[foobar]

Why are static shadows displayed incorrectly?


Problem:
Especially with ATI X19xx cards but also some other hardware, it can happen that RISEN wrongly displays static shadows.

Screenshots: [1] [2] [3]

Solutions:
There are currently two solutions:

• Use an older driver. For ATI cards, the catalyst driver 7.8 seems to be recommendable: Catalyst 7.8 (Win XP 32bit).
  Other older driver versions are available hier.
• Change the setting for the shadow rendering in the configuration file. Set the parameter

  EnableTerrainShadows="true"

  to

  EnableTerrainShadows="false".

[foobar]

The game asks me for an activation code when I try to start it. Where can I find it?


If purchased a download version of Risen (i.e. from Steam, Gamesload, etc.), then the online shop where you downloaded the game should have provided you with a valid activation code. If you have lost it, try to contact their support.


If you purchased a retail version of Risen (a DVD with a manual in a box), you have to insert the DVD in the drive to play the game. An online activation is not available for this version. If the game asks for a code nonetheless, this is because the copy protection (Tagès) supports such an activition. But Deep Silver has not utilised this option. You cannot activate a retail version. Should the game continue to nag you about a code, this is in fact a problem with the DVD recognition. See our FAQ entry for this problem.

[foobar]

How can I find out about my current frame rate in the game?


There is no cheat code or other ingame function for this that we currently know of. You have to rely on external tools. For example, the old version 1.9 of Fraps is available for free and can do this.

[foobar]

I have a graphics card from ATI/AMD and experience display glitches. What can I do?


Symptoms:

• Missing or transparent textures (objects, clothing, etc.)
• Stripes or artefacts in textures
• Stripes or artefacts in shadows
• any other display glitch

Solution:

Open the control center for the Catalyst driver of your card and deactivate all picture enhancement functions, especially the "Catalyst A.I." and anti-aliasing function.

[foobar]

Why do I get the message "Out of memory" (SmartHeap Library)?


Symptoms:

You have a 64bit system and probably installed some Risen mods. During startup or while playing the game, an error message from the SmartHeap library pops up telling you that you're out of memory.

Cause:

Unknown. It's possible that due to the mods, the virtual address space for the 32bit subsystem of Windows x64 reaches its limit. Sometimes, the problem also occurs on 32bit systems if there is a lot of memory usage by mods.

Workaround:

Download the 4GB-Patcher and use it on the risen.exe. You should probably make a backup of it first so that you can return to the original state any time. The file will be permanently changed by the patcher so you only have to apply the patch once for each installation of the game.

If you don't have a 64bit system, your only hope is to deinstall mods until the game works again. Start with those that replace textures with higher quality ones.

[foobar]

Why does the hero sometimes get stuck in mid-air when jumping or falling?


Symptoms:

When you jump or fall from somewhere, it appears as if the hero lands on some invisible object half-way down to the ground. Maybe he can even walk a few steps on it, before he finally continues his fall to the ground.

Cause:

It seems to be a problem with the collision detection but the exact cause is not known. The problem only occurs when the framerate of the graphics card is too high.

Workaround:

Open the NVidia driver control and activate “Vertical sync” (set it to “on” or better yet “adaptive”, if available). This will limit the framerate to that of your monitor, which in case of LCDs means 60 Hz.

[foobar]

Do I really need NVidia’s PhysX? Even if I have an AMD graphics card?


Answer:

Yes! You need PhysX in any event! No matter which graphics card you are using!

PhysX is a library for physics calculations. While those calculations can be delegated to the graphics chip on NVidia cards, resulting in much more physical effects possible, that is only optional. If there is no NVidia card, then the calculation will be done by the CPU. If you do not have PhysX installed, the game cannot do its physics math and will not work.