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RCT3 Help, Information and Requests

Sax Man

Mega Poster
--currently beeing updated--
--New version is up, it requires prettiness and more to be added-
-Questions are threwout the tutorial-
-CF's largest RCT3 Tutorial!-
-And still getting larger!-
last updated: May 31, 2006

Forward:
I have put together several Common Questions with RCT3. If any of these don't help your problem, post your question here and I will answer them as best as I can.
[---~---]
NOTES:
If all else fails, read the manual.
If these questions still don't make sense, or you need some more help run the tutorials along with reading this.
[---~---]
Sax Man's 10(or so) RCT3 Commandments:
- Thou shall practice the phrase 'Less is More'.
-Windows, and porches are your friends, But thou shalt not over use it.
-Thou shall not use high flat turns unless thine is recreating a crapith vekoma coaster. Thou shall use diving turns instead.
- Thou shall not do anything too extreme like a large drop then a zero-g roll or a loop into a small helix.
- Thou shall use Station buildings, land adjustments, and tree's to enhance thy coaster.
-Thou shall use path scenery (benches, trashcans, lamp posts, fences).
-Thou shall use a mix of flat rides, and coasters to make a good park.
- Thou shall do some sort of planning before building.
- Thou shall practice 'Safe Sax'
- Thou shall stay away from 'toliet bowl' helixes.
- Thy coaster shall never touch thy ground.
- Thy lake shall not be square.
- Thy lake shall be lower than thy land tiles around it.
- Thy park shall not burn thy viewers eyes.
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FAQ
(original FAQ, updated some. These are general questions, and some RCT3 original only questions)
Common Questions, and Answers


Questions answered in this tutorial:
How do I build underground in RCT3 without soaked?
How do I make a launched section?
I can't see my water, what do I do?
How do I add my own music?
How do I make a fireworks show?
How Do I update the game?
How do I know if i need any update?
How do I take a screenshot?
Where are they located?
What are the recommended system requirements?
My Computer is a piece of crap, what do I need to fix it?
How do I make a video?
I've added the music in the right place, and it doesn't show up ingame. What do I do?
How do I load rides from RCT, and RCT2?
How do I elevate a wall or object?
How do I make two story buildings, and roof's?
How do I Compress a file?
How do I make a 'Zip' File?
How to synchronize fireworks with a ride?
Can I build a railroad crossing?
How do I "fix" the "Admiring the View" problem (peeps randomly stuck, and not moving)?

Q: How do I build underground in RCT3 without soaked?
A: You need to do a hack. follow these instructions: http://groups.msn.com/CoastaCabana/rct3tunnels.msnw

Q: How do I make a launched section?
A: Set the block brake to any speed higher than what the train is traveling. So if its going 10 mph, you have to set the speed above that. This will launch the train.

Q: I can't see my water, what do I do?
A: Download the frontier water patch which can be found here, read instruction first:
http://www.frontier.co.uk/games/rct3/RC ... GF_Fix.zip

Instructions From Frontier:
Why does water not appear on my system?
For players with certain Intel graphics cards and the retail version of the game with or without Update 1a the water will not appear in game. This is caused by the fact that these Intel cards handle lighting effects slightly differently to cards from all other manufacturers. This was tracked down too late to be included in Update 1a and so as a temporary measure we have provided the solution here in the form of a 10k byte zipped file (153k byte uncompressed) which contains a replacement for the RCT3.dgf file shipped with the retail game. Please note that UNLESS you are experiencing this problem with water and have an Intel graphics chip-set in your PC then we DO NOT recommend you use this new file, it resolves this one issue only and will be included in a future Update.


Steps to get a fix for the problem:


Download the zipped file by clicking on this link and choosing to save the file to anywhere on your PC.
Open the RCT3 folder that was created when RCT3 was installed on your PC (this is usually C:\Program Files\Atari\RollerCoaster Tycoon? 3 unless you chose another location)
Rename the file in that folder called RCT3.dgf to RCT3_old.dgf as a back up ? it is unlikely it will be needed but if you start experiencing any problems after switching to the new version of this file then you can delete the new file and rename the old file back to RCT3.dgf.
Unzip the downloaded file into the install folder and check that a new RCT3.dgf file has successfully been placed in that folder.


You can then run the game as normal and will see water.

Be sure to back up the original one in case this does not work.

Q: What are the recommended system requirements?
Q: My Computer is a piece of crap, what do I need to fix it?
A: Operating System: Windows? 98/98SE/Me/2000/XP (Windows? XP recommended)
Processor: Pentium? III 733 MHz or compatible (Pentium? 4 1.2 GHz or compatible recommended)
Memory: 128 MB RAM; 256 MB for XP (256 MB; 384 MB for XP recommended)
Hard Disk Space: 600 MB free
CD-ROM Drive: 4X CD-ROM or faster (8X or faster recommended)
Video: Any ATI Radeon? or GeForce? 2 with 32MB or higher; or other video card with 32MB and hardware T&L (ATI Radeon? 64 MB SDR or GeForce? 2 Pro or other video card with 64 MB or more memory and hardware T&L recommended)*
Sound: Windows? 98/Me/2000/XP-compatible 16-bit sound card*
DirectX?: DirectX? version 9.0c (included) or higher

Q: How Do I update the game?
Q: How do I know if i need any update?
A: Insert RCT3 CD, on the 'Auto-Run' window click 'Updates'. Follow on screen instructions from there.

Q: How do I add my own music?
A: Navigate to "My Documents" -> "My Music" -> "RCT3" and put the music files there.

Q: How do I make a fireworks show (changed slightly in wild)?
A: Open up the fireworks display,
There you can open up MixMaster Editor (row of fireworks), Load a show (folder), Fireworks Display (firework, and calender), and Firework Launchers (the launching bucket). (see page 35 for more information in the American Manual)

First click on the Firework Launcher screen. Place the launching points where you want your show to be. Next, create a new show by clicking on the MixMaster Editor Button. After that, right click on the empty mix master 'spreadsheet.' There you can select a type of firework to use in your show. Select the one you want, then click on the 'launching cannon' you want it to launch from. Keep on doing that until you get the show you want. If you did this right, the bar the represents the firework on the 'spreadsheet' should have a green dot on the left, instead of a red one. Now select the 'Play button' (green arrow) and watch you show in action. (see page 63 for more information in the American Manual)

From there you can also change the shows name, preview the show , and select music.

Q: I am getting really good at RCT3, how can I compare myself to other players?
A: Send me 10,000 and your park. You can PM me for my address, or try your hand on the officiall CF compitition ran by me!

Q: How do I take a screenshot?
Q: Where are they located?
A: Press [F10] while playing the game. The pictures will be in My Documents\My Pictures\RCT3.

Q: How do I make a video?
Q: Where are they located?
A: Press [CTRL] [SHIFT] [F11]. This will slow down the game. The video files will be found in: My Documents\My Videos\RCT3

Q: I've added the music in the right place, and it doesn't show up ingame. What do I do?
A: copy the music file you wish to add to the game to:
\My Documents\My Music\RCT3
Then when you start the game go to the game options, and game settings. Check the box ?Use Music From /My Music/RCT3 Folder?.
NOTE: Songs are not saved with the game file. In order for music to work, you need to include the music file.

Q: How do I load rides from RCT, and RCT2?
A: Copy the *.td4 or *.td6 file to the C:\Program Files\Atari\RollerCoaster Tycoon 3\Coaster Designs directory. Then start up RCT3 and go to the Coaster Designer. Then load the RCT or RCT2 coaster and then save it. This will convert the coaster to be compatible with RCT3.
REMEMBER: RCT3's friction is different from RCT, and RCT2. The coaster train might not make it threw all of the ride.

Q: How do I elevate a wall or object?
Q: How do I make two story buildings, and roof's?
A:Hold down the shift key, and raise, or lower your mouse.

Q: How do I Compress a file?
Q: How do I make a 'Zip' File?
A: A *.zip program is the best thing.
You can download WinZip for free.
XP comes with one, but its not that great.
To zip (on XP):
right click the file, send to, Compressed (zipped) Folder.
Winzip will compresses it more than XP will.

Q: how to synchronize fireworks with the ride (changes with soaked and wild)?
A: It's somewhat difficult, and takes practice. First put the train in the station, then you pause the game and open mix master. Guess around where the effect is, and place it. Press play (on the mix master, then the game), and see if the effect happens where you want it. Make adjustments (if needed), and try this process again. Repeat this process throughout the whole ride until everything lines up how you want it.

Q: Can I build a railroad crossing (might not work with soaked or wild)?
A: yes! First you build a rail road, then lower land underneath it. Then you build a path where you want the crossing, then raise the land where the railroad is.

Q:How do I "fix" the "Admiring the View" problem?
A: http://www.ataricommunity.com/forums/sh ... ost7154969

OFFICIAL Frontier FAQ
-Will my PC run RCT3?
-How can I tweak RCT3 to run at its best on my PC?
-Why does my game suffer from frame rate slowdown / lags, graphical glitches, crashes?
-How can I restore my screen resolution after changing it to an unsupported setting?
-Why don?t peeps get on my rides?
-How should I lay out my park to get best distribution of peeps round all the rides?
-Why do peeps who need the toilet, are hungry, thirsty or tired pass by toilets, food and drink stalls and benches?
-Why do some lights flicker at night?
-Why can't I build paths or scenery or rides in some areas of the park?
-Why don?t I see night-time in RCT3?
-Can I adjust the park operating hours (when it opens and when it closes)?
-How can I call a mechanic to go a broken-down stall?
-Why does my park?s financial information appear to be incorrect?
-How do I import my RCT1 and 2 coasters into RCT3?
-Why does RCT3 crash when I try to save a game?
-How do I change numeric values quickly rather than clicking on the arrows repeatedly?
-How do I get my VIP to visit my coasters and complete a scenario goal?
-What are the effects of training staff?
-Why does water not appear on my system?
-Why doesn't my Looping / LIM Coaster connect properly?
-Why can I import certain track configurations, but not build them in RCT3?
-Why can?t I save the game when ?My Documents? folder is on a network drive?
-Why are rides/scenery placed in the air after changing terrain?
You can find the answer to all of these questions here: http://www.frontier.co.uk/games/rct3/faq.html
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FAQ 2.0
(bigger, more up to date, and FAQyer)

Soaked
A:Building Waterfalls - coming soon

Q: Can i build walls on paths?
A:Yes, use the cheat code M Brookes.

Q: I'm having a problem uninstalling soaked!
A:http://www.ataricommunity.com/forums/showthread.php?t=479989

Official RCT3 soaked FAQs
-Questions answered:
Will my PC run RCT3 Soaked!?
How can I tweak RCT3 Soaked! to run at its best on my PC?
Why does my game suffer from frame rate slowdown / lags, graphical glitches, crashes?
How can I restore my screen resolution after changing it to an unsupported setting?
Why does the game crash when syncing two swimsuit stalls?
Why are there reflections on only one water body?
Why can't I place ride entrances or exits on a custom scenario?
Why won't Soaked! install on my computer?
Why do I experience graphical artifacts when running the game on a Radeon 9200?
Why do I experience graphical artifacts when running the game on a Radeon 9000?
Why do I receive an Application error 'Bad Version:4' after reinstalling RCT3/Soaked?
-Answers here: http://www.frontier.co.uk/games/rct3soaked/faq.html


Wild!
Q:Why does my park file doesn't work, and I use custom scenery?
A:Custom scenery has to be able to work with wild or your park doesn't work.


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Custom Scenery
Complete list of all released scenery:
http://www.ataricommunity.com/forums/sh ... p?t=499898
(first and fourth post)

Scenery I would highly recommend:
~Pumper steelworx
http://www.ataricommunity.com/forums...hreadid=477830
~Pumper & Marnetmar dark-ride sets
http://www.ataricommunity.com/forums...hreadid=468307
~Iceats timber frame pack
http://www.ataricommunity.com/forums...hreadid=494001
~By shyguy:
-Main Street Set 1 v. 1.2 http://www.ataricommunity.com/forums...hreadid=496680
-Main Street Set 2(expanded) http://www.ataricommunity.com/forums...d.php?t=513828
-Main Street Set 3 http://www.ataricommunity.com/forums...d.php?t=506271
-Expo 3000 Scenery Pack http://www.ataricommunity.com/forums...d.php?t=507189
-Circus Center Set 1 http://www.ataricommunity.com/forums...d.php?t=515368
-Alpine Village Set 1 http://www.ataricommunity.com/forums...d.php?t=519089
~Marnetmar's Leftoverz http://www.ataricommunity.com/forums...hreadid=504139
~DRP's Lightz V. 2 http://www.ataricommunity.com/forums...d.php?t=510812
~MouseWorx v. 1.01 http://www.ataricommunity.com/forums...d.php?t=514989

Custom Scenery FAQ:
Q:How to install custom scenery:
A:Go here: http://www.ataricommunity.com/forums/sh ... p?t=521101
Q:How to make custom scenery (its really really hard):
A:Go here: http://www.ataricommunity.com/forums/sh ... p?t=486388

More scenery FAQ!
-Questions answered:
Where I download to?
How to extract the ZIP or RAR file?
How to stop the SID error or crash my game?
-answers: http://www.ataricommunity.com/forums/sh ... p?t=509122
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Recommended Tutorials
Any/General Tutorials-
-Modular Building (building style for tall buildings) - http://www.ataricommunity.com/forums/sh ... p?t=516573
-The Skipper's Mall/Building tutorial (another idea for slightly large buildings) - http://www.ataricommunity.com/forums/sh ... p?t=453021
-Scenario Strategy Guides - http://www.ataricommunity.com/forums/sh ... p?t=446816
-Every single RCT3 cheat - http://www.ataricommunity.com/forums/sh ... p?t=424497
-Building underwater - http://www.ataricommunity.com/forums/sh ... p?t=510809
-Skippers Galactica tutorial - http://members.fortunecity.com/scourge/galactic5.htm

-Building inside animal enclosures (wild only, two tutorials):
http://www.ataricommunity.com/forums/sh ... p?t=506441
http://www.ataricommunity.com/forums/sh ... p?t=509054

-List of several more tutorials: http://www.ataricommunity.com/forums/sh ... p?t=462394


Hopefully that was of some help!
If you have a tutorial, or have anything that you feel should be in this post please PM me, Sax Man!
 
A

Anonymous

Guest
For the firework synchronising, How do i pause the coaster?
And do i pause it when something needs to happen, and then play the fireworks and then play the coaster or what?
The guide isn't clear enough for me(because im a dumbass).
Thanks!
 

Sax Man

Mega Poster
After rereading the guide, it doesn't make sense to me either.
--
New Instructions:
It's somewhat difficult, and takes practice. First put the train in the station, then you pause the game and open mix master. Guess around where the effect is, and place it. Press play (on the mix master, then the game), and see if the effect happens where you want it. Make adjustments (if needed), and try this proccess again. Repeat this proccess threwout the whole ride untill everything lines up how you want it.
--
I hope that cleares it up, sorry for making it weird.
 
A

Anonymous

Guest
Thanks for that!
But.... I know how to tweak it so its perfect, but i dont know how i can get it to work without sitting there pressing play all the time..
Any ideas?
 

Sax Man

Mega Poster
You can move the slider to a certain section, but the coaster woulnt be lined up with it.

An idea:
Write down the times a coaster hits the section(s) you want the effect, and then go into the editor and place them. That might speed things up.

Also, you could probobly do more than one effect at a time.
I normally do a chunck, test it, then fix it from there.
 
A

Anonymous

Guest
i have a .3ds file of Pride Rock, and i would like to import this into RCT3.

how would i go about this?
 

Sax Man

Mega Poster
You would use Jonwils object editor.

I havn't made any objects, but I looked at the editor, and it is difficult. RCT3 Enabled! is a program that is being developed that will make object creation easier (if I remeber correctly, the scenery part will be avaliable in august).

Everything you need can be found at RCT2.com. If you are serious about making objects, I would join and post all of your questions there.

Download for object editor can be found here:
http://forums.rct2.com/index.php?showtopic=18608&st=0

you can find a tutorial on this page of that topic:
http://forums.rct2.com/index.php?showtopic=18608&st=30
the post was by '[d.a.c]boy'

This is the RCT2.com area about Object creation in RCT3:
http://forums.rct2.com/index.php?showforum=252

As I said, I havn't done it before. But, I hope that helps and answers your question.
good luck!
 

bezzzzzer

Hyper Poster
alrite, do you know how i can go through my park ''through the eyes if a peep''. I got told to type Jonny Watts in a guest name, so i did it on the peep editor but it still doesn't happen? Would be greatly appreciated if i found out how to do it :D
 

Aaron

Hyper Poster
^You need to do it in the actual game

Just click on any peep, then click the little i button, rename him to jonny watts and bingo!

Enjoy!
 

Sax Man

Mega Poster
Build a lake, and make the flume go threw the lake. Were the track is actually in the water.

That should do it.
 

Dude

Roller Poster
But the track turns red when I try will it still go in the water.

Also how do you make deeper swimming pools.
 

Sax Man

Mega Poster
I guess make sure the water is deep enough, maybe put it in the middle of a large lake. It got it to work. But, just the bottom of the track should be submerged, I think that you can still see the rails bairly above the water..

Deeper swimming pools.
That is also a question I've been having. From what I've seen you can't do it, but if someone figures out how, please tell. We all would like to know.
 
A

Anonymous

Guest
I downloaded an update that was supposed to fix the water, and when I try to add water, you can see the water being added but it will not stay there. Should I download the patch for this problem or just leave it alone?
 

Sax Man

Mega Poster
Yes, that is what the patch is for.

I had exactly the same problem and fixed it with that patch.

Just follow the instructions from the Frontier website exactly, and make sure you back up the file your replaceing incase something goes wrong.

Also, that was before Soaked!, so I am not sure if you need to get rid of soaked before you do it.

If you have soaked I would recomend uninstalling the game (you have to uninstall both soaked and the orrigonal), reinstalling RCT3, update the game, add the patch, then install soaked.

That way you will be sure it will work. (I installed the patch and then soaked on this computer, and it worked).

If you want to try the other way first, you can. It's up to you, that is just some ideas.

Good Luck.
 
A

Anonymous

Guest
Ok It keeps crashing and I don't think its the pc's stats as its doing excately the same on the lappie.
 

Sax Man

Mega Poster
it's most likely a computer issue.

have you tried uninstalling, restarting computer, and reinstalling the game (then restart before playing again)?
Sometimes that can get it going.

If you think it's a speed problem (which it mostlikely is):
You can also try disableing explorer.exe.
this only works in XP, so i'll give instructions for that. I think if you do it in any 9.x computer it will crash.
open the 'runscreen' for the game.
press [CTRL]+[ALT]+[DEL]
go to the 'proccesses' tab
look for 'explorer.exe'
Right click on it and select 'End Proccesses'

This will make your start bar and everything disapear.
Also make sure your not running anything else.

To get it back:
Press [CTRL]+[ALT]+[DEL]
then 'File' and 'New Task (Run)'
and type 'explorer.exe' in the box and select 'OK'

It might not be your computer. What is your graphics card, RAM size, and Operating System?
Do you have virtual memory(or paging file) enabled?

Also, do you have enough room on your harddrive?
You might want to 'defrag' your computer.

(I know this is a stupid question, but sometimes the most obvious are it) Do you have the CDrom in the drive? If not, then it will not run.

hopefully we can get it running for you...
good luck!
 
A

Anonymous

Guest
We have a pentium 4 processor in the pc. Graphics card is ATI Radeon 9600 saphhire, with 256 megabytes of ram. We on XP and upto date. WE do not have virtual memory or paging file enabled as far aas we know. Chaz says we have friggin smeg loads of hard drive. Won't defrag as recently done. Course the disc is in the drive d'oh. We not got one of those crappy no cd cracks so ner. Any other bright ideas?
 
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