you're running under Windows 9x/ME). Otherwise, your best bet is to download an older Catalyst set and expand the file yourself (kind of a waste of bandwidth, I know).

Ace Pace · Post by **Ace Pace** » 2005-03-07 12:36am

Arthur_Tuxedo wrote:Budget cards are not a good investment. They'll run the current games fine, but next year you'll just have to upgrade again. Get a 9800 pro or a GeForce 6600 or 6600 GT. They're not much more expensive, and you won't have to upgrade again for 2-4 years.

If its just for RPG's, a 9600 would be fine for him, no need to drop 150-200$.

Arthur_Tuxedo · Post by **Arthur_Tuxedo** » 2005-03-07 01:23am

*shrug* It's a matter of personal preference, of course, and there's no arguing that, but I've found the "yesteryear's cream of the crop" segment to be the sweet spot. The gaming experience is just as good as the $500 cards for the short term, and the card will last sometimes twice as long as the budget cards before you start having to turn all the features off and drop resolution to 640 x 480. For adding an extra ~50% to the cost, this seems well worth it. Besides, KOTOR 2 isn't any less graphics-intensive than most other new games.

Stofsk · Post by **Stofsk** » 2005-03-07 02:51am

What is the difference between a ATI 9600 SE, and the same but with XT as the suffix? [EDIT] Or PRO, for that matter.

Aside from the extra $150 more thrown on top. Oh, and the fact he only has the 9600 XT available. (there should be a whole list between 9250 and 9600XT)

Stofsk · Post by **Stofsk** » 2005-03-07 03:14am

Stofsk wrote:How would an ATI 9250 handle KOTOR 1 and 2?

So... uh, did anyone want to answer this rather pertinent question I have?

Arthur_Tuxedo · Post by **Arthur_Tuxedo** » 2005-03-07 03:15am

The 9600 SE and 9600 are crippled in comparison to the Pro and XT. The Pro is close enough to the XT that you probably won't notice any difference. Really, though, if you're looking in that category, you should bite the bullet and go for the 9800 pro or 6600. The price difference is very small, and the performance difference is enormous.

Stofsk · Post by **Stofsk** » 2005-03-07 03:34am

OK, done. I placed the order for an ATI 9600 XT. (it was selling for $250 AUD and to get 9800 PRO would have been $379. Just because mum had some money accumulated doesn't mean I can splurge to that amount, and frankly I'm going to have to chip in anyway to cover part of the cost)

Thank you all for your contributions to this thread. I don't think I could have reached a decision as promptly as I did without the feedback I received. Thanks.

Datana · Post by **Datana** » 2005-03-07 03:43am

Stofsk wrote:
Stofsk wrote:How would an ATI 9250 handle KOTOR 1 and 2?
So... uh, did anyone want to answer this rather pertinent question I have?

You'll have to keep special features (antialiasing, anisotropic filtering) low or off, as well as disabling some special effects, but it should be at least functional. I'd be hesitant to get the 9600 or 9600 SE, as both are relatively slow themselves. The 9600 Pro is probably the lowest-end card I'd recommend if you're buying now (it would handle most current games fine, but probably can't keep up with hi-res HL2 or Doom 3), with the 6600GT on the outside end of your budget (but with a more than matching performance increase to go with it). You might be able to find a 9700 Pro or 9800 Pro for a good price, though, if anyone is clearing them out. My own 9500 Pro was a middle-end card when it came out, and is only now starting to show its age (it still outperforms the 9600 XT, but gets taxed by some of Far Cry and HL2's graphics).

EDIT: Ah, I see that you've already come to a decision. The 9600 XT would definitely handle the KOTOR games well.