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Buying machine just for PR after long break - anything I should know?

Posted: 2015-04-04 18:11
by Sam Harris
Hi everyone.

I used to have a great time playing PR between 2008 and 2011, but then girlfriends and travel etc got in the way.

Recently though I have found myself watching old PR videos on youtube, and the bug is biting me again...

My gaming spec machine gave up the ghost over two years ago, so, I am about to pull the trigger on a used laptop from ebay (specs at the end of this post).

I am a bit worried though: Is it still possible to buy and install BF2 and set up a new soldier? (I can't remember my old EA password, and I no longer have access to the email address associated with the account). :? ??:

Also, am I right in thinking that a laptop with the following specs will do the job?

Thanks in advance for any helpful replies!!! :)




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EDIT:
Deleted specs as they've changed since that ebay seller backed out. New specs in post below.

Re: Buying machine just for PR after long break - anything I should know?

Posted: 2015-04-04 20:30
by PLODDITHANLEY
That laptop looks fine to me, switch on turbo though, has it got a numerical keypad?
If you can find BF 2 you can install and play PR online fine, a Dev kindly set up and provides a master server, you create a new profile on it.

Re: Buying machine just for PR after long break - anything I should know?

Posted: 2015-04-05 07:12
by Sam Harris
PLODDITHANLEY wrote:That laptop looks fine to me, switch on turbo though, has it got a numerical keypad?
If you can find BF 2 you can install and play PR online fine, a Dev kindly set up and provides a master server, you create a new profile on it.
Hey thanks, that's great to know! :)

Am I to understand that you have to run some sort of third party exe to fool BF2 into talking to this dev's server rather than the (no longer extant) EA one?



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EDIT:
eBay seller backed out, so I ended up buying a different machine - I now have something with the following specs...


FRESH Windows 7 Ultimate



INTEL CORE EXTREME CPU X7900 @2.80 GHZ 2.8 GHZ



RAM 4 GB



64 BIT

NVIDIA GEFORCE 8400M GT X 2



300 GB HARD DRIVE


2ND EDIT:
It has a numeric keypad, yes.

Re: Buying machine just for PR after long break - anything I should know?

Posted: 2015-04-05 10:32
by [508th_PIR] Grey
Sam Harris wrote:Am I to understand that you have to run some sort of third party exe to fool BF2 into talking to this dev's server rather than the (no longer extant) EA one?
Nope! The PR devs are very clever. Just run the PR.exe and you'll automatically connect to the PR master server. You'll also automatically connect to the correct channel on the PR Mumble server (which is also fully integrated) when you load into a game.

Re: Buying machine just for PR after long break - anything I should know?

Posted: 2015-04-05 11:50
by Sam Harris
'[508th_PIR wrote: Grey;2064838']Nope! The PR devs are very clever. Just run the PR.exe and you'll automatically connect to the PR master server. You'll also automatically connect to the correct channel on the PR Mumble server (which is also fully integrated) when you load into a game.
Wow. I love living in the future. :-D

Re: Buying machine just for PR after long break - anything I should know?

Posted: 2015-04-05 14:50
by Tankbuster28000
That graphic card is really bad though, you should upgrade it

Re: Buying machine just for PR after long break - anything I should know?

Posted: 2015-04-05 15:31
by Sam Harris
Tankbuster28000 wrote:That graphic card is really bad though, you should upgrade it
What, you mean the "NVIDIA GEFORCE 8400M GT X 2" part of the spec?

I suppose they are graphics chips rather than cards as such, seeing as how it's a laptop. I don't know if they're even upgradable. Anyway, I should still be able to play with a decent frame-rate and settings either on max, or close to that, right? :?

EDIT:
Just seen this - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6gX_o9cfrGA

OK, if the original cards don't do the job well enough, I'll upgrade it. ;)

Re: Buying machine just for PR after long break - anything I should know?

Posted: 2015-04-08 13:03
by Sam Harris
Just ordered a Nvidia GeForce 9800M GTX SLI 2GB to be on the safe side. :)

Does anyone here have any experience playing PR with an identical or equivalent setup? If so, what kind of frame-rates do you think I should expect with everything on high?

(If I get 30 or above I'll be happy. :) )






(Forgive me for the bump, but I thought it's better than making a new thread for that question.)

Re: Buying machine just for PR after long break - anything I should know?

Posted: 2015-04-09 02:41
by gerardusnl0
Sam Harris wrote:Just ordered a Nvidia GeForce 9800M GTX SLI 2GB to be on the safe side. :)

Does anyone here have any experience playing PR with an identical or equivalent setup? If so, what kind of frame-rates do you think I should expect with everything on high?

(If I get 30 or above I'll be happy. :) )






(Forgive me for the bump, but I thought it's better than making a new thread for that question.)
that should be more then enough, im playing on intel 4600hd intergrated graphics and get 40 frames all on high AA off. your gfx should be better

Re: Buying machine just for PR after long break - anything I should know?

Posted: 2015-04-10 08:18
by Sam Harris
Ah, that's encouraging. Thanks for the response. :)

Just been watching a tutorial for the Osprey (wasn't in the game when I last played). Really itching to get back on the battlefield!!!

I guess my gaming laptop will arrive around the middle of next week, so from now till then I am just going to keep watching a mother lode of PR vids to help smooth out the re-learning curve ahead of joining a server. :idea:

Re: Buying machine just for PR after long break - anything I should know?

Posted: 2015-04-16 14:42
by Sam Harris
Laptop and BF2 disk have arrived safely. Do you guys think that I should wait for the new GFX card to arrive before I install the game? ...I mean if I start with this card, am I likely to run into GFX problems later if I go install game > upgrade card instead of upgrade card > install game?