Known Bugs and Feature Ideas - European Air War Help Site

The listed bugs here are from the Code Group's independent modifications. Bugs where tested and verified a few times each. Not all Bugs are listed so if you find any, in any version of the game, please contact me so I can add to this list.

For the record, we must consider that the past and present EAW programmers and Modders are only working on EAW as a hobby. Bugs and feature drops are to be expected.

Remember to read the same 'Known Bugs List Help Document' for the stock and standard game for more information.

Read my 'Troubleshoot Help Document' also for some issues you may have with the game.

-------------KNOWN BUGS-------------

CONTROLS

Targeting, Hitting and Collision: (Started with v1.28)
Shooting difficulty and plane vs plane collisions are impossible.

The changes done to the games data files have created those two issues. Which are the inability to hitting another planes wings, fuselage, or the pilot and making collision of plane vs plane impossible. This is a noticed by players that have gone from stock v1.2 to the codegroups v1.28 (or other versions). The codegroup apparently never fixed this, or know how to??... or don't want to???...

The hit bubble sizes where reduced and then tested on the stock v1.2 game back in the year 2002. This was done with a mod called RP, it changed the .FLT and PLANES.DAT files. The changes eventually found there way into the Code-Groups v1.28 un-official version in the early years of coding, 2005-2008. Further decission to accommodate the newer gun convergence feature that was added to the 1.28 game, making it easy to target the stock default hit bubbles, a later version of the RP patch (with reduced HB sizes) was incorporated.

The way convergence works is it defaults so bullets from your guns cross at and to about 300meters in front of the plane, (however this distance can be adjusted in the eaw.ini file if you want). However there is no hit bubble player adjustment for the game as the realistic gunnery OFF difficulty setting seems not to effect anything...

With these Code-Groups changes, the only location on a plane to hit with bullets, seems to be the engines (and just a tad bit more to the left and right) on the enemy planes. The changes made, also effect collision, as it is nearly impossible to collide when passing through another plane, like bomber formations etc.

For an example in RP1.0(released in 2002 for the stock v1.2 game), Knegel took the default B17 wingbubblesize = 95 and changed it to = 9. Thus making it just as large as the skin on the plane. This allows only direct hits on the wing itself and not the empty air areas around the wing to be hit. Unfortunately the wingtip became un targetable as the bubble size was positioned too far left, the reduction in size made that noticeable.

Independent Engine Management Gone: (Started with v1.28)
All that remains for throttle control in EAW v1.28 and above is for all engines at once. Except for these partial working independent power down functions. When the game was coded with 4 engines, there was no independent engine keys made.
THROTTLE ENGINE 1 DOWN=SEMICOLON
THROTTLE ENGINE 2 DOWN=APOSTROPHE

My suggestion: Until a better key assignment can be had. I think a four engine power up and power down could be temporally linked to two engines left (or one left with P-38) and two engines right(or one right with P-38) using the original MicroProse default keys for now allowing some independent engine management.

Jerky Mouse: (Started with v1.28)
The jerky mouse on the menu screens is due to the 7217 error workaround code that was first programmed into EAW1.28 (see THE "7217" ERROR bug information listed further down).

When EAW enables it, it produces a slow/sluggish stuttering or jumping mouse pointer. To make selections you have to click very slowly as fast clicks tend to be missed and the game menu selection doesn't react.

The only current solution for a jerky mouse (without code fixes) is to use a Wrapper program and set it to run the game in window mode rather than full screen, (since EAW natively only runs in full screen), the Wrapper forces it into window mode it 'cures' the problem with the mouse. However read on.....

Note: This bit of code needs to be removed as modern windows tolerates 8-bit screens with compatibility fixes. (see THE "7217" ERROR bug information listed further down).

SOUND

No CLICK Sound When selecting Menu Options: (Started at least in v1.40CNv51, perhaps earlier, but not in stock v1.2) This happens at the first Menu selection, the Click sound doesn't work when selecting a selection, such as instant action/quick mission or any other selection on that screen. The click sound only works IN the Configuration menu.

THE "7217" ERROR

See stock v1.2 for this issue.

The Workarounds:
A former MicroProse EAW Team member, Will Gee (an original MPS EAW programmer) helped the community with the released source code so that the programmers had a work-around that kicked in and tricked the unofficial v1.28 exe into thinking that the video card/driver supported 8-bit, and displayed the main and menu screens, effectively bypassing this error message for the most part. His code was added to the original 1.28 release, and has been included in all subsequent versions.

This bit of code is no longer required on modern windows as now known compatibility fixes built in allow the 8bit screens regardless. The downside of keeping this code in the exe's when its runs, is it will produce stuttering mouse movements. (See the Jerky Mouse in the CONTROLS bug section listed up above).

MOUSE POINTER ON SCREEN

From some research I found that there was some code added in v1.28, but its unclear exactly what was done to improve this bug. However, users today (2019) still encounter either two movable mouse pointers (one belongs to windowsOS) or the dreaded single one in the middle of the screen.

GLIDE NOTES

Broken Display Text: (in v1.40)
The v1.40 game just defaults up to 1600x1200. It appears to be the resolution set higher than what the monitor can produce results in the text being broken apart.

Glide Resolution Limits: (in v1.40)
In the EAW v1.40, the game will default up to 1600x1200. So basically nothing is correctly working in between those resolutions. Any resolution higher than what your monitor supports will break apart the text/font used during flight.

Glide API v3.0:
Around February 15 2016 Glide v3.0 was added to the 1.40 exe (also to 1.28e and 1.29 exe's). From Zeus, NGlide creator.

This version of Glide supports -24 bit- -selectable- colors (but still 256 at once) just like stock EAW in D3D has had all a long. (The original Glide 2.43 only supports a -fixed- -8 bit- palette of 256 colors at one time).

This version of Glide is also faster than the previous Glide version, however limited to 1024x768 resolution max.

There still are a few graphical glitches, especially when the game first enters the flight screen...and on the virtual cockpit; there is a seem along the center and left and right sides that are obvious.

-------------FEATURE IDEAS-------------

CONTROLS

Make Pilot Map KEY a Toggle: (Started since v1.0)
(The Independent CodeGroups's EAWv1.60 has a toggle feature for this key now!).
Normally you would hit the M Key, and then to go back or to another view you hit that key.

SOUND

32 Voices: (Started with v1.0, problematic with v1.28)
The 16 voices limit is hit sooner with the Independent CodeGroup's unofficial v1.28 and higher versions since there are separate engine sounds for different planes. Other sounds with less priority (typically quieter) are dropped out during play. So it needs more voices.

FLIGHT MODEL

Separate Stalls and Spins: (Started since v1.0)
Stock and standard game has these two linked in some way. As the source code modifications where made, the stalls and spins where separated a bit , but not fully...this was done by custom FM's...

RETRO LOOK

Bring back the Retro MPS Mission Fuel Gauge Loading Screen: (Started at least as low as v1.1, problematic 1.40?)
The EAW community members eventually up scaled the loading fuel gauge to 1024x768 in EAWv1.28d, this new fuel dial screen was made to run in that new default resolution. In the source code modifications they later added the map screen background and a % loading amount text for all other resolutions to avoid the blank screen.

As clever has the map screen addition is, it would be nice to add back in that retro look and function rather than the use of the map screen. Even retaining the % complete text from the map loading screen and place it somewhere in the black area of the gauges loading screen would be ideal.

VIDEO

FIELD OF VIEW (FOV) - Widen it for Widescreens: (Started with v1.1)

In EAW V1.28 and up:
Since the static view cockpits are no longer used, and the Virtual Cockpit is, the programmers in the CodeGroup modified the SnapViews in a similar way that MPS did, for a wider frame of view(FOV) plus an increase in the point of view(POV) which was done by moving the views of the snapviews in virtual cockpit mode as well as shifting the POV to the side so the player is able to look around the cockpit frames and rear plating/tail. (panview and padlock views where not modified, so those remain the same as stock EAWv1.2).

To tests this, press F5 for standard back left view, then hold the 1 key on the keypad for snap view back left, its like you lean a bit further over to see around the chair. Also try facing forward in the cockpit with a standard view, by selecting F8, then hold down the Keypad number 8 snap view, see how the pilot seat seems to push back and the cockpit gauges are further away from the pilots eye and you get more vision on the sides. Unfortunately you can't maintain that snap view forever, you must release it at some point.

Note: In the stock EAW v1.2 your face is right up to the dash at the 1024x768 setting. However, now in EAW v1.28 the 1024x768 view had been properly increased, meaning you now sit back further away from the dash (your POV is moved back), and you'll notice FOV is actually larger than the older widest 800x600 view, meaning 1024x768 in EAWv1.28 is wider. Also EAWv1.28 does not have any problems when using 1920x1080 mode. With this increase in POV and FOV, in fact the 1920 width setting is very similar (just a slightly narrower view) to what is currently visible with EAWv1.28 in its newly defined 1024x768 adjusted setting, and exactly the same as with EAWv1.28 and its own 1920x768 setting.

Modders: If your a modder and want to experiment, Most planes have a "vc_offset.mpf" file, in this file you can adjust the viewpoint for each snapview position, its actually just a text file. But this will not help the standard forward view when not in snap mode. (On a unrelated Sidenote: Two values are to adjust the default guns convergence for this plane, don't touch those, use the eaw.ini file to set X and Y).

[END]