Wizardry Archives, AKA how the hell do I get it to run

[Jisho23]

I just got it, and I can't get the damn games to run. I've been messing around with DOSbox, but I can't figure out how to get it to work. Games install (with the exception of Wizardry Gold) as .com files, and I've never really dealt with that file type.

[Kitsune Sniper]

Uh. .com files are .exe files.

I don't know why they wouldn't run, though. Sorry.

[Jisho23]

Well, I'm dicking around on dosbox (just running the .exe doesn't work--it never does). When I try to run the .com files (as WIZ1.com for example) it just crashes the program.

Very aggravating.

[Ed Oscuro]

Uh. .com files are .exe files.

No, they're COM files.

[Flack]

Since I think everybody should play Wizardry at some point in their lives, I tracked down the Wizardry Archives from some random torrent. When you unzip it, it creates an ISO file. With the right software you can either mount the ISO file virtually, or you can just burn it. Or, if you bought it, you already circumvented all these steps and already have it on CD. Good for you.

With the CD in the drive (real or virtual), there's a setup.exe file. Run that, and you should see this:



There's a button there for each copy of Wizardry. Since you said you are having trouble playing the old DOS ones, I installed the first one. The default directory appears to be c:\wizard15 (that's where mine ended up). I browsed to it in Windows XP.



At this point I double-clicked WIZ1.COM, and the program started and run in full screen mode. I did not make any tweaks to Windows. It just worked.

For more testing, I downloaded the latest version of DOSBox (0.73) and installed it. Again I used the default settings -- no config changes were made. Once I downloaded DOSBox I mounted the Wizardry folder as C by typing MOUNT C C:\WIZARD15, changed to the directory by typing C:, and launched Wizardry by typing WIZ1. Again, Wizardry launched like a champ.





I was able to run Wizardry 1 both by clicking the .COM file in Windows XP, and by launching it manually through DOSBox.

[Jisho23]

It must be an issue w/ my machine then. Its very odd... I've never had this many issues running a dos game before. At the very least, WIZ7 and Wizardry gold run just fine. I guess I'll try a different machine and see what happens.

And yes, everyone should "experience" a Wizardry game. I fell in love with the series after playing the NES ports, I then managed to emulate the Apple II version of Wizardry 3 and 4. I'm probably alone in my adoration of number 4.

*edit* Nope, won't run on my other machine... I'd prefer not to set up the decade old pc in my attic just play games. Any other ideas?

[Flack]

What operating system are you running?

I would probably delete DOSBox and download the latest version. Regardless if you're running XP, Vista, 7, whatever, if you can get DOSBox 0.73 running you should have no problem running it.

[Jisho23]

I'm running XP Media center edition, the netbook I tried to run these games on runs XP Home. And I'm using DOSbox version .74

I'm pretty baffled by this.

[Soviet Conscript]

heres a wierd question. can you play the wizardy archives on a pure DOS pc or do you need to run it on a windows machine?

[Arkhan]

heres a wierd question. can you play the wizardy archives on a pure DOS pc or do you need to run it on a windows machine?

You have to install the games from Windows, but all it does essentially is copy the games from the CD (iso) to your computer. Maybe you can get to the files from DOS if you burn the ISO to disc. The "installer" may just be a front end for copy commands, lol.

If you can find omgwarezcrackslolz of the games try those too.

Having dosbox installed usually does the trick. It really should be as simple as doing what Flack said.

Funny question, are you using an LCD monitor, and trying to do all this in fullscreen? I have experienced some retarded nonsense when trying to full-screen Hexen and World of Xeen in DOS box on a flatscreen LCD monitor.

[Soviet Conscript]

You have to install the games from Windows, but all it does essentially is copy the games from the CD (iso) to your computer. Maybe you can get to the files from DOS if you burn the ISO to disc. The "installer" may just be a front end for copy commands, lol.

yhep, installed the archives on my xp pc then just burned the files to a cd which then in turn copied to the c drive of my 66mhtz dos pc. wiz 1-5 seems to work fine though under xp for me. i just like the warm fuzzy feeling of playing on a 486 from DOS.

[Arkhan]

yhep, installed the archives on my xp pc then just burned the files to a cd which then in turn copied to the c drive of my 66mhtz dos pc. wiz 1-5 seems to work fine though under xp for me. i just like the warm fuzzy feeling of playing on a 486 from DOS.

put your modern PC in an ugly ass cream case. youll feel the same.

These wizardry games are from the days where "installing" meant copy-pasta.

so any "installation" issues, are not installation issues. They're your PC being goony.

[Soviet Conscript]

put your modern PC in an ugly ass cream case. youll feel the same.

Ark, you always know what to say to suck the magic out of something for me. i still have to think twice before i eat at a mcdonalds.

[Arkhan]

Ark, you always know what to say to suck the magic out of something for me. i still have to think twice before i eat at a mcdonalds.

lol. I aim to please.

[Edmond Dantes]

You have to install the games from Windows,

NO YOU DON'T, you can just copy and paste them off the CD.

That's what I do, every time, and it never fails. All you have to remember to do is remove the read-only attribute.

Now if we were talking about The Ultimate Might and Magic Archives though, that's a different story...