Lemmings Boards > Help & Guides

How to play Lemmings 3D in DOSBox

(1/4) > >>

namida:
Please note: There is a Lemmings 3D clone available that runs on modern Windows systems (also works on Linux if you compile it yourself, and probably Mac too), Loap. It's still under development but is quickly becoming a better option for playing Lemmings 3D on modern hardware.


Setting up Lemmings 3D for the official content can be a bit tricky, and for custom content even trickier due to the music patch being a bit confusing. So I've put together these packages to make it as simple and straightforward as possible for Windows users. (Mac / Linux users, see spoiler tag at end of post for the old version of this post, which is applicable there.)

Downloads - get ONE of these:
- Non-CD version (10MB): https://1drv.ms/u/s!Am6NTdy4vnPXg5xjv61p_3jBDM6JIQ?e=NNxsR1
- CD version (131MB): (link temporarily down)

(The CD version includes CD audio and animations, but is otherwise identical. These downloads have all relevant patches pre-applied. Credit to Pooty for the CD music setup.)

Besides this, you'll also need to set up DOSBox: https://www.dosbox.com/download.php?main=1
After installation, open DOSBox's settings, and make some changes:
- "cycles=auto" -> "cycles=max" (under [cpu])
- "core=auto" -> "core=dynamic" (under [cpu])
- "output=surface" -> "output=ddraw" (under [sdl])
- "windowresolution=auto"; change "auto" depending on your desktop resolution and what size you want the window to be; for best results use an integer multiple of 320x240.

Now, to play Lemmings 3D - just fire up L3DUtils (included in the above download), and hit "Run L3D". If this fails, it might be that your DOSBox path is wrong - if so, hit the "..." next to it and locate your DOSBox EXE. (These downloads are preconfigured with the most common path for DOSBox 0.74-3.)

If you're using the non-CD version, you may want to install VirtualMIDISynth (freeware), and use the AWE32 rip soundfont for best results with the music. :)

If you have an existing savefile that you want to use with this setup, copy the LM3D.SAV file into "SAVE/DEFAULT/LM3D.CD". You can copy the LM3D.CFG file too if you like.


Some useful information:

- You CAN skip the intro, except for the first time you run L3D - just hold the space bar, and next time L3D transitions between intro screens, it'll jump directly to the title screen instead.

- Nuke is hard to activate by clicking; use the keyboard shortcut (Alt+Q) instead. Alternatively, if you want to exit to the title screen, press F11 (you'll be asked to confirm). You can also press Esc; this will go to the postview screen if you've saved enough lemmings to pass the level, or otherwise will insta-restart the level.

- Other useful keyboard shortcuts: Esc either restarts the level or exits it, depending on whether you've met the save requirement or not. Numbers 1 to 4 on the number bar (not the numpad) switch to the respective camera. Enter is fast-forward, P is pause. The various numpad buttons can be used to control the camera; some people find this preferable to using the mouse.

- On the subject of camera control with the mouse; the closer your mouse cursor is to the edge, the faster the camera moves. If you want to move forward slowly for example, move your mouse towards the top, but stop moving and start right-clicking as soon as it changes to an up arrow. If you want to move really fast, move the mouse right to the top of the screen. Similar logic applies for other directions. For more-precise control of vertical camera movement, click and drag the current location indicator instead of clicking in the empty space (like you would with an actual scrollbar in a typical desktop app).

- You can also click and drag on the minimap, to move the camera to the position you click, and face in the direction you drag. Note that some levels prohibit this despite having a minimap, such as Mayhem 65 "The Prisoner".


Old post - useful if you want to use a physical copy you own instead of a download, or don't want to use L3DUtils, or are not using Windows (click to show/hide)There are two ways you can run Lemmings 3D - manually, or via the launcher in L3DUtils. I recommend using the launcher; the setup is slightly less complicated, and starting up L3D after the initial setup is a matter of launching L3DUtils then clicking a button - plus L3DUtils gives you some other nice features, like being able to save and share your level solution replays.


There are some common steps that must be done either way, plus some steps that are specific to one way or another.

Firstly, you must obtain and set up DOSBox. DOSBox is free software, in both senses of the term: https://www.dosbox.com/

Secondly, you must configure DOSBox. Open your DOSBox options and change core to "dynamic", and cycles to "max". Optionally, change the output display options if you wish.

Thirdly, you must acquire a copy of Lemmings 3D. You can acquire a legitimate copy via your preferred source. Otherwise, you can obtain a copy of the game:
- Non-CD Version: https://www.camanis.net/lemmings/3dlemmings.php
- CD Version: https://archive.org/details/lemmings-3D (requires torrent client)

Extract (or copy, in the case of a CD version) the files to somewhere on your hard drive.


Running Lemmings 3D via L3DUtils - Preparation (You only need to do these steps the first time you run the game)

1. Download L3DUtils and put it in the same folder as Lemmings 3D.

2. (Optional, but recommended) Launch L3DUtils, go to "Game Patches", and apply the Music Patch. (If you're using the above copies, you don't need the Pyramid Texture Patch - although you can apply it anyway if you want, it won't do any harm.) Pay close attention to the options here - if you're going to be using custom levels, make sure to select the correct option for that, especially if you've already copied the custom levels into L3D's folder (it doesn't really matter, if you haven't copied them yet).

3. Where L3DUtils asks for a path to DOSBox, click the "..." and locate your DOSBox EXE. This is usually in either "C:\Program Files\DosBox\" or "C:\Program Files (x86)\DosBox\".

4. If you have a real L3D disc, or an ISO image of one, select the "ISO" or "Drive" option respectively and, as applicable, find your ISO file or enter your optical drive letter. If you do not have one (eg. when using the non-CD version above, or most abandonware copies of the game), select "No Disc". *

5. Click the "Run Setup" button. This will open L3D's setup utility. Go to Setup Hardware -> Sound. Under "Select Music Card" select either "Soundblaster" or "General Midi" (or "None", if that's your preference), and under "Select Sound Card" select "Soundblaster" (or "None"). You can also turn CD Music on if you're using a CD version of the game. Make sure to exit out of the setup utility via its menus, rather than by X'ing DosBox. **

* If you want to use the CD version with no CD, or if you want to use a CD (for CD audio) with the non-CD version, L3DUtils has a patch to switch the EXE between the two versions.
** It is possible with some extra work, to get Gravis UltraSound working in DOSBox, but that's beyond the scope of this tutorial. I think that's the only other one that's supported. I know for sure AWE32 is not.

Now, with the above setup done, launching L3D is as simple as opening L3DUtils and clicking "Run L3D". L3DUtils will take care of mounting folders / etc for you, and can even swap between multiple save files.


Running Lemmings 3D in DosBox manually

Using L3DUtils is recommended, but if you don't want to use it (or can't, eg. due to using a Mac / Linux system), you can do it manually instead.

1. Mount a folder as C drive. This can be the Lemmings 3D folder, or a folder that contains it. For example, if you extracted / copied L3D to "C:\Games\Dosbox\L3D", you might want one of the following:
- MOUNT C C:\Games\Dosbox\
or
- MOUNT C C:\Games\Dosbox\L3D
Make sure you are mounting the same folder every time, because Lemmings 3D stores its save files in (what it believes to be) C:\LM3D.CD\, even when using a non-CD version of the game.

2. If you're using a CD version of Lemmings 3D, mount your optical drive or the ISO as D drive:
- MOUNT D D:\ -t cdrom (if using a physical disc, or a virtual drive via external software like Daemon Tools)
- IMGMOUNT D C:\Games\DosBox\L3D.CUE -t iso -fs iso (if using an ISO file)

3. Navigate to L3D's folder in DOSBox and type "SETUP" then hit enter. *

4. Configure L3D's sound options; see Step 5 of the L3DUtils method above, the same settings apply here too. *

5. Type "L3D" then hit enter, to start the game.

* You only need to do steps 3 and 4 the first time you run L3D, not every time.


Some useful information that's not really needed with the new guide:

- If you have a CD version, and L3D won't start up, try using L3DUtils's "CD / Floppy EXE Patch". This will turn it into the non-CD version which tends to give people less problems. The downside is that you lose the option of CD Audio - the setting is still there in the options menu / etc, but it won't work. (CD animations still work, as long as the files are present.)

- Although AWE32 isn't supported by DOSBox, you can get pretty close: set music to "General Midi", install VirtualMIDISynth (freeware), and use the AWE32 rip soundfont.

- If you're using DOSBox with a floppy version (not the above "easy setup" download), you can download and extract this ZIP, and use the CUE file as a "dummy" CD, either by directly mounting it as the D drive in DOSBox, or via selecting it as the ISO in L3DUtils. This will both allow for CD audio in-game, and bypass the CD check. Note that you also need to be running the CD version of the game (again, L3DUtils can patch between the two versions) in order for CD audio to work. (This download has tracks ripped from the PS1 version, which are identical to PC CD audio but without some of the issues the PC CD audio has, such as Circus 2 cutting off early.)

- If you've accidentally un-applied the music patch (usually by restoring the original contents of the SOUND folder), remove the file "patched" in the SOUND folder and you'll be able to apply it again.

chrisleec728:
Is anybody else having trouble getting "Armageddon" (aka nuke) to work on here?

Pooty:
If the game is running too quickly, the nuke is very hard to fire off. There are two ways of getting around this:


* Press Alt+Q together to trigger the nuke.
* If you're thinking of using the nuke to restart or to finish a level, you can alternatively press Escape. If you haven't saved enough lemmings, the level will restart. If you have, you'll move on to the next level.

namida:
^ As a third way, if you want to quit completely (note that this goes straight to the title screen, and discards your current attempt even if it's successful), press F11. You'll be prompted to confirm this by pressing (or clicking) Y.

ccexplore:

--- Quote from: Pooty on August 26, 2019, 07:20:48 PM ---If the game is running too quickly, the nuke is very hard to fire off.
--- End quote ---

It was established on another thread that unless you're using an ancient PC (like, dating back from when the game was originally released), or running DOSBox in some unusual heavy debug mode that produces massive slowdowns, the game will almost certainly be "running too quickly" for you and will give you trouble with nuking.

Navigation

[0] Message Index

[#] Next page