Windows XP + Games = Need Help!

[Warrior 4 Jesus]

I'm getting frustrated that many of my old games like the original Driver PC game etc don't seem to run on my computer using XP. This is really annoying as I want to play them but I can't.
Does anyone know of any fixes for old games under XP? They are all legal copies too.

Thanks for your help!

[ZiP]

Might'nt you first tell us what's wrong with the games?

[Jasdero]

>.>;;; Driver should work... My brother has it on his laptop, which uses XP Professional, and then on another computer that uses XP Home. I was the one who installed it, and I didn't need to do anything extra... o.o;;;;;

[shooraijin]

There should be compatibility options you can set for a particular application -- what comes up when you right click the .exe and select Properties?

[Felix]

I don't know. I'm not too good when it comes to computers.
Whenever I want to play an old game, it usually doesn't work on my XP either so I just play them on my old '95.

[Sephiroth]

if you still have your old windows 98 CD, and REALLY want to play your old games, and have an ok amount of free hard disk space you could install windows 98 on a partition on your hard drive, then you'd be able to play em and still have XP for the stuff that counts

[Warrior 4 Jesus]

Shooraijin, I've tried changing the compatibility mode, it still doesn't work.

Sephiroth, I may give that a try. We still have our Windows 98 CD.

Zip, sorry I forgot to mention each time I go into these old games like Driver and Croc 2 they have the title screens, the screen goes black and the computer freezes up. Then I have to restart it.

Thanks to those who helped.

[ZiP]

Do you get a blue screen that tells you to restart?

[Warrior 4 Jesus]

No blue screen, just a black one. And no restart message either.

[Mr. SmartyPants]

this is why xp sucks. It's SUPPOSED to be compatiable with stuff that are compatiable with previous windows opeting systems, but it never works, and the stupid retarded message that says "we do not recommend you installing this, click here why!" and stuff

this is why xp sucks, im sure theres a way to figure this out

im guessing a problem with a driver... is it possible that a graphics card can be TOO good to play an old game?

[Warrior 4 Jesus]

I told dad that XP sucks and he says that it's the games that aren't made properly so they can be compatible, not the operating systems fault. It's possible that the graphics card is too good for old games, but it's only a GeForce 4 MX.

[Mr. SmartyPants]

i doubt it is your game. You see, problems happen to me, and nearly everyone with old programs and application. They just dont work on xp! yet they're supposed to!

[Godly Paladin]

XP doesn't suck...it's more stable than any previous editions, and *most* games work on it if you know what you're doing. Microsoft doesn't have the time or manpower to make a OS 100% compatible with every single PC game out there...

[Mr. SmartyPants]

XP doesn't suck...it's more stable than any previous editions, and *most* games work on it if you know what you're doing. Microsoft doesn't have the time or manpower to make a OS 100% compatible with every single PC game out there...

no... 2000 is better than xp

heck, nearly all of them, with the exception of ME. Is better than XP

[Nate]

I'm quite sure it isn't the game. I have a copy of Sonic CD for the computer, and it's a Windows 95 based program. When I try to play it on my computer that has XP, it states that it cannot find a certain file. I tried this on my laptop, as well as my dad's computer. Thinking there was something wrong with the game, I took it to a computer with Windows 95 on it, and it ran perfectly.

XP doesn't suck...it's more stable than any previous editions

I like that. Not, "It's a stable operating system," just, "It's more stable than previous editions." That statement alone should clue people in to how much XP sucks.

[Godly Paladin]

I guess you guys are entitled to your own opinions. When we had ME, it crashed pretty much daily, but the second we upgraded to XP, we were fine. I play a bunch of old games on my XP, and all of them work except for one.

If you want to stay loyal to an outdated OS while the rest of the world marches by, then be my guest. Just don't go around slandering a superior OS.

[shooraijin]

Okay, so, are we going to help W4J, or squabble about the relative suck-age of XP vs. [any older form of Windows]? *ahem*

[Arnobius]

Remember there is an issue with SP2 not being compatible with all products (Sad that Freedom Force won't work with SP2, since my new computer came with SP2 already on the system). As for compatibility, there comes a time for games to die after a few years. Remember that the 95/98/ME system is dos based while the NT family is not. XP is NT based.

I've mostly had good luck with XP, with the exception of games that were only for Win95. It breaks the heart that my copy of Princess Maker doesn't work, since it's a DOS based game.

BTW, has anyone tried MS Virtual PC which is supposed to emulate the old OS without need for partition? I was thinking of getting that, but want to see how well it works. Also, I can't get a straight answer from anyone on whether I need to get a disc of the older OS or whether Virtual PC automatically emulates it.

[shooraijin]

Why not use DOSBOX for something like that? dosbox.sourceforge.net

I use Virtual PC on the Mac routinely. I don't know if there is anything different about VPC under Windows, but it's lousy for game performance. VPC3 was the last version of VPC that played most software-rendered games well (forget hardware-assisted D3D), but that's Mac only.

[Arnobius]

Why not use DOSBOX for something like that? dosbox.sourceforge.net

I use Virtual PC on the Mac routinely. I don't know if there is anything different about VPC under Windows, but it's lousy for game performance. VPC3 was the last version of VPC that played most software-rendered games well (forget hardware-assisted D3D), but that's Mac only.

I'll look into it. I'm very conservative about what I allow on my system, but if it works...

[shooraijin]

I run DOSBOX on the Mac, and it was able to play some LucasArts games and a few others flawlessly. Its compatibility gets better all the time. Be sure to check that the games you're interested in are compatible, because a large (although shrinking) number are not.

[madphilb]

I run DOSBOX on the Mac, and it was able to play some LucasArts games and a few others flawlessly. Its compatibility gets better all the time. Be sure to check that the games you're interested in are compatible, because a large (although shrinking) number are not.

The only down side to DOSBOX is that it uses resources like crazy if you don't tweek it to death (and even then it uses them up pretty good).

They pointed to DOSBOX for getting Arena (the original game in the Elder Scroll series of games) when Bethesda started giving it away this year for their 10th aniv. My old clunker (a 466 celeron) ground to a halt trying to run this game (which runs at a blur otherwise, when it runs )

It is a WIP, so it might be good to check out for that and a few other things.

[shooraijin]

Good point. This dual Power Mac G4 has cycles to spare ... but other systems might not.

[Arnobius]

Good point. This dual Power Mac G4 has cycles to spare ... but other systems might not.

I have an Athlon 64 3700+ with XP Pro, though I've seen some games like Grandia kick up the CPU usage to 100%. I should give it a try though if it can handle issues like soundcards. My copy of Princess Maker works (sort of) but the game can't even address the modern sound cards, so it becomes a silent movie. Do you know if dosbox can deal with that issue?

[shooraijin]

DOSBOX emulates a plain jane Sound Blaster (Pro?) as I recall, so that shouldn't be a big deal as long as the app is compatible with DOSBOX to begin with.

[Warrior 4 Jesus]

Ok, got the computer reformated, installed Direct X again, installed indeo codecs and now Driver and Croc 2 run! Yeah! Now I just have to try the other old games.

[Arnobius]

DOSBOX emulates a plain jane Sound Blaster (Pro?) as I recall, so that shouldn't be a big deal as long as the app is compatible with DOSBOX to begin with.

Well, I tried to download it, but whenever I do, I get a blank window. Probably something in my security systems that I have to track down.