Playing win98-only games on XP? - Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community

Halx · 12-04-2003, 07:48 PM

Ok, so I had this giant urge to play the old game Thief. I popped in the install disc and... it tells me that it cannot run on NT because of a Direct X weakness. I tried copying the files to my hard drive manually, but when I run it, it closes just as fast.

Compatibility mode is useless. I have never gotten a game that normally wouldn't run to be successful with the compatibility mode on.

I just wonder, is there a win98 shell for XP? Is there ANY hope for folks like me, who have a bunch of old games and no way to play them?

yodapaul · 12-04-2003, 08:12 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Halx

Compatibility mode is useless. I have never gotten a game that normally wouldn't run to be successful with the compatibility mode on.

Have you tried running the install program in Compatibility mode or just the main game file?

I had a kind of the same thing with one of my old games. It wouldn't install or run, untill I ran the installer in compatibility mode then everything ran great.

As for the emulator, I can't really help you there. Sorry.

Hope this helps.

Halx · 12-04-2003, 08:17 PM

Elementry.. heh.. doh! Ok I'm now *installing* the game.. I'll let you know if I get to play.. or maybe I won't. If you don't see me in here complaining in 10 minutes, then you are good.

Halx · 12-04-2003, 08:30 PM

ok it runs.. and I get to all the menus...
but when it tries to load the actual game.. it freezes ugh!

Pragma · 12-04-2003, 08:47 PM

If I were you, I'd check every executable you can in the Thief install directory, making sure they're all set to compat mode.

That's the only thing I can think of. I really doubt that the game is freezing up because of an issue with DX in XP - I'd think it's more of an issue of the game not wanting to let itself run.

Probably something you've already done, but: Have you checked for updates to Thief, see if there are any patches for getting it to work in XP?

phredgreen · 12-04-2003, 09:24 PM

okay... i'll ask this since it's in the same vein. i bought jedi knight: dark forces 2 for cheap, but can't use it because it is a win98 game... does win2kpro have a compatibility mode or an emu that i can run so i can play an older game? thx for answers.

juanvaldes · 12-04-2003, 09:45 PM

phred, no I'm pretty sure the compat mode is new to XP becuase it is part of the 9x upgrade path.

But like Hal said compat mode is crap and has never worked for me. :-/ As for emu, get Virtual PC and install 98 or whatever OS it needs on it.

arch13 · 12-04-2003, 09:58 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by phredgreen
okay... i'll ask this since it's in the same vein. i bought jedi knight: dark forces 2 for cheap, but can't use it because it is a win98 game... does win2kpro have a compatibility mode or an emu that i can run so i can play an older game? thx for answers.

does booting to the dos prompt via F8 and then executing the game exe work? that's what i have to do for good ol' doom.
also try opening a dos window and manually executing the program via the command line.

let us know how it works out.

charliex · 12-04-2003, 10:18 PM

http://www.ntcompatible.com/clist-All-j-All-40.html

theres a lot of useful info on whether a game works on here, but of course thats before you buy it, sometimes there are tips to get it working too, but usually just yays or nays.

also try dosbox for really really old dos games

http://dosbox.sourceforge.net/news.php?show_news=1

http://sourceforge.net/projects/vdmsound/ for sound

The only good way is make a win98 partition and use that, some games just won't behave under NT thats the penalty you pay for having a better OS.

its possible to boot win98 from a CD i've seen. http://www.heise.de/ct/english/99/11/206/

VirtualPC might work ok, but itll have issues too.

Phat Bank · 12-05-2003, 08:43 AM

Wow, do I ever sympathize with this problem! I found a copy of Final Fantasy VII for the PC a while ago at a used store. It was only $10, so I picked it up.

Before I got my Playstation, I ran the short-lived emulator that Connectix put out for the Mac. I played the game on my iMac for a week or two, but ended up in a bizarre stretch of gameplay that went on forever with no save points. I ultimately had to bail out and turn the computer off.

That experience soured me on the game, and i never went back to what I now understand to be one of the (if not THE) definitive title of the FF series. Argh!

So I buy this PC version and attempt to load it onto my XP Pro Dell PIII 600, to no avail. The game engine never loads. Now, I suspect it has quite a bit to do with the fact that I have ActiveX 9 on my machine, but FFVII asks for version 5!

Virutal PC on my Mac won't work (terrible DirectX support, though I might try it). I'll probably just end up buying the old PS1 game and run it on my PS2, but it did piss me off something fierce.

Why bother even calling it 'Compatibility Mode'?!?!

Vanquish · 12-05-2003, 01:42 PM

A few things to try, change the settings in your Video Card, maby the video card is forcing something the game doesn't like (like AA or AS) Also make sure you set all values to Lowest, I mean its a old game so all the new "extras" that make new games look awsome wont make a lick of difference

Look at your event manager and see if it will tell you what is causing the application to close, then at least you can narrow down the problem (like perhaps its a sound issue or a basic file link issue)

Change your Res to see if the game dont like a certain one

Shut down any background apps that might be causing issues

Also if your good with the registry you can change the shell of windows from Explorer.exe to ProgMan.exe it just a simple program manager that you have to set up first, it looks a lot like Win 3.1

Finally, you could always just pop an installation of Win 98 on there and dual boot the comp (this is what my friend does so he can play a few games he likes)

Look on the net, maby someone came out with a fixed exe or something that will make things work (a longshot but a possibility)

Anyway good luck with it, hope you get it to work, thief was a wicked game

I forgot, also shut off some services and see if that helps

Mr. Mojo · 12-06-2003, 07:07 AM

I had the same problem when i tried to install <b>Tribes</b> - i eventually got it to work, but the graphics sucked! i finally gave up.

hu-man · 12-10-2003, 03:47 AM

Halx, try this link:
http://www.ttlg.com/forums/showthrea...threadid=75031

That might work for you. I don't think I ever completed Thief 1, I got to some crypt and was annoyed... but Thief 2 was an amazing game, almost perfect. I must see if I can find it anywhere.

Scorpion23 · 12-11-2003, 07:58 PM

That's very strange, I have Thief on my laptop running Xp and I haven't had any problems with it.

As a side note, I installed it because it's one of the only games I can play with my 8mb video card. It might be related to something along the lines of what Vanquish said.

12-04-2003, 07:48 PM	#1 (permalink)
Halx Please touch this. Owner/Admin Location: Manhattan	Playing win98-only games on XP? Ok, so I had this giant urge to play the old game Thief. I popped in the install disc and... it tells me that it cannot run on NT because of a Direct X weakness. I tried copying the files to my hard drive manually, but when I run it, it closes just as fast. Compatibility mode is useless. I have never gotten a game that normally wouldn't run to be successful with the compatibility mode on. I just wonder, is there a win98 shell for XP? Is there ANY hope for folks like me, who have a bunch of old games and no way to play them? __________________ You have found this post informative. -The Administrator [Don't Feed The Animals]

12-04-2003, 08:17 PM	#3 (permalink)
Halx Please touch this. Owner/Admin Location: Manhattan	Elementry.. heh.. doh! Ok I'm now installing the game.. I'll let you know if I get to play.. or maybe I won't. If you don't see me in here complaining in 10 minutes, then you are good. __________________ You have found this post informative. -The Administrator [Don't Feed The Animals]

12-04-2003, 08:30 PM	#4 (permalink)
Halx Please touch this. Owner/Admin Location: Manhattan	ok it runs.. and I get to all the menus... but when it tries to load the actual game.. it freezes ugh! __________________ You have found this post informative. -The Administrator [Don't Feed The Animals]

12-04-2003, 08:47 PM	#5 (permalink)
Pragma I am Winter Born Location: Alexandria, VA	If I were you, I'd check every executable you can in the Thief install directory, making sure they're all set to compat mode. That's the only thing I can think of. I really doubt that the game is freezing up because of an issue with DX in XP - I'd think it's more of an issue of the game not wanting to let itself run. Probably something you've already done, but: Have you checked for updates to Thief, see if there are any patches for getting it to work in XP? __________________ Eat antimatter, Posleen-boy!

12-04-2003, 09:24 PM	#6 (permalink)
phredgreen who? Location: the phoenix metro	okay... i'll ask this since it's in the same vein. i bought jedi knight: dark forces 2 for cheap, but can't use it because it is a win98 game... does win2kpro have a compatibility mode or an emu that i can run so i can play an older game? thx for answers. __________________ My country is the world, and my religion is to do good. - Thomas Paine

12-04-2003, 09:45 PM	#7 (permalink)
juanvaldes Banned Location: shittown, CA	phred, no I'm pretty sure the compat mode is new to XP becuase it is part of the 9x upgrade path. But like Hal said compat mode is crap and has never worked for me. :-/ As for emu, get Virtual PC and install 98 or whatever OS it needs on it.

12-04-2003, 10:18 PM	#9 (permalink)
charliex Junkie Location: North Hollywood	http://www.ntcompatible.com/clist-All-j-All-40.html theres a lot of useful info on whether a game works on here, but of course thats before you buy it, sometimes there are tips to get it working too, but usually just yays or nays. also try dosbox for really really old dos games http://dosbox.sourceforge.net/news.php?show_news=1 http://sourceforge.net/projects/vdmsound/ for sound The only good way is make a win98 partition and use that, some games just won't behave under NT thats the penalty you pay for having a better OS. its possible to boot win98 from a CD i've seen. http://www.heise.de/ct/english/99/11/206/ VirtualPC might work ok, but itll have issues too.

12-05-2003, 08:43 AM	#10 (permalink)
Phat Bank Insane Location: Michigan	Wow, do I ever sympathize with this problem! I found a copy of Final Fantasy VII for the PC a while ago at a used store. It was only $10, so I picked it up. Before I got my Playstation, I ran the short-lived emulator that Connectix put out for the Mac. I played the game on my iMac for a week or two, but ended up in a bizarre stretch of gameplay that went on forever with no save points. I ultimately had to bail out and turn the computer off. That experience soured me on the game, and i never went back to what I now understand to be one of the (if not THE) definitive title of the FF series. Argh! So I buy this PC version and attempt to load it onto my XP Pro Dell PIII 600, to no avail. The game engine never loads. Now, I suspect it has quite a bit to do with the fact that I have ActiveX 9 on my machine, but FFVII asks for version 5! Virutal PC on my Mac won't work (terrible DirectX support, though I might try it). I'll probably just end up buying the old PS1 game and run it on my PS2, but it did piss me off something fierce. Why bother even calling it 'Compatibility Mode'?!?!

12-05-2003, 01:42 PM	#11 (permalink)
Vanquish Insane Location: Truro, Nova Scotia	A few things to try, change the settings in your Video Card, maby the video card is forcing something the game doesn't like (like AA or AS) Also make sure you set all values to Lowest, I mean its a old game so all the new "extras" that make new games look awsome wont make a lick of difference Look at your event manager and see if it will tell you what is causing the application to close, then at least you can narrow down the problem (like perhaps its a sound issue or a basic file link issue) Change your Res to see if the game dont like a certain one Shut down any background apps that might be causing issues Also if your good with the registry you can change the shell of windows from Explorer.exe to ProgMan.exe it just a simple program manager that you have to set up first, it looks a lot like Win 3.1 Finally, you could always just pop an installation of Win 98 on there and dual boot the comp (this is what my friend does so he can play a few games he likes) Look on the net, maby someone came out with a fixed exe or something that will make things work (a longshot but a possibility) Anyway good luck with it, hope you get it to work, thief was a wicked game I forgot, also shut off some services and see if that helps

12-06-2003, 07:07 AM	#12 (permalink)
Mr. Mojo Addict Location: NYC	I had the same problem when i tried to install <b>Tribes</b> - i eventually got it to work, but the graphics sucked! i finally gave up. __________________ When I jerk off I feel good for about twenty seconds and then WHAM it's right back into suicidal depression

12-10-2003, 03:47 AM	#13 (permalink)
hu-man The one that got away Location: Over the hill and far away	Halx, try this link: http://www.ttlg.com/forums/showthrea...threadid=75031 That might work for you. I don't think I ever completed Thief 1, I got to some crypt and was annoyed... but Thief 2 was an amazing game, almost perfect. I must see if I can find it anywhere.

12-11-2003, 07:58 PM	#14 (permalink)
Scorpion23 Psycho	That's very strange, I have Thief on my laptop running Xp and I haven't had any problems with it. As a side note, I installed it because it's one of the only games I can play with my 8mb video card. It might be related to something along the lines of what Vanquish said. __________________ "Empirically observed covariation is a necessary but not sufficient condition for causality" - Edward Tufte