GameTap 1.8
February 15th, 2007 by dinahIt’s a big week for GameTap - version 1.8 is out today, delivering Vista support. But that’s not all - the rest of the update is wrapped around performance, usability, and a few requests from you via the Suggestion Box. To say nothing of Myst Online: Uru Live coming out of beta. And another stealth release AW exclusive easter egg from us.
So, what’s in 1.8? A few weeks ago, we posted a picture puzzle preview - a few of you guessed what the features were (and got a lot of them right). Here’s the skinny:
- My Favorites becomes My Playlists - now you have the ability to create your own playlists on the fly. Add games to one or more lists and name them whatever you like. Use the new and improved Heart icon on the Infocard or in My GameTap/Playlists.
- Manage all your downloaded games right up front in My GameTap/Playlists. See what’s downloaded, sort by name, size, or the last play date. Jump straight to the game or delete it from your cache to make room for more.
- All new game download progress indicators, including a bandwidth meter. Plus, see the download size before you even begin. And, of course, download up to three in the background while you play another.
- And, speaking of downloading in the background, now the download dots animate to show progress. See at a glance without a hover how much is left to go. And when it’s done, a nice little slide-up alert.
- Take control of GameTap Home - page through the promos at your own pace or set the slide show going.
- Don’t know what to play? Go to Search and spin the wheel with Gotta Getta Game. Try it, it’s surprisingly fun (and you might find some hidden gems).
Set your refresh rate. This feature got pulled at the last minute because it’s still buggy in Vista. Coming soon to a monitor near you.- And, back to game downloads - now you can pause and resume your game downloads indefinitely (meaning when you pause it, it stays paused until you resume it or cancel the download). Sweet!
But wait. There’s more. Here are a few things we managed to tuck in to the corners:
- Audio settings remembered between sessions
- Bypass the intro video - just hit ESC
- Mouse scroll through the subcats in the rings (thanks to Slack3r78)
- Delete a game from your cache right from the Infocard
- “Don’t show me this again” for certain notification popups
- Enhanced game system requirements, known issues, and possible solutions
- Animations that inform - Home animates up to its button in the top toolbar and background downloads animate down to the dot
- Enhanced hover/focus feedback on the promo posters in GameTap Home
And one last thing, for people installing GameTap for the first time. Now you can choose a different location for games and content. For those of you with GameTap already installed (aka pretty much everyone reading this blog), we’ll have some instructions for you soon on how to manually back up and move your games.
All in all, it’s a big week. We can put a checkmark next to dozens of feature requests made in the suggestion box and get busy on the next ones.
Enjoy!
February 15th, 2007 at 1:55 pm
Hooray! Now to wait for the version available for download on the main site to update to 1.8… there really should be something in the name of the file available for download that says what version it is.
February 15th, 2007 at 2:39 pm
Wow, that’s quite the list!
I guess I didn’t do too badly with my guesses.
February 15th, 2007 at 2:47 pm
^oldbushie - you’re right, it should show the version number in some way or form. Anyway, the version on the server at gametap.com/reinstall should be 1.8. Go! Play! Have fun!
^phorteetoo - nope, you did great! (i did say you weren’t *horribly* wrong)
February 15th, 2007 at 2:52 pm
Well, I downloaded the setup app from gametap.com/reinstall to my Vista box.
Wow! Amazing! It crashes on setup just like it did before! (Something about app compatibility check DLL failing..)
So either:
1. The download link still has the old version
or
2. While the Gametap application is Vista-compatible, the setup program isn’t.
Either way this is just lovely so far.
February 15th, 2007 at 3:14 pm
xamount or dinah, the setup file on www.gametap.com/reinstall will not work on Vista. It keeps giving me an error 5 seconds into the install.
February 15th, 2007 at 3:19 pm
You guys are completely right: the reinstall/install file is NOT the 1.8/Vista installer. It’s the old 1.7 installer.
Thanks for helping identify the problem. We’ll let you know as soon as we get it sorted out…
February 15th, 2007 at 3:31 pm
Cool. I was about to dial up or chat with Gametap…
Thanks for being so quick and prompt about this, I absolutely appreciate it
February 15th, 2007 at 3:39 pm
“Don’t know what to play? Go to Search and spin the wheel with Gotta Getta Game. Try it, it’s surprisingly fun (and you might find some hidden gems”
Vanna, Can I buy a vowel now? Seriously , the Genesis version of Wheel of Fortune would be a silly hidden game to include/be uncovered on the gotta getta game feature…
February 15th, 2007 at 3:41 pm
Update: It’s currently propagating out to all the edge servers. Our guys tell us it should be out there everywhere within the hour. So sorry for the delay. File size of the setup should be right around 36 MB.
February 15th, 2007 at 3:45 pm
Im dl it now dinah
February 15th, 2007 at 4:04 pm
Okay. I have some feedback. Everything loads up much much quicker in this update .HOWEVER. Because of the beta state of Nvidia’s drivers which are not fully optimized, Gameplay for many of the retro systems are very very choppy. I haven’t tested the Windows games yet. And inside gametap, its a bit skippy with the movement of the rings , and transition from the games area to the video section or account management is also choppy. Its not Gametap’s fault but rather Nvidia’s fault.
February 16th, 2007 at 1:49 am
The only major problem I’ve noticed in Vista so far is that, at least in the main GameTap program, the program fails to refresh after a period of 30 seconds in what seems like a freeze, although I can still access everything by randomly moving the mouse around and hoping I get lucky. This is easily verifiable when I try something like GameTap TV.
Other than that, games themselves seem to run fine and don’t mess up after 30 seconds.
I have an nVidia Geforce 7800 GS card, and the latest drivers for it.
February 16th, 2007 at 6:39 pm
Off topic question:
Wasn’t one of the Thief games available at one time or under the coming soon banner?
February 16th, 2007 at 8:57 pm
The homepage inside GameTap now tells you the search word to find X-COM. Wow, that’s really a big secret now, haha.
February 16th, 2007 at 10:58 pm
Who has the Vista x64 install magic?
did a clean install of Vista 64 bit, waited patiently for 1.8, looks like there is only 32 bit compatability?
I’ve been poking around the Myst Online forums for a solution, but i thought i’d ask the folks here if there is a way around the installation issue where gametap_setup.exe refuses to believe you are an administrator even if you are, and even if you set compatability mode to Win98, win2k, winxpsp2, and default to run as admin.
thanks in advance if anybody has any thoughts
February 17th, 2007 at 4:18 am
Question for dinah || xamount:
Not long ago, someone on here suggested the idea of some boards for people to go and chat about all things GT.
I thought this was a stellar idea, and would actually be interested in setting up and running such a thing if you guys aren’t interested in doing it.
Question is, would this get the hammer brought down by GT, or would it be ok as long as it was made clear they aren’t official boards?
February 17th, 2007 at 6:30 am
Legolas - turns out some things are better left not so secret. X-Com was one. (Lotta heat in the suggestion box.) Ow.
February 17th, 2007 at 10:26 am
I really wish I’d noticed this page a few weeks ago. For some reason I stopped getting the emails last summer and have been kind of floating in the ether with regard to Gametap newsness–and now I find out there’s a blog with interesting ‘behind-the-scenes’ commentary AND chatter from users? Awesome. The one thing that GT lacks is a unified non-realtime way for users to talk to each other–either an in-system message board or a forum on the website. Well, that and the KOF series. Regardless, thanks to X and Dinah for taking the time to talk to members and let us know what you’re up to–it’s MUCH appreciated.
February 17th, 2007 at 11:01 am
all: Thanks again for giving us feedback on the Vista install and usage side of things. It’s all been very valuable for us to hear your real world experiences!
Rob: Not sure about Thief. I’ll ask around on Monday and see what I can dig up.
Kilroy: For now, GameTap supports 32 bit Vista only.
phorteetoo, zqadams: Until we get a bona-fide forum/message board solution in place on the .com, you’re completely welcome to roll your own, go to town in the comment threads here, or hit up any of the active multipurpose threads already in place (a few of the recent ones we’ve stumbled across thanks to AW visitors: Something Awful, Quarter to Three, LCVG, Cheap Ass Gamer, Evil Avatar, Games Roundtable). Now that 1.8 is out the door, dinah and I are certainly going to be all about pushing for and working towards a unified community experience on the main website.
February 17th, 2007 at 1:23 pm
Yeah I’ve suggested a message board several times.
I tried starting a GameTap board/blog on GameSpot a few months ago, but it fell through because you are required to get support of a certain number of community members first.
If anyone really has the ability to design and host a good message board, then I welcome them to do it. I’ll support and spread the word about any GameTap board we can get together.
February 17th, 2007 at 2:03 pm
Hey, I have a question. Maybe it can’t be answered, maybe it can, I don’t know… But whatever happened to Myth2? I remember it was in the coming soon queue for a while, and then it was gone. I added it to my favorites as well, and it disappeared from there as well.
February 17th, 2007 at 4:32 pm
I have setup a message board at http://www.gametappers.net/index.php
I had been pondering it for a couple days already, just wanted to get an ok before grabbing the domain and finishing setting it up.
I hope it will be useful to anyone interested until GT gets their own going.
February 17th, 2007 at 9:49 pm
As a side note, Myst Online Uru Live doesn’t seem to work at all, something about a call stack and access violation. I think this is more an issue for Cyan, however, and I believe they are aware of it. I do so want to play Uru again.
February 17th, 2007 at 10:13 pm
Note that my previous comment pertains to Gametap in 32-bit Vista.
February 18th, 2007 at 1:40 pm
oldbushie:
You can get Uru to run on Vista if you set the UruExplorer.exe executable file to Windows 98 compatibility mode.
If you don’t know where to find it just run a windows search for that file.
February 18th, 2007 at 7:36 pm
Any idea when x64 Vista support is planned? I tried installing 1.8 on my system but it errored out right before the install process was completed. No error number or anything.
It told me to run gametap tools, but that didn’t do anything. So I tried to start gametap and it says my free license has expired and needs to be updated O_o
If you guys are running a x64 vista/xp beta test, could I be part of it? I would really like to help you guys get everything working okay on the x64 side of things. If so, pop me an email to the address I provided.
February 19th, 2007 at 1:16 am
Thanks, I got it working finally!
February 19th, 2007 at 10:57 am
Doughbot — Looks like Myth2 is scheduled (tentatively, like always, we know how you guys like to hold our feet to the fire!) for the end of March.
February 20th, 2007 at 10:35 am
Rob: Regarding a Thief game in the Coming Soon section: I think you might have been imagining things. Nice try, though!
February 20th, 2007 at 11:17 am
I also remember a Thief game at one time. I’m not making this up either. I distinctly recall going on the Internet to research the game and its system requirements and being excited about playing it, after seeing it on GameTap.
Maybe I’m going crazy? Maybe it was another similar game?
February 28th, 2007 at 4:20 am
I would also like to know if there will be any support for windows xp 64 bit in the near future? I’ve ran into the same problem as SithToast, gives me an error, your free gametap software license has expired and needs to be updated (10010).
February 28th, 2007 at 10:55 pm
I also would like to get involved with the beta testing for win xp x64, playing it on the laptop is fun but i have a big screen tv hooked up to my real box and i really don’t want to crawl around and such. I am reachable at the email address submitted
March 2nd, 2007 at 10:11 am
Don’t expect support for 64bit OSs in the near future. However, when it’s on the way, we’ll be sure to let you know.
March 5th, 2007 at 1:06 pm
That’s a shame. I think quite a few of us who’ve upgraded to Vista went the 64 bit route if we had a 64 bit CPU (which most of the new ones are). Since that is our new primary OS, and it doesn’t sound like there will be any support for it, we have no choice but to cancel. Why is it so difficult. I’ve installed probably 20 other applications that all work fine in emulated 32 bit mode.
March 8th, 2007 at 6:25 am
Durrr vista 64bit support? glad its only 99 cents for the first month… why isnt it mentioned that 64bit doesnt work anywhere on the gametap page :[
March 8th, 2007 at 12:49 pm
It DOES say on Gametap’s system requirements page:
“NOTE: GameTap is not supported on 64 bit for Windows Vista/Windows XP or Windows 98, and may experience difficulties with older computers. GameTap is also currently unavailable for download on Apple Macintosh systems but will be available at a later date so please be sure to check back often.”
I would think you should always check system requirements before buying a PC product..
March 8th, 2007 at 1:46 pm
Yeah, looks like you guys have pointed out a mismatch between our two System Requirements pages. We’ve sent a note to make sure that this version syncs up with the version in the Knowledge Base.
March 8th, 2007 at 8:53 pm
And now they match.
April 3rd, 2007 at 1:45 am
looks like I’ll be canceling my subscription. I love gametap as I have had it for over five months now, but I just built my new PC with a quad core processor and I’ve put Vista 64 bit on it. Putting Vista 32 bit on a 64 bit processor seems archaic and wasteful. If gametap can’t keep up with 64 bit processors and the evolution of the software for them, then I’m afraid you will lose customers.
April 12th, 2007 at 10:49 am
Unless you need more than 4gb of RAM or super super super security, there’s no reason to be using Vista x64 anyway. It’s not JUST Gametap that has a problem with Vista x64, it’s everything. Good luck getting anything to run properly on that between problems with Vista itself and the lack of good video card driver support.
April 13th, 2007 at 1:53 pm
I beg to differ, out of the hundreds of applications an games I own so far the only ones I have issue with are gametap and the command and conquer first decade. Otherwise everything I have used from my extensive collection works fine.
April 13th, 2007 at 7:00 pm
Really, I don’t think there’s a reason for any consumer that plays games to own the x64 version of an OS, not right now at least. The x64 version of XP was notorious with bad support for both games and multimedia applications, a ton of proprietary drivers (not just as far as licensed compression and encryption middleware like what GameTap has to deal with, but for things like mp3 players) were never ported because it was marketed as a business class OS in the first place.
Really I’m irritated that Microsoft pushed the x64 version of Vista as a home consumer option alongside the 32-bit version. Especially when so many software writers just do not care about supporting it yet, since methodically it’s more like having to port Windows app to Linux than it is just porting something from Windows 98 to Windows XP. Even if the middleware GameTap needed was ported, they’d also have to test all the Windows games to ensure they’d even run in a 64-bit environment. A lot of Windows games (especially ones made before 2002) had code signed into the executable that wouldn’t even let you run it outside of a 32-bit OS.
So yeah, pretty much what I’m saying is that if you’re a home consumer and you’re buying an x64 version of an OS and blithely expecting it to be everything that the 32-bit OS is, it’s like buying a ticket for the Titanic.
May 9th, 2007 at 12:41 am
I am having the same problem with Vista 64 (message Your free trial has expired) and I have paid for a year… hmm, not downgrading Vista but I sure hope they will solve that soon! Any news on that yet?
May 9th, 2007 at 10:25 pm
Hey, Sophia. Sorry, but nothing’s really changed since dinah last responded. I know that the community has made some minor progress in terms of experimentation with the client itself — but there’s still nothing offical on the way re: overall 64-bit OS support.
May 10th, 2007 at 4:33 pm
How much have I downloaded, and when are you gonna bring me some ice cream?
May 20th, 2007 at 3:49 pm
how are we as consumers, supposed to know which games are compatible with windows xp pro x64, and which ones that are denied. As far as I see it, there is no way to know ,until you buy a game that either works or fails.!! in other words : 50% chans of success- 50% chans of waisted money and patience.
question: does anyone know a site that shows the current games ,compatible with windows xp pro x64???
If not, then it`s about time that microsoft create such a site!!!!
May 27th, 2007 at 10:32 am
I’m also running Vista x64, and as the other user reported, I’m having absolutely no trouble with anything but Gametap (World of Warcraft took a huge framerate hit, but that’s not x64, as it also happens on the 32-bit flavor when I tried on the same hardware, and other 64-bit users run WoW fine). Point out that it’s not necessary all you like, but for Vista at least, the truth is that the x64 version runs just fine in almost all cases, and all major gaming hardware manufacturers are providing x64 drivers. The only piece of hardware I need a manufacturer driver for which doesn’t have it is a crappy Turtle Beach USB sound device for my laptop.
To the person above who was getting an error as post-install config began, right click the installer, and choose properties. Set XP Service Pack 2 compatibility mode, and Run As Administrator (yes, Gametap’s KB says you don’t need compatibility mode, but for x64, they’re wrong.) Run, and it will likely have the same problem. Run the Gametap shortcut on your desktop after setting the same properties, and it should launch just fine. Unfortunately, it won’t play games, but it will download them, and you can use the Gametap client without problems. My guess is that the virtual file system driver that Gametap uses for setting up its drive Z to run the games off of doesn’t handle 64-bit mode, which is unsurprising, but also unfixable for the user. We’ll just have to wait, and keep poking them, to remind them that they DO in fact have 64 bit customers. I kept an XP install as a contingency plan, but really, I only need to boot into it for GameTap and WoW.
May 27th, 2007 at 1:42 pm
Erk, forgot one important thing above: Don’t just run the client like I said to. Launch it by right clicking and choosing Run As Administrator.
May 29th, 2007 at 4:46 pm
I just switched our family machine to Vista x64 - this machine needs to do everything from personal finances, educational & game programs for our kids, photo and video editing to high-end gaming. Of all the hardware drivers and software needed to support all this, exactly two things did not work: my wife’s Pooh calendar printer, a 16-bit app from the 90s, and Gametap. So I have an XP instance for the sole purpose of running Gametap and printing Pooh calendars.
I went with x64 because I want this computer to last us the next 2-3 years at least, so I put in 4gb of RAM; it made no sense to me to run a 32-bit OS and have only 3gb accessible. I wouldn’t say that Vista x64 is mainstream yet and I understand that the client changes and Mac support are higher priorities but this is definitely the direction gamers are going, and as DX10 games start to hit the market this year the top end gaming machines will have Vista x64.
You guys have done a huge amount of work to make Gametap attractive to the hardcore audience, with Sam & Max, the SNK and Capcom games and things like X-Com and Deus Ex and I think you will be doing yourselves and your most passionate customers a disservice if you don’t enable your platform on the highest end systems.
May 30th, 2007 at 12:09 am
I would just like to point out that I have a highest end system. I built it myself a couple of months ago with Vista specifically in mind. Every single component in the system was state-of-the-art at time of purchase. It is also fully 64-bit compatible, HOWEVER, its primary OS is Vista Home Premium x86. I have a 64-bit version sitting in my closet, waiting for the day that it will become needed.
But I do not see that day coming in the near future. I believe that 64-bit mass popularity, acceptance, and support is still years, rather than months, away.
In my original specs for this PC, it was going to be 64-bit from the very start, but the fact of the matter is that its struggle enough getting third party support on board for 32-bit Vista right now. I have to run beta video drivers or else things are not stable. My wi-fi network card has been through 6 driver updates in the past 3 weeks as its manufacturer is frantically trying to sort the bugs out. And this is months after OS release.
The situation on the 64-bit side is even worse right now, as manufacturers have their hands full just trying to get their components to function adequately on the 32-bit side. Even if Gametap DID support Vista x64 at present, odds are most of the games wouldn’t run correctly because of video or sound card issues.
May 30th, 2007 at 4:36 pm
“The situation on the 64-bit side is even worse right now, as manufacturers have their hands full just trying to get their components to function adequately on the 32-bit side.”
The funny thing is here, everyone who’s running Vista x64 in this thread is reporting the same thing: They’re having virtually no problems except with GameTap. You can go on all you want about how much frustration running 64-bit will bring us, but it’s not true. One thing, out of the many, MANY I run, doesn’t work. The major gaming hardware manufacturers (nVidia, Creative, ATI) are all producing 64 bit drivers. Despite the complaints about the maturity of the drivers in Vista in general, I’ve had no issues with them, and the people running Vista whom I know personally report the same.
I believe there’s one reason why this is proving difficult for GameTap: GameTap uses a virtual file system to create the drive Z its games run off of, and you can’t just slap a 32 bit driver (virtual file systems, in every case I’ve ever heard, require a driver) into x64.
May 30th, 2007 at 6:36 pm
The current non-beta nVidia Vista x86 driver release totally screwed up both Gametap and 2 other programs for me. The beta drivers I used after that caused my video card to overheat randomly. The current ones I have cause random digital breakup on Windows periodically when switching programs. This is on a GeForce 8800GTX too so it is not exactly an unsupported platform. It is all well and good that YOU personally are not having any problems but do not assume that nobody is.
The fact of the matter is that only about 10% of Windows users are using Vista at the moment, and a very small percentage of that 10% are using the 64-bit version. It is not about to achieve widespread acceptance within the next year or two.
May 31st, 2007 at 11:10 am
“The fact of the matter is that only about 10% of Windows users are using Vista at the moment, and a very small percentage of that 10% are using the 64-bit version. It is not about to achieve widespread acceptance within the next year or two.”
I think that’s probably right. But my point was that hardcore gamers who are now or will be running top end systems in the next year are an important part of Gametap’s base which they have been aggressively trying to reach (see the American McGee announcement this week; who outside of the core gaming community knows who he is or would subscribe to Gametap because his games are on the service?) and a much higher percentage of them are or will be running Vista x64.
With regard to stability\compatibility of Vista, outside of 16-bit legacy apps my experience is that there isn’t a difference between x86 and x64…there has been steady progress on the drivers; Nvidia in particular have come a long way in just the last few weeks.
That said I agree that if x64 support was trivial they probably would have done it already.
June 10th, 2007 at 3:54 pm
To Mike and Aaron, and those that love the cutting edge! We all know that its about supply and demand: You guys probably only go in Bestbuy to get ink cartridges because only maybe Frys will have ANY of the components you or I are using! At least thats the way it is in my Bestbuy and Circuit City. That doesn’t keep them from selling the newest Operating systems though. Last years TVs and Low End Sound Cards and Video Cards abound…
It seems that we are always searching endlessly to get rid of that glitch, make that program run, tighten up that frame rate. It never ends. We love our toys and I agree with you that feel that we should not be tailoring our up to date systems to fit. Not use 64 bit? OK, I will take both turbochargers off of my 350z so the Corvettes can keep up or sell it so the Civics won’t have to be embarrassed at ANY Z. For the rest of you, you will be able to get the stuff I have in a couple of years on Ebay. Gametap and others have had YEARS to consider 64 bit OS’s, but Microsoft is the premier blame factory. This has gotten to sound like a long negative rant, and I am sorry all! The bottom line is that I was ticked by someone saying we shouldn’t be EVEN USING 64 bit! So just WHO’s solutions are you gonna be looking at a couple years from now? When all the companies are putting out the newest things and not spending money to fix the old problems that were figured out by the goofy geeks. See you on Planet AMD64 and elsewhere then….
April 3rd, 2008 at 2:24 pm
So Gametap have decided to add a check into the client such that games that will work perfectly well with 64-bit Vista will now refuse to download.
I shall be rewarding that decision, after 5 months of otherwise happy experience, with a cancellation of my account - as will several others above.
Adam
April 3rd, 2008 at 3:09 pm
Hey Adam, would you mind letting us know what games you were able to play through GameTap before and are now unable to play? If playable games are being blocked then we’ll absolutely investigate and rectify.
April 10th, 2008 at 10:03 pm
I run Vista 64 bit and have 0 problems. There are tons of users out there who like gaming systems and more then 2.5 gigs of ram. Like the other users out there have said 64 bit Vista is well supported and I have yet to see any game not work. I have been playing the old school silver box Dragonlace games on here. Your telling me that GameTap and it’s Dev’s can’t make it work on 64 bit OS? That to me seems lazy and cost cutting. I signed up tonight expecting to have a fun time this year with my 3 kids. Sadly after seeing the polish and sheer amount of games that I would of loved to play, I am going to cancel my account until 64 bit Vista is supported. I really would love to use your software but I am not going to give away my 2 gigs of memory and reinstall my OS for gametap. And who out there says 64 bit is not worth it? Apparently 80% of us gamers who want to use their current CPU and ram think different. Good luck GameTap. You have my email. When you support 64 bit I will gladly resubscribe. Until then it’s back to buying games elsewhere.
Sincerely
Nick
April 26th, 2008 at 2:15 am
I agree on the 64bit. I just upgraded my system and installed all of my other games (which worked fine) only to find out Gametap doesn’t work anymore. Bummer. It seems like they could at least get partial compatability going with some of the games - after all, some of them run fine in Vista if NOT installed through Gametap…