Final Fantasy VII README file ----------------------------- This README file contains the latest technical information about playing Final Fantasy VII. Please refer to the FF7 manual for details on how to play the game. This README file covers the following topics: 1. System Requirements 2. Game Controls 3. Technical Info 4. Final Fantasy VII Web Site Information ====================== 1. System Requirements ====================== Final Fantasy VII has the following minimum system requirements: Pentium 133 w/ supported 3D accelerator card (4Mb video memory or greater) or P166 w/out supported 3D accelerator card (see below) Intel or 100% Intel-compatible CPU 32 Mb RAM 4x CD-ROM drive Windows 95 DirectX 5.1 (included on Installation CD) DirectMedia 5.2 (included on Installation CD) ================ 2. Game Controls ================ You can play Final Fantasy VII with the keyboard or a game controller supported by DirectX 5.1. The default keyboard commands all revolve around your Numeric Keypad. You can change the default settings in the game through the CONFIG sub-menu in the game's main menu. The default commands are: KEYBOARD (default) NumPad 8 (Up) - Move Up or Menu selection Up NumPad 2 (Down) - Move Down or Menu selection Down NumPad 4 (Left) - Move Left or Menu selection Left NumPad 6 (Right) - Move Right or Menu selection Right NumPad Enter - [OK] (Action) NumPad 0 - [CANCEL] (Cancel, Run in field w/ arrow keys) NumPad + - [MENU] (Bring up menu) NumPad . (Del) - [SWITCH] (Switch from Materia to Equip menus) NumPad 9 (PgUp) - [PAGEUP] (Page up in menu, Escape from battle w/ [PAGEDOWN]) NumPad 3 (PgDn) - [PAGEDOWN] (Page down in menu, Escape from battle w/ [PAGEUP]) NumPad 7 (Home) - [CAMERA] (Switches camera view in world map) NumPad 1 (End) - [TARGET] (Highlights targets in battle) NumPad 5 - [START] (Pause during battle) NumPad - - [ASSIST] (Help pointers in field, Help window during battle) CTRL+Q - Quit GAMEPAD (default) Direction Pad - Movement and Menu Selection Right Button - [OK] (Action) Bottom Button - [CANCEL] (Cancel, Run in field w/ arrow keys) Top Button - [MENU] (Bring up menu) Left Button - [SWITCH] (Switch from Materia to Equip menus) L1 - [PAGEUP] (Page up in menu, Escape from battle w/ [PAGEDOWN]) R1 - [PAGEDOWN] (Page down in menu, Escape from battle w/ [PAGEUP]) L2 - [CAMERA] (Switches camera view in world map) R2 - [TARGET] (Highlights targets in battle) Start - [START] (Pause during battle) Select - [ASSIST] (Help pointers in field, Help window during battle) ================= 3. Technical Info ================= Please refer to the FF7 User's Manual for installation instructions. VIDEO CARDS Supported 3D Accelerator Video Cards Final Fantasy VII currently supports 3D accelerator video cards that pass the criteria contained in the FF7 Configuration graphic card test. At release time, the game supports the cards that contain any of the following chipsets: 3Dfx Voodoo 3Dfx Voodoo2 3Dfx Voodoo Rush 3Dlabs Permedia2 ATI Rage Pro Intel I740 In addition, the game will support the following chipsets when they ship later this year: Matrox G200 NEC PowerVR2 Please use the latest drivers for best performance of your 3D accelerator video card. The latest video card drivers at the release time of FF7 are included on the Installation CD in the Drivers\Video Drivers directory. You can get the very latest drivers from the web sites of each of the 3D chip companies: 3Dfx: http://www.3dfx.com 3DLabs: http://www.3dlabs.com ATI: http://www.atitech.com Intel: http://www.intel.com Matrox: http://www.matrox.com NEC: http://www.powervr.com If you do not have a supported 3D accelerator video card (or do not have a 3D accelerator video card), you can still play Final Fantasy VII in the software rendering mode. The game will automatically default to the software rendering mode if it does not detect a supported 3D accelerator video card. To play in 640x480 (Full Screen) in the software rendering mode, it is highly recommended that you have a Pentium 300 or better. Otherwise, please select one of the other two software rendering modes in the Configuration menu. If you experience graphic display problems while playing the game, please check to ensure that your 3D accelerator card has at least 4Mb of video memory. For ATI RagePro users, please run in 640x480 Full or Quarter Screen mode. These modes are faster than 320x240 Full Screen mode. A P233 or higher is recommended for RagePro users playing under hardware mode. For users of Matrox Millenium (not supported but can run in software rendering mode), if you cannot run the FF7 Configuration program, please uncheck the Bus Mastering box located in the PowerDesk settings in your Display Properties. AUDIO CARDS Final Fantasy VII supports all DirectX 5.1 supported audio cards. For a list of DirectX supported audio cards, please visit Microsoft's web site at: http://www.microsoft.com/directx/pavilion/hardware/soundcardlist.htm You should use the latest audio card drivers for your audio card. The latest audio card drivers at the release time of FF7 are included on the Installation CD in the Drivers\Audio directory. You can get the very latest drivers from the web sites of the various audio card companies: http://www.creativelabs.com http://www.ensoniq.com http://www.yamaha.com If your current MIDI device is a previously installed software synthesizer, please either select your sound card driver (not the software synthesizer) as the MIDI driver in the FF7 Configuration program OR install the Yamaha S-YXG70 software synthesizer (see below). CREATIVE LABS SOUND FONT MANAGER If you have a Creative Labs AWE sound card, you can enhance your music in the game by installing the Sound Font Manager for AWE32,64 (if you have not done so previously). Please read the SoundFont Manager README file for more information. YAMAHA SOFTWARE SYNTHESIZER If you do not have a wavetable synthesis audio card, you can still play the game with the high-quality Final Fantasy VII music by installing the Yamaha sound synthesizer (SXG70) that is provided on the game's Installation CD. Yamaha has created this special version of its software synthesizer specifically for Final Fantasy VII. In the FF7 Configuration program, select General MIDI as your MIDI Data for use with the Yamaha software synthesizer. (The XG MIDI data type is for XG MIDI compatible sound cards.) Also in the FF7 Configuration program, the Logarithmic Volume Control check box should be checked for sound cards that support logarithmic volume control. Most newer sound cards support logarithmic volume control. To test if your card does, please adjust the volume control test slider bar and listen to the volume at various levels. If the volumes do not seem to match the slider bar settings, please try checking/unchecking the box and test again. Choosing the correct volume control mode will allow for correct volume control in the game. If you notice some skipping or jerkiness in the music while playing, please open the S-YXG70 Configuration under Yamaha SoftSynthesizer in the Start Menu. Then, change the Sampling Rate to 11K, uncheck the Reverb checkbox, and/or increase the CPU Load percentage. Increasing the CPU Load percentage will slow down the gameplay, however, so please increase the CPU Load percentage only as high as necessary. Please refer to the Yamaha Help files for more information about the Yamaha software synthesizer. Yamaha Software Synthesizer installation notes: You must restart your computer if you install the software synthesizer. If you also install DirectX or DirectMedia (Movie Player) during installation, you will be prompted at the end of the entire installation to restart your computer (so you should answer "No" at the Yamaha restart computer message). Also, if you are reinstalling the Yamaha Software Synthesizer, you MUST uninstall your current version first before reinstalling. SUBMARINE GAME WIRE FRAME In the Submarine minigame, you may toggle the wire frame background ON and OFF by pressing F2. The wire frame slows down the game considerably, so the default has been set to OFF. WIN95 CONTROL KEYS If you press ALT-TAB, ALT+ESC, CTRL+ENTER or the WINDOWS key on your keyboard while playing Final Fantasy VII, you may not be able to return properly to the game. Therefore, it is strongly advised that you do not use these Windows 95 functions while playing the game. OTHER NOTES It is strongly advised that you close all programs before playing Final Fantasy VII. Also, please do not remove the CD from the CD drive while playing the game, unless you are instructed on the screen to do so. Windows 95 note: You need to have the Audio Compression component of Multimedia installed. Under Control Panel, click on Add/Remove Programs, click on the Windows Setup tab, click on Multimedia, click on Details, and check to see if the Audio Compression box is checked. If the box is not checked, check the box and click OK. Follow the instructions on the screen to complete installation. For additional DirectX or DirectMedia information, please visit Microsoft's web site at: http://support.microsoft.com/support/directx Windows 95, DirectX, and DirectMedia are trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the U.S. and/or other countries. ================================================= 4. Final Fantasy VII Web Site Information and FAQ ================================================= You can find general information about the game and the latest FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) list and technical support information at the Final Fantasy VII web site. The official Final Fantasy VII PC web site is located at: http://www.ff7pc.com The official Eidos Interactive web site is located at: http://www.eidosinteractive.com The official Square Soft, Inc. web site is located at: http://www.squaresoft.com