I've got the same thing. It started after I foolishly tried installing the Omega driver not realizing that my Geforce 2 card wasn't compatible. Even after reinstalling the original driver I'm stuck with the problem. I tried installing every version of the drivers for my card, setting a fixed pagefile, and turning down game settings. Since I'm not willing to reformat and reinstall everything from scratch, I'm just living with it until I get a job and thus a new computer.
p.s. Here's Take2's take on the problem:
Thank you for contacting Take 2 Technical Support.
I would recommend a few generic troubleshooting steps, just to ensure there
is no issues with the hardware or interferance from other programs.
1. Basic maintenance
Empty the temporary files folder by running disk cleanup, ensure at least
temporary files is selected. Also run disk defragmenter which will help
with the program actually starting up. Spyware can also cause issues with
the system, I would recommend downloading adaware and spybot to clear these
unwanted files.
2. OS Updates
DirectX is tightly integrated to the Microsoft OS, so a new DirectX can
expose OS problems. Here's a couple of examples from the WinXP SP2 fixes:
Quote:
Unchecked Buffer in DirectX Could Enable System Compromise
Intermittent and Unpredictable Results Occur After You Update the Audio
Driver for Sound Blaster Live!
Also, WinXP SP2 will be necessary for the Art Pack patch, so XP users
should go ahead and do it. Win2k users should be interested in any patches
relating to DirectX or hardware issues involving graphics and sound.
3. Driver Updates
For proper DirectX support get the latest recommended drivers that you are
comfortable installing. This includes video, sound and main board. This
will be fundamental source of problems until you find a baseline with
confidence.
Video Drivers are critical, but the key seems to be finding the best
driver, not necessarily the latest driver. ATI owners have reported better
results with drivers from the older Catalyst version 4.12. There are also
some comments from Take-2 about testing with older Nvidia drivers.
Also, be sure to look for video drivers from the exact card maker first, as
opposed to the generic ATI/Nvidia/S3/etc reference drivers. Some people
have solved their problems by installing drivers that are tailored for
their video card.
Old Sound Card drivers can also cause issues, possibly due to the detailed
settings found in XML files. A bad sound card driver can exhibit an XML
error!
Old main board drivers are not usually a problem, but I heard from one
person who had no AGP driver (so it was acting like PCI). If you can't run
your video card in 4x or 8x mode then check for updates.
4. DirectX Update
You must have DirectX9.0c (it comes with the game). Start the DirectX
Diagnostics (Start-Run-dxdiag) and run the Display and Sound tests to be
sure your drivers are working. Notice the options on the Display and Sound
tabs.
Also, there is a DirectX9.0c October SDK update that contains runtime debug
tools. You may get more details in your logs using this (it updates the
DirectX runtime, too).
5. System Settings
Try adjusting the various system settings that affect sound or video. For
example, look at the AGP aperature in the BIOS (video cards with less
memory need more). There are many video card options to try - Direct3D vs
OpenGL, acceleration, anti-aliasing, etc. More controls are found in the
DirectX Diagnostic (start-run-dxdiag). Some people report sucess with
turning video acceleration off then stepping it back up. Other people
report improvements from turning off sound acceleration in the Sound tab of
DxDiag.
For access to more video settings, try RivaTuner. This will access more
features available with your video card driver. In particular, try
adjusting the Pixel/Vertex Shader settings.
6. Virtual Memory
Virtual memory is space on you hard drive that is used for active memory.
When your system boots it creates the file (usually pagefile.sys). For good
performance this should be set to custom with minimum equal to the maximum.
This prevents the pagefile from becoming fragmented, which insures
consistent performance. Generally the size should be double your RAM, up to
1G. I wouldn't go higher unless you see the need for more in taskmanager.
To check your Virtual Memory settings (XP): Start - Settings - Control
Panel - System - Advanced tab - Perfomance box - Settings - Advanced tab -
Virtual Memory box - Change - Custom Size section.
If you need to change this then you should consider defragmenting first, or
you may get fragments in your pagefile. The defragger can analyze your disk
and show you where you stand. The pagefile is part of the green
(unmoveable) sections. The defragger is under Start - Settings - Control
Panel - Administrative Tools - Computer Management - Disk Defragmenter. To
speed things up you can delete and uninstall anything undesirable before
defragging.
7. Game Settings
There are reports of issues with permissions when installed in the Programs
directory. If you have severe startup problems then you could try
installing in another location (or another partion).
Try changing the game settings to reduce graphic and memory loads. There
are options for autosaves, wonder movies, etc. Window mode seems to one
person with movie stuttering.
Look in your installation directory for a file called "_Civ4Config" and
open it in notepad. Here are some selected lines of interest.
Code:
; Specify whether to play in fullscreen mode 0/1/ask
FullScreen = 1
; Specify the number of turns between autoSaves. 0 means no autosave.
AutoSaveInterval = 1
; Set to 1 for no in-game movies
NoMovies = 1
Also, be very aware of your startup resolution setting! This can cause
'Failure to Initialize' errors if it is not valid for your current
card+monitor.
