Can't Launch Civ3 anymore

Mulva

Chieftain
Joined
Dec 6, 2020
Messages
13
Hi everyone, love this forum, longtime Civ3 player.

I decided to fire up PTW again (I don't have complete, but I'll get it sometime when I can download for free) after several months of not playing so I can continue a saved game I've almost won.

When I click the PTW icon, nothing happens. When I load the CD I get the launch screen and click "Play Civilization III" but nothing happens after that.

What am I doing wrong? Thanks!
 
It's happening again. Literally nothing happens either way of restarting.

Anywhere I can download C3C and if I do will I be able to finish this PTW game?

Any help or advice appreciated.
 
Hi everyone, love this forum, longtime Civ3 player.

I decided to fire up PTW again (I don't have complete, but I'll get it sometime when I can download for free) after several months of not playing so I can continue a saved game I've almost won.

When I click the PTW icon, nothing happens. When I load the CD I get the launch screen and click "Play Civilization III" but nothing happens after that.

What am I doing wrong? Thanks!
If you're playing from a CD-based version, then the interference may be the result of Microsoft disabling the secdrv.sys driver (in all Windows versions from Vista onwards), which is/was used by the SecuROM/SafeDisk copy-protection software (which was integrated into the CD-sourced .exe files for all 3 versions of Civ3, from most publishers). Basically, because the copy-protection function has been disabled, when the game .exe tries to authenticate your CD on startup, it hits a wall.

The secdrv.sys update originally happened way back in late 2015, but additional Windows updates since then may have bypassed that problem -- but possibly then broken it again (this is Micro$oft we're talking about, after all!). The only completely reliable fix is therefore to install a NoCD version of the affected .exe file(s) (i.e. v. 1.27 for PtW), which doesn't run the authentication process.

The downloadable versions of Civ3Complete on Steam and GOG are obviously also NoCD versions, and are usually priced at around 5 LocalCurrencyUnits (US$, Euro or Sterling, anyway: not sure about Can$/Au$/NZ$) -- but are also frequently sold at up to 75% discount, so are as close to 'free' as you can get without actually pirating the game (which, just FTR, I do not endorse!).

Unfortunately, (unless the install-packages have been updated since I last checked) those downloadable versions are missing the PtW .exe file (and AFAIK, in the case of Steam, also the Vanilla .exe), so you would need to go looking ... *ahem* ... elsewhere, to be able to play those versions...
The patch is for PTW.
(Sorry to do this again so soon, Ozy, but...)

Technically it is the Vanilla assets (and Editor) that are being patched by the 1.29f patch. Although PtW does also use the original Vanilla assets, so in that sense the 1.29f patch covers PtW as well, the PtW Editor (and all assets added in PtW) will not be affected by the 1.29f patch.

Final patch numbers for each of the .exe files (and associated assets) are:

Vanilla: 1.29
PtW: 1.27
Conquests: 1.22

Civ III "Complete" (as originally published on CD, anyway!) contained the final patch-versions of all files for all 3 versions.
 
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Cool I'll try that thanks a lot!

I've had success with clicking play on the autorun while the drive is spinning, so it may be that somehow the exe is not connecting to the drive to make it spin, but if it's already spinning it starts up. I'm on an 11-year old laptop which has been incredibly durable and I am running Win7 because I don't like Win10, though I know I'll have to break down and "upgrade" soon.

As soon as I finish this game I'll download C3C from the place you recommend, tjs, and start playing that instead.
 
I'm on an 11-year old laptop which has been incredibly durable and I am running Win7 because I don't like Win10, though I know I'll have to break down and "upgrade" soon.
:thumbsup:

My main machine is a Win8.1 desktop (which I have vague thoughts of "upgrading" to a Linux build when M$ stops supporting Win 8.1), but while on vacation, I also run Civ3 on a WinXP laptop that we bought back in 2006. Can't run the bigger mods on that one, but it's just about OK for Large epic games.
As soon as I finish this game I'll download C3C from the place you recommend, tjs, and start playing that instead.
GOG would be my recommendation. That way (if you don't have it already) you won't need to install the (horribly invasive IMHO) Steam client.

For Civ3, you might not even need to install the GOG client ("Galaxy") either, since (at least for older games) their download-packages can often be installed without it, if you know what you're doing.

Galaxy does admittedly make game-installation/patching easier, but even if you do decide/need to install it, it doesn't access GOG without your permission (AFAIK), or activate on game startup (unless you use GOG's shortcuts rather than setting up your own).
 
I downloaded it without GOG so I'll see what happens.

Is there anywhere that gives an overview of the differences between PTW and C3C? I'm seeing references to things like the agricultural trait and sugar as a bonus resource and the statute of Zeus as a wonder which I'm not familiar with.

I really appreciate everyone's help!
 
Is there anywhere that gives an overview of the differences between PTW and C3C? I'm seeing references to things like the agricultural trait and sugar as a bonus resource and the statute of Zeus as a wonder which I'm not familiar with.
You could start here:

https://forums.civfanatics.com/threads/civ3-conquests-additions-changes-list.104294/

If you have any specific questions, you can post them here:

https://forums.civfanatics.com/threads/quick-answers-newbie-questions.318752/
 
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