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Difference between revisions of "Grand Theft Auto IV"

From PCGamingWiki, the wiki about fixing PC games
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'''USES GFWL'''
 
'''USES GFWL'''
  
'''''Grand Theft Auto IV''''' (Also known as '''''GTA IV''''') is an open world action-adventure game published by Rockstar Games. Two pieces of DLC has been published so far, "<code>The Lost and Damned</code>" and "<code>The Ballad of Gay Tony</code>".
+
'''''Grand Theft Auto IV''''' ('''''GTA IV''''') is an open world action-adventure game published by Rockstar Games. Two DLC sets have been released so far: ''The Lost and Damned'' and ''The Ballad of Gay Tony''.
  
The game was written primarily for consoles and the PC port is not of a high quality. However, for those who can get it running, there are many mods availible, some of which are spectacular.
+
The game was written primarily for consoles and the PC port is not of a high quality. However, for those who can get it running, there are many mods availible, some of which provide spectacular game and graphic improvements and alterations.
  
 
==Patches==
 
==Patches==
 +
It is useful to know that, when patching, you only need to install the version you need, rather than all previous patches beforehand.
 +
 
===Non-Steam Version===
 
===Non-Steam Version===
Latest: [http://updates.rockstargames.com/patches/gtaiv/title_update_7_EN.zip 1.0.7.0]<br />Best for modding: [http://www.gta-downloads.com/en/gta4/patches/12084-gta4-pc-official-patch-5-version-1004.html 1.0.0.4] or [http://www.gta-downloads.com/en/gta4/patches/9083-gta4-pc-official-patch-4-version-1040.html 1.0.4.0]
+
* Latest: [http://updates.rockstargames.com/patches/gtaiv/title_update_7_EN.zip 1.0.7.0]
 +
* Best for modding: [http://www.gta-downloads.com/en/gta4/patches/12084-gta4-pc-official-patch-5-version-1004.html 1.0.0.4] or [http://www.gta-downloads.com/en/gta4/patches/9083-gta4-pc-official-patch-4-version-1040.html 1.0.4.0]
  
 
==Tweaks==
 
==Tweaks==
 
 
===Graphical Memory Restrictions===
 
===Graphical Memory Restrictions===
 
The GTA IV graphics settings work on the concept of a "memory budget". As you turn up the settings, you near your memory budget. If you wish to remove the restrictions on your memory budget, follow these steps:
 
The GTA IV graphics settings work on the concept of a "memory budget". As you turn up the settings, you near your memory budget. If you wish to remove the restrictions on your memory budget, follow these steps:
Line 38: Line 40:
 
[http://www.mediafire.com/?3tk3a90qvbnyvsl No Intro Fix]
 
[http://www.mediafire.com/?3tk3a90qvbnyvsl No Intro Fix]
  
==ATI Rain Effects Glitch==
+
===Command Line===
 +
{|class="wikitable"
 +
!Command Line !! What it does !! Example Usage
 +
|-
 +
| width  ||  sets the horizontal resolution  || <code> -width 1280</code>
 +
|-
 +
| height  ||  sets the vertical resolution  || <code> -height 720</code>
 +
|-
 +
| texturequality  ||  changes texture quality low/med/high (0-2)  || <code> -texturequality 1</code>
 +
|-
 +
| shadowdensity  ||  adjusts shadows thrown up by car lights (0-16)  || <code> -shadowdensity 3</code>
 +
|-
 +
| renderquality  ||  adjusts the render quality of the game (0- 4)  || <code> -renderquality 3</code>
 +
|-
 +
| viewdistance  ||  adjusts the view distance (0-99)  || <code> -viewdistance 25</code>
 +
|-
 +
| detailquality  ||  adjusts the detail distance (0-99)  || <code> -detailquality 30</code>
 +
|-
 +
| norestrictions  ||  removes memory restrictions on graphic settings  || <code> -norestrictions</code>
 +
|-
 +
| novblank  ||  removes good ole v-sync  || <code> -novblank</code>
 +
|-
 +
| safemode  ||  runs GTA 4 with everything set to as low as you can go  || <code> -safemode</code>
 +
|-
 +
| fullscreen  ||  runs GTA 4 fullscreen  || <code> -fullscreen</code>
 +
|-
 +
| windowed  ||  runs GTA 4 windowed  || <code> -windowed</code>
 +
|-
 +
| availablevidmem  ||  allocates some system ram as additional vram  || <code> -availablevidmem 1.5</code>
 +
|-
 +
| percentvidmem  ||  how much vram of your gpu GTA 4 can use, 1.0 will be all of it and 0.5 will be half  || <code> -percentvidmem 0.5</code>
 +
|-
 +
| frameLimit  ||  limits your framerate to the refresh rate  || <code> -frameLimit 1</code>
 +
|-
 +
|refreshrate || adjusts the refresh rate (oddly enough) be careful do not set a refresh rate your monitor can't do || <code>-refreshrate 60</code>
 +
|-
 +
| fullspecaudio  ||  enable high-end cpu audio  || <code> -fullspecaudio</code>
 +
|-
 +
| minspecaudio  ||  enable low-end cpu audio  || <code> -minspecaudio</code>
 +
|-
 +
| noprecache  ||  turns precache off  || <code> -noprecache</code>
 +
|-
 +
| nomemrestrict  ||  turns all memory restrictions off  || <code> -nomemrestrict</code>
 +
|-
 +
| benchmark  ||  starts the in game benchmark and then quits the game  || <code> -benchmark</code>
 +
|-
 +
|help || lists the commands and usage but doesn't look as snazzy as this || <code>-help</code>
 +
|}
 +
 
 +
==Save Game Data==
 +
{{Save Game Locations
 +
|os_1=Windows XP SP3
 +
|os_1_location=C:\Documents and Settings\<user>\Local Settings\Application Data\Rockstar Games\GTA IV\savegames
 +
|os_2=Windows Vista<br>Windows 7
 +
|os_2_location=C:\Users\<user>\AppData\Local\Rockstar Games\GTA IV\savegames
 +
}}
 +
 
 +
==Issues and Fixes==
 +
===ATI Rain Effects Glitch===
  
 
There is a problem with ATI 69xx (6950, 6970, 6990) cards and drivers at the moment. (And there has been for some time.) The rain shader in GTA IV causes spontaneous red, green, sometimes white starbursts while it is raining. Don't worry! These aren't really artifacts, but a shader bug.
 
There is a problem with ATI 69xx (6950, 6970, 6990) cards and drivers at the moment. (And there has been for some time.) The rain shader in GTA IV causes spontaneous red, green, sometimes white starbursts while it is raining. Don't worry! These aren't really artifacts, but a shader bug.
Line 60: Line 120:
 
|recGPU1 = NVIDIA GeForce 8600 GS 512 MB or ATi Radeon HD 3870 512 MB
 
|recGPU1 = NVIDIA GeForce 8600 GS 512 MB or ATi Radeon HD 3870 512 MB
 
}}
 
}}
 +
 +
==Mac/Linux==
 +
It is possible to run GTA IV on *nix systems via [[Wine]]. It is suggested that you run the game using [[Wineskin]].
 +
===XLiveLess===
 +
Due to current limitations, GFWL will not work (Wine is not yet fully compatible with .NET 3.5), so an XLiveLess fix must be applied to the game for it to work.
 +
# Download the XLiveLess <code>xlive.dll</code> file: [http://www.gtavision.com/index.php?section=downloads&site=filedl&DLID=2914 xlive.dll 0.999-beta7 29 May 2010]
 +
# Place xlive.dll in the root game folder:
 +
#: For Steam users, this is <code>/Program Files/Steam/steamapps/common/Grand Theft Auto IV/GTAIV</code>
 +
#: Otherwise, it should be something like <code>/Program Files/Grand Theft Auto IV/GTAIV</code>
 +
# Ensure that you run <code>LaunchGTAIV.exe</code> rather than <code>GTAIV.exe</code> when starting the game, or you will encounter anti-piracy game effects
  
 
==See Also==
 
==See Also==

Revision as of 21:58, 12 May 2012

This page is a stub: it lacks content and/or basic article components. You can help to expand this page by adding an image or additional information.

Template:Infobox

USES GFWL

Grand Theft Auto IV (GTA IV) is an open world action-adventure game published by Rockstar Games. Two DLC sets have been released so far: The Lost and Damned and The Ballad of Gay Tony.

The game was written primarily for consoles and the PC port is not of a high quality. However, for those who can get it running, there are many mods availible, some of which provide spectacular game and graphic improvements and alterations.

Patches

It is useful to know that, when patching, you only need to install the version you need, rather than all previous patches beforehand.

Non-Steam Version

Tweaks

Graphical Memory Restrictions

The GTA IV graphics settings work on the concept of a "memory budget". As you turn up the settings, you near your memory budget. If you wish to remove the restrictions on your memory budget, follow these steps:

  1. Navigate to your GTA IV installation directory. (Usually located in "C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\Grand Theft Auto IV\GTAIV" (for a 64 bit Steam installation) or "C:\Program Files\Steam\steamapps\common\Grand Theft Auto IV\GTAIV" (for a 32 bit Steam installation).
  2. Create a file called "commandline.txt" and add:
    -nomemrestrict

Windowed Mode

If you wish to run the game in windowed mode, follow these steps:

  1. Right click on the game in your Steam library and select "Properties" then click on the button that says: "SET LAUNCH OPTIONS..."
  2. Add:
    -windowed
  3. Press: "OK"

No Intro Fix

No Intro Fix

Command Line

Command Line What it does Example Usage
width sets the horizontal resolution -width 1280
height sets the vertical resolution -height 720
texturequality changes texture quality low/med/high (0-2) -texturequality 1
shadowdensity adjusts shadows thrown up by car lights (0-16) -shadowdensity 3
renderquality adjusts the render quality of the game (0- 4) -renderquality 3
viewdistance adjusts the view distance (0-99) -viewdistance 25
detailquality adjusts the detail distance (0-99) -detailquality 30
norestrictions removes memory restrictions on graphic settings -norestrictions
novblank removes good ole v-sync -novblank
safemode runs GTA 4 with everything set to as low as you can go -safemode
fullscreen runs GTA 4 fullscreen -fullscreen
windowed runs GTA 4 windowed -windowed
availablevidmem allocates some system ram as additional vram -availablevidmem 1.5
percentvidmem how much vram of your gpu GTA 4 can use, 1.0 will be all of it and 0.5 will be half -percentvidmem 0.5
frameLimit limits your framerate to the refresh rate -frameLimit 1
refreshrate adjusts the refresh rate (oddly enough) be careful do not set a refresh rate your monitor can't do -refreshrate 60
fullspecaudio enable high-end cpu audio -fullspecaudio
minspecaudio enable low-end cpu audio -minspecaudio
noprecache turns precache off -noprecache
nomemrestrict turns all memory restrictions off -nomemrestrict
benchmark starts the in game benchmark and then quits the game -benchmark
help lists the commands and usage but doesn't look as snazzy as this -help

Save Game Data

Template:Save Game Locations

Issues and Fixes

ATI Rain Effects Glitch

There is a problem with ATI 69xx (6950, 6970, 6990) cards and drivers at the moment. (And there has been for some time.) The rain shader in GTA IV causes spontaneous red, green, sometimes white starbursts while it is raining. Don't worry! These aren't really artifacts, but a shader bug.

There is a quick workaround. It involves disabling the lighting shader on rain.

  • Open your GTA folder (Usually C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\Grand Theft Auto IV\GTA IV)
  • Navigate to common\data\visualSettings.dat and open it with your favorite text editing software.
  • Scroll down to line 20 or so under "#Values for rain GPU particle effect" and change "rain.UseLitShader 1.0" to "rain.UseLitShader 0"
  • Play your game!

System Requirements

Template:SysReq

Mac/Linux

It is possible to run GTA IV on *nix systems via Wine. It is suggested that you run the game using Wineskin.

XLiveLess

Due to current limitations, GFWL will not work (Wine is not yet fully compatible with .NET 3.5), so an XLiveLess fix must be applied to the game for it to work.

  1. Download the XLiveLess xlive.dll file: xlive.dll 0.999-beta7 29 May 2010
  2. Place xlive.dll in the root game folder:
    For Steam users, this is /Program Files/Steam/steamapps/common/Grand Theft Auto IV/GTAIV
    Otherwise, it should be something like /Program Files/Grand Theft Auto IV/GTAIV
  3. Ensure that you run LaunchGTAIV.exe rather than GTAIV.exe when starting the game, or you will encounter anti-piracy game effects

See Also