Widescreen Gaming Forum

Yeah I found a couple errors. The correct second string for that executable is:

20030000eb0cba00040000eb05ba0005000083f803b9e0010000773fff2485e45d56008b442404b9e00100008910894804c204008b442404b95802

As stated I don't even own this game and have been going solely off the demo. I see that the retail executable does differ (from what I can tell all 4d from the demo are changed to 5c in the retail version, for instance), so I'll alter the instructions. Thanks for bringing this to my attention.

Hi BooTx, I'm trying to use UniWS, but I'm not able to type into the text boxes even after the exe is located. I'm trying it on a v1.42 no-cd exe.

I've even tried to manually update the file using a hex editor, but the game just won't start!

Stuff I've tried so far:
-Reinstalling the game
-Updating my display drivers
-Changing compatibility modes to Win XP and Win 2000
-Changing resolution down to 800x600

System config:
Alienware m17x R2
Windows 7 Home Premium 64 bit
ATi Radeon HD 5870 (Crossfire enabled)

Do you think there's any possible way I might get this game to run? It's been ages since I played it and I'd love to play it again. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

If you can't type the resolution in UniWS then that means the executable must differ in some way from the one that I used. I got the full game a few weeks ago so I'll look into it here in the next few days and try to come up with a solution for you.

edit - Well I found the problem in the instructions for 1.42 No-CD. It was just a couple bytes that were different. I've also noticed a small issue with the interface that I must have missed before so I need to find the solution to that. Then I need to test this a bit to make sure it's somewhat stable. It's gonna be a pain trying to relearn what all the Spanish file and asset names do.

When I'm done I'll add the full set of updated instructions to the Commandos 3 Detailed Report.

Yeah! It would be great if you can fix that 1.42 version of commandos to work on widescreen, because using the uniWS it does not recognize me the resolution, so I cannot edit it!

Thank you sir!

Thanks a ton for all the support you're providing, BooTx.. I would be one happy gamer if you managed to come up with a fix.

I'm also unsure if this is an Alienware-specific problem, since I've come across other posts discussing this issue.

Do you have a paypal accountto accept donations?

Thank u man!
1366*768 works perfect (I havent play at all, just tried)

Well here's the latest I have. Give it a shot and tell me what works and what doesn't. Apart from 1280x720 I don't know which resolutions function, and I haven't tried multiplayer at all. I'm sure there are interface problems with it, and a lot of them could probably be solved. Check the issues section towards the bottom to see what I know isn't working properly. If you find it to be reasonably stable I'll add it to the Master Games List.

This solution is based on the v1.42 "fixed" executable (No-CD). It will not work with the Steam executable due to DRM, and may not work with other versions of the retail executable.

If you want to apply the hacks manually, I've included instructions at the bottom of this article. To use UniWS to apply the hack automatically, download it and open the file named "patches.ini" in a text editor, and alter it as such:

Add this after a17:



And then add this to the end of the file:



Save the file, run UniWS, select Commandos 3 from the dropdown menu, and follow the onscreen instructions.

Now we have to fix the interface, which will require an extracted and decrypted INTERFAZ.MSB file.

I've created and zipped up INTERFAZ files for 1024x600, 1280x720, 1280x800, 1366x768, 1440x900, 1680x1050, 1920x1080, and 1920x1200. Download, extract the one you want, and rename it INTERFAZ.MSB. Then place it in the Commandos 3DataINTERFAZ directory (you'll probably need to create it).

NOTE: I've updated these as there was a mistake, so make sure you download it again if you had a previous version.

Finally, if you'd like to get rid of the misaligned red title banner at the start of every mission, download this file, extract it, and place it in the Commandos 3DataINTENDENCIA directory (again, you'll need to create it). This will black it out so only the actual title words will appear.

ISSUES

The game crashes when returning the viewport (F2) back to full screen. Solution? Don't do that. For the time being, it looks like you'll have to stick with the full screen viewport from the beginning, or stick with whichever one you switch to.

The Objectives box does not align itself properly to the extreme upper right of the screen. I've looked the INTERFAZ file up and down and unlike most of the other screen elements, it simply doesn't appear to be there, so I have no idea how to align it. This is an aesthetic problem.

The Help box does align itself properly, but its title (Help) and the text for the Close button do not, and again, I haven't been able to solve that. Hitting escape will get you out of the help box.

MANUAL INSTRUCTIONS

You will need a hex editor such as Be.HexEditor. Open your Commandos 3 executable with it (feel free to back it up first) and search for the following strings (you don't have to search for the entire thing, just the first few bytes to make sure you're at the right location).

Offset 00164bc0
20 03 00 00 c3 b8 00 04 00 00 c3 b8 00 05 00 00 c3 c4 5c 56 00 ca 5c 56 00 d0 5c 56 00 d6 5c 56 00 90 90 90 90 8b 49 48 b8 e0 01 00 00 83 f9 03 77 1e ff 24 8d 1c 5d 56 00 b8 e0 01 00 00 c3 b8 58 02

Offset 00164c60
20 03 00 00 eb 0c ba 00 04 00 00 eb 05 ba 00 05 00 00 83 f8 03 b9 e0 01 00 00 77 3f ff 24 85 e4 5d 56 00 8b 44 24 04 b9 e0 01 00 00 89 10 89 48 04 c2 04 00 8b 44 24 04 b9 58 02

20 03 and 58 02 represent the resolution 800x600. Change those numbers to the following:

1024x600 - Replace 20 03 with 00 04 and replace 58 02 with 58 02
1280x720 - Replace 20 03 with 00 05 and replace 58 02 with D0 02
1280x800 - Replace 20 03 with 00 05 and replace 58 02 with 20 03
1366x768 - Replace 20 03 with 56 05 and replace 58 02 with 00 03
1440x900 - Replace 20 03 with A0 05 and replace 58 02 with 84 03
1680x1050 - Replace 20 03 with 90 06 and replace 58 02 with 1A 04
1920x1080 - Replace 20 03 with 80 07 and replace 58 02 with 38 04
1920x1200 - Replace 20 03 with 80 07 and replace 58 02 with B0 04

When you're done, save the executable and fix the interface as instructed above. If you'd like to alter the interface for a resolution I didn't include, extract any of them and alter it as such:

The default for both of the y coordinates here are 544. Change it to -56.0 and it should align properly with every resolution.
Change both the x and y coordinates to what you see below.

The .Y resolution here should be whatever vertical resolution you chose minus 73. So for instance, I chose 1280x720, so 720 minus 73 is 647.

Do the same for this one.

Then change this section to read like this.

And finally, change the y resolution to whatever your vertical resolution is minus 150. 720 minus 150 = 570.


Thanks to the people at Commandos HQ and the TAFN forums for help and links to the development kit and decrypted interface files.

Do you have a paypal accountto accept donations?

I'll set up a PayPal account in a couple days but I implore you to not donate anything on the basis of what you hope I'm going to do and instead only on what I've already done (Commandos 2, X-Wing: Alliance, Rallisport Challenge, Half-Life, Goblet of Fire, Heretic II, RollerCoaster Tycoon, Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3, Settlers IV, Star Wars: Racer, et cetera), that you've enjoyed. I can never guarantee that a game I'm trying to fix will ever function properly until it's completed and rigorously tested. That's just how these things go. Regardless, I'll continue to do what I can because I enjoy it (more or less), but I'm not one to turn down free money. :D

edit - xbootx@gmail.com <-- There you go.

So i came back to this game, and decided to test it again.
Unfortunately this game don't want to run at anything higher than 1280x960 or around.
I mean, it will, but it will crash, so it's unusable.
The highest resolution i tested was 2560x960. And it was in Stalingrad mission.
And again, the game will run just fine at high resolutions if it renders full 3D environment (inside buildings). It crashes only when you're outside of the buildings
So it's clearly something with 2d/3d maps.