Installation Troubles

Oni Ryuu, the most common source for your problem with a CD version of Civ 3 Complete is, that most of these CD versions use SafeDisc and SecuROM programs as a means of copy protection. Microsoft supported this in older versions of Windows through the secdrv.sys driver. However, it was found that these two programs posed potential security threats. Beginning with Windows 10, the secdrv service can not be run or installed on a system so any older games that use these programs will no longer work. Additionally, with the September 2015 Windows Security Update KB3086255, the service has also been disabled on older Windows OSs (Vista, 7, 8, 8.1), causing these games to no longer run on these systems either. This text and more details are in the CFC thread, you can find here: https://forums.civfanatics.com/threads/civ-3-windows-update-kb3086255-safedisc.552308/

This said, there are some CD versions of Civ 3 Complete that don´t have that copy protection (Civilization Chronicles Compilation and a German Green Pepper version). Otherwise, if you were able to install Civ 3 Complete from your CD, you can try the Firaxis No-CD patch (the link to it can be found in the post with the first link of this post) or the Antal1987 patches. The No-CD patch was done by Firaxis themselves and the link to it was for many years on the home page at CFC.

Otherwise a good solution would be to wait for the next sale of Civ 3 Complete at GOG, when you can buy it for around $ 1,40 (now at € 5,39) without that problem for C3C. Steam also offers such a version, but the Steam version is haunted by a very bad labels text file that messes nearly all C3C scenarios.
 
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Thanks Civinator.
Nothing has worked yet and I really don't want a STEAM copy. I'll keep trying.

Just do as Civinator suggests with the No-CD patch or get the cheap GOG version and you should be alright :). I just upgraded back to Windows 10 myself and civ3 on steam actually feels like its running smoother than it did when I ran it back in 2015. Havent played much SP though. I remember there being a crash on the space ship screen before, but I dont get some of the steam glitches I was on launch and exit.

In my opinion labels.txt file doesnt really hurt the game. Its just a minor inconvenience in modding :). But Civinator can say what he wants. GOG does seem a bit more stable and has the PTW exe too from what I hear. Direct IP is a loss with steam and there are internet connection stability issues sometimes, but with most internets it works fine. I did have a game with a russian player that the connection was more stable through hamachi on a disc copy than playing through steam.
 
Same boat I just got it to work by deleting that KB 8 0 25566 security patch. After trying everything in the book that's what it took
 
Hi Bungus,

it´s great that you are back again! :) I still have your great mod on my pc and in my eyes you have done one of the most funniest techtrees for Civ 3 ever.

Spoiler :

 
Oh horsehocky I did do that didnt I, huh?

And a decade and a half layer I thought it about time to finish that very mod. And of course the very first thing I decided to do upon opening the biq is entirely remake the earth map to make it smaller

Glad to have a fan!
 
Oh **** I did do that didnt I, huh?

And a decade and a half layer I thought it about time to finish that very mod. And of course the very first thing I decided to do upon opening the biq is entirely remake the earth map to make it smaller

Glad to have a fan!

I think you have more fans. :)

More than ten years ago I made a tutorial in Germany about more advanced modding of Civ 3. In that tutorial I also showed the techtree of your mod in era 4 as an example about demonstrating with a lot of humor the problem of the 'techtree-overkill' in the RAR mod. There were some other civers who liked it and you can find these posts here (so the posts are in German, I think they are not difficult to understand):

https://www.civforum.de/showthread....Modding-Ecke&p=2396542&viewfull=1#post2396542
https://www.civforum.de/showthread....Modding-Ecke&p=2397006&viewfull=1#post2397006
https://www.civforum.de/showthread....Modding-Ecke&p=2397022&viewfull=1#post2397022
https://www.civforum.de/showthread....Modding-Ecke&p=2399134&viewfull=1#post2399134
https://www.civforum.de/showthread....Modding-Ecke&p=2399239&viewfull=1#post2399239
 
Hi guys
My brother tried to install the game from CD (now lost) but it didn’t work on his new PC. He then downloaded a copy from STEAM which also failed. Finally, he downloaded a copy from gog.com (recommended here) and that only allows him to access the editor.
He didn’t remove the previous instillations before attempting to install the replacement.

Does anyone have any advice for him?

P.S. I’ve had my own replacement PC for 9 months now and haven’t bothered using it because I also can’t get Civ to load on it.
 
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