Bought a new game for the PC which came today!

[vegyjones]

Installed the game, but every time I started it up,
it said that the game had encountered an Error and had to close.

I was offered the oportunity to send an error report, but declined.

I decided to uninstall and reinstall the game, but the same problem
is occuring.

Anyone know what could be causing this? Or possibly how I can fix it.

[MattR]

What was the error Vegy, did it say any more than just Encountered error? Could possibly be a video card problem. Does your's meet the minimum criteria and if so you could try downloading the latest drivers from the manufacturer's website (probably ati or nvidia) Or did it say something else?

[vegyjones]

It didn't mentio anything specific.

It downloaded something called gameshadow, which looks like it downloads game updates. I was worried about registering with that, do you think that is causing the problem?

[MattR]

Don't know what that is but I wouldn't have thought so. I seem to remember most times I've ever had a game not even load up and get an error it was video card related. Have you tried the website for the game, maybe there's a forum and other people have had the same problem? Might be worth updating your video drivers anyway if they aren't, worth a try.


EDIT: I think it used to say Fatal Exception Error.

[Win2Win]

Have you downloaded a patch for it?.....and what is the game?

[vegyjones]

The game is Hitman.

Says on the box itr works best nvidia, but I don't know what that is!

[bigcumba]

Says on the box itr works best nvidia, but I don't know what that is!

Non geek alert!

Nvidia are one of the top video card manufacturers, some games will be designed to run better on their cards than with others. You need to find out what video card you have installed. Open the PC up, take one pint water, 2 eggs, and a pound of sugar.... pour them inside.. switch the PC on, stand well clear..

on the other hand you could check out the documentation that came with the PC. What version of Windows is it running - if it's Vista that could be the problem as there are quite a few things not compatible with the new version?

[vegyjones]

No,. mine's a few years old now, an XP.

These are the system requirements.

IBM PC or 100% compatible
Microsoft Windows 98SE/2000/XP (admin rights required)
Pentium III 800 or Athlon equivalent
128 Mb RAM (Windows 98SE)
256 Mb RAM (Windows 2000/XP)
100% DirectX 8.1 compatible 32Mb 3D Accelerated Card
Windows -compatible sound card (100% DirectX 8.1 compatible)
Quad-speed (4x) CD-ROM drive
2Gb free disk space
DirectX 8.1 compatible mouse and keyboard


I've googled the problem and read things like video cards, sound cards and patches, but I have virtualy no idea what any of these mean or how you replace them. Will have a lok later on to see if they are easily replaceable.

[MattR]

First thing you need to update is DirectX which is at I think version 9.0c now. It may have updated when you installed the game, but you can check by going to the run option on the start in windows, this will bring up a small box. Type in it DXDIAG and a new window will open (may take half minute or so to finish running) Near the bottom of the new window you should see DirectX Version ???? > If it says 9.0c then that's ok. It should have come with the game if it's a new one. If not you can download it from Microsoft.

32mb card will likely not be enough to run the game for a start and that could be your problem. Check the minimum requirements on the game box and see what it says regards Video card required. Should say something like 64mb or 128mb or even 256mb graphics card required I would think.

[Win2Win]

Get the Patch here http://www.eidos.co.uk/support/index.html ....it's a file that fixes things.

[bigcumba]

Check the minimum requirements on the game box and see what it says regards Video card required. Should say something like 64mb or 128mb or even 256mb graphics card required I would think.

That's actually what Vegy posted Matt... hopefully the patch from Keith's link should sort him out.

[MattR]

That's actually what Vegy posted Matt... hopefully the patch from Keith's link should sort him out.


Yeah, I meant mb size though. I would very much doubt 32mb Graphics card would be enough these days for most games

[vegyjones]

And installing these patches and things is safe yes?


By the way, How long should a PC l;ast. Mine's probably looking at being 5 or 6 years old now.

And also, when people talk about building their own, do they mean they actualy put together all the little component thingy's inside, or do they mean they just buy a replacement box and not a new screen sort of thing!

[bigcumba]

A PC can last as long as it does what you want it to do... if you want to play the latest games though you'r looking at a much shorter lifespan unless you can upgrade easily, but for basic stuff - web browsing and a bit of word processing or that kind of thing then you could get a couple more years out of it still - unless something packs up in that time.

As for building your own - it's fairly straightforward once you have an idea what you're doing, and yes it does involve putting together all the bits inside! That way you can custom build to exactly the spec you want.

[MattR]

A BigC's says Vegy, but if you aren't comfortable with doing that then if your monitor/keyboard etc are fine and you're happy with them then you can just get an up to date computer itself, that's what I did with my last one and then got a new monitor at a later date.

There are a few sites online where you can choose what you want in it and it shows you the price of each so you can pick and choose to your choice/budget. If your mouse and keyboard are old then they probably don't have usb connections but you can get a converter although for the price of a keyboard/mouse you may as well upgrade them anway.

[GlosRFC]

No,. mine's a few years old now, an XP.

These are the system requirements.

IBM PC or 100% compatible
Microsoft Windows 98SE/2000/XP (admin rights required)
Pentium III 800 or Athlon equivalent
128 Mb RAM (Windows 98SE)
256 Mb RAM (Windows 2000/XP)
100% DirectX 8.1 compatible 32Mb 3D Accelerated Card
Windows -compatible sound card (100% DirectX 8.1 compatible)
Quad-speed (4x) CD-ROM drive
2Gb free disk space
DirectX 8.1 compatible mouse and keyboard


I've googled the problem and read things like video cards, sound cards and patches, but I have virtualy no idea what any of these mean or how you replace them. Will have a lok later on to see if they are easily replaceable.

Those are the requirements from the side of the game box. To check if your PC is compatible, go to Start, Accessories, System Tools, System Info.

The first four requirements should be seen on the opening System Summary Screen:
IBM PC - Look at the line System Type
Windows Version - OS Name/Version
Processor Spec - Processor
RAM - Scroll down and look at Total Physical Memory

You might also need to open some of the panes on the left-hand side to access the information:

Graphic card - Double-click Components, click Display and check Adapter Ram
Sound Card - Click Sound Device

To check available space Open My Computer, right-click on the C: drive and select Properties.

It's also not advisable to update the DirectX drivers unless you're sure that your particular graphics card is capable of supporting them.

Try running the game again and, this time, choosing the option of sending an error report. Two reasons for this:

1. You might be lucky enough to get a browser window opening up which tells you what the solution is
2. There should be a clickable link somewhere on the error report window which tells you what the error report contains. That can provide clues as to what the problem really is.

Hitman is an old game so it's a reasonable bet that your PC (despite its age) matches the required spec. However, almost all games bypass the standard Windows screen drivers and talk directly to the graphic card. Usually, upgrading that one component can make your PC feel like new and installing one is easier than replacing your CMOS battery. You should be able to pick up a reasonable spec 128mb graphic card for about £30 http://computing.kelkoo.co.uk/b/a/c_111601_graphics_cards.html :)

The only real decision is whether to get a PCI- or AGP-based card. That's determined by looking inside the machine. The long white adapter slots are for PCI cards. If you have a brown slot, that's for an AGP card. AGP used to offer a faster connection speed between the graphic card and the PC so, if you have an AGP slot, it's a fairly safe bet to choose an AGP card. If you only have the standard PCI slots, then you should look for a PCIexpress graphic card.

[bigcumba]

If you have a brown slot,

Yep, that'll be Vegy... :yikes:

[vegyjones]

My puter says

System Type : X86-based PC
OS Name : MW XP Home Edition
version : 5.1.2600 Service Pack 2 Build 2600

Do these look right.

Everything else looks hunky-dorey! :doh

[GlosRFC]

That looks fairly standard. Without knowing a bit more about the specific error that's being created, it's difficult to suggest a solution. But it's 95% certain it'll be related to a video card problem - insufficient graphics ram, incorrect video drivers, missing DirectX files, using software 3D instead of hardware, etc. The other 5% could be down to other system incompabilities or instability, the need for a game patch from the publisher, sound card problems, game controller problems.

You can also try clicking Start, Help and Support. Enter Games Troubleshooter in the Search bar and it should find a few options you can run through. Start with the Games and Multimedia Troubleshooter first then try the one about Getting older programs to run on XP

[GlosRFC]

This link might help too...take a look at the bit about error when it attempts to load

http://www.computerhope.com/issues/chgame.htm#02

One specific problem with the earlier Hitman installers is that, if the installation failed for any reason, it won't work properly again. You have to manually delete all the temporary files it created first. These can usually be found in a Hitman folder on your C: drive (probably under C:\Program Files) as well as in your Windows Temporary Folders. You can clean those by clicking Start, Run and entering cleanmgr then OK.

If it installs but won't play, there are a few tweaks you can do to the .ini files that might help it to work. What version of Hitman is it?

[Win2Win]

Is it the latest Hitman, or an earlier version.....latest games are very power hungry.

Right-click on the Desktop, and look in Settings, it will tell you the graphs card.

[vegyjones]

Blood Money!

I have no idea what version that is!

[Win2Win]

Pretty much recent. If the patch did not work, your video card probably isn't powerful enough.....what is it?

[GlosRFC]

Have a browse around this forum, Vegy
http://www.hitmanforum.com/forum/index.php?showforum=62

And if you know what graphics card you have (maybe check to see what it says on the card when you change the battery) see where it is in this list
http://www.hitmanforum.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=31840

[vegyjones]

Thanks again for the additional help.

Haven't tried anything yet, as I came over all queasy last night after a chicken omelette from the local chinese place :puke

Wil play about over easter using all the forementioned advice. It's a lot to go through! :ooo

[Win2Win]

Food poisoning takes 24-48hrs