Splitscreen on 2 Monitors?

[skizz666]

Is it possible to play the splitscreen on 2 Monitors?

[Son of self-suck]

I'd love to know this too

[rubregg]

If it can't be done within the game itself, you might want to give SoftTH[www.kegetys.fi] a try. I haven't tried it on Sam but it worked perfectly for me on Portal 2, so it might be worth a shot.

[Son of self-suck]

Could you possibly try it for us (and others reading)?

[MeMeMe]

It can be done if you have Eyefinity, I've done it. NVidia Surround will work too.
SoftFH should work too, but wont be as good as a hardware solution
You cant do it if you are running in standard windows Extended mode.

The graphic cards that support eyefinity: any 5000/6000/7000+ card.
Nividia Surround: any single 660+. If you have a 500 or earlier card, it MIGHT be possible (you might need SLI).

[rubregg]

I tried SoftTH (previous version and the latest alpha) and couldn't get it to work. I get the correct display setting (3840x1080 / 32:9) in the ingame options but the game won't let me pick it. Error message along the lines of "too big for your monitor". Yup, too big for *one* monitor, but not too big for the extended display on *two* monitors... :/

Any ideas anyone??

[AlenL]

Which error message exactly?

[rubregg]

First of all let me say a big thank you AlenL, the support you're providing around here is way above standard and very much appreciated! :)

So, here's the fineprint:

Tested:
SoftTH v2.08b alpha - 32bit version[www.kegetys.fi]

In Game:
Graphics Options do have the added extra setting, for me that's 3840x1080/32:9 (2 monitors with 1920x1080 each). When I pick that setting, the game gives me a warning message: "This resolution does not match your monitor aspect ratio. The image may be stretched or ssquashed. Are you sure you want to select it? [Yes/No]"

"Yes" --> primary screen goes black with orange progress bar at bottom
then the "Do you want to keep these settings?" screen with the fallback countdown timer

"Yes" --> game is still in 1920x1080 resolution


Log:

        -------- START OF LOG --------

06:20:33 LOG:   Core version: $Version: distro_Sam3_PC; SeriousSam3-Windows-Final; 171822 2012-10-30 12:02:14 @builder05; Win32-Static-Final-Default$
06:20:33 LOG:   Command:  $
06:20:33 LOG:   Initializing timer.
06:20:33 LOG:   Timestamp: 2012/11/07 06:20:32
06:20:33 LOG:   Binary name: Sam3.exe
06:20:33 LOG:   Binary soft path: Bin/
06:20:33 LOG:   Binary hard path: D:\ownprogs\Steam\steamapps\common\Serious Sam 3\Bin\
06:20:33 LOG:   Application directory: D:\ownprogs\Steam\steamapps\common\Serious Sam 3\
06:20:33 LOG:   * OS...
06:20:33 LOG:   Name: Windows 7
06:20:33 LOG:   Kernel: WinNT (64-bit)
06:20:33 LOG:   Version: 6.1, build 7601
06:20:33 LOG:   Misc: Service Pack 1
06:20:33 LOG:   
06:20:33 LOG:   * CPU...
06:20:33 LOG:   Vendor: GenuineIntel
06:20:33 LOG:   Type: 0, Family: 6, Model: 10, Stepping: 7
06:20:33 LOG:   Clock: 3.10 GHz
06:20:33 LOG:   Cores: 4
06:20:33 LOG:   CMOV: Yes
06:20:33 LOG:   SSE: Yes
06:20:33 LOG:   
06:20:33 LOG:   * Memory...
06:20:33 LOG:   Total physical memory: 16351 MB
06:20:33 LOG:   Free physical memory: 13590 MB
06:20:33 LOG:   
06:20:33 LOG:   Loaded "D:\ownprogs\Steam\steamapps\common\Serious Sam 3\Bin\ScriptLua.dll".
06:20:33 LOG:   Loaded "D:\ownprogs\Steam\steamapps\common\Serious Sam 3\Bin\GameEnv_Steam.dll".
06:20:33 INF:   GameEnv API: Steam
06:20:33 INF:   Encoded user ID = 613b5415:13f4d27b
06:20:33 LOG:   Error getting mixer source line info for microphone. Will not be able to control microphone.
06:20:33 LOG:   Created thread 5720(ResourceLoader).
06:20:33 LOG:   Loading cvars from "$D:/ownprogs/Steam/userdata/101926774/41070/local/SeriousSam3.ini".
06:20:33 TRC:   Cannot assign value to cvar dbg_strMarkedDataTypes. The variable is not declared.
06:20:33 LOG:   Skipped assigning to prf_strShowFPSTicker because the saved version (0) is different than the current version (2).
06:20:33 LOG:   Trying to set display mode 1920x1080(fullscreen)...
06:20:33 INF:   
06:20:33 INF:   * Desktop settings...
06:20:33 INF:   Color depth: 32-bit
06:20:33 INF:   Desktop resolution: 1920 x 1080
06:20:33 INF:   Virtual screen: 3840 x 1080
06:20:33 INF:   Monitors attached: 2
06:20:33 LOG:   Loaded "D:\ownprogs\Steam\steamapps\common\Serious Sam 3\Bin\GfxD3D.dll".
06:20:33 LOG:   Loaded "D3D9.dll".
06:20:33 LOG:   Loaded "D3DCompiler_43.dll".
06:20:33 LOG:   Loaded "D3DX9_43.dll".
06:20:36 INF:   
06:20:36 INF:   Gfx API: Direct3D
06:20:36 INF:   Resolution: 1920 x 1080
06:20:36 INF:   Vendor: nVidia (0x10DE)
06:20:36 INF:   Driver: nvd3dum.dll (0x1200)
06:20:36 INF:   Renderer: SoftTH v2.08 x86 alpha by Kegetys
06:20:36 INF:   Version: 9.18.13.697
06:20:36 INF:   Video memory size: 1024 MB
06:20:36 INF:   Available for textures: 4051 MB
06:20:36 INF:   Active GPU(s): 1
06:20:36 LOG:   Processing file Content/SeriousSam3/Config/CheckDriver.lua
06:20:36 INF:   Driver version: 30697 (required: 30600)
06:20:36 LOG:   Loaded "D:\ownprogs\Steam\steamapps\common\Serious Sam 3\Bin\SfxXAD.dll".
06:20:36 LOG:   Loaded "X3DAudio1_7.dll".
06:20:36 INF:   
06:20:36 INF:   Sfx API: XAudio2
06:20:36 INF:   Device: Realtek HD Audio 2nd output (Realtek High Definition Audio)
06:20:36 INF:   Mixer frequency: 48000 Hz
06:20:36 INF:   Mixer voices: 2
06:20:36 INF:   Max sound sources: 30
06:20:36 INF:   Max total volume: 3
06:20:36 INF:   Speaker config: stereo
06:20:36 INF:   Environment FX: enabled
06:20:36 INF:   Current environment: Padded cell
06:20:36 INF:   
06:20:36 LOG:   Loaded "D:\ownprogs\Steam\steamapps\common\Serious Sam 3\Bin\SeriousSam3_Project.dll".
06:20:36 LOG:     Content/SeriousSam3/All_01.gro: 6414 files, signature: OFFICIAL
06:20:36 LOG:     Content/SeriousSam3/All_02.gro: 5133 files, signature: OFFICIAL
06:20:36 LOG:     Content/SeriousSam3/All_145562.gro: 2565 files, signature: OFFICIAL
06:20:36 LOG:     Content/SeriousSam3/All_147686.gro: 835 files, signature: OFFICIAL
06:20:36 LOG:     Content/SeriousSam3/All_150406.gro: 627 files, signature: OFFICIAL
06:20:36 LOG:     Content/SeriousSam3/All_170136.gro: 703 files, signature: OFFICIAL
06:20:36 LOG:     Content/SeriousSam3/All_171822.gro: 94 files, signature: OFFICIAL
06:20:36 LOG:     Content/SeriousSam3/CachedShaders_PC.gro: 4277 files, signature: OFFICIAL
06:20:36 LOG:   Loading translation tables from Content/SeriousSam3/Locales/enu/.
06:20:36 LOG:     Content/SeriousSam3/Locales/enu/translation.tbl
06:20:36 LOG:     Content/SeriousSam3/Locales/enu/translation_All.tbl
06:20:36 LOG:   Loaded "D:\ownprogs\Steam\steamapps\common\Serious Sam 3\Bin\CodecAudio_Vorbis.dll".
06:20:36 LOG:   Module 'Bin/CodecAudio_Vorbis.module' loaded in '0.00' seconds.
06:20:36 LOG:   Loaded "D:\ownprogs\Steam\steamapps\common\Serious Sam 3\Bin\CodecVideo_Null.dll".
06:20:36 LOG:   Module 'Bin/CodecVideo_Null.module' loaded in '0.00' seconds.
06:20:36 LOG:   Loaded "D:\ownprogs\Steam\steamapps\common\Serious Sam 3\Bin\Input.dll".
06:20:36 LOG:   Loaded "xinput1_3.dll".
06:20:36 LOG:   Module 'Bin/Input.module' loaded in '0.01' seconds.
06:20:36 LOG:   Loaded "D:\ownprogs\Steam\steamapps\common\Serious Sam 3\Bin\Game.dll".
06:20:36 LOG:   Module 'Bin/Game.module' loaded in '0.00' seconds.
06:20:36 LOG:   Loaded "D:\ownprogs\Steam\steamapps\common\Serious Sam 3\Bin\ProcRender.dll".
06:20:36 LOG:   Loaded "D:\ownprogs\Steam\steamapps\common\Serious Sam 3\Bin\Shaders.dll".
06:20:36 LOG:   Module 'Bin/Shaders.module' loaded in '0.00' seconds.
06:20:36 LOG:   Module 'Bin/ProcRender.module' loaded in '0.01' seconds.
06:20:36 LOG:   Module 'Bin/Shaders.module' loaded in '0.00' seconds.
06:20:36 LOG:   Skipped assigning to prj_strMultiplayerSessionName because the saved version (0) is different than the current version (2).
06:20:36 LOG:   Alienware LightFX is not installed.
06:20:36 LOG:   Module 'Bin/SeriousSam3_Project.module' loaded in '0.55' seconds.
06:20:36 LOG:   Processing file Content/SeriousSam3/Config/autoexec.cfg
06:20:36 LOG:   Created thread 5776(GameDataJobs).
06:20:36 LOG:   cvarShowDiffs()
06:20:36 LOG:   cli_iMaxBPS = 11000 (12000)
06:20:36 LOG:   cmp_pixMaxSize = 1024 (2048)
06:20:36 LOG:   crm_iRenderDepthPrepass = 1 (2)
06:20:36 LOG:   dcl_ctMaxNewTrianglesPerFrame = 3072 (2048)
06:20:36 LOG:   dcl_ctMaxTrianglesPerGroup = 6144 (4096)
06:20:36 LOG:   efx_fOcclusionBufferScale = 0.8 (0.5)
06:20:36 LOG:   efx_iOcclusionQuality = 0 (1)
06:20:36 LOG:   gam_bAllowArmorItems = 1 (-1)
06:20:36 LOG:   gam_bAllowHealthItems = 1 (-1)
06:20:36 LOG:   gam_bAllowJoinInProgress = 0 (-1)
06:20:36 LOG:   gam_bAllowPowerupItems = 1 (-1)
06:20:36 LOG:   gam_bAllowSeriousBombItems = 1 (-1)
06:20:36 LOG:   gam_bAmmoStays = 1 (-1)
06:20:36 LOG:   gam_bArmorStays = 1 (-1)
06:20:36 LOG:   gam_bAutoCycleMaps = 0 (-1)
06:20:36 LOG:   gam_bCustomizedDifficulty = 0 (-1)
06:20:36 LOG:   gam_bExtraMPEnemies = 1 (-1)
06:20:36 LOG:   gam_bFriendlyFire = 0 (-1)
06:20:36 LOG:   gam_bHealthStays = 1 (-1)
06:20:36 LOG:   gam_bInfiniteAmmo = 0 (-1)
06:20:36 LOG:   gam_bPowerupsStay = 1 (-1)
06:20:36 LOG:   gam_bRankedMatch = 0 (-1)
06:20:36 LOG:   gam_bRespawnInPlace = 1 (-1)
06:20:36 LOG:   gam_bWeaponsStay = 1 (-1)
06:20:36 LOG:   gam_ctFragsLimit = 20 (-1)
06:20:36 LOG:   gam_ctGoalsLimit = 10 (-1)
06:20:36 LOG:   gam_ctMaxPlayers = 1 (-1)
06:20:36 LOG:   gam_ctMinPlayers = 1 (-1)
06:20:36 LOG:   gam_ctPrivateSlots = 0 (-1)
06:20:36 LOG:   gam_ctRoundLimit = 10 (-1)
06:20:36 LOG:   gam_ctTimeLimit = 10 (-1)
06:20:36 LOG:   gam_gdDifficulty = 3 (0)
06:20:36 LOG:   gam_iExtraEnemyDamagePerPlayer = 0 (-1)
06:20:36 LOG:   gam_iExtraEnemyStrength = 0 (-1)
06:20:36 LOG:   gam_iExtraEnemyStrengthPerPlayer = 0 (-1)
06:20:36 LOG:   gam_iInvulnerableAfterSpawning = 0 (-1)
06:20:36 LOG:   gfx_bLastGoodFullScreen = 1 (0)
06:20:36 LOG:   gfx_iAntiAliasingSamples = 1 (4)
06:20:36 LOG:   gfx_iFXAA = 2 (1)
06:20:36 LOG:   gfx_iWaitVSyncs = 1 (0)
06:20:36 LOG:   gfx_pixLastGoodResHeight = 1080 (480)
06:20:36 LOG:   gfx_pixLastGoodResWidth = 1920 (640)
06:20:36 LOG:   gfx_pixLastGoodWinHeight = 1080 (480)
06:20:36 LOG:   gfx_pixLastGoodWinWidth = 1920 (640)
06:20:36 LOG:   gfx_pixResHeight = 1080 (0)
06:20:36 LOG:   gfx_pixResWidth = 1920 (0)
06:20:36 LOG:   gfx_pixWinHeight = 1080 (480)
06:20:36 LOG:   gfx_pixWinWidth = 1920 (640)
06:20:36 LOG:   lmp_iBaseMip = 1 (0)
06:20:36 LOG:   plr_fFOVOverride = 90 (-1)
06:20:36 LOG:   prj_bDebrisCastShadow = 1 (0)
06:20:36 LOG:   prj_bSkippableIntroScene = 1 (0)
06:20:36 LOG:   prj_ctMaxCorpses = 40 (20)
06:20:36 LOG:   prj_ctMaxCorpsesCoop = 15 (8)
06:20:36 LOG:   prj_ctMaxDebris = 150 (50)
06:20:36 LOG:   prj_ctMaxDebrisCoop = 80 (20)
06:20:36 LOG:   prj_ctMaxMovingCorpses = 8 (4)
06:20:36 LOG:   prj_ctMaxMovingCorpsesCoop = 4 (2)
06:20:36 LOG:   prj_ctMaxMovingDebris = 80 (50)
06:20:36 LOG:   prj_ctMaxMovingDebrisCoop = 30 (20)
06:20:36 LOG:   prj_fDebrisScreenSizeRatioCull = 0.0025 (0.01)
06:20:36 LOG:   prj_fDebrisScreenSizeRatioCullCoop = 0.005 (0.015)
06:20:36 LOG:   prj_iCPUSpeed = 3 (2)
06:20:36 LOG:   prj_strGfxUserInfoDate = "2012-10-24" ("")
06:20:36 LOG:   prj_strLastAutoDetectSetup = "gfx_iPixelProgramVersion=40,gfx_ctConcurrentGPUs=1,sys_iGPUVendorID=4318,sys_iCPUFamily=6,sys_iCPUMHz=3100,sys_iGPUDeviceID=4608,sys_strCPUVendor=GenuineIntel,gfx_ulVideoMemoryMB=1023," ("")
06:20:36 LOG:   ren_bMirrorFastLights = 0 (1)
06:20:36 LOG:   ren_fMax3DRenderingMPix = 1.1 (0)
06:20:36 LOG:   ren_iMirrorLevelBias = 1 (0)
06:20:36 LOG:   sfx_fMasterVolume = 0.43137256 (0.9)
06:20:36 LOG:   sfx_iMaxActiveSounds = 30 (25)
06:20:36 LOG:   sha_iMaxShockwaves = 10 (8)
06:20:36 LOG:   sha_iParallaxMappingMethod = 1 (2)
06:20:36 LOG:   shb_fCascadedStepFactor = 5 (4)
06:20:36 LOG:   shb_pixShadowDensity = 48 (16)
06:20:36 LOG:   snd_fEffectsVolume = 0.72549024 (0.8)
06:20:36 LOG:   snd_fMusicVolume = 0.1666667 (0.60000004)
06:20:36 LOG:   snd_fVoiceCommVolume = 0.7 (1)
06:20:36 LOG:   tex_pixMaxSize = 4096 (2048)
06:20:36 LOG:   vo_bVoiceEnabled = 0 (1)
06:20:36 LOG:   Processing file Content/SeriousSam3/Config/AutoDetect.lua
06:20:36 INF:   AutoDetect: Hardware values unchanged, nothing to do.
06:20:37 LOG:   Created thread 6332(SyncWorkshop).
06:20:38 LOG:   Steam workshop sync operation finished in 0.82 seconds.
06:20:51 LOG:   Started loading world "Content/SeriousSam3/Levels/Menu/Intro.wld"
06:20:51 LOG:   Finished loading world. (process memory: 885 MB)
06:20:51 LOG:   Timestamp: 2012/11/07 06:20:51
06:20:51 INF:   Started simulation on 'Content/SeriousSam3/Levels/Menu/Intro.wld' in 0.57 seconds.
06:20:51 LOG:   Created thread 5272(WorkerThreadPool).
06:20:51 LOG:   Created thread 1468(WorkerThreadPool).
06:20:51 LOG:   Created thread 3608(WorkerThreadPool).
06:20:52 TRC:   2 sound channels reinitialized.
06:20:56 LOG:   Started loading world "Content/SeriousSam3/Levels/Menu/MenuLevel.wld"
06:20:56 LOG:   Finished loading world. (process memory: 909 MB)
06:20:56 LOG:   Timestamp: 2012/11/07 06:20:56
06:20:56 INF:   Started simulation on 'Content/SeriousSam3/Levels/Menu/MenuLevel.wld' in 0.05 seconds.
06:21:16 LOG:   Trying to set display mode 3840x1080(fullscreen)...
06:21:16 LOG:   Loaded "D:\ownprogs\Steam\steamapps\common\Serious Sam 3\Bin\GfxD3D.dll".
06:21:16 LOG:   Loaded "D3D9.dll".
06:21:16 LOG:   Loaded "D3DCompiler_43.dll".
06:21:16 LOG:   Loaded "D3DX9_43.dll".
06:21:16 ERR:   Cannot set requested display mode 3840x1080: GfxAPI error: 
06:21:16 ERR:   Direct3D error: Cannot create rendering device!
06:21:16 ERR:   
06:21:16 INF:   Trying fallback modes...
06:21:16 LOG:   Trying to set display mode 1920x1080(fullscreen)...
06:21:16 LOG:   Loaded "D:\ownprogs\Steam\steamapps\common\Serious Sam 3\Bin\GfxD3D.dll".
06:21:16 LOG:   Loaded "D3D9.dll".
06:21:16 LOG:   Loaded "D3DCompiler_43.dll".
06:21:16 LOG:   Loaded "D3DX9_43.dll".
06:21:16 LOG:   Alienware LightFX is not installed.
06:21:23 INF:   
06:21:23 INF:   Gfx API: Direct3D
06:21:23 INF:   Resolution: 1920 x 1080
06:21:23 INF:   Vendor: nVidia (0x10DE)
06:21:23 INF:   Driver: nvd3dum.dll (0x1200)
06:21:23 INF:   Renderer: SoftTH v2.08 x86 alpha by Kegetys
06:21:23 INF:   Version: 9.18.13.697
06:21:23 INF:   Video memory size: 1024 MB
06:21:23 INF:   Available for textures: 4051 MB
06:21:23 INF:   Active GPU(s): 1
06:21:46 LOG:   resFreeUnusedProxies() released '51' and reverted 0 proxy objects in 0.00 seconds.
06:21:46 LOG:   resFreeUnusedStock() released 1290 files in 0.09 seconds.
06:21:46 LOG:   Saving cvars to "$D:/ownprogs/Steam/userdata/101926774/41070/local/SeriousSam3.ini".
06:21:46 LOG:   Timestamp: 2012/11/07 06:21:46
06:21:46 LOG:   Core is shutting down

[AlenL]

This is the problem:
06:21:16 ERR: Cannot set requested display mode 3840x1080: GfxAPI error:
06:21:16 ERR: Direct3D error: Cannot create rendering device!

Looks like the driver doesn't want to start create a 3D rendering surface in that resolution. I'll try it over here and let you know.

[rubregg]

Thanks.

[AlenL]

Researched some more. This is caused by the fact that Span mode (as opposed to Extend mode) is required (by Direct3D) to be able to do 3d rendering across multiple monitors. However, the Span mode is not supported by NVidia starting with Vista and Win7 (it was in WinXP).

I guess you know all that, since I see you are using a utility to try to emulate the Span mode. However, it seems that some configuration might be wrong there. I am not familiar with that utility so I cannot really say what.

I can, however offer a workaround. You can switch to windowed mode and stretch the window manually across both monitors. Not ideal, as you get some "bezel", but it works. We will look into supporting "fake fullscreen" that would do that automatically, and hide window borders. But it is not high on priority list.

[rubregg]

Well to be honest I don't really know all that. What I do know is that the SoftTH tool is basically a modified d3d9.dll.

I just tried out that tool with Portal 2 and it worked perfectly there. Same hardware, same system. Hang on, no, I think that was on Win7 32bit, now I have Win7 64bit. Same hardware though.

Thank you for your help, will try out the workaround for now.

[Afroking]

if I am using the latest Beta, it, produces 2 blackscreens.

With the alpha you used, at first, the second screen gets black and the first one is used as main-game-screen. I can select now the widescreen resulution, and if I enable it, the first half is at the first sreen (perfect!) and the second one is displayed nowhere ...

as fact: borderlands works fine with this .. but, looks ♥♥♥♥♥♥ because of 2 screens XD