Find a few good servers and stay there
Our Halo PC dedicated server is online and running. We are getting smooth 66ms pings which will be great for gaming online.
The server is called “hushedcasket.com” in the game browser. You can join by entering “hpc.hushedcasket.com” as the IP of the server.
Tips on playing:
On XBOX Live, you hop online, you play a few games, and once you sign off that micro-community you just participated in dies. There’s no guarantee that those good games you just had will be there the next time you join up.
By frequenting the same dedicated servers that you like, you’ll eventually notice that others frequent those servers. A community emerges and you will have assurance that good games are to be had when you sign online.
Take some time. Find some good servers and stick in them. THX has setup a server with classic THX gametypes on good maps.
Over time, after enough players have been through the server, a community will form and the server will be populated with players who like to play the same gametypes and maps we do. That is, you won’t have to play all those heavy weapons only gametypes that are flooding online Halo PC svr population.
See who is in the THX HPC server
Go here and you can see who is in the THX svr right now: http://carnage.bungie.org/halo/HaloQuery.cgi?address=hpc.hushedcasket.com&port=2302&refresh=30
Bookmark that link.
Create a desktop shortcut for a direct connection to the THX HPC svr
Add –connect hpc.hushedcasket.com to the end of your Target field in your shortcut’s properties so that it looks something like this like:
"C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Games\Halo\halo.exe" -connect hpc.hushedcasket.com
Use a microphone and join up to our voice server
Go to Mikeulus’ cool website voicemic.com and follow instructions.
Download the Mumble software: downloaded the Mumble software.
Then click this link: mumble://voicemic.com.
In the Mumble software, go to Channel > Send Message to post text messages to the group.
Also, in the Halo game, use Team (Y) and Server Chat (T) to type messages to everyone.
Turn off mouse acceleration
Some people may prefer to play Halo without any mouse acceleration. The best way to in sure you are doing this is to open Notepad and create a file titled “mouse.cfgâ€Â. In the body of that file, type “mouse_acceleration 0†without the quotes and save the file in your halo.exe directory.
Then edit your Halo shortcut to include the following command “-exec mouse.cfgâ€Â.
So, you shortcut could end up looking something like this:
"C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Games\Halo\halo.exe" -console -nojoystick -novideo -screenshot -connect hpc.hushedcasket.com -exec mouse.cfg
- -nojoystick keeps HPC from looking for a joystick. A slight performance boost.
- -novideo prevents the opening videos from being played.
Choosing the right Pixel Shader
Getting the most performance out of older computers is a trial and error process. The first step is to run a Pixel Shader version that runs best on your computer. By default, Halo PC runs on Pixel Shader 2.0 technology. Some older video cards may not support this technology very well. So, you can force Halo to run in Pixel Shader 1.4, 1.1, or no Pixel Shaders at all. To do this, right-click your Halo shortcut, go to Properties, go to Target. At the of the target line add –use14, or –use11, or –useff for PS1.4, or PS1.1, or no PS respectively. For example:
"C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Games\Halo\halo.exe" –use11
or
"C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Games\Halo\halo.exe" –useff
Note that –use11 is just about as good as Pixel Shader 2.0 so using –use14 may not be that great for you. -useff will make your Halo game look like you are playing through a dirty Coke bottle.
Your frames per second
In the in-game Video Options, you can set the framerate in which your game will try to run:
- 30FPS will attempt to the run the game at 30FPS, just like Halo on the XBOX.
- VSYNC will play the frames as fast as it can but never faster than your monitor can support (usually 60, or 75, or 80 MHz).
- Recommned: NO VSYNC will run the game as fast as your video card can support. It may show more frames per second (well over 100) even if your monitor can’t support that refresh rate. NO VSYNC will cause “video tearing†in some games and for some video cards, but is the best option to use if you don’t experience the tearing and can afford the performance.
In-game press CTRL + F12 to see a real-time framerate graph
Tips:
- Make sure you have the latest video and audio card drivers installed
- Go to the Network Settings menu and input the connection speed you have.
- If you want to be able to administrate the Hushed Casket server, then you need to add –console to the end of the target line in the Halo shortcut.
- A lower in-game screen resolution will give you better graphical performance and which will lead to better hitbox connections.
- Play around with the in-game video and audio settings to get further performance increases if you need it. Audio settings will need to be adjusted if you’ve got old audio cards with outdated drivers.
- Install FRAPS from http://fraps.com to record video and take screenshots in-game by pressing the F9 or F10 buttons.
- Customize the keyboard layout. Move Halo action commands to where they make sense for you. For instance, I moved my crouch button to (C) and put Melee and Reload on my 5-button mouse.
- Play with a laser mouse and ball mice have imperfections that inject bumps into your scan with the mouse.
- Play with headphones to hear sounds in Halo that you’ve never heard before through even high performance speaker systems.
- Turn off background applications that eat up CPU and GPU time from the game.
- Create a shortcut on your desktop that will automatically connect you to the THX HPC server on launch. Add –ip x.x.x.x to your shortcut’s target where x.x.x.x is the IP of the server you wish to join.
Parameters and Descriptions
-? Display a list of all parameters.
-nosound
Turn off all sound.
This can be used to diagnose an error or an issue if an error or an issue is related to the generation of sound. If you use this parameter and it resolves your issue, it is best to update your sound drivers or your hardware.
-novideo
Disables video playback.
This can be used to diagnose an error or an issue if an error or an issue is related to the playback of movies. If you use this parameter and it resolves your issue, it is best to update your video and sound drivers to make sure that you can play back the opening content.
-nojoystick
Disables joysticks, gamepads and other gaming input devices. This may be used to slightly increase performance because Halo will not be polling or actively looking for game controller input. This can also be used to diagnose an error or an issue if an error or an issue is related to the connection of gaming devices. If you use this parameter and it resolves your issue, it is best to update your gaming device drivers.
-nogamma
Disables adjustment of gamma.
Gamma can be adjusted in game to make the display either darker or lighter. If you cannot correctly see the screen after you make an adjustment, you can use this parameter to start the game in a state that you can return gamma to a usable level.
-noSSE
Disables SSE and 3DNow! Optimizations.
Note This will severely decrease performance for some computers.
This can be used to diagnose an error or an issue if an error or an issue is related to the advanced instruction set of your CPU. If you use this parameter and it resolves your issue, you may want to consider having your PC serviced by your manufacturer.
-useff
Forces the game to run as if the computer’s video solution is a “fixed function†card.
A fixed function card does not support Pixel Shaders and graphics typically will be simpler and blockier.
Examples of fixed function chipset include but are not limited to the following:
- GeForce (256) SDR
- GeForce (256) DDR
- GeForce (256) Ultra
- GeForce (256) Quadro
- GeForce2 MX
- GeForce2 MX 200
- GeForce2 MX 400
- GeForce2 Go 100
- GeForce2 Go 200
- GeForce2 Go Quadro2 MXR / EX / Go
- GeForce2 GTS
- GeForce2 Pro
- GeForce2 Ti
- GeForce2 Ultra
- GeForce2 GL Quadro2 Pro
- GeForce4 MX 420
- GeForce4 MX 420 -8x
- GeForce4 MX 440
- GeForce4 MX 440 SE
- GeForce4 MX 440 -8x
- GeForce4 MX 440SE -8x
- GeForce4 MX 460
- GeForce4 410 Go
- GeForce4 420 Go
- GeForce4 420 Go 32M
- GeForce4 440 Go 64M
- GeForce4 Quadro 200/400
- GeForce4 Quadro 500XGL
- GeForce4 Quadro 550XGL
- nForce 220
- nForce 420
- nForce2
- Radeon 7500
- All in Wonder Radeon 7500
- Mobility Radeon 7500
- Mobility Radeon 7500 GL
- Radeon 7200
- Radeon 64 DDR
- Radeon 32 DDR
- Radeon LE
- Radeon 7200
- All in Wonder Radeon
Note Because of the limitations, fixed function cards typically have lower performance in Halo: Combat Evolved than cards that support pixel shaders.
Note Forcing the game to run at an earlier shader version that your display adapter can support may increase performance while reducing visual quality.
Trying to force the game to run at a later shader version than your display adapter can support causes the game to default to the highest shader level that your hardware supports.
-use11
Forces the game to run as if the computer’s video solution is a Shader 1.1 card.
Vertex and pixel shaders are used to create the complex objects and characters that can be displayed in Halo: Combat Evolved. If a card supports shaders it will generally be faster to use them instead of using fixed functions. Halo: Combat Evolved will automatically select the best shader level for your system depending on your hardware and drivers.
Examples of Shader 1.1 capable chipsets include but are not limited to the following:
- GeForce3
- GeForce3 Ti 200
- GeForce3 Ti 500
- GeForce3 Quadro
- GeForce4 Ti 4600
- GeForce4 Ti 4400
- GeForce4 Ti 4200
- GeForce4 Quadro 900XGL
- GeForce4 Quadro 750XGL
- GeForce4 Quadro 700XGL
- GeForce4 Ti 4800
- GeForce4 Ti 4200 -8x
- GeForce4 Ti 4800SE
- GeForce4 Quadro 980XGL
- GeForce4 Quadro 780XGL
- GeForce4 4200 Go
Note Forcing the game to run at an earlier shader version that your display adapter can support may increase performance while reducing visual quality. Trying to force the game to run at a later shader version than your display adapter can support will cause the game to default to the latest shader level that your hardware supports.
-use14
Forces the game to run as if the computers video solution is a Shader 1.4 card.
Examples of Shader 1.4 capable chipsets include but are not limited to the following:
- Radeon 9200 PRO -8x
- Radeon 9200 -8x
- Radeon 9100 IGP
- Radeon 9000 PRO
- Radeon 9000
- Mobility Radeon 9000
- Mobility Radeon 9000 GL
- Radeon 8500
- Radeon 8500 LE
- Radeon 8500 DV
Note Forcing the game to run at an earliest shader version that your display adapter can support may increase performance while reducing visual quality.
Trying to force the game to run at a later shader version than your display adapter can support will cause the game to default to the latest shader version that your hardware supports.
-use20
Forces the game to run as a Shader 2.0 card.
Examples of Shader 2.0 capable chipsets include but are not limited to the following:
- GeForce FX 5800 Ultra
- GeForce FX 5800
- Quadro FX 3000
- Quadro FX 2000
- Quadro FX 1000
- GeForce FX 5600 Ultra
- GeForce FX 5600
- GeForce FX 5900 Ultra
- GeForce FX 5900
- GeForce FX 5200 Ultra
- GeForce FX 5200
- Radeon 9800 PRO
- Radeon 9800
- Radeon 9700 PRO
- Radeon 9700
- Radeon 9600 PRO
- Radeon 9600
- Radeon 9500 PRO
- Radeon 9500
Note Forcing the game to run at an earlier shader version that your display adapter can support may increase performance while reducing visual quality.
Trying to force the game to run at a later shader version than your display adapter can support will cause the game to default to the latest shader level that your hardware supports.
-safemode
Disables as many advanced graphics and sound features as possible.
This can be used to diagnose an issue that is hardware related. You may also enter Safe Mode by starting the game by pressing the CTRL key, and then clicking the Continue in ‘Safe Mode’ button when you are prompted to. The -safemode parameter is a combination of the following individual parameters:
- -nosound
- -novideo
- -nojoystick
- -nogamma
- -useff
- -width640
-window
Runs the game in a window.
-width640
Forces the game to run at 640×480. This command may improve performance at the cost of visuals.
-vidmode w,h,r
Forces the game to run at width, height, update.
This command can be used to reset the game to a width, height, and update rate that your computer and monitor can work with if you set them incorrectly in the game. The following are two example uses of this parameter:
–vidmode 800,600,60
–vidmode 800,600,85
-adapter x
Forces the game to run full-screen on a particular display adaptor in a multiple monitor setup.
This can be used to send the game to a particular card and monitor combination if you have a multi-monitor setup.
-port x
Server port address used when hosting games.
This can be used to create a custom shortcut for a particular server.
-cport x
Client port address used when joining games.
This can be used to create a custom shortcut for a particular server.
-ip x.x.x.x
Server IP address used when you have multiple IP addresses.
This can be used to create a custom shortcut for a particular server.
-timedemo
Runs four movies and writes out timedemo.txt in the folder where Halo is installed. Note This command will overwrite your current Campaign save.
While the Timedemo.txt file may be used to measure performance it is not a true representation of the frame rates that you will see in the game. The –timedemo command was designed as a development tool and not as a benchmark for Retail Product Performance.
