Windows XP Gaming Problems with Solutions

Discussion in 'Trek Gaming' started by The DOS Machine, Mar 23, 2005.

  1. Huntingdon

    Huntingdon Fleet Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Feb 22, 2002
    Location:
    Chelmsford UK
    Re: Windows XP Problems WITH Solutions

    It depends on your graphics card. The newer it is the less likely it is to play it - they switched codes or something and there is no workaround for that.
     
  2. Haggis and tatties

    Haggis and tatties Vice Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Dec 27, 2002
    Location:
    Glasgow
    Re: Windows XP Problems WITH Solutions

    Dominion wars came in two flavours, the US version which will run on XP with no problems, and the EU version which you may get up and running but is about as stable as a one legged 98 year old half blind woman, flying down a cobbled hill on a unicycle.........basically its totally unplayable.

    I have both versions and the only way i ever got the EU version was to work was just to install ME back onto a spare HD i had.

    And to add a little flavor to this story, the problem with the EU version could have been solved with a small patch, but there was no official patch released for this problem, there was however a altered EXE files made by a fan of the game, who used to hang about the official Trek web site forums and had been in touch with the games developers to offer them the altered EXE file for the game as a official patch...Unfortunately this very helpful person was told in no uncertain terms from official sources that messing with the EXE of the games could and would result in copyright breach and was told to cess and desist.

    Which was a shame really and DW is a very respectable and fun game.
     
  3. donners22

    donners22 Commodore Commodore

    Joined:
    Jul 12, 2001
    Re: Windows XP Problems WITH Solutions

    The worst bit is that the EU version didn't even contain Starship Creator II, contrary to the box! Not that it was a particularly good game (and I paid $90 for the original, proving what a sucker I am), but at least I could have got something for my money...
     
  4. Haggis and tatties

    Haggis and tatties Vice Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Dec 27, 2002
    Location:
    Glasgow
    Re: Windows XP Problems WITH Solutions

    And you just hit on the very reason i bought SCII, thinking you could design all these ships and then see them running in DW.....Unfortunately your designs were limited severely.

    Very imaginative feature that was just to limited.
     
  5. Antonio

    Antonio Lieutenant Junior Grade Red Shirt

    Joined:
    Aug 21, 2004
    Location:
    New York, NY
    Re: Windows XP Problems WITH Solutions

    I have the same issue now that Judgment Rites is finally running using the latest version of Dosbox in Windows XP. If anyone has ideas how to remedy this problem with Judgment Rites I would greatly appreciate it.Not sure why it the error message says the disk is full or read only. Otherwise it seems to mount perfectly. I have drive c mounted as c:/intrpplay/trek2. Thanks!
     
  6. Antonio

    Antonio Lieutenant Junior Grade Red Shirt

    Joined:
    Aug 21, 2004
    Location:
    New York, NY
    Re: Windows XP Problems WITH Solutions

    I discovered today that the Judgment Rites CD games will save games only only if the entire C drive is mounted, which I understand is not advisable. Otherwise I receive the disk full or read only error message.
     
  7. Antonio

    Antonio Lieutenant Junior Grade Red Shirt

    Joined:
    Aug 21, 2004
    Location:
    New York, NY
    Re: Windows XP Problems WITH Solutions

    Found the solution to the Judgment Rites problem with saving games. Copy the entire intrplay folder and subfolders into a new folder on the c drive called Trek2
    Mount c c:/trek2
    c:
    cd intrplay
    cd trek2

    Hope this helps anyone else with the same issue. Games can now be saved with no trouble!
    Last left is how to question is how to fix the delay in the speaking and stuttering with the speech that begins when you are arrive in the space station. I suspect a change in the CPU cycles might help. Anyone have any ideas?

    Thanks!
     
  8. General_Chaos

    General_Chaos Cadet Newbie

    Joined:
    Feb 8, 2008
    Re: Windows XP Problems WITH Solutions

    Alrighty I can tell you how to install Dominion Wars onto XP. Basically all you do is when you insert the disc, cancel the auto-install. Go into the disc and change the compatability mode of the setup.exe to windows 98/ME. Then go and install it from that program.

    Afterwards install the DW unofficial XP patch, followed by changing the compatability mode for the DW exe to 98/ME.

    Getting past that, does anyone know how to get Starship Creator to work on XP?
     
  9. awesomesauce

    awesomesauce Cadet Newbie

    Joined:
    Feb 19, 2008
    Re: Windows XP Problems WITH Solutions

    Hey everyone first post
    I have Star Trek Judgement Rites on Cd
    I've downloaded DosBox newest version
    I've read all the help in this section and nothing helps
    My screen says Interplay and than goes black
    I got the 25th anniversary to work but I have the floppys so no voices


    I also downloaded Judgement Rites without the voice acting and it works, does anyone have a suggestion to help me get it to work?
    Thanks in advance


    Edit: I have Windows XP if that helps any


    Another Edit: I kinda got it to work
    I installed both JR one with voices one without in the same file
    I can now get JR with voices to start up and try to play but it says that VCCOPEN could not be found

    and the once without voices still works

    I also found the file on the disc but I cannot figure out how to get it to work
     
  10. awesomesauce

    awesomesauce Cadet Newbie

    Joined:
    Feb 19, 2008
    Re: Windows XP Problems WITH Solutions

    I have completely deleted Judgement Rites
    I have reinstalled it using DosBox
    and Now it brings up the Interplay screen and goes black, I have tried all of the suggestions, but I guess I can try again

    edit: I finally got it to work
    I had to combine some configuration files and than do the trek2\intrplay\trek2
    thanks for all the help previously given

    Another edit: I cannot get it to save for the life of me
    I've tried mounting just the c drive
    but I keep on getting something along the lines
    "Cannot save because it is read only or space is full"
    any remedy to this?
     
  11. xicedlovexoxo

    xicedlovexoxo Cadet Newbie

    Joined:
    Apr 20, 2008
    Location:
    in a house.
    Re: Windows XP Problems WITH Solutions

    I'm new to these old Trek games here but I've been finding a lot of solutions online. As of right now, I only have Judgment Rites on CD (which is why I'm posting, you'll see what in a bit :p), TNG: A Final Unity also on CD and the Starship Creator which I actually bought myself when I was in elementary school. I'm a young'un. Shh.

    Anyway, I noticed others had had trouble with Judgment Rites, and seeing as how I got it to work on my computer running Windows XP using the latest version of DOSBox, I thought I'd post what I did to get it to run. It runs perfectly and allows to save which is the most common problem others who get it to work seem to have, and I've completed the game with no problems except for my own retardedness at not knowing where to go on the star map (I finally found out why in the end). So here's a step-by-step guide for those still having trouble, hopefully it works for others as well as it worked for me. And please note, this is for those who have the CD, not for the floppy version.

    1. If you don't already have it, download and install the latest version of DOSBox. You can find it here: http://www.dosbox.com/download.php?main=1

    2. Insert the Judgment Rites game CD.

    3. Open up My Computer, and right-click your CD-ROM drive. Click the option that says "Explore":

    [​IMG]

    4. Once you're in the explorer, you can view all the files on the CD-ROM of Judgment Rites:

    [​IMG]

    Now open up a new explorer window, being sure not to close the explore view of the CD, and go into your My Documents folder. What I did from here was create a folder called "DOSBox Stuff":

    [​IMG]

    5. Now go back to the other window with Judgment Rites open in it. Right click in the left column on your CD-ROM drive, and select "Copy":

    [​IMG]

    6. Go back into the DOSBox Stuff folder you just created. Paste what you just copied into the folder. If it shows up with your CD-ROM drive as the name, rename it to "Star Trek Judgment Rites CD-ROM". (Mine showed up as "Star Trek Judgment Rites CD-RO (E)". That's because that's what it was as the CD in my drive. Yours may be the same or different; different CD drives behave differently. As long as the name is similar enough to that, you can leave it. You'll need to know what the name is for later, though.):

    [​IMG]

    7. Now open up DOSBox. This is where it gets a little tricky.

    8. Your DOSBox window should look a little like this:

    [​IMG]

    (Yours may differ, I think mine is a little different because I changed a setting or something the first time I tried to run Judgment Rites. Bah, ignore any differences, as long as you get the thing open fine, it'll work.=] )

    9. Now, we need to mount that folder you created and put the copied CD files into. To do this, type: mount C "C:\Documents and Settings\*insert your user name here*\My Documents\DOSBox Stuff\Star Trek Judgment Rites CD-ROM (or whatever variant of that name you used)" and then press enter. You should get this in the DOSBox window:

    [​IMG]

    10. Once you've successfully mounted the folder containing your game files as your C drive within DOSBox, you need to go into the C drive. Just type "C:" and instead of the "Z:\>" you saw before, you'll get "C:\>". It should now look like this:

    [​IMG]

    11. Now you'll need to install the game. (Please take note, you must install each time you want to play the game. I'll go over that later.) Type "install.exe" and press return. You should get this after a brief moment of loading and the Interplay logo:

    [​IMG]

    12. Click the big red "Install" button, which will take you to this screen:

    [​IMG]

    13. Leave the path name alone. I don't know if changing it affects anything but it might, so to be safe, don't tamper. The directory doesn't actually show up anyway, but the game still works. That sounds odd I know, but at least it works. Anyway, click install and it will install the game. Once that's finished, it asks you to view the Manual or whatever; you can say no to that unless you want to see it. After this, you'll be at the settings screen:

    [​IMG]

    14. Click the "Auto Detect" button and if the bottom setting goes to "No Sound" just click on the "Sound Blaster" below it. Your settings should look like this:

    [​IMG]

    15. Click "Save" and you'll be greeted with an "Install Complete!" screen. :)

    16. Now to run the game, you have to exit the installer. Click "Exit" and you should be left at this window:

    [​IMG]

    17. To run the game, I usually ignore what it says at the top there and I type "TREKJR.EXE" to run it. For one, it goes straight to the game instead of asking you to register each time, which is what happens if you type "trek2". Anyway, once you've typed this and hit enter, the game should run just fine. =] If you get skips in the game or the audio, try increasing the CPU cycles. Hit CTRL+F12 a few times. I set mine at 10000 CPU cycles or a bit more, and it seems perfect. This may be different for different computers, so experiment a little to see what works for you. You may not need to adjust it at all, which I didn't at first, but then I let the game sit on pause for like an hour and then it started skipping. Hehe..

    Now, as I said before, to run the game again, you have to install each time, but as it's relatively quick, it's not a big deal. It doesn't affect your saved games or anything, so don't worry about that. Every time you want to run the game just follow steps 7-17 and it should be okay.
    Also, when you go to run the game and install it again, you get this screen:

    [​IMG]

    Just say yes, since it won't hurt anything. All your saved games should be fine. I know it's a bit cumbersome having to install each time you want to play, but that's what I found was the way it would work.
    Though, I know, this is only what worked for me, it might not work for everyone but I hope it helps at least someone who had the same trouble running the game as I did.

    In addition, I'm posting my solution in exchange for some help on one of my own problems: I can't get A Final Unity to work and a lot of the things people suggested here seem viable, but I would just like to find the patch for the game, since the only problem I have is that it says my CD-ROM is too slow. Other than that, I can get the install open in DOSBox, but that's as far as I get and then it stops me there. If anyone has a solution that doesn't require another operating system since that's not available for me, please help. =]
     
    Last edited: Apr 20, 2008
  12. Jadzia_Dax

    Jadzia_Dax Lieutenant Red Shirt

    Joined:
    Mar 8, 2003
    Location:
    UK
    Re: Windows XP Problems WITH Solutions

    Can anyone help me to get StarFleet Command to work on XP? Thanks if you can!! :techman:
     
  13. Borjis

    Borjis Commodore Commodore

    Joined:
    Mar 16, 2003
    Re: Windows XP Problems WITH Solutions

    can anyone that has had Generations work under XP list the steps you took to get it installed and running?

    much appreciated.
     
  14. ShamelessMcBundy

    ShamelessMcBundy Fleet Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Mar 14, 2003
    Location:
    Bursting through walls.
    Re: Windows XP Problems WITH Solutions

    Hey guys. First time posting here. I bought Star Trek: Legacy for my laptop today. For only $15, why not? Anyway, it installed fine, but it won't play! Every time i try, it launches the title screen, the screen goes black like the game is gonna load and then it exits saying that there is an Untitled Exception. I then click on debug, but that crashes the game altogether. I even tried uninstalling it or reinstalling it but it freezes. Any ideas?
     
  15. superkargon

    superkargon Cadet Newbie

    Joined:
    Sep 16, 2008
    Re: Windows XP Problems WITH Solutions

    Hello Everyone-

    I am sorry that my first post on the boards is one of asking for tech support but I am not sure what to do.

    I have been trying to get Star Trek Armada to run on Windows XP. I have tried running it in all compatibility modes with no luck. The game runs, however the graphics are screwed up. The silver/chrome loading screen has a "tearing" look to it and when the game loads the ships and objects have a tearing affect as well.

    I am running:

    Windows XP 32-bit service pack 3
    2 gig ram
    Intel Core 2 Duo CPU @ 2.20 GHz
    Nvidia Geforce 8300 GS with latest video drivers

    Any help is greatly appreciated.
     
  16. jeffgordon2475

    jeffgordon2475 Cadet Newbie

    Joined:
    Oct 3, 2008
    Re: Windows XP Problems WITH Solutions

    Hi everyone, this might be somewhere else but I can't find it. I recently bought Star Trek Starship Creator Warp II, but after I install it the disc wont read. Can anyone help?
     
  17. Cary L. Brown

    Cary L. Brown Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

    Joined:
    Oct 14, 2005
    Location:
    Austin, Texas
    Re: Windows XP Problems WITH Solutions

    Sorry to be late on this, but I just found this while exploring how to get this to work on my rebuilt system.

    Yes, folks, the "click like crazy" thing DOES WORK. And yes, it did sound crazy. Amazing how you make some of the best discoveries entirely by accident, huh?

    Now, granted, this game wasn't all that great... but with some massive control reconfiguration, it is playable, and the PLOT is a significant improvement over the original movie plot, at least. ;)

    I did a clean install (running the installer from 95 compatibility mode) and then ran the main exe with that same mode. I also moved all of the data and movie files from the cd to the hard drive. I was hoping that there'd be a simple config file which would allow me to just change the pointers for those, but I haven't found anything like that yet, so it's still looking on the CD for the movies. Oh well...

    We all know that the movies play just fine with the current Windows Media decoders, but it's likely that this program doesn't know how to talk to the newer decoder (Generations was written for DX3, after all!). I actually suspect that if you were to install DX3, then reinstall the current DX9 on top of that, you might be able to play the videos, but I've spent too much time getting my system into good working order (with hundreds of programs installed!) to risk having to start over on the odd chance that this might hose my installation!

    It's a damned shame that Microshaft decided to make each version of DX (or Media Player) REPLACE the prior version (instead of allowing them to run side-by-side, and allowing us to choose which we'd use!). If that were the case, many other programs which fail would also work. For instance, Tribes 2 won't work on any system (regardless of OS) if DX9 is installed, but it works fine with DX7 or DX8. So much for "backwards compatibility," huh?

    I have another system which is running Win98SE, so I'll probably just install this onto that system (it's my fall-back for all the things I can't make work properly on the "improved" OS's). It's amazing how many applications are migrating over to that one. Soon, I'll have half of my software on that! :rolleyes:

    I'm going to keep looking for a way to get videos to play on Generations and trying to figure out a compatibility mode fix that might bypass the "clicking madly" requirement which you found, but in the meantime, this is enough to get the game "marginally" running.

    EDIT: Okay, I found a registry key that points to the CD. Look in

    HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\MicroProse\Star Trek Generations\1.0

    There's a key called "CDPath." I've just edited that to read the location on my hard drive where I installed the files from the CDs. (In my case, E:\StarTrek\Generations\DATA... while the original key had "G:\GENS").

    At least that ought to stop it from looking to the CD at all. I'm wondering if that'll help the video playback. I'll keep you posted.
     
    Last edited: Oct 25, 2008
  18. Cary L. Brown

    Cary L. Brown Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

    Joined:
    Oct 14, 2005
    Location:
    Austin, Texas
    Re: Windows XP Problems WITH Solutions

    Sounds like a video card driver problem. My first suggestion would be to try other resolutions, other video card settings, etc. You might want to turn video hardware acceleration down a notch or two and see if that helps.

    It's worth noting that many times, "newer" drivers actually BREAK more things that they fix. I've tried "upgrading" my video drivers several times and have always gone back to the old 93.71 drivers (with 91.31 stereo drivers) I've had on here for a looong time. Everything I've got works with them, but every driver since then has caused some sort of problem for me. nVidia's stereo drivers after that point, for instance, have a "keyboard driver" as part of them which prevents my joystick set from proper keypress emulation.

    Think about that. VIDEO DRIVERS prevent a joystick from working?

    My point - don't assume that having the "latest" versions means everything is good, or that having the highest levels of acceleration and the most features turned on is necessarily "good" in all cases.

    Try different (older) drivers. Try turning off antialiasing. Try turning off anisotropic filtering. Try turning acceleration down a notch. Try adjusting resolution, color depth, refresh rate, etc.

    The only way to get these things to work is to experiment. Wish I had better advice, but there you go.
     
  19. Borjis

    Borjis Commodore Commodore

    Joined:
    Mar 16, 2003
    Re: Windows XP Problems WITH Solutions

     
  20. Tomalak

    Tomalak Vice Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Jun 22, 2003
    Location:
    Manchester
    Re: Windows XP Problems WITH Solutions

    Hi,

    I've been trying to get AFU working, following this guide, and all is going swimmingly.

    The one slight drawback is that the mouse seems very slow - it's like going through treacle. I wonder if it's because I've got a widescreen monitor, so it's getting confused, but I can't get it to work in a window. Any solution to this, or do I just have to be thankful it works at all?