Metaltech: Earthsiege

This page is a stub: it lacks content and/or basic article components. You can help to expand this page by adding an image or additional information.

Metaltech: Earthsiege

Developers
	Dynamix
Publishers
	Sierra Entertainment
Release dates
DOS	July 1, 1994

Metaltech
Metaltech: Earthsiege	1994
Metaltech: Battledrome	1994
Earthsiege 2	1996
Starsiege	1999
Tribes (series)

Key points

Re-released as a free download for the series' 20th anniversary.

Availability

Source	DRM	Notes	Keys	OS
Retail
Official website		Free download, English CD version.

Version differences

The CD version of the game included the Speech Pack as well as a special video intro sequence in place of the typical slides. It also supported multiple install sizes. The CD version of the Expansion Pack similarly included a new video for the introduction of the addon campaign in addition to the original video intro for those who had the floppy version of the base game. The CD version of the expansion also included new voiceovers for it's mission briefings in addition to the regular Speech Pack, though unlike the base game these new voiceovers were not available separately. Additional miscellaneous differences were that both CD versions included numerous demo or shareware games (ImagiNation Network, Aces of the Deep, etc.)

DLC and expansion packs

Name	Notes
Speech Pack	Adds digital voices, included in the free version.
Expansion Pack	English floppy version released as freeware with main game, downloadable here.

Essential improvements

Patches

Patches are available. Patch 1.01 is included in the Expansion Pack.

Run in DOSBox

Change cycles=auto to cycles=50000 and mpu401=intelligent to mpu401=uart.

Modern Windows installer

The Sierrahelp Metaltech: Earthsiege Installer automatically applies the latest patch and configures DOSBox with optimal cycles and MIDI settings as well as to play the game from the hard drive.

Works with the freeware release.

Game data

Configuration file(s) location

System	Location
DOS	<path-to-game>\DATA\PREFS.CFG <path-to-game>\RESOURCE.CFG

PREFS.CFG contains in-game settings.

RESOURCE.CFG contains audio settings.

Save game data location

System	Location
DOS	<path-to-game>\CAR <path-to-game>\BAR

\CAR holds base campaign saves.

\BAR holds expansion campaign saves.

Video settings

General settings.

Input settings

Usage of a joystick is highly recommended.

Input settings.

Audio settings

Localizations

Language	UI	Audio	Sub	Notes
English				Audio requires Speech Pack or CD version; Expansion Pack voices only available in CD version.
German				Audio requires Speech Pack or CD version; Expansion Pack voices only available in CD version.
French				Audio requires Speech Pack or CD version; Expansion Pack voices only available in CD version.

Issues fixed

Expansions won't install

Sometimes you'll get an error with the floppy versions' installer and it simply wont install the expansion.

Extract and install the files manually[citation needed]
Use the expansion's included UNCHUNK.EXE to manually open the files with the following command: unchunk RESOURCE.000 [folder of you choice, ".\" for same folder] and let it finnish extracting the files. repeat the command but with RESOURCE.001 and RESOURCE.002 and so on. Manually merge the extracted files with the game's files, overwriting anything.

Into cutscene issues

Copy to disk and edit cfg files[citation needed]

Copy the FLIC folder and PLAYFLIC.EXE file off the game disk and place them in the installation folder. It's preferable to use these files from the CD version of the expansion, if you have it, as it includes the base videos in addition to the addon campaign one. Open RESOURCE.CFG and edit the line pathFlic=D:\flic\ and change it to pathFlic=.\flic\ (the D: may be a different letter depending of the drive you used to install the game). Now open up ES.BAT and edit the line set ALT_DRIVE=D: (again may be different depending on the drive you used to install it) and change the D: to the letter of the disk you have the game installed on (usually C:). If you installed the expansion and the video intro no longer plays, rename the ES.EXE to ESCD.EXE and use ES.BAT to run the game. This is a common issue with installing the floppy version of the addon to the CD version of the base game. This fix assumes you used the complete install option for the game. This may also work on real classic PCs. The video intro sequence can be added to the floppy version by transplanting the files from a cd version using the steps above. The same is true for the expansion. Note however you may also want to copy the CD expansion's PSPEECH.VOL (or PGSPEECH.VOL or PFSPEECH.VOL for German and French) file to enable the briefing voices that the floppy expansion lacks as they were not sold separately like with the base game's Speech Pack. Removing the letter from the set ALT_DRIVE= line in ES.BAT will restore the slideshow intro, replacing it with a .\ will completely disable the intro.

Other information

API

Technical specs	Supported	Notes
DOS video modes	VGA

Middleware

	Middleware	Notes
Audio	Human Machine Interface (HMI) audio drivers

System requirements

DOS
	Minimum	Recommended
Operating system (OS)	MS-DOS 5.0
Processor (CPU)	80386/33DX	486/33 MHz
System memory (RAM)	4 MB	8 MB
Hard disk drive (HDD)	27 MB (extra 8 MB needed for Speech Pack)
Video card (GPU)	VGA

CD version requires a Sound Card with a Digital Analogue Converter (DAC) to play the video intro sequence; playing without one will cause it to play too fast.