Lights not working in Ship design.....

from GalCiv2 Forums
I have noticed in quite a few diff. screenshots, that people are using lights for that extra enhancement for ships. Well i have tried to use lights numerous times, and everytime i goto look at ship, they're not there. The bubble/orb is, but not the actual lights(blue,red,white,yellow). Any ideas, how i can get this to work???

Sorry if this is a Newb question, but i am baffled.....
13,797 views 18 replies
Reply #2 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
I thought that's all they were? If they're supposed to cast light, they're broken for me too.
Galactic Civilizations IV
Reply #3 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Well some people add colored lights as Extras from the ship editor, and if you change your hull to a really dark color (like black) the lights show up alot more. They should look bright, but I don't think that they are designed to dynamically light the ship and cast shadows etc.
Reply #4 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Yes i know that they're not casting shadows, etc.....MY PROBLEM is...i get NOOO color whatsoever. When i place the bubble on my ship(wherever it may be), i get NO colors....its ticking me off...lol

In other words....if i want white color, i get black....If i want red, i get black.....If i want blue, i get black.....And my hull are all dark colors, so they should show up quite bright i would think.
Reply #5 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Hmm, that is definitely not how it is intended. I would suggest updating your video drivers as a first step. There are numerous threads and stickies dealing with issues like this. Good luck.
Reply #7 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Well if you have the latest Gal Civ 2 update, there are new video options now. You might try fiddling with those one at a time. What video card do you have?

EDIT: Actually saw one of your other posts. Is it possible your card doesn't support the latest version of directx, or that you don't have it up to date? Minimum specs call for DirectX 9.0c Maybe that is it?
Reply #8 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
GeForce4 MX 440 with AGP8X....Yeah i dl'ed the new update last night.... still getting the same problem. I have this BAAAAAAAAD feeling(which i dont get) that its my GC...
Reply #9 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
"Actually saw one of your other posts. Is it possible your card doesn't support the latest version of directx, or that you don't have it up to date? Minimum specs call for DirectX 9.0c Maybe that is it? "

Nope....i have direct x 9.0c.................and the mystery continues
Reply #10 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
"Actually saw one of your other posts. Is it possible your card doesn't support the latest version of directx, or that you don't have it up to date? Minimum specs call for DirectX 9.0c Maybe that is it? "

Nope....i have direct x 9.0c.................and the mystery continues
Reply #11 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
"Actually saw one of your other posts. Is it possible your card doesn't support the latest version of directx, or that you don't have it up to date? Minimum specs call for DirectX 9.0c Maybe that is it? "

Nope....i have direct x 9.0c.................and the mystery continues

Sorry for the extra posts....damn site is soooo sluggish
Reply #12 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Well only other thing I can recommend is

1. Try the new video options that were added in last patch.

2. Contact tech support. I heard back from them within 3 days and they seem to be really helpful and should know more about your card and your problem.

Good luck man, hopefully you can get this figured out. If I see something in another thread I will try to add it in here.
Reply #13 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Np i deffinately appreciate ur feedback....What new video options are u reffering to, i have update 1.0x.010, is this the newest update? I'm pretty sure i have fiddled with the video iptions to no avail....Anywayz i have a feeling its my GC which still doesnt make sense, because this is the ONLY graphic i have a problem with...
Reply #14 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
After you click on options from the main screen, they added a whole new column of options you can click on/off. I haven't looked through them too close though, except that throttling is now enabled by default. Um, because your video card is on the low-end for this game, I would bet that tech support can figure out why you can't see the lights and help you. Also someone posted there is a 84.xx version video driver out now, and I'm gonna try to find it when I get home. Maybe that would help you to, but we are using the same drivers atm, if not the same card.

Oh, and yeah, sounds like you are using the latest patch for GC2.
Reply #15 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
It's most likely your graphics card. Note that the GeForce4 MX series is actually based on a GeForce2 core, which means it only has hardware support for DirectX 7. I'd say it's time to go shopping for a new card.
Reply #16 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
I'm using an FX 5200, the game looks great, and they are dirt cheap now...
Reply #17 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Yeah it was my GC....I went and bought a new one, GeForce FX 6200 256 mb, and OMG...the difference is night n day
Reply #18 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Wow, okay, well glad you are fixed up and better now.