RT3 running on Windows 10

[Gumboots]

Makes a big difference to a map. You should also notice better shades everywhere. Without dgVoodoo, the Berkshire I made ages ago is so flat-looking that I never noticed some of the normals were flipped the wrong way. As soon as I got dgVoodoo running I could see them. IOW, it's not just water that gets better effects. Every asset in the game gets better effects.

[Hawk]

I haven't actually played a map yet but I did fire one up and to me the rivers don't look as good as I remember them.
I'm going to have to do a comparison with and without the VooDoo thing again some day soon.

I do know that the longer I use Win 7, the less I like it. I've been using it for about 4 months now and I'm close to being ready to go back to XP, so the whole VooDoo thing may soon be irrelevant for me.

[Akarin]

Comparison screenshots are here. It's harder to quantify the performance improvement, but everybody reported an improvement. We should expect it too, thanks to more CPU resources for things other than graphics.

What to do with existing patches?
The only one you need to manually remove is the texture fix. The res patch will still work perfectly. The Vista Fix is simply a way to switch the "Disable Hardware T&L" switch without starting the game. It's very easy to undo that!

The download site has a couple links to documentation first. Just look for the one called "dgVoodoo v2.54"
When opening the zip you will have some readmes, dgVoodooCpl, and two folders.
Place dgVoodooCpl on your desktop.
Run this.
Under DirectX settings, make sure to set VRAM to 1024MB (this is analogous to the texture fix). Can turn the watermark off too. Can "Force vSync" to stabilize frame rates.

Now go into the MS folder of the zip.
Select D3D8.dll
Place that in your game folder
Run the game
Go to graphics settings and turn off the "Disable Hardware T&L" switch.
Restart the game.
You're done.

I really appreciate this post. I was getting rather confused reading through the various fixes, but you summed it up perfectly with easy to follow directions for my situation. I really appreciate that. Your screenshots convinced me so I gave it a try. I got everything running perfectly and the game looks fantastic. I had completely forgotten about water reflections, that's a nice treat to have back. I never had great computers to play this on back when this game was new so I was always playing on low settings. And two years ago when I installed it on a "gaming" computer and found this site I had thought the blurry textures were normal. Never thought about how good it should have looked.
Frame rate now stays around 60. With the VistaFix it was into the one hundreds, but varied a lot more (I didn't notice any visual problems with that, but I don't need more than 60 fps in this game anyway). I'm assuming this is normal, but before I switched off the "Disable Hardware T&L" switch, I had no ground, similar to the screenshot here http://hawkdawg.com/forums/viewtopic.ph ... doo#p44201 Went away after turning off the "Disable Hardware T&L" switch of course. I havn't played long enough to run into any problems though, but I'm hopeful.

Out of curiosity, if I wanted to make changes to the settings within dgVoodooCpl, would I have to recopy the D3D8.dll file into game directory for them to take effect in the game? Asking because I don't see how that dll file remains connected with the dgVoodoo program once you move it (or in my case copy it).

[RulerofRails]

Out of curiosity, if I wanted to make changes to the settings within dgVoodooCpl, would I have to recopy the D3D8.dll file into game directory for them to take effect in the game?

No need for that, you don't even need to restart the game.

It uses a config file, that is created in your appdata folder the first time you run dgVoodooCpl. The localization feature means that it actually prefers to look for this config file in the folder where it (the dll) is or the one where the EXE is first. This way you can have different settings for different games. If you want more details look at section 6 in the manual.

I'm happy you got it working easily. Enjoy.

[tek1979]

Hey guys,
Been playing RRT3 on an old XP PC but now I'm investigating how to do it on windows 10 as Steam will no longer work in XP, I have found several work arounds for most of the legacy games I play BUT this is the only place I can find clear information about getting RRT3 working, only problem I have run into is when I download and insert (rename and copy) the 1.03 patch into my RRT3 folder I get an error message asking me to insert the CD, considering I'm using steam I don't have the CD.

I was hoping somebody could give me some help cause this has got me confused

[Hawk]

Try rebooting the computer and see if that helps.

[Silverback]

Hey guys,
Been playing RRT3 on an old XP PC but now I'm investigating how to do it on windows 10 as Steam will no longer work in XP, I have found several work arounds for most of the legacy games I play BUT this is the only place I can find clear information about getting RRT3 working, only problem I have run into is when I download and insert (rename and copy) the 1.03 patch into my RRT3 folder I get an error message asking me to insert the CD, considering I'm using steam I don't have the CD.

I was hoping somebody could give me some help cause this has got me confused

The 1.03 patch isn't needed - I presume you are trying to tun off T&L? - Isn't the steam version already patched to 1.05 anyway? The 1.03 patch will be for a CD/DVD version of the game and DRM enabled.

If the game crashes at startup then try replacing the file engine.cfg in one of the game folders (keep a copy of your current file though) by the direct method - there was a copy of engine.cfg on this site at one point but may have gone AWOl when the files were transferred to mediafire. There is a link to a copy on http://www.thegameengine.org/railroad-tycoon-3/ - use the "local copy" from the site. There are also instructions. This should turn off T&L in the configuration as this may be a problem with Nvidia graphics.

The GOG (good old games) version comes with T&L turned off I believe. I much prefer GOG to Steam for any old games.

[tek1979]

I deleted the steam local files, then deleted the left over files, re-installed it and it worked :)

[Gumboots]

Well, I managed to get RT3 running from scratch on Windows 10. What ultimately worked for me is this:

• Start with an original game disc (v1.04)

• Install to a folder on desktop (do not Install DirectX 8 when asked)

• Install CtC Expansion patch

• Install v1.05 patch

• Install No_CD patch

Try running the game at this point, and get instant CTD. So...

• Install "Vista fix"

Game now runs, but of course looks pretty crappy, so...

• Install dgVoodoo 2.6.3

• Fire game up, enable "Hardware T&L" (ie: get rid of "Vista fix")

Result: game now runs without Vista fix, but still looks like crap. Different sort of crap though. Breaking waves are going about twice as fast as normal, oceans look muddy, etc, etc. So...

• Decide to ignore official dgVoodoo instructions and try an experiment

• Instructions for dgVoodoo on 64 Bit OS say to use one file (D3D9.dll) from the MS/x64 folder

• Instructions for dgVoodoo on 32 Bit OS say to use all four files from the MS/x86 folder

• The experiment was to use all four files from MS/x86, even though I'm running 64 bit W10.

Result: Success! It works. Game runs, with perfect shading and animations.
Only problem now is that with a new 2560x1440 monitor, the default maximum game resolution of 1600x900 looks pretty rough and blurry. So...

• Play around with dgVoodoo settings

• Oh dear, they don't seem to do much. Res still blurry.

• So, give up on trying to force res via dgVoodoo, and just edit engine.cfg to 2560x1440

This works really well. The game looks great. Only catch is that it will obviously turn to crap if I go into windowed mode, so I made another folder inside Configuration to hold a backup copy of the edited engine.cfg. This means all I have to do is exit the game, copy/paste the backup file from Configuration/Cfg_2560 to Configuration, and restart the game. Hey presto, perfect native resolution again.

---

This is all with an nVidia GTX 1050 graphics card (4 gig RAM). dgVoodoo is set to its default card emulation, and a virtual 2048 meg of RAM. For some reason I can't seem to get rid of the dgVoodoo watermark, but that's not really a big deal.

The good news is that with a 4 gig GPU and various other modern thingummies (faster motherboard, solid state hard drive, etc) the game runs faultlessly at a decent frame rate even with 100 trains that have higher poly locos and cargo cars than the defaults. It's noticeably better in terms of frame rate than the old box, even with the much higher resolution. It'll be interesting to see how it handles 200 trains.

[Hawk]

• Start with an original game disc (v1.04)

Just being a little nit-picky here:
I'm pretty sure the original game disk is V-1.00 and C to C is V-1.04

Other than that, congratulations!!!!

[Gumboots]

The disc I have is definitely v1.04. It's not the original first disc ever, but is an OEM PopTop disc. It comes with the 1.05 patch as an optional extra, but doesn't come with CtC as an extra. So the disc's main version is 1.04 (even says so in the readme file) and they don't seem to count CtC as a version in itself.

[Hawk]

Ah! OK! The 2-disc set I have is V-1.0. That's what I was going by.

Interesting your disc doesn't count C to C as V-1.04.

[Gumboots]

Yes it's odd, but I'm used to RT3 being odd. As long as it all works I'm not going to lose any sleep over it.

[kamyFC]

Thanks all for the extensive documentation here that enabled me to install RRT3 on Windows 10 in September 2021
1) Ensure you download the 1.0.5 patch and stay updated
2) I did not download the Unofficial 1.0.6 - Worried if some old maps wont work?
3) For 1920*1080 resolution download 2 ZIP files from this thread
viewtopic.php?f=5&t=3128&start=20
- Custom_resolutions_engine_cfg.zip
- voodoo_dll_files.zip
Place the Voodoo DLL's in the installation folder and Place the 1920*1080p config.cfg file in 'Railroad Tycoon 3\Data\Configuration'
4) Run the game and you see the Voodoo text in bottom right. Also the resolution in the settings dialog - says 640*480. But we are in 1080p!
Also the 'disable hardware T&L' checkbox is unchecked, which is what we want - This ensures the GPU is used too.
5) Started a scenario and the graphics are improved dramatically, the water and waves are beautiful! There are day and night cycles and you see the building lights come on at night and they look great! This shows that my video card (GTX 980 with 4 GB VRAM) is doing some work.

Thanks all and hope this summary is useful for anyone.

Also for experienced members. Is 1.0.6 worth it? Will older maps work?

[sbaros]

maps always work between versions, albeit featuring only the industries that are common among these versions. Version-specific industries have to be entered from scratch in GMP's "borrowed" from other versions.
I find version 1.0.6 to be the most mature one in terms of cargo/industry economy (yet still in need of substantial improvements). It won't harm you if installed separately from other versions. Currently I keep 5 portable installations (2 "Trainmaster" and 3 "1.06" variants) in a single USB stick, which I carry along and run at any PC that may be available on the spot. My particular reason for this is that I work in parallel on alternative cargo/industry sets & parameters for each version, plus version-specific buildings and rolling stock.
Actually, a separate installation is required for every scenario, if adequate accuracy through customisation is to be achieved. Even the start dates of each industry sector and the relative commodity base prices vary considerably between continents. All in all, I have about 15 installations scattered in various hard disks and portable media (with the No-CD feature of course).

[Gumboots]

Also for experienced members. Is 1.0.6 worth it? Will older maps work?

1.06 is, in my opinion, a bit of a mixed bag.

Older maps will certainly work on it, but they may not play the way they were intended to play. This is because 1.06 adds extra industries and locomotives, as well as options like "haul at a loss". Generally, older maps will be truer to the author's intent if played on 1.05, but if you want to play them on 1.06 there is nothing stopping you.

The 1.06 locomotives are generally pretty rough hack jobs, in terms of mesh and graphics, and their stats aren't thought out that well either. Mind you, this also applies to a lot of the original PopTop locomotives, from 1.05 and earlier.

1.06 industries are, on the whole, not that well integrated into the game. How well they play in practice comes down to the skill of the scenario author. On the bright side, 1.06 does allow extra scripting and industry options, which can be very useful for replay value if used wisely.

Short version: personally I think 1.06 is worth having, but not perfect. Extra installations are easy with RT3. You just copy your existing basic installation to a new folder with a different name. The new installation can then be left as 1.05, or upgraded to 1.06, as you please.

[Pittman65]

I've attempted to "fix" RT3 to work on my computer. Tried so many different things that I think I have confused myself as to what I should be doing...i.e. use the Vista fix, don't use it, download this, twist this, pull that...etc. I guess either the many attempted fixes didn't work or more likely, I'm just not able to follow simple directions! I've been through 4 forums, some here and in other places, installed/deleted my files, downloaded patches, installed/uninstalled the game itself at least 5 times so far...and my game still crashes when I try to start it. Is there one single place that I can go to and follow it step by step to get my RT3 installed correctly? my last attempt was to wipe all my RT3 files completely and start with a fresh install, downloaded patch v1.03, then v1.04, then Coast to Coast, then v1.05. Didn't add v106 after seeing the many notes that said I may not need it. I hate to go and buy the game again, when I already have it! My apologies in advance!

[Gumboots]

Ok, first question: are you installing from an original PopTop disc? The reason I ask is because the GoG and Steam versions of the game have quirks of their own.

My installations were originally done from a PopTop disc, that came with v1.04 already installed. Unless you have a really old disc it is likely that you will not need the 1.03 and 1.04 patches. So, start by finding out which version(s) your disc comes with.

Avoid the Vista fix. It is outdated now. You don't need it, and does terrible things to graphics. dgVoodoo is a much better solution.

[Pittman65]

I am loading from the Original PopTop disc. I saw File Version 1.0.0.1 and Product Version 0, 2, 0, 1. I noticed when I tried to launch the game, in the bottom left corner, it showed Version 1.05. Not sure if that is what you were referring to?

[Gumboots]

If it already says Version 1.05, straight from a new installation, then you don't need that patch or any of the earlier patches. If your disc is 1.05 by default it should already include Coast to Coast (because that has to be installed before v1.05).

This is what worked for me (starting with a PopTop disc that was v1.04 by default): viewtopic.php?p=46891#p46891

Based on that, and assuming your disc really is 1.05 by default, I would proceed like this:

• Install the game a folder on desktop* and do not Install DirectX 8 when asked

• Install No_CD patch

• Install dgVoodoo, but ignore the official dgVoodoo instructions

• Instructions for dgVoodoo on 64 Bit OS say to use one file (D3D9.dll) from the MS/x64 folder

• Instructions for dgVoodoo on 32 Bit OS say to use all four files from the MS/x86 folder

• What worked for me was to use all four files from MS/x86, even though I run 64 bit W10.

• Leave dgVoodoo set to its default card emulation, and set a virtual 2048 meg of RAM.

That should get the game running. Try it and see how you go.

*It is best not to install the the suggested default location inside C drive. This can screw with any modifications to the default game files. Installing to a custom folder on desktop is much more forgiving and flexible.