I've been seriously considering playing this series, but Geneforge 1 demands so much cpu I can't enjoy it. I've played both G1 and Geneforge 2, using the installers from Manifesto, so I've been able to observe that G2 does not have this same problem. I know I could play G2, but I'm so fascinated by the prospect of exploring the rest of the island. Is there a fix or work-around for this problem?
What happens, in more detail, is that the game plays sluggishly most of the time, except for certain areas indoors with creatures or people present, when the game becomes so incredibly sluggish that I might wait a minute or longer for the program to respond to a mouse-click. Outdoors areas would run tolerably - I could enjoy them though it wasn't quite smooth. I persevered several hours through the first village and the dungeon to its northwest, before I accepted that it just wasn't working. Though the problem appears linked to G1's older engine, I figure it must also be related to a characteristic of my system as well. Nobody could enjoy or complete this game if this bug were common.
From dxdiag, my system information:
Operating System: Windows XP Professional (5.1, Build 2600) Service Pack 2 (2600.xpsp_sp2_gdr.050301-1519)
Language: English (Regional Setting: English)
System Manufacturer: VIA Technologies, Inc.
System Model: KT600-8237
BIOS: Phoenix - AwardBIOS v6.00PG
Processor: AMD Sempron 2800+, MMX, 3DNow, ~2.0GHz
Memory: 1024MB RAM
Page File: 493MB used, 1200MB available
Windows Dir: H:\WINDOWS
DirectX Version: DirectX 9.0c (4.09.0000.0904)
I'll point out again that I installed the game with Manifesto Games' installer. Maybe its time-restriction code interferes with the game engine in an unexpected way? I'd probably purchase the game if I knew I play it without undue frustration.