PlanetSide 2

Upon hearing those morale-boosting comments on Sony Online Entertainment's PlanetSide 2 game, I quickly access the World Wide Web and point my good old trusty internet browser to Sony Online Entertainment's PlanetSide 2 registration page to get my very own (DUH) Sony Online Entertainment (SOE) account. This way I can download and play this really really really ridiculously cool looking game. So there I was, got on their FA - Q page and grab some information on PlanetSide 2's system requirements.

Minimum System Requirements OS - Windows XP Processor - Intel Core 2 Duo E6850 or higher / AMD Phenom II X2 or higher Memory - 4 GB RAM Hard Drive - 15 GB free Video Memory - 256 MB RAM Video Card - nVidia GeForce 8600 series or higher / AMD or ATI 4850 series or higher Sound Card - DirectX compatible

Recommended System OS - Windows 7 Processor - Intel i5 processor or higher / AMD Phenom II X6 or higher Memory - 8 GB RAM Hard Drive - 15 GB free Video Memory - 1,024 MB RAM Video Card - nVidia GeForce GTX 560 series or higher / AMD HD 6870 or higher Sound Card - DirectX compatible

Pretty neat. Hey, we know we're hobos but it doesn't mean we don't have the right to enjoy this game. We're gamers men, you know wehehe. My hobo setup is more than enough for the minimum it is requiring. So I got the 22.8 MB installation launcher which will get the actual 8++ GB worth of files that would make up the whole game. Then again, just like any other MMO provider - these files are kept in a super secret location somewhere out there.

Installation

Installation is a breeze. Once you got the launcher from Sony Online Entertainment's PlanetSide 2 registration page, all you need to do is run it and wait. It even offers to you to take advantage of the Bing toolbar which nobody wants anyway - at least not moi. If you have the mutant powers to stare at the progress bar for more or less two hours, then you are amazing! Internet connectivity is expensive in our country; and slow. I had to wait for more or less 4 hours just to complete the whole process. Nevertheless, it is kind of rewarding once you see the ">> PLAY <<" button becomes green and ready for some nasty mouse clicking.

So there I was, took me hours staring on the progress bar until I notice the ">> Play <<" button on the launcher became clickable - boom. I got the error message "Input not support". I know it should be "supported" but that's what it showed; "Input not support".

The Tweaks and Whatnot

I was using the current 337.something version graphics driver. Thinking I just had some stupid settings on my nVidia, I began tweaking things. Even found out a configuration file from PlanetSide 2's installation folder called UserOptions.ini and set the width and height of the game window into something that is lower than my monitor resolution which was 1366 by 768. It let me play for a few minutes on the tutorial mode; I do not know there was a "Skip Tutorial" option. Then I noticed I cannot complete the tutorial mode. I was getting a consistent black screen showing the words "No input", and I am sure this was not my wallpaper - DUH! To my dismay, I got a words from a friend who can play this game on a system with a 2GB RAM with absolutely no issue.

The official Sony Online Entertainment's PlanetSide 2 forum suggested downgrading to the older 332.21 nVidia drivers, which I did. Right away in fact, with no hard feelings. Overflowing with excitement of beating the tutorial mode, I got another "No input" black screen after just more or less 15 minutes of gameplay.

Then I checked numerous sites for their so-called tips and suggestions on how to properly run this game on my obsolete nVidia GT 440 graphics card. One of them suggested JetBoost, others suggested unparking cores, and some of them even promoted some so-called "Gaming Enhancers" - DUH! As for me, I learned to accept the fact that my hobo personal computer can only play this Sony Online Entertainment's PlanetSide 2 for more or less 1 hour. What happens next is I will be forced to restart my loser PC. This is on a full screen mode.

However, I found a solution to play Sony Online Entertainment's PlanetSide 2 for my "new way back 2010" rig without getting those annoying "No input" or whatnot errors. For those peeps experiencing the same "No input" errors, please read on and see if my guide will work for you.

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Running Sony Online Entertainment's PlanetSide 2 on a Low End System

Without further blah-blah-blah; behold, my solution to run Sony Online Entertainment's PlanetSide 2 on my wonderful Core2Duo with obsolete GT 440 and generic 4GB RAM:

1. Unpark your CPU cores. This involves either getting this tool from Bitsum, or doing some modifications to your registry shown on the later part of this review.
2. Get Process Lasso, set it to "Game / multimedia mode" and let it handle those pesky resource hog background processes. The non-pro version of this tool will not cost you anything but if you think that there is always a difference between the non-pro and the pro version aside from their spellings, and the fact you have extra bucks to spare, you may want to buy the pro version. Hobo Gamers is not in any way affiliated with Process Lasso's developer Bitsum.
3. For nVidia users, select your video card as the PhysX processor instead of CPU or Auto-select. Choose "Let the 3D application decide" on the "Adjust Image Settings with Preview" option. For ATI users, I dunno - bwehehehe. I am hobo man and dun have money to purchase another video card just to test if it will work with PlanetSide 2 or not.
4. Use my UserOptions.ini settings:
   [Rendering]
GraphicsQuality=1
TextureQuality=3
TerrainLOD=5
FloralDistanceScale=2.000000
ShadowQuality=0
RenderDistance=9999.000000
Gamma=0.000000
MaximumFPS=120
UseLod0a=0
OverallQuality=-1
LightingQuality=1
EffectsQuality=1
TerrainQuality=1
FloraQuality=1
ModelQuality=1
AOQuality=5
AmbientOcclusionQuality=5
ParticleQuality=5
VerticalFOV=74
FloralLOD=5
EffectsLOD=5
ParticleLOD=0
ParticleDistanceScale=2.000000
EffectsDistanceScale=2.000000
FogShadowsEnable=0
MotionBlur=0
VSync=0
AO=0
5. Adjust your Sony Online Entertainment PlanetSide 2's windowed mode resolution into something that is of lesser value than your screen's maximum resolution and always play the game on windowed mode. My primary monitor for instance, its maximum resolution is 1366 x 768, my UserOptions.ini [Display] settings are as follows:
   [Display]
FullscreenRefresh=0
Maximized=1
RenderQuality=0.605800
FullscreenWidth=920
FullscreenHeight=500
WindowedWidth=1016
WindowedHeight=737
Mode=Windowed
FullscreenMode=Windowed
   
   
   In addition to number 5, you may need to enable your Windows taskbar's autohide feature on some occasions.

How to Unpark CPU cores Manually

1. Click on your Windows Start button and click on the RUN option. A box where you can type in some commands should appear.
2. Type regedit on this Run box and click the OK button or press the Enter button. Microsoft Registry Editor should show up.
3. Search for the string 0cc5b647-c1df-4637-891a-dec35c318583 on your Microsoft Registry Editor.
4. Once you find the above-mentioned registry string, you should see ValueMin and ValueMax.
5. The ValueMax will have the value 100. Change it to 0 then restart your computer and that's it - your CPU cores are now unparked.

The Feel and the Gameplay

Sony Online Entertainment's PlanetSide 2 brings you right in the middle of continents with three warring factions:

• Vanu Sovereignty, comprised of transhumanist cult of academics, intellectuals, and technology worshipers who believe that human destiny lies in the further development and exploitation of the alien technology.
• New Conglomerate on the other hand are separatist faction composed of peeps who wants to remain free like that old lad William Wallace, a.k.a. Braveheart. The people under New Conglomerate feels that any form of control is oppression and that a miserable free man is better off than a contented slave.
• Terran Republic, last but not least, are a conservative, authoritarian, collectivist group of people who strive to regain contact with their homeworld and reunite the warring factions.

Each faction has 6 classes, and has their own eye candy / version of each class. These classes goes by:

• Infiltrator, known as the "Long Range Sniper" has extreme stopping power against infantry units if deployed effectively. They can go on stealth mode, detect their hidden counterparts, make a vehicle cloaked and hack into enemy computer systems.
• Light Assault are called "Jumpers" in Sony Online Entertainment PlanetSide 2. They are expert in scouting and has jumpjets so they can fly fly fly like the butterflies. Plush they've got a nasty flash and smoke grenades that are so annoying if your team is on the receiving end - not to mention C4 charges. Here's a teaser video from their YouTube PlanetSide 2 Channel that involves these Light Assault infantry units.
  
  
  
  
  I do not own this video, get a clue. A hobo like me cannot create this kind of video.
  
  
• Combat Medic is also known as the "Long Range Support" and has the ability to heal or resurrect fellow faction members. Geez, this is like the messiah; anyone revived by a Combat Medic is like Lazarus - DUH! They have healing grenades too, how can that be possible bwehehe!?
• Engineer's designation is "Repair & Resupply". Their main job aside from killing their opponents is to resupply the whole team with those precious ammo. They also have the ability to deploy anti-vehicle or anti-personnel turrets through their Advanced Construction Engine tool. Furthermore, they've got Sticky Grenade, Anti-Personnel Explosives, Tank Mines, and C4s as well.
• Heavy Assault are the "Anti-Armor" in Sony Online Entertainment PlanetSide 2. Based on the weapons they carry, it appears that they are not fond of any type of armors owned by their faction's opponents. This class can bring down armored tanks and personnel using Grenade Launcher, Anti-Vehicle Grenade, Concussion Grenade, and C4s.
• Max is the most heavily armored infantry. Unlike the other infantry units, this over-sized exoskeleton wields two weapons. There is no primary or secondary weapon; only left hand and right hand weapon. The dreaded Max's designation is Anti-Ground which means that it can eliminate any kind of ground forces with proper use.

Sony Online Entertainment's PlanetSide 2 is a massive multiplayer online first person shooter that encapsulates a never-ending battle among the above-mentioned factions, and I mean day and night 24/7. This is all happening in a planet called "Auraxis". They all would want to get a piece of their share of the continents Amerish, Esamir, Indar. Despite this game's wide selection of weapons, vehicles, and classes; the gamers' objectives are very straighforward - kill their opponents and conquer enemy facilities.

The Factions' Classes Below are some screenshots of each faction's respective classes in their basic uniforms. You may need to purchase some sets in the in-game item store should you want your character to appear more intimidating. Each respective class' abilities are almost the same with their counterparts from another factions despite having different looks.
Vanu Sovereignty	New Conglomerate	Terran Republic

The Factions' Vehicles and Futuristic Ships Just like the Battlefield franchise, Sony Online Entertainment's PlanetSide 2 allows you to man different kind of vehicles and turrets that are mounted on different parts of most facilities. Here's a glimpse of these deadly vehicles available in Sony Online Entertainment's PlanetSide 2 at the time of writing. I will not go through each of these vehicles and futuristic ships as I don't want to be a spoiler to new players. It is best that new players discover the capabilities of these machines. Besides, I dun have enough in-game certifications for my weak characters to man these deadly twisted metals. Sony Online Entertainment is constantly adding new updates for this game, and that includes ships and vehicles.
Vanu Sovereignty	New Conglomerate	Terran Republic

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	There is Always a First Time When you skip the tutorial mode and get right into a PlanetSide 2 battle for the first time, you are given some kind of freaking no-brainer multiple choice exam which determines the kind of weapon setup suits your personality. That's right, multiple choice exam. Just like what you get in elementary, highschool, or college - only with rewards this time.

Your In-Game Profile, Statistics, Item-Store and Whatnot

Just like any other massive multiplayer online games, Sony Online Entertainment's PlanetSide 2 has in-game features that automatically keep tracks of your in-game statistics / records so others would know how lethal or non-lethal you are - in-game of course. The in-game item store is quite self explanatory, Sony Online Entertainment sells you some sprites that will make your characters look more intimidating / more lethal. If you don't buy some in-game items, chances are your character(s) may become weakling(s) for the rest of your PlanetSide 2 career harhar. Hey c'mon, Sony Online Entertainment needs to earn to keep the servers we enjoy running. Even a hobo like me buy in-game items from time to time.

More Screenshots and Blabber

Sony Online Entertainment's PlanetSide 2 should be enjoyed with friends and colleagues unless you are a certified loner in real life. Its intense and action-packed game play will give you delusions that you can actually smell some gunpowder. If you have a weak mind, the in-game sound of war in Sony Online Entertainment's PlanetSide 2 may tear your mind and you will no longer distinguish which one is fantasy and which one is the reality. If this happen, you are a sure candidate for admission in a mental health institution near your place. Nevertheless, here are more screenshots for you to ponder if you have not tried Sony Online Entertainment's PlanetSide 2 yet.


Written by: Moronman