M1 Tank Platoon 2: Gliding with tanks
- DarkenedRoom
- 2 days ago
- 7 min read
A guide to running the 1998 Microprose M1 Abrams tank sim, M1 Tank Platoon 2. This guide covers installation, patching and the required actions to run with enhanced Glide graphics. M1 Tanks Platoon 2 (M1TP2) is notoriously difficult to run with Glide successfully, without a Crash To Desktop (CTD) occurring at some point.
This guide is primarily concerned with configuring, patching and running a vanilla M1TP2, suitable for those new to the game. For additional patches/mods see the 'Documentation & Resources' section.
Methodology
There are two methods that can be used, to either:
Run M1TP2 natively in Windows 10 (Win10). This method employs Windows and Glide wrappers (DxWnd and nGlide or dgVoodoo2). The core game is stable when running, however this method is not without issues including:
The War College app is unable to be used.
The default mouse cursor will sit above the in-game mouse cursor.
The in-game mouse cursor may disappear after a mission ends/is quit.
The in-game intro movies may fail to play properly.
Aspect ratio corrections may revert to a native stretched resolution after a mission ends/is quit.
At present, tests have been conducted with the latest versions (at time of writing) of the following DirectX/Windows wrappers:
DDrawCompat v0.6.0
dgVoodoo2 v2.86
DxWrapper v1.3.7700.25
DxWnd v2.06.09
The following Glide wrappers were tested:
dgVoodoo2 v2.86
nGlide v2.10
Alternatively, run M1TP2 in an emulated PCem Windows 98 Second Edition (Win98SE) machine. This method uses internal PCem Glide components, to provide a suitable environment for M1TP2. This has advantages over native methods including:
The War College app works.
Only the in-game crosshairs mouse cursor is shown.
Intro and transition movies play correctly.
Joysticks are supported.
At present, the recommended method is to use PCem.
Media
As usual I recommend converting physical media to images to save wear and tear on disks and drives. The M1TP2 cd and be ripped to an iso, data only cd image, format as there is no cd audio/music tracks on the M1TP2 disc.
PCem emulator
This guide uses the latest version of PCem v17, available from the PCem website on the 'Downloads' page.
Emulated machine approach
If you've used a PCem guide from this site before, you may already have a PCem emulated machine. This usual machine is not suitable for M1TP2. However, the machine config is very similar and can be altered and replacement devices and device drivers added to create a suitable machine. This is approach I took.
Alternatively you can create a fresh machine, using the excellent YouTube tutorial video by PhilsComputerLab, PCem Windows 98 Setup, as a basis, while making the changes detailed below.
Emulated machine configuration
The major change is to switch from a 3dfx Voodoo 3 graphics card to a different graphics card and 3dfx Voodoo 1 3d accelerator card. Note, the Voodoo 1 is not a fully featured graphics card but a 3d accelerator, requiring an additional standard graphics card in the emulated machine.
The S3 ViRGE/DX is a suitable graphics card. Speed can be maximised with Fast VLB/PCI and the Voodoo Graphics checkbox should be checked (see screenshot). The Voodoo options can also be maximised with:
Framebuffer memory size: 4MB
Texture memory size: 4MB
Render threads: 4
Installing Windows and drivers
If creating a new emulated machine Phil's tutorial can be followed (except for the graphics card) and Win98SE installed.
Win98SE will provide default drivers for the S3 graphics card. Depending on the Win98SE installation cd/cd image, it may also provide default drivers for the Voodoo 1 card. However these are not suitable for M1TP2.
Suitable Voodoo drivers can be found on the PhilsComputerLab website, on the 'Drivers for 3dfx Voodoo' page. I would recommend the 'May 1999 - Latest Reference driver'. They should be unzipped to a folder in Win10, as Win98 has not built in zip support.
The virtual machine should be shut down and the virtual hard disk (.vhd) file opened in Win10. The Voodoo driver folder should be copied onto the Win98SE virtual hard disk.
The virtual hard disk should be ejected and the emulated machine started. The 'Add new hardware' wizard of Win98SE can be used to install the Voodoo drivers.
Note: During the driver install, there may be a warning, that a particular driver file is older than the one currently in use. It's recommended to install the older file, I did so and M1TP2 runs very well.
Future use
At this point you should have a well configured emulated machine with a working Voodoo card without any games installed. You may wish to take a copy of both the machine config and virtual hard disk, for any future games you wish to try and to avoid having to build another machine with this spec, from scratch.
Installing M1TP2
M1TP2 should be installed within the emulated machine by mounting the cd/cd image in PCem. The cd should auto start the launcher app and the 'Install' option selected, but if not, run setup.exe from the cd.
During the installation, you will be asked if the War College and movie files should be copied to the hard disk. Both can be copied over, so select yes each time.
When asked to install DirectX, select no, the emulated machine should already have installed a later and compatible version of DirectX.
Once installed you may wish to leave the cd image mounted as it will be required to play the game.
QuickTime for Windows
At this point it's worth quickly testing the War College app. It can be run from the Win98SE Start menu. Initialization errors may be encountered, however the app still seems to start and run without further issues.
The cause is down to a missing 'QuickTime for Windows' app. Fortunately it is present on the M1TP2 cd/cd image. Go to the dsg folder on the cd and run the qt16.exe installer. Once installation is complete, play the intro/demo movie to ensure QuickTime for Windows in installed, configured and working properly.
The next time the War College app is run, there should be no errors.
Patching
All patches, unless otherwise stated, can be found in 'The M1 Tank Platoon II Archive' (see 'Documentation & Resources' below)
Before patching you may wish to make a copy of the emulated machine and virtual hard disk. A number of M1TP2 veterans consider the v1.1 patch to be the optimum version of the game. Therefore with a copy of the PCem machine, additional copies could be made to patch to v1.1 or v1.2, allowing you to try both.
This guide will be patching to the latest official v1.2 patch.
Version 1.1 patch
The official v1.1 patch was released April, 1998. The patch addresses issues from M1 Tank Platoon II, including fixed bugs, altered controls, and new additions to the game. There were German language and US/International versions of this patch.
Some consider the v1.1 patch to be the optimum version of the game. This patch is recommended if you wish to try the v1.1 version of the game, otherwise this patch was superseded by the v1.2 patch.
Version 1.2 patch
The official v1.2 patch was released May, 1998 and was the last official patch. It is a cumulative patch, including the v1.1 changes.
The v1.2 specific changes include bug fixes and altered controls, but to a lesser extent than the v1.1 patch. However there are more v1.2 specific additions. This is a recommended patch.
Readme
The following the readme file from the v1.2 patch which gives a breakdown of all v1.1 and v1.2 changes:
nGlide patch
There is an unofficial nGlide patch available from Zeus software. The patch is available for M1TP2 v1.1 or v1.2. It is a file replacement patch replacing the m1tp2.exe file. It is not known what the patch changes. As nGlide is not used in this guide, this is not a recommended patch.
Running
Both the game and the War College app can be run from the Win98SE start menu. It is recommended to reduce the emulated screen resolution to 800x600, before running the War College app, as this seems to improve text readability.
In-game configuration
The in-game configuration page should show the version as 'VER 1.2'. Options should be set as shown, with:
Detail level: High
Render mode: Glide
Alpha blending: On
The menu bars option controls the animated menu bars. As novel as they are, the corresponding audio and delay tends to get 'old', so feel free to turn these off, however this is left as a personal preference.
Issues
A minor issues remains, with the animated menu bars. When switched off, the game starts and after the intro movies, the initial menu page will display a blank/black screen. To resolve simply move and click with the mouse and it should be restored momentarily.
This issue does not occur if the animated menu bars are left on.
Joystick configuration
Now we have a working M1TP2 installation we can take a look at joystick support. As M1TP2 only supports a joystick, native controller support can be used instead of a virtual controller.
The first step is to configure the joystick in PCem. A 'Standard 4-button joystick' is selected and the axes and buttons are set as shown in the PCem screenshot.
Once configured the virtual machine can be started. Within Win98SE go to the 'Control Panel' and 'Game Controllers' and add a '2-axis, 4-button joystick' as shown in the below Win98SE screenshot. Once added the Status column should show 'OK'.
The last step is to calibrate the new joystick in Win98SE. Once calibrated, the joystick setup is complete. When M1TP2 is started the commander and gunner positions can aim and fire using the joystick.
Documentation & resources
It is highly recommended to obtain a copy of the manual. Digital versions are available in pdf format.
The most extensive collection of M1TP2 resources to be found, including:
Additional documentation
Maps
Strategy guides
Patches, official and unofficial
Mods and modding guides
Fan made missions and campaigns
Created by PixelWings from various sources and placed on the Internet Archive. A huge resource of 110MB, including items that would probably have been lost to time, if it hadn't been collated.
A huge thank you to PixelWings and the contributors, for creating this essential archive for any M1TP2 fan.
Time to get 'On the way!'
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