Civilization III Fixes (PLEASE READ)

I have Civilization III Complete Edition version 1.22 I am running Windows 8.1 64 bit and I am trying to change the resolution to 1600x900 and have tried creating a conquests.ini file but nothing seems to work. Can anyone help me with this? Thank you. It is a download version not a STEAM version.

First of all, I don't think you need to create a Conquests.ini file. It should already be there. Next, you need to add keepRes=1 in that file and save it.
Now the game will run at the native resolution of your monitor.
Also note that the change in resolution is not noticeable on some screens in the game, for example, the start screen and the city view screen.
 
I have Civilization III Complete Edition version 1.22 I am running Windows 8.1 64 bit and I am trying to change the resolution to 1600x900 and have tried creating a conquests.ini file but nothing seems to work. Can anyone help me with this? Thank you. It is a download version not a STEAM version.
If you've just created a text file (using e.g. the template available on CFC), you need to make sure it's saved as a .ini file-type -- if file-extensions are invisible, just putting '.ini' in the filename won't be enough: Civ3 will see it as 'conquests.ini[.txt]' and treat it as a simple text-file. That said, you don't really need to create an .ini file from scratch -- the game will do that the first time you run it, creating one .ini for each version of the game that you have:
  • the Vanilla1.29 Civ3.ini will be in the root ...\Civ3Complete\
  • the Conquests1.22 Conquests.ini will be in ...\Civ3Complete\Conquests\
  • the PtW1.27 Civ3X.ini -- if your installation includes a Civ3X.exe -- will be in ...\Civ3Complete\PtW\
All you then need to do is add the necessary lines to it/them. If that's what you're trying to do, but it's still not working, the next question I'd ask is, where did you install the game? If it's in the default C:\ProgramFiles(x86)\... directory, then you may run into difficulties altering any gamefiles, because Windows treats everything in that directory as protected.

As I understand it -- and bear in mind I'm not tech-savvy! -- if you don't have Admin privileges (and possibly even if you do), any changes you make to files in that directory don't actually get saved there, the 'new' files get saved in Windows' 'VirtualStore' instead. When you then run the game, because it's only searching for files within its own installation path, it doesn't 'see' the altered .ini file in VirtualStore, so uses the unaltered default version. (NB this VirtualStore problem may also apply to your savegames, and possibly also any additional files you try to push in there, e.g. graphics mods, etc.).

If that's the case, you can spend time messing about with user-privilege settings, or you might be better off simply uninstalling and reinstalling in a non-protected location, e.g. create a directory called C:\Users\Public\Games\..., and (re)install there instead. (I chose the second option for my new Win8.1 box -- and I've also installed CivAssistII to that directory, so that it can locate savefiles easily). Once you've done that, you should be able to alter the .ini to your heart's content...

As AJ says, you can get a 'widescreen' main-map view by adding 'KeepRes=1' to your .ini, but the unit-animations may end up looking very small. And since Civ3 was originally programmed for a 4:3 aspect ratio, all of the Advisor/Civilopedia screens will stay in their original 1024 x 768 size. You might also like to try adding 'VideoMode=1200', which will(/should!) use the full height of your monitor, but keep the game in a 4:3 display.

If you want to have more dangerous Barbarians in Conquests, don't forget to add 'NoAIPatrol=0' to the Conquests .ini -- and I've also added 'PlayIntro=0' to skip the intro-movie.
 
Okay, I know this thread is an old one and likely nobody will see this, but I did not see any place else in the forum for Technical on Civilization III to post for help.

I got Civilization III Gold Edition and installed it after removing Steam account. I had Civ. III Call to Power with STEAM, but the game always failed to run right. Glitches with the diplomatic parts sound and it would crash before the game ended.
This all started after I installed Steam account and it took control of the game. Steam app. took control of all my games! So, I uninstalled Steam account and loaded Civ. III Gold on its own. Lost my Civilization III Call to Power game CD's Bummed me out totally!
I tried using the games properties, right click on game icon, and set the compatibility mode for the game to run on. I tried every compatibility mode from Windows 95, 98/ME, XP with Service Pack 2 & 3), Vista with Service Pack 1 & 2, Windows 7 & 8.
Also running each of them as administrator. Checked the Disabled fullscreen optimizations for each to try with and without.
Basically, everything I could see to try. It never launches. Simple never seems to start up at all.
Will it or any games not run without a STEAM Account now?
 
I got Civilization III Gold Edition and installed it after removing Steam account. I had Civ. III Call to Power with STEAM, but the game always failed to run right. Glitches with the diplomatic parts sound and it would crash before the game ended.
This all started after I installed Steam account and it took control of the game. Steam app. took control of all my games! So, I uninstalled Steam account and loaded Civ. III Gold on its own. Lost my Civilization III Call to Power game CD's Bummed me out totally!
I tried using the games properties, right click on game icon, and set the compatibility mode for the game to run on. I tried every compatibility mode from Windows 95, 98/ME, XP with Service Pack 2 & 3), Vista with Service Pack 1 & 2, Windows 7 & 8.
Also running each of them as administrator. Checked the Disabled fullscreen optimizations for each to try with and without.
Basically, everything I could see to try. It never launches. Simple never seems to start up at all.
Will it or any games not run without a STEAM Account now?
Are you trying to install Civ III Gold from a disc? If so, be aware that most CD-based versions of Civ III were published using the SecuROM copy-protection DRM, which required the Windows secdrv.sys driver.

However, this driver was disabled by a Microsoft security update way back in late 2015, on all Windows versions from Vista onwards. This now means that although a user can still install the game from a game-CD which uses SecuROM or SafeDisk copy-protection, the game can no longer be run, because the executable cannot recognise that the game-CD is in the drive. You can read all about that in this thread:

https://forums.civfanatics.com/threads/civ-3-windows-update-kb3086255-safedisc.552308/

But the TL: DR is that you can fix the problem in 1 of 3 ways:

(1) On WinVista to Win8.1, that particular securityupdate can be disabled and you can set your computer to refuse to reinstall it. Doing this is not recommended, and it is not even possible on Win10.

(2) A 'Patchpaket' containing legitimate NoCD-versions of the Vanilla and Conquests game executables — but not the Play the World executable, unfortunately — can still be downloaded from the German PCGames magazine website:

https://www.pcgames.de/Civilization...-Civ-3-Vollversion-Hier-gibts-Abhilfe-401682/

(3) If you don't mind repurchasing the game, a downloadable NoCD version of CivIIIComplete, which does not require Steam, is also available to buy from GOG.com for about 5 LocalCurrencyUnits — and that price is often discounted during sales (right now, at the time of posting, the GOG Summer Sale is on, and C3C is selling at 75% off: for me, it's €1.39):

https://www.gog.com/game/sid_meiers_civilization_iii_complete
 
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WOW! I figured there wasn't anything to be done about it in the least!
So, I was really tickled to get the Civilization III Fixes (PLEASE READ) Message. THANK YOU!
I think the simplest 1 of 3 fixes to do, short of installing my old Vista OS prior to that update that dismantled it, would be to buy it from the GOG.com, of which I happen to be a member of.
Best Regards, Jahmen Myst! Still can't believe I got the help I needed! Sweet!
 
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