Can't seem to get SH4 to run.

peteuplink · 11-17-09, 02:26 PM

Thanks for the reply. Guess I'll have to shelve it for now and stick to SHIII. I have noticed that the intro video on SHIII and IL2 is doing the same corrupted thing as SHIV, though. So it's looking likely that I have some kind of system glitch, but it only seems to be affecting games with a .wmv intro.

However I can play the .wmv videos on WMP. I'm not sure what the problem is.

irish1958 · 11-17-09, 04:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by peteuplink

Thanks for the reply. Guess I'll have to shelve it for now and stick to SHIII. I have noticed that the intro video on SHIII and IL2 is doing the same corrupted thing as SHIV, though. So it's looking likely that I have some kind of system glitch, but it only seems to be affecting games with a .wmv intro.

However I can play the .wmv videos on WMP. I'm not sure what the problem is.

A reinstall of a codex pack wouldn't hurt.

11-17-09, 04:57 PM

yea before you give up try installing the latest video drivers for your card OR it is possible if you recently updated your video driver you may have used the wrong one for your card since its so old.

then as "irish1958" said the game has its own codecs for the game that are extra from directx 9 and they should get installed with the game unless you tell it not to.

so i would reinstall directx 9.0c then reinstall sh4 and make sure you say yes to install the extra codecs for the game. (you dont need game shadow BTW)

if it still wont work then an upgraded video card is needed to run it. if it does work you will still have issues running it but it might at least run.

and the last thought i had is that your video card is crapping out on you and is about to fail altogether which is very possible.

Knox · 11-18-09, 12:48 AM

Hey there

,

I had pretty much the same issue with the intro's when I was on my old video card(GeForce 6200 256mb).

The intro and logo video's would show up as green/pinkish redish pixelated puke. They would swirl and stuff. However the sound played fine. I would just hit space bar to get past them.

I figured it was my video card drivers and I tried to update them, however they were not installing properly. I'd say make sure your driver's(video and sound) are up to date. or go get yourself a newer faster card.

Good luck!

peteuplink · 11-18-09, 04:56 AM

To be honest, I'm not into PC gaming as much as I used to be. It's things like this that put me off it, the fact that even if your computer does meet the recommended specs the game still isn't guaranteed to work 100% because of bugs or the multiple different configurations of PC, conflicts with anti-virus software, some plug-in you've installed for some random piece of software that you've forgotten about that's just sitting in the background and using that little bit more RAM than the game needs to run and so on. I've actually become a console convert in that last 4 years... Okay the graphics aren't as good, and FPS's and RTS's are a bit clunky on them (and there's no sub sims), but at least when you buy a game it's guaranteed to work.

I only picked SH4 up because I liked SH3 and the specs on the rear of the case say that a 256mb graphics card with pixel shader 2.0 is recommended and my card meets that no problem. Heck I can run Dragon Age: Origins, Oblivion, Flight SImulator X and a lot of other modern games. They run a little slow, but they do run. So even if my graphics card isn't fast enough to play SH4, surely the game should still run, but at a slower rate? I'm not actually that bothered about frame rates because I came to PC gaming from the Amiga and 7fps was considered good.

Anyways back to the problem at hand. On my 2nd attempt to run the game this morning, I noticed that the graphics do start to draw, (I actually got to see the interior of the sub this time), but as soon as someone spoke it reset the PC again.

Going back to graphics cards for a moment. My motherboard only has an AGP slot. Is it possible to still get a good AGP card? (everything is PCI-Exress now right?) I'm a little out of the loop concerning PC hardware because I'd pretty much turned my back on PC gaming.

peteuplink · 11-18-09, 09:12 AM

Could a power issue be the problem and cause some games to run and not others?

This morning I left mky PC downloading some updates while I sat here and read a book. There were no other sounds except the PC's fan, and I noticed that it was making a noises like it was speeding up and slowing down. Now this case used to be one of those modded ones with the neon lights and stuff in it, and I noticed a while back that sometimes the lights would dim and then the PC would either freeze or reset. I found that the cause of the problem was the connector that comes from the power supply to the motherboard was working loose. In the end i removed all the fancy lights and fixed the connector, and I'venot had a reset of the PC until I tried SH4.

I'm now wondering whether the problem has come back since the cooler fan doesn't seem to be running smoothly. Perhaps the GFX card is taking just that little bit too much power when the game starts and tipping the PC over? Any thoughts?

Seaman_Hornsby · 11-18-09, 10:49 AM

You might also try re-seating your cards. I've had problems in the past with bizarre behavior and spontaneous resets due to poorly seated graphics cards, modems, etc. Disconnect power, unseat the card, blow out the slot and re-seat the card firmly. Might help, and shouldn't hurt.

11-19-09, 12:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by peteuplink

Could a power issue be the problem and cause some games to run and not others?

This morning I left mky PC downloading some updates while I sat here and read a book. There were no other sounds except the PC's fan, and I noticed that it was making a noises like it was speeding up and slowing down. Now this case used to be one of those modded ones with the neon lights and stuff in it, and I noticed a while back that sometimes the lights would dim and then the PC would either freeze or reset. I found that the cause of the problem was the connector that comes from the power supply to the motherboard was working loose. In the end i removed all the fancy lights and fixed the connector, and I'venot had a reset of the PC until I tried SH4.

I'm now wondering whether the problem has come back since the cooler fan doesn't seem to be running smoothly. Perhaps the GFX card is taking just that little bit too much power when the game starts and tipping the PC over? Any thoughts?

what you describe definately sounds like your power supply (psu) is the problem

make sure the plug isnt overheating and melting or turning green (loose connections grow green slime, its very weird but true)

if the psu is failing its not very easy to test because it can come and go but i think you are getting voltage drops which will cause all sorts of weird issues.

insufficient power to your motherboard will cause your video to act up because an AGP system feeds power to the video card through the motherboard power supply so at this point if its not a loose plug then you should look into replacing the psu (they arent very expensive nowadays)

normally i would recommend getting a good quality psu but in your case a psu of average quality is fine since your whole computer is so old it has no resale value so investing money in it isnt smart. an average psu will cost you around $20 so why spend money on a good quality psu and pay $50 or more when the whole computers only worth $100

an old system like yours needs a 300-400watt psu so have a look at this one, it should fix your issues

350 watt psu: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817822007

11-18-09, 12:48 AM	#4
Knox Swabbie Join Date: Nov 2009 Posts: 11 Downloads: 39 Uploads: 0	Hey there, I had pretty much the same issue with the intro's when I was on my old video card(GeForce 6200 256mb). The intro and logo video's would show up as green/pinkish redish pixelated puke. They would swirl and stuff. However the sound played fine. I would just hit space bar to get past them. I figured it was my video card drivers and I tried to update them, however they were not installing properly. I'd say make sure your driver's(video and sound) are up to date. or go get yourself a newer faster card. Good luck!

11-18-09, 09:12 AM	#6
peteuplink Mate Join Date: Jun 2006 Posts: 53 Downloads: 3 Uploads: 0	Could a power issue be the problem and cause some games to run and not others? This morning I left mky PC downloading some updates while I sat here and read a book. There were no other sounds except the PC's fan, and I noticed that it was making a noises like it was speeding up and slowing down. Now this case used to be one of those modded ones with the neon lights and stuff in it, and I noticed a while back that sometimes the lights would dim and then the PC would either freeze or reset. I found that the cause of the problem was the connector that comes from the power supply to the motherboard was working loose. In the end i removed all the fancy lights and fixed the connector, and I'venot had a reset of the PC until I tried SH4. I'm now wondering whether the problem has come back since the cooler fan doesn't seem to be running smoothly. Perhaps the GFX card is taking just that little bit too much power when the game starts and tipping the PC over? Any thoughts? Last edited by peteuplink; 11-18-09 at 10:29 AM.

11-18-09, 10:49 AM	#7
Seaman_Hornsby Engineer Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Texas Posts: 203 Downloads: 71 Uploads: 0	You might also try re-seating your cards. I've had problems in the past with bizarre behavior and spontaneous resets due to poorly seated graphics cards, modems, etc. Disconnect power, unseat the card, blow out the slot and re-seat the card firmly. Might help, and shouldn't hurt. __________________ Friends, when once a man is launched on such an adventure as this, he must bid farewell to hopes and fears, otherwise death or deliverance will both come too late to save his honor and his reason.

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11-17-09, 02:26 PM	#1
peteuplink Mate Join Date: Jun 2006 Posts: 53 Downloads: 3 Uploads: 0	Thanks for the reply. Guess I'll have to shelve it for now and stick to SHIII. I have noticed that the intro video on SHIII and IL2 is doing the same corrupted thing as SHIV, though. So it's looking likely that I have some kind of system glitch, but it only seems to be affecting games with a .wmv intro. However I can play the .wmv videos on WMP. I'm not sure what the problem is.

11-17-09, 04:57 PM	#3
Webster Stowaway Posts: n/a Downloads: Uploads:	yea before you give up try installing the latest video drivers for your card OR it is possible if you recently updated your video driver you may have used the wrong one for your card since its so old. then as "irish1958" said the game has its own codecs for the game that are extra from directx 9 and they should get installed with the game unless you tell it not to. so i would reinstall directx 9.0c then reinstall sh4 and make sure you say yes to install the extra codecs for the game. (you dont need game shadow BTW) if it still wont work then an upgraded video card is needed to run it. if it does work you will still have issues running it but it might at least run. and the last thought i had is that your video card is crapping out on you and is about to fail altogether which is very possible.

11-18-09, 04:56 AM	#5
peteuplink Mate Join Date: Jun 2006 Posts: 53 Downloads: 3 Uploads: 0	To be honest, I'm not into PC gaming as much as I used to be. It's things like this that put me off it, the fact that even if your computer does meet the recommended specs the game still isn't guaranteed to work 100% because of bugs or the multiple different configurations of PC, conflicts with anti-virus software, some plug-in you've installed for some random piece of software that you've forgotten about that's just sitting in the background and using that little bit more RAM than the game needs to run and so on. I've actually become a console convert in that last 4 years... Okay the graphics aren't as good, and FPS's and RTS's are a bit clunky on them (and there's no sub sims), but at least when you buy a game it's guaranteed to work. I only picked SH4 up because I liked SH3 and the specs on the rear of the case say that a 256mb graphics card with pixel shader 2.0 is recommended and my card meets that no problem. Heck I can run Dragon Age: Origins, Oblivion, Flight SImulator X and a lot of other modern games. They run a little slow, but they do run. So even if my graphics card isn't fast enough to play SH4, surely the game should still run, but at a slower rate? I'm not actually that bothered about frame rates because I came to PC gaming from the Amiga and 7fps was considered good. Anyways back to the problem at hand. On my 2nd attempt to run the game this morning, I noticed that the graphics do start to draw, (I actually got to see the interior of the sub this time), but as soon as someone spoke it reset the PC again. Going back to graphics cards for a moment. My motherboard only has an AGP slot. Is it possible to still get a good AGP card? (everything is PCI-Exress now right?) I'm a little out of the loop concerning PC hardware because I'd pretty much turned my back on PC gaming.