Starforce Ate My Baby!

madDdog67 · 09-28-06, 11:03 AM

Well, so it didn't eat my baby...but I had a very weird experience with an SHIII installation.

I bought this game at the beginning of this year...messed around with it, then kind of shelved it...didn't re-install it when I bought a new HD.

I installed the game Monday night, and played though the training missions. I passed the exam in all but the last mission, the convoy attack.

Tuesday night, I decided to patch the game to 1.3, then install some mods. I d/led the patch (I have the DVD version), installed it, and rebooted when it prompted me to. After the reboot, I tried to access the internet, but the browser page never tried to find my home page...I got an immediate "done" message. I tried rebooting a few times, to no avail. I could see the other machines on my lan, and all the machines could see the one I use. All the other machines could hit the 'net w/o any trouble. I called a buddy who's a network security guru, and we figured out that something was blocking port 80...but my firewall was off at this point, so we couldnt' figure out what was doing it. At this point I bailed and went to bed.

Yestarday, after I came home from work, I messed with it some more, w/o any success. At that point, I tried to run a few other games, and noticed that quite a few wouldn't start...I could double click the icon, but nothing happened. Then I started getting a weird sound when I clicked on any program group in the start menu...like the "ding" sound from an MS error, but repeated over and over at 100mph. At that point, I went to reboot the machine..and when it came back up, my DVD drive started making weird noises.

By this time, I half expected aliens to pop out of the computer, so I hit the reset button, popped XP into the drive, and did a reformat/reinstall.

I have NO friggin' idea what exactly happened, but everything was swimming along fine until the reboot after the 1.3 DVD patch. Does anyone here have any experience even romotely similar to mine?? I'd love to play SH III, but at this point, I'm sure as **** NOT gonna patch the game.

SteamWake · 09-28-06, 11:32 AM

Im guessing you applied the wrong patch and tore up your directory somehow.

Have you tried rolling back windows ?

mountainmanUK · 09-28-06, 11:51 AM

Yes, it sounds like you installed the wrong patch! There are different patches for the different DVD versions (Euro or US). If you apply the wrong patch, it can do some VERY strange things to your installation.

So far as a "fix", I suggest that you "roll back" Windows to a Restore Point BEFORE you applied the 1.3 patch.

You really are missing out if you DON'T get your game patched to the latest (1.4b) version!! Apart from anything else, all the latest, and best, Supermods (such as NYGM TW 2.2 and Greywolves 1.1a) are all built on a SH3 1.4b patched "base".

Just make sure you download and run the RIGHT patch for your original SH3 DVD.

Starforce probably would eat your baby, and your grandma too, but there are ways to get things working fine without worrying about Starforce, as so many SH3 fanatics have discovered!!

Good Luck, mate......don't give up!

U-104 · 09-28-06, 11:55 AM

Did your dvd drive make a sound like a bumble bee caught in it? Mine does the same thing on occasion

madDdog67 · 09-28-06, 05:40 PM

I'm *fairly* certain I d/led the US DVD patch...but then again, it was late and there were malt beverages nearby.

I did try restoring XP to a previous point, but that didnt' work. Everything is ok now, since the reformat.

I'll give it another shot...if the same weirdness ensues, it's only 17 minutes for a re-install of XP.

madDdog67 · 09-28-06, 10:08 PM

Well, so far so good...I installed the game, and patched it via the separate patcher utility that comes with the game. I'm happy to report that I have internet connectivity. Now for some mods!

09-28-06, 11:03 AM	#1
madDdog67 Loader Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: VA, USA Posts: 84 Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	Starforce Ate My Baby! Well, so it didn't eat my baby...but I had a very weird experience with an SHIII installation. I bought this game at the beginning of this year...messed around with it, then kind of shelved it...didn't re-install it when I bought a new HD. I installed the game Monday night, and played though the training missions. I passed the exam in all but the last mission, the convoy attack. Tuesday night, I decided to patch the game to 1.3, then install some mods. I d/led the patch (I have the DVD version), installed it, and rebooted when it prompted me to. After the reboot, I tried to access the internet, but the browser page never tried to find my home page...I got an immediate "done" message. I tried rebooting a few times, to no avail. I could see the other machines on my lan, and all the machines could see the one I use. All the other machines could hit the 'net w/o any trouble. I called a buddy who's a network security guru, and we figured out that something was blocking port 80...but my firewall was off at this point, so we couldnt' figure out what was doing it. At this point I bailed and went to bed. Yestarday, after I came home from work, I messed with it some more, w/o any success. At that point, I tried to run a few other games, and noticed that quite a few wouldn't start...I could double click the icon, but nothing happened. Then I started getting a weird sound when I clicked on any program group in the start menu...like the "ding" sound from an MS error, but repeated over and over at 100mph. At that point, I went to reboot the machine..and when it came back up, my DVD drive started making weird noises. By this time, I half expected aliens to pop out of the computer, so I hit the reset button, popped XP into the drive, and did a reformat/reinstall. I have NO friggin' idea what exactly happened, but everything was swimming along fine until the reboot after the 1.3 DVD patch. Does anyone here have any experience even romotely similar to mine?? I'd love to play SH III, but at this point, I'm sure as **** NOT gonna patch the game.

09-28-06, 11:55 AM	#4
U-104 Grey Wolf Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: United States Posts: 797 Downloads: 187 Uploads: 0	Did your dvd drive make a sound like a bumble bee caught in it? Mine does the same thing on occasion __________________ My heart is steadfast, O God. I will sing and make music with all my soul. Ps. 108:1 Survival of the fittest does not explain arrival of the fittest. we live in a single spoken sentence.. "God said, let there be"

09-28-06, 11:32 AM	#2
SteamWake Rear Admiral Join Date: Mar 2005 Posts: 13,224 Downloads: 5 Uploads: 0	Im guessing you applied the wrong patch and tore up your directory somehow. Have you tried rolling back windows ?

09-28-06, 11:51 AM	#3
mountainmanUK Sparky Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Blackburn, Lancashire, ENGLAND Posts: 154 Downloads: 23 Uploads: 0	Yes, it sounds like you installed the wrong patch! There are different patches for the different DVD versions (Euro or US). If you apply the wrong patch, it can do some VERY strange things to your installation. So far as a "fix", I suggest that you "roll back" Windows to a Restore Point BEFORE you applied the 1.3 patch. You really are missing out if you DON'T get your game patched to the latest (1.4b) version!! Apart from anything else, all the latest, and best, Supermods (such as NYGM TW 2.2 and Greywolves 1.1a) are all built on a SH3 1.4b patched "base". Just make sure you download and run the RIGHT patch for your original SH3 DVD. Starforce probably would eat your baby, and your grandma too, but there are ways to get things working fine without worrying about Starforce, as so many SH3 fanatics have discovered!! Good Luck, mate......don't give up!

09-28-06, 05:40 PM	#5
madDdog67 Loader Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: VA, USA Posts: 84 Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	I'm fairly certain I d/led the US DVD patch...but then again, it was late and there were malt beverages nearby. I did try restoring XP to a previous point, but that didnt' work. Everything is ok now, since the reformat. I'll give it another shot...if the same weirdness ensues, it's only 17 minutes for a re-install of XP.

09-28-06, 10:08 PM	#6
madDdog67 Loader Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: VA, USA Posts: 84 Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	Well, so far so good...I installed the game, and patched it via the separate patcher utility that comes with the game. I'm happy to report that I have internet connectivity. Now for some mods!