Q. Will GameShadow run on Vista?
A. GameShadow will currently on Vista but with limited support for driver updates. It works fine with patches, demos and other updates.

Q. I've lost my licence key and/or password. How can I retrieve it?
A. You can retrieve your licence key in a couple of ways:

• Running GameShadow and press the LOGIN button. On the login screen ensure your registered email address is entered in the email box and press the "Email my account details" button. This will then resend the original email to the registered email account and will include all your licence and user details.
• Alternatively, run GameShadow and press the PREFERENCES button. On the General preferences tab in the Account Details section, press the "Send me my account details" button. This will then resend the original email to the registered email account and will include all your licence and user details.

Q. I want to change my email address with GameShadow?
A. Your email address is your unique identifier. If you would like to change this, please contact support using the forums with your existing email address and the address that you would like to use in future.

Q. I'm getting a gmsSchema error when I run GameShadow. How can I fix this?
A. This is an error that typically occurs on Vista machines. Please contact support using the forums for a workaround.

Q. What is GameShadow?
A. GameShadow is an exciting, easy and intelligent way to keep your games up-to-date with the latest patches and fixes. GameShadow quickly searches for your games, and it will make it really easy for you to get the latest updates, patches, demos, trailers and other cool stuff for your games.

Our new GameShadow Social Network is a unique place where it is free and easy for you to show the world the type of gamer you really are!  Share your knowledge and passion with your Friends and see what games they care about.  Get closer to the developers and publishers too by joining Official Groups or make your own Groups to shout about the things that matter to you.   More than a social network, it's a real gamer's community.

So join now. It's free and if you already use our Downloader we get you started even quicker.  

Q. How does GameShadow work?
A. We've developed an intelligent way of telling exactly version of a game you have. This means that you don't have to search the Internet for the right patch for you, or download a huge file, only to find that it doesn't work with your games. GameShadow does the hard work for you so you can spend more time having fun.

Q. Why do I need to keep my games up-to-date?
A. Many games are released for the PC with minor bugs or inconsistencies. Sometimes, the bugs can mean the whole game doesn't work properly. Publishers and developers release critical updates (also known as patch) to fix these problems. They also often include bonus features or content that they did not have time to put in the retail version, which means you get great new content for free.

Q. What is a patch?
A. A patch is an update that fixes bugs or adds new content to your games.

Q. What is a driver?
A. Drivers are like patches for your graphics card. They are the software that helps your graphics card communicate with your other computer, and with games. By always running the latest drivers, you can get significantly better performance from your existing graphics card.

Q. Do you charge for GameShadow?
A. GameShadow is free. You can keep all of your games up-to-date, be alerted when new updates are released for your games and download all the patches that you need for your games and the drivers that you need for your graphics card. You can also download up to 1 Gigabyte of demos, movies, trailers and other great content each month. If you want to download more than that, sign up for our subscription service.

The new GameShadow Community is also totally free to join and enjoy even more gaming fun.

Q. Are there any limits to GameShadow?
A. For patches and drivers for your games and graphics cards, there are no limits. If you want to download more than 1 Gb of demos and other content a month, then you might consider joining our subscription service.

Q. What is the GameShadow Social Network?
A. Our new Social Network is a unique place where it is free and easy for you to show the world the type of gamer you really are!  Share your knowledge and passion with your Friends and see what games they care about.  Get closer to the developers and publishers too by joining Official Groups or make your own Groups to shout about the things that matter to you.  

Our social network is a great community for real gamers.So join now? It's free and if you already use our Downloader we get you started even quicker.  

Q. Why should I join the GameShadow Social Network?
A. It's a unique gamers' social network that makes it easy for you to get even more fun from your games.   We know that gamers can enjoy different types of games at different times so you need a place to share your ideas and hook up with different friends.  So you can now enjoy all areas of your gaming in just one place in a community full of gamers just like you.

The intelligent GameShadow Downloader makes it easier for you to build your profile and get things rolling.   You can also easily join ‘Official' groups and make your own plus see what your friends are doing and what games they care about.

Q. Is it just for hard-core gamers?
A. NO!  We want the GameShadow Social Network to be used by all types and levels of gamer.   As the community grows we will build more features and tools so you can show your knowledge, share your ideas and give feedback on your games.  This knowledge will be fun to share and help other gamers too.

Q. How much does it cost to join?
A. It's free just like the Patching, Fixing and Alert services.   So you have nothing to lose and we think there is a lot to gain by getting involved. 

Q. Do my friends automatically see the games I own?
A. All your games will automatically be added to your profile by the GameShadow Downloader but you can Hide them from your public profile if you want.   So your friends will only see the games you want them to. 

Q. If I am on facebook why should I bother?
A. We think facebook is great too but the GameShadow Social Network is just about games and nothing else.  Use facebook for your real-world connections but we felt that you needed a special place for your gaming personality to be let free.   Here it is.

Q. Is my information safe?
A. We only need a live email account to set up your GameShadow Social Network account and then the profile information reflects your gaming and nothing else.  We will never release any information to a third party and only use it to increase your gaming fun. 

Q. What are GameShadow alerts?
A. If you like, you can opt-in to receive GameShadow alerts. This means that you will be emailed whenever there are new patches or cool things to buy for your games. You can also choose to be told when there are new demos, trailers or mods that are relevant for your games.


Q. How often will I receive an alert?
A. You can choose to get them as soon as something is available, weekly, or monthly. That doesn't mean that we will email you every week or every month; we only email you when there is something new for your games.

Q. I have signed up for alerts, but I haven't received an email from GameShadow.
A. . That's OK. We'll only email you if there is something new for your games. If you don't get an email from us, it means that there is nothing new for your games.

Q. Will you use my personal information?
A. GameShadow takes your privacy seriously and will not pass on any personally-identifiable information to a third party. We do reserve the right to use it to improve our service and to perform statistical analysis on software installations.  Click here to read our Privacy Policy.

Q. What do I get if I subscribe to GameShadow?
A. In addition to all of the cool free features, you get:

• a massive 30 Gigabytes of downloads a month (that's equivalent to 1Gb a day!)
• no ads
• access to exclusive content and competitions
• subscriber incentives (currently you can choose a free game when you subscribe)

Q. How much does it cost?
A. The price is £30/$39.95/€34.95 per year.

Q. How do I subscribe?
A. There is a button in the bottom left hand corner of the client. Click on that to be taken to our secure order pages and you'll be a subscriber in no time.

Q. How often do you update the database?
A. The database is updated every day, and more often if there is cool new stuff that we want to tell you about as quickly as possible.

Q. Can I use GameShadow to search across multiple PCs on my network?
A. Absolutely! Tell GameShadow where to look, and it will keep all of your home PCs up-to-date.

Q. I am not yet on broadband. Can I still use GameShadow?
A. Of course. It will be a little slower, but we can still deliver all the updates that you need. Plus, if you connection drops, GameShadow will remember where it was and pick up at the same place when you start again, which saves you time and frustration.

Q. How often should I check for updates?
A. As often as you like. Alerts will keep you up-to-date for your games, but we also carry brand new demos, trailers and other gaming news. Check back often to see what is popular with the GameShadow community.

Q. How many file servers do you have?
A. Our service provider has 16 points of presence spread around the world optimised for delivering large files quickly and efficiently. Wherever you live, we will pick the nearest or fastest server to ensure you get a great download speed.

Q. Which anti-virus services do you support?
A. GameShadow supports many anti-virus tools, including F-Secure, NOD 32 and Norton AntiVirus. You can configure auto scanning of files once they have downloaded.

Q. How many games do you support?
A. We support games, and have updates for them.

Q. I have a demo of a game that is being identified as a full version.
A. If this happens, let us know via support. We are constantly keeping our demo information up-to-date.

Q. One of my games comes up as "Unsupported Version"
A. There are a number of reasons why a game might be Unsupported:

• we may not support it yet. Check out the list of supported games. If it is not there, and you think we should support the game, let us know by emailing support here.
• It may be a digital download version. We endeavour to support as many of the downloadable versions as possible, but sometimes they make changes which means that we cannot recognise the version. We are working closely with several of the main download services to improve this.
• It may an unofficial version of the game. GameShadow only supports authentic versions of games.
• It may have had an unofficial patch or mod applied to it, which means that we no longer recognise the title.

Advanced users can visit the Version Management Console in My Games and apply the latest patch shown (provided it is an Any to V x.x patch) and GameShadow will be able to recognise it again.

Q. What languages do you support?
A. Currently GameShadow itself is only available in English, although it does support many different language versions of games. We are working on adding new languages.

Q. What is the minimum spec of PC for GameShadow
A. To run GameShadow you need the following specifications:

• Processor: Pentium II: 400 mhz
• Ram: 128MB (256mb recommended)
• HD space: 20MB (plus space for patches)
• OS: Windows 98 Second Edition or above (Windows XP recommended)
• Internet Explorer v6.0
• Internet: 56kb (ISDN/Broadband recommended)
• DirectX: v7.0 or above

Q. Will GameShadow run on a Macintosh Computer?
A. GameShadow is currently only supported on the Windows Platform.

Q. Will GameShadow run on a Linux Computer?
A. GameShadow is currently only supported on the Windows Platform.

Q. I've applied a patch, but GameShadow is still showing the old version.
A. You can either click on "Check for game updates" in the menu on the left, or "Refresh Game" in the My Games view to make sure that GameShadow recognises the new patch.

Q. I use a firewall. What do I need to do to allow GameShadow to work over the Internet?
A. The first time that you use GameShadow, your firewall should ask you if GameShadow has to permission to access the Internet. Click "Yes". Two programs (gameshadow.exe and gsdownload.exe) both need to access to the Internet on port 80, and you will probably need to click "Yes" twice.

Q. I use the VCOM suite and it is blocking GameShadow.
A. We have experienced problems with VCOMs Firewall. In some instances even if you tell it to allow applications to have access it stops them working. To test this, try uninstalling VCOM and testing GameShadow. If it works it's VCOM, please contact their support channel.

Q. I haven't received or have lost the email with my licence key, what do I do?
A. You can retrieve your licence key in a couple of ways:

• Running GameShadow and press the LOGIN button. On the login screen ensure your registered email address is entered in the email box and press the "Email my account details" button. This will then resend the original email to the registered email account and will include all your licence and user details.
• Alternatively, run GameShadow and press the PREFERENCES button. On the General preferences tab in the Account Details section, press the "Send me my account details" button. This will then resend the original email to the registered email account and will include all your licence and user details.

Q. I've installed GameShadow and I'm getting an ActiveX 429 error.
A. This is usually down to Microsoft MDAC being un-installed or changed outside of the GameShadow install. The easiest way to fix this is download and install the latest version of MDAC from Microsoft, this is a free download. It can be downloaded from the Microsoft MDAC page.

Q. I get a WSDL error when trying to connect?
A. Generally this error only occurs if there is a problem connecting to the GameShadow servers when logging in or getting the latest patch information. Usually it is down to the ISP at your end. Ensure that you can still browse other websites and services.

Q. My machine takes a long time to search my PC.
A. You can speed up the search process by telling GameShadow about directories that contain games. For instance it will be much quicker if you tell GameShadow that all of your games are in C:\Program Files or C:\Games rather than the whole disk C:\

Q. I have problems searching across my network shares.
A. Things take more time over a network. However once GameShadow has done it's search, the Refresh My Games feature is super quick over the network!

Q. How many downloads can I have running at one time?
A. As many as you like! Although you may want to stick to no more than four to five running at once. Over a dial-up connection we recommend one at a time.

Q. GameShadow says I have to have Internet Explorer 6.0, why?
A. GameShadow uses Internet Explorer and some of its underlying technology to present information to the user.

Q. The "My Games" sections says no patches available yet the Version Management Console says there are?
A. The "My Games" screen will only display patches that are available to your current version of the game. The VMC will display ALL versions for each game that you have installed on your PC.

Q. Which operating systems does GameShadow work on?
A. GameShadow runs on Windows XP, Windows 2000, Windows ME and 98SE.

Q. How big is the downloadable client?
A. The full installation which includes all the relevant files and libraries used within the product is approximately 12mb in size.