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[jth]

Originally Posted by MV75

Yes it is difficult from the get-go. I play with a party transferred from doomsday myself.

There should be a difficulty setting option in the rest menu somewhere.

So, how do I import a party from Doomsday?

Every time I try I get a 'save game error'

I'm using DOSbox and mounting drive c: as the directory in which both the Doomsday and the Matrix folders are found, should I be doing something different?

[humorguy]

You can get the manula,the logbook, the cluebook and the quick reference card for this game from replacementdocs now.

Originally Posted by jth

So, how do I import a party from Doomsday?

Every time I try I get a 'save game error'

I'm using DOSbox and mounting drive c: as the directory in which both the Doomsday and the Matrix folders are found, should I be doing something different?

Delete the configuration file before starting the game from DOSbox. It's called MATRIX.CFG (and for Countdown to Doomsday it's BUCK.CFG). Upon restarting the game you will be asked what your configuration is, select the appropriate (VGA, Soundblaster, etc.) and a new config-file will be created. During these questions you will be able to specify a save game path.

[Maxor127]

I still need to finish this game. I'm disappointed by the PC speaker sounds. I wish someone could hack the game to add in better sounds. It's frustrating when the Commodore 64 version has better sounds, but this version has better graphics. I stopped playing when I got mad that there was a door I couldn't pick and apparently I was just a tiny bit under the skill limit and I couldn't find a cheat program to raise my lockpicking or whatever skill that game uses. If anyone knows of one, let me know.

[Gargantou]

Hi guys, I was wondering if anyone here would happen to have an archive of the original install disk for this game?

Might sound a bit nutty but I'm collecting the original release(disk copies) of all the Gold Box games, and am lacking the two Buck Rogers ones.

Once again, it's an archive(RAR or ZIP) of the original INSTALL disk that I am looking for, not the pre-installed game available here on Abandonia!

Thanks for any help!

[CatherineMcClarey]

Originally Posted by Maxor127

I still need to finish this game. I'm disappointed by the PC speaker sounds. I wish someone could hack the game to add in better sounds. It's frustrating when the Commodore 64 version has better sounds, but this version has better graphics. I stopped playing when I got mad that there was a door I couldn't pick and apparently I was just a tiny bit under the skill limit and I couldn't find a cheat program to raise my lockpicking or whatever skill that game uses. If anyone knows of one, let me know.

An earlier poster suggested removing the MATRIX.CFG file from the installed game before playing it for the first time. This not only allows one to load a saved game from Coundown to Doomsday, but also allows you to specify graphics and sound options. I did this (mainly because I wanted to import my characters from the earlier game), and I've been able to play Matrix Cubed with VGA graphics and SoundBlaster music and sound effects, just like the YouTube videos of this game show.

I know I got through the ratwurst den in Losangelorg (to save the children, of course!) when I originally played this from the floppy disk version decades ago, but it's been a long time since then. When the whole party can attack them, it's not really a problem, but to actually rescue the kids, 1 character has to go through a tunnel and tackle about 5 or 6 of them single-handed. My Desert Runner warrior has plenty of grenades and a grenade launcher, but after that first grenade has been switching to her lighter weapons -- and getting killed by the rats before she can finish them off. Since she's got the highest STR score of anyone in the party, perhaps I should also give her a rocket launcher or plasma thrower temporarily, so she can give the rats a dose of that, then a grenade, and then switch to the lighter weapons? Which of the lighter weapons are most effective against unarmored but nimble animals like ratwurst? They seem to dodge a lot of needle gun shots (and probably would bolt gun shots, too, since they work the same way), so I've been trying laser pistols & rocket pistols instead (for the high rate of fire). Another character has a microwave gun, which only seems to be useful against unarmored animals, so perhaps I could give that to my warrior, too.
Any suggestions?

[CatherineMcClarey]

One of the last things your character party needs to do before leaving the RAM prison on Mars is to rescue Scott.dos (the digital personality that's been advising your party throughout both Buck Rogers games) from the digital sharks hunting him down in the prison's computer. In order to do this, a character has to make:
A) A successful Programming roll to access the computer;
B) Up to 5 successful Programming rolls to shut down the data cells; and
C) Up to another 5 successful Programming rolls to find the one where Scott.dos is.
If multiple characters in the party have Programming skill, you are given the option to have a second character attempt to complete all this; however, a second failed Programming roll in a row means that Scott.dos is "dead."
My problem is that I only had 1 character develop Programming skill, and it's only at a pretty mediocre level (33%); thus, it's extremely difficult (maybe impossible) for her to succeed at that many Programming rolls in a row.
If anyone is just starting one or the other of SSI's Buck Rogers games, a word of advice: It's possible to "muddle through" a lot in these games (especially in Countdown to Doomsday) with minimal to mediocre skills, but not here in the Mars Prison area. Be more long-term-thinking in your party's skills development than I was, and develop at least 1 character with the highest possible Programming skill (2 if you can manage it!).
If anyone's already completed this game not too long ago -- is it possible to complete the game if Scott.dos does get eaten by the digital sharks?

[CatherineMcClarey]

Originally Posted by CatherineMcClarey

One of the last things your character party needs to do before leaving the RAM prison on Mars is to rescue Scott.dos (the digital personality that's been advising your party throughout both Buck Rogers games) from the digital sharks hunting him down in the prison's computer. In order to do this, a character has to make:
A) A successful Programming roll to access the computer;
B) Up to 5 successful Programming rolls to shut down the data cells; and
C) Up to another 5 successful Programming rolls to find the one where Scott.dos is.
If multiple characters in the party have Programming skill, you are given the option to have a second character attempt to complete all this; however, a second failed Programming roll in a row means that Scott.dos is "dead."
My problem is that I only had 1 character develop Programming skill, and it's only at a pretty mediocre level (33%); thus, it's extremely difficult (maybe impossible) for her to succeed at that many Programming rolls in a row.
If anyone is just starting one or the other of SSI's Buck Rogers games, a word of advice: It's possible to "muddle through" a lot in these games (especially in Countdown to Doomsday) with minimal to mediocre skills, but not here in the Mars Prison area. Be more long-term-thinking in your party's skills development than I was, and develop at least 1 character with the highest possible Programming skill (2 if you can manage it!).
If anyone's already completed this game not too long ago -- is it possible to complete the game if Scott.dos does get eaten by the digital sharks?

It looks like your PCs can try again to complete the job of shutting down all of the data cells in the RAM prison's computer (at least once at each of the 4 terminals in the room), so it may be possible to get part of the job done, save that much (at a different save position than the one just before you started the process), and repeat at each terminal until the job's done. There seems to be a maximum of 6 attempts allowed, though, before you get the dreaded message that "Scott.dos is dead." Thus, this room may be merely insanely difficult to complete successfully (rather than impossible), if you only have 1 PC with Programming skill, and only at a mediocre level like mine.
(That thumping noise you may be hearing is me banging my head against the wall over this silly thing!)

[CatherineMcClarey]

Originally Posted by CatherineMcClarey

It looks like your PCs can try again to complete the job of shutting down all of the data cells in the RAM prison's computer (at least once at each of the 4 terminals in the room), so it may be possible to get part of the job done, save that much (at a different save position than the one just before you started the process), and repeat at each terminal until the job's done. There seems to be a maximum of 6 attempts allowed, though, before you get the dreaded message that "Scott.dos is dead." Thus, this room may be merely insanely difficult to complete successfully (rather than impossible), if you only have 1 PC with Programming skill, and only at a mediocre level like mine.
(That thumping noise you may be hearing is me banging my head against the wall over this silly thing!)

If I get frustrated enough, I could just reload my saved character party from Countdown to Doomsday and restart Matrix Cubed from scratch. I was thinking how nice it would be to have a skills list table one could mark up offline with which PC has what skill, and at what level. Printing out or copying the section on Skills from the Matrix Cubed logbook (p. 9-13 of the original book/p. 7-9 of the ReplacementDocs scanned PDF version) accomplishes a lot of that, although setting that list up as a chart (database?/handdrawn on graph paper?) with columns for each PC to mark their levels in each skill, would be even better. Having the "big picture" in front of you like that would certainly help in building a balanced and successful character party.

[Saccade]

I have a solution for this, but it involves a hex editor and messing with your game files to change stats and stuff.

Not sure if that is that's what yr after.

biddybiddybiddy.


NB - this photo was taken *before* Megan's law came into effect.