Serious problem in Torin’s Passage

[Unknown,Unknown]

Hi,

I bought Torin’s Passage a while ago and I am facing a serious problem. This problem has to do with the game’s saving system. In this text I will not mention the way that I found out about this problem. Instead, I will describe a general process that if it is followed it will lead to this problem (at least in my computer). The proccess is:
i)Install the game
ii)Start the game
iii)After the introduction ends, save the game (I used the name Torin1)
iv)Then, restore Torin1
v)Then, save the restored game as Torin2
vi)Then, restore Torin2 and save it as Torin3
vii)Proceed in the same way until the the name of the game is Torin8 (totally 7 repetitions of save-restore and a save)
viii)Then, restore Torin8

Now, if I try to save, restore, begin a new game or do anything else that requires menu interaction, I will get an error message (either from Sierrawh.exe of from the operating system) and the game will throw me out.

[Unknown,Unknown]

This procedure may seem long but while playing and saving at the same time I make various combinations which end up in this problem. The problem occurs even if I save the game using the same name (for example: load torin1, save as torin1, load torin1, save as torin1 etc.) which makes it ever more serious. It might be helpful to mention that the problem doesn’t happen if I repetitively load or save the game. It occurs only after 8 repetitions of loading and saving the game are completed. These repetitions can be one after another or happen over a period of time with multiple saving or loading procedures intervene between them. To explain what I mean better, I will describe it with an example: If I play the game for a period of 8 days (assuming that I load the game once, when I start playing in, and I save it once or more times) then in the ninth day I won’t be able to save the game and the only thing I will be able to do is start a previous game and then hurry in order to reach the point of the ruined saved game so that I can continue playing until the older saved game is ruined as well (in which case I will have to repeat this procedure with another saved game).

The game’s version that I have is the bulk version that uses the program Sierraw.exe in order to run the game in Windows. All the patches come with the game and are stored in folder E:\Patches (I play the game while the original CD game is in drive E. The file Resource.win is properly configured).

My system properties are:
CPU: Pentium II 233
Memory: 64 MB
Hard Drive: 4.00 GB
Operating System: Windows 98

I tried slowing down the CPU (down to 10%) with a program called Turbo.exe but the problem still remains which means that it probably is not CPU related.

[Unknown,Unknown]

The two error messages that I have received while trying to save, load, start an new game ect. are: -The classic message from Windows: “This program has performed an illegal operation and will be shudown”
In the details there are information about the values in the registers, the memory contends in position CS:EIP, the contends stored in the stack and the message: “Sierrawh caused a general protection fault in module at 0000:00030950″. -Message for Sierrawh: “We’re sorry, you have encountered an internal game error. Please restart your
game and restore a saved game. If you have continued problems, please report the following information to Sierra Technical Support:
Error 47: Not an object: $4
Script 64999/$48d”. The code number after the dollar character (“$”) in line “Error 47…” is different in each message. For the same ruined saved game sometimes I get the first error message (from Windows) and sometimes I get the second one. Can someone help me solve this problem?
Thank you for any help.
Sot Mihos

[Unknown,Unknown]

There is a known bug in this game where at a certain point, saves become corrupt. You need to install the Torin’s Passage patch, available on Sierra’s ftp server at ftp://ftp.sierra.com/pub/patches/pc/torinpat.exe

The patch makes previous saves unusable. However, the game lets you start from any chapter, so you shouldn’t have to replay too much.

-emily

[Unknown,Unknown]

Thank you for replying. I used the patch and it fixed the problem but anotherone came up. At the second world after talking to the Bitternuts if I try to save the game (as Torin) and then load it the game crashes displaying an Error 94. Do you know how it can be fixed or if there are any other patches for the game?

[Unknown,Unknown]

I’ve pretty much come to accept that with Torin’s Passage you’re either lucky or you’re not. It’ll run faultlessly on some systems (so I’ve heard), while crashing randomly on others. At least we know the DOS version is more stable (i.e. less prone to crashing) than the Windows version. You might want to visit http://www.driverguide.com to find DOS drivers for your hardware. Look in Device Manager to see what’s in your system. The drivers should have installers that will automatically add the necessary lines to your autoexec.bat and config.sys files (as well as installing the driver files themselves on your hard disk). You should then be able to run most DOS games under Win98 without any problems. After installing the drivers, you can also press F8 before booting, then choose to boot to DOS. Good luck!

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