KV5 different versions

[rr_carroll]

I checked my .tr4 files against The Great Chi's list, and the only differences I found are the 8 files dated 11/24/99. These match the 8 files in Ewil's list.

Now the fun part: assuming the files were changed to prevent something that's too easy, what could they be? So here's a few ideas, I hope someone with the 11/24/99 files will take a look.

Coastal Ruins

The shooting gallery has a platform that dumps you onto spikes after a set time. But if you jump against a wall, the spikes shoot up and retract before you can fall onto them. Then you can take as long as you like to break all the targets (use the shotgun since you can aim it with Look).

Before you reach the outdoors, there's a small pool that normally you jump into. But a swan dive lets you land on the platform. See here at 1:52.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-lS9UexfzM

Require burning the rope (faster boulder drop)? See here at 0:32.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?gl=GB&h...&v=8qWI-g23WkQ

Reach the outer ocean and solid water?


City of the Dead
Prevent cycle leap over chasm w/o turbo? But it's already very hard.

Catacombs
I forgot to drop into the hole for secret #2 and open the door below. When I went back the hole was closed again! Fixed?

Prevent Lara's shorts from appearing instead of the torch?


Valley of the Kings

Grenades don't harm Lara on the PC. Fixed?

Jump off the other side of the "nose" of rock in front of Lara.

Then make your way into this side canyon:

Removed?

Street Bazaar
Jump from broken bridge to parapets, explore roofs.

[The Great Chi]

I am taking a more technical approach to it, by looking at changes in the size of the level, as the compaired lists below.....



From the eight suspect levels, I would deduce that the levels marked 'SAME' in a green box, are identical, as the kB's are the same, so there has been no mods to them.

The chances of mods being done to them and then ending up with the exact same kB figure, is quite remote.

The other three levels marked 'SLIGHT difference' in an orange box, and 'LARGE difference' in a red box, are the suspected changed levels.

So these levels are .....

KV5, jeepchs2.tr4 (as we know already know has a big change to the rocks)
Sacred lake, lake.tr4 (could be a smaller change)
City of the dead, bikebit.tr4 (could be a smaller change)

I would say the last two levels above, should be looked at closely

[Ewil]

rr_carroll: Grenades do not harm Lara in every level, not just in Valley of the Kings.

[The Great Chi]

CITY OF THE DEAD LEVEL
OK, I now have an origional TR4 disk and have been comparing the 'City of the Dead' level with my latter 'sold out' version, to see why there is a difference in KB's.

Origional bikebit.TR4 has 4879 kB and later version (soldout) has slightly more at 4897 kB

Using two Fexinspect(sk) windows opened side by side, I compaired all 211 TR model rooms of each version, and using the gridbox checked all commands in rooms with triggers. Phew !

They were all identical, so that means the rooms are all the same, the trigger commands all the same, so as far as I can see playing the different versions should be identical, with one exception............

The FD index number is different for both versions in all trigger rooms after TR model room 10.

This will account for the kB's being different, as to write a different number in machine code will end up with a different total kB for the level.

But, can anyone explain why the FD index changes for the two versions

UPDATE.... SACRED LAKE LEVEL

The sacred lake (lake.TR4) also has a slight difference in kB's between origional and the later 'soldout' version, from the tables in earlier messages...

179 TR model rooms in total for the level, per each version.

Exact same result as 'city of the dead' level, all rooms identical, all triggers and commands identical. Game play should be the same for each version.

But, the FD index number is different for both versions in all trigger rooms after TR model room 87.

Once again the question is....
Any ideas about this FD index number change

[rr_carroll]

Glad to see you on the case!

The one known change is the extra rocks in KV5 (jeepchs2.tr4). Does Fexinspect show a difference for those rooms? Perhaps a difference like that only shows in TombViewer or during the game.

I would suspect the first room with a different FD index number has a difference of some kind. Maybe subsequent rooms have a change, too.

Sacred Lake is odd because it shrank!?!

[The Great Chi]

Originally Posted by rr_carroll

....The one known change is the extra rocks in KV5 (jeepchs2.tr4). Does Fexinspect show a difference for those rooms? Perhaps a difference like that only shows in TombViewer or during the game.......

Here is TR model room 73, there are other rooms that have more rocks added. You can see the changes

[rr_carroll]

Hmm, Room 73 has the tunnel to the End Level, but your original picture of extra rocks shows the first (Room 79) of 4 rooms around the central rocks. Therefore I suspect that all 4 rooms, including Rooms 77 & 78, have extra rocks.

The Soldout KV5 is about 69K larger than the original. So this is an average of 17.25K per room. City Of The Dead is about 18K larger, close to 17.25, so I suspect only one room for that level has been changed.

Of course, the numbers could be coincidence. And what explains a DECREASE for Sacred Lake?

Edit: Remember the guy who got to the pool where you use the Sun Talisman, but he didn't have both pieces? He couldn't go back because the trapdoor in one corner that goes back to the first Sacred Lake pool was closed. Maybe something about that short passage is missing from Soldout. This picture shows the open trapdoor, across the pool on the left.


Sorry, I can probably go on suggesting things for you to do indefinitely.

[The Great Chi]

All these four rooms you mentioned in KV5 have been modified a fair bit, as fexinspectsk shows up the changes very distinctly, so does tombviewer.

That what bothers me about the two levels I was looking at (Sacred lake and City of the dead), because using fexinspectsk, there is no changes to the rooms or triggers/commands that I can see, except for Floor Data index numbers being changed (FD index number), which could be the reason the kB's have changed. (Up and even down the way)

To physically go through each level running around using lara with the two versions of the level, seems very time consuming to find a very suttle change, if it exists at all. Thats why I was using these TR tools to try and zoom in on a specific TR model room.

Anyone else on the modding front, got any suggestions, giving the reason why the FD index numbers have changed in some model rooms for the two versions

OTHER CHECKS
I have also checked the 3D models for all movables and static meshes in these data files (using Strpix) and again no changes. just in case for example they had redesigned the look of a palm tree at the last minute, which is most unlikely

I do not think any of the character animations would have been changed either, and thats a hard task to check fully, so assume there is no change there.

My bet is still on the FD index number change being the culprit, causing the change in size of the files kB's.

Stlll does not answer why the change though.
This detective story deepens

[rr_carroll]

I heartily concur that using TombViewer and Fexinspect are as much as anyone could ask. Thank you for checking.

Because I assume it wouldn't take long, I dare to suggest it might be interesting to look at FD index numbers for a couple of files where only the date has changed. You only need to look at the last Room to see if a change has been made.

[The Great Chi]

Originally Posted by rr_carroll

.... it might be interesting to look at FD index numbers for a couple of files where only the date has changed. You only need to look at the last Room to see if a change has been made.

Did as you suggested, and your right, the FD index numbers start changing from room 8 onwards in the 'city of the dead', and there right in front of me was a very suttle change, that I did not spot previously.

Now all we need to know is why this change ?

Maybe you could bug round the gate easily, in the origional ?



In game pictures.... (different versions, same location at locked gate near start of level)



UPDATE (using the above method, went over Sacred lake)

Once again, another very suttle change, missed it first time, but the FD index first changed in room 89, and it is due to a slope function introduced, that cannot be seen from plan.



OK, so we have a slope change in a tunnel. Why

Maybe there was there an occasional glitch problem with lara trying to get up from a 'half her height' room to above, from tunnel room No 89 to room No 115 ? ..... I never recalled such a problem, when playing this level. Anyone ?

Edit ... Just played origional disk through these rooms and tunnel, and do not see a problem.
Just played soldout version with the sloped tunnel, again no problem.