Microgaming intro movies - can you turn them off?

[Mugwump]

The intro movies to microgaming casinos (any of them) seem to crap out on me every other time I try to start the casino. I usually have to end the task through task manager to cancel the program and restart it to get in.

Anyone know of a way to disable these movies? I know they're cute, but after you've seen them once...do you really need to again?

If you can't disable them, does anyone know how to fix the problem of them locking up?

 

[Petunia]

**Mugwurm, i don't know why you'd have to 'task manager' them to get them off, there is an option to 'click to stop' ... i just click it everytime i start... and move right along... **

 

[schankwart]

There is no way to turn them off but it'd be great if they added this option to their software.

 

[bAdSmoker]

You can turn them off.

Registry + .ini file in there directory of the casino.

Set the values to 0.

I'll post a tutorial in the morning but now i gotta get some sleep.

 

[KasinoKing]

If you can't disable them, does anyone know how to fix the problem of them locking up?

Play the 'flash' version of the casino, or better still, get a new computer and enjoy the movies in all their glory!

 

[Mugwump]

**Mugwurm, i don't know why you'd have to 'task manager' them to get them off, there is an option to 'click to stop' ... i just click it everytime i start... and move right along... **

Sorry, the movie never starts playing, so I don't get the click to stop thing. I just get a plain white screen and a 'not responding' message. A new computer would be nice, I guess, but this one is only a couple years old, and I just reformatted/reinstalled last fall. Its probably a conflict with another software program on the machine, but I haven't been able to find it.

I'll take a search for the .ini/registry thing.

 

[Simmo!]

Heres an interseting thing:

I did some research into whether you can "skin" an MG casino and found that all the sounds, the flash intro and many of the animations are in fact stored as flat files you can edit. In fact i even managed to edit the flash intro for casino using some free flash editing software.

I guess if you just delete the FLA file in the "common" directory under any MG installation that would probably remove it. You could replace Thunderstruck's goats with a Sheep gif and give them a "meow" sound too if you wanted

I was going to start a website for creating add-on packs for MG games - different images, sounds etc, but haven't got the time...fun though it would be coming from a Quake/Unreal background

 

[Mugwump]

I was going to start a website for creating add-on packs for MG games - different images, sounds etc, but haven't got the time...fun though it would be coming from a Quake/Unreal background

It would be fun to see, but I'm not so sure that'd be a good idea. Wouldn't this give them an excuse not to pay you if you hit a jackpot, as you 'modified' their game?

 

[Simmo!]

It would be fun to see, but I'm not so sure that'd be a good idea. Wouldn't this give them an excuse not to pay you if you hit a jackpot, as you 'modified' their game?

LOL - quite possibly yes. I was kinda half joking really. I dont thnk its something you'd want to distribute either, unlike Quake/Unreal, as the developers here dont open up the code for mods like ID Software did. I was merely pointing out that one "could" do it , physically if not necessarily legally! And probably with pretty much any software - maybe Playtech and RTG too.

That said, I'm not suggesting you'd want to be modifying code here (now that WOULD be a legal no-no), you are simply replacing images and sounds on your hard drive so I'm not quite sure how that works. Actually, in Quake circles, a good "mod" would attract a bundle of new players through the publicity. So maybe, MG, RTG et al ought to consider this - a "mod" approval process for games where a bod can create and submit a mod for approval by the vendor. That'd be in keeping with the games world, and be rather fun.

It would also have the potential for creating a lot more exposure for the market. Designers and sound people would probably love to have a competition to design a game pack. You'd keep the fundamentals of the game in place - ie: the way it works at code level - and the vendor would get a community of creatives coming up with new mods and game GUI's, sounds etc. If they had approval control, it could be quite a money saver too.

Anyway...just a thought.

 

[GrandMaster]

This sort of modification would not affect the server, so the casino would not notice it probably. There would be a potential for fraudulent players to replace lower value signs by jackpot signs, and then take a screenshot of a fake jackpot and claim that the casino has paid the wrong amount.

 

[vinylweatherman]

MG Mods

Game sounds can be changed, and the animated reel symbols are stored in separate files, but the general reel bands are in DAT files, and are coded, so this would count as code modification rather than image and sound replacement. Also, if the casino asks for a screenshot as proof of a big win in dispute you're screwed if you have changed the images. Casinos can 'mod' the pictures and sounds on the games. Look at 'Double Magic' slot in any BelleRock casino and note the blue star is replaced by the BelleRock logo.
You can also modify some parameters in the later Video Slots that are no longer available in the expert interface, such as 'stop when lost x credits', and can remove the compulsory delay between spins in Secret Admirer - useful if offered in a wager challenge tournament.
I have even designed a registry merge file to swap all my Casino software over to 'tournament' mode and back to 'normal' once the hour is up! This saves around 5 minutes, significant in an hour long tournament where the server runs at a snails pace and can often crash with MG 'casino eror 2'.
I am certain the flash movie can be killed off, although I have not seen a specific registry parameter that does it, so it is most likely in one of the INI files as mentioned previously. I have had MG crash on start up too, but rebooting my PC clears this. I suspect repeated use of the casino leaves 'garbage' behind which eventually kills Windows.