My Thoughts on Steam vs. Original CDs

[Quintillus]

Interesting to see that link survived. As Lanzelot already said, that link only provides fixes for Vanilla and C3C. If you want a fix for PTW you have to look elsewhere - you actually gave a good hint in your third link...

D'oh. I saw the part about the latest PTW patch, but missed the last sentence in Lanzelot's post. In that case I'm stuck with the CDs for PTW, which is okay now, since my CD is no longer lost.

Yeah well, there's a problem with that first part... Also, I'll probably have to upgrade soon anyway, partly because my laptop's having more and more difficulty coping with information-heavy/ streaming websites (e.g. The Escapist), but also because WinXP stops getting supported this April

Yeah, that XP part... that's something I'll be considering later this year, too. Probably should've got the $40 Windows 8 upgrade 13 months ago so I could've used the Windows 8 license to downgrade to Windows 7 and upgrade to that, but decided to save the money. Although I'm still skeptical that Microsoft will actually retire support in April... I wouldn't be surprised if they don't, since they did the same with Windows 98 in 2004 shortly before its support was due to be retired (it was eventually retired in 2006). But even if Microsoft does retire support, I reckon I still have at least a few months after April to decide what to do. As long as you're careful with what websites you visit, and don't use IE, it's unlikely that being slightly behind on patches is going to result in an infection.

I would go to Linux, but some games like CivIII require Windows. So the most that's likely to happen is using Linux as well as Windows on the side.

 

[Bulldog Bats]

Does Civ 3 work on newer operating systems? I am thinking of picking it up on steam. What windows systems accepts it?

 

[gps]

Does Civ 3 work on newer operating systems? I am thinking of picking it up on steam. What windows systems accepts it?

No problems to run it on my Vista system. And I think there are also people around who play it on 7 or 8.

 

[CommandoBob]

Puppeteer, who started this thread, has a link in his sig on how to install C3C into Win 7. I recall him saying the same steps work in Win 8, too, but I don't remember what post that was.

 

[Scratcher]

I have installed the steam version of Civ 3 complete and would like to play the PTW version for GOTM. Can I just copy and paste a PTW exe into the PTW folder? Would this then let me play PTW with steam?

Scratcher

 

[Scratcher]

Just a word of caution. I downloaded the files provided in Lanzelot's link, and ran an AVG scan before opening and one warning came up for a trojan horse virus called Downloader Generic.

Scratcher

 

[tjs282]

I have installed the steam version of Civ 3 complete and would like to play the PTW version for GOTM. Can I just copy and paste a PTW exe into the PTW folder? Would this then let me play PTW with steam?

Assuming you're copying the PTW .exe from a (legitimate copy of a) Civ3PTW CD, depending on which disc version you use, you might also need a NoCD patch to be able to run it. Where you'd go to get that patch is your own lookout though, since the PCGames download doesn't include one (any more -- apparently it used to).

(Incidentally, that specific download -- assuming you did actually get it from the link Lanzelot supplied -- was originally supplied by Firaxis, so I think it would be reasonable to assume that AVG gave you a false positive.)

EDIT: for reading-comprehension failure

 

[Scratcher]

I've played the game since it first came out. I've bought the game at least 6 times over the years (vanilla civ, civ complete, replacement for scratched disc, replacement for broken disc, spare copy). So I was asking about copying the PTW.exe from a legitimate CD copy.

I bought the steam copy as Im working on the other side of the world from my Civ CD's. I thought I would ask if the copy of PTW exe would work before I bothered my wife to find the discs, copy the file and send it to me.

Regarding the AVG warning. I clearly said I downloaded the files from Lanzelot's link. Why would I post a warning about some random download that I found? Anyway it doesn't hurt to share. False or not.

Scratcher.

 

[Scratcher]

Pasting the (legitimate) copy of the PTW exe into the steam PTW folder doesn't work. When I click on the exe it asks for the dsc to be inserted.

Scratcher.

 

[tjs282]

Pasting the (legitimate) copy of the PTW exe into the steam PTW folder doesn't work. When I click on the exe it asks for the dsc to be inserted.

Which means that that .exe needs a NoCD patch.

If by any chance you have one of the most recent CD-editions, published by Firaxis / Take2 ('Sid Meier's Civ3 Complete', or 'Sid Meier's Civ3 Chronicles', are the names I've seen) then you might want to try the PTW .exe from that one (instead). I've seen posts from 2 different users recently which state that these .exes work under Win10 -- i.e. without SecuROM -- suggesting that they are not copy-'protected' to require the disk in the drive:

• Post 1
• Post 2

 

[Scratcher]

I'm really not sure which publisher version the PTW exe I used. I think the last copy i bought from Amazon as a spare copy was a Take 2 version, but that one is still in the plastic wrap.

Anyway, I managed to download a PTW exe, v1,29 no cd version which now starts PTW from the steam installation.

But thanks for your suggestions.

Scratcher

 

[tjs282]

Anyway, I managed to download a PTW exe, v1,29 no cd version which now starts PTW from the steam installation

AFAIK, 1.29 means Vanilla, so can I assume you rather mean 1.27 (which was the last patch-version for PtW)...?

And if so, can you (still abiding by CFC rules) tell me/us where you got a working PtW 1.27 NoCD patch...? Because there are possibly quite a few people on here who might want it -- for starters, anyone (like myself) who has a Steam-/GG-download version, as a back-up/ replacement for their CD-based version.

 

[vorlon_mi]

I am adult enough to keep my valuable original CDs and DVDs intact and working for decades. I am also adult enough to deal with CD copy protections the way it should be and the way it does not annoy me whenever I want to play a game.

While I understand this point of view, I am worried about what Microsoft has to say about it. The original CDs and DVDs -- even intact -- may stop working with Windows 10 and its successors. I have a satisfactory laptop that runs Win7, and plays all 3 Civ games that I care about -- Civ3, Civ4, and Civ5. I've stopped playing Civ2, since the primary computer I played it on ran Windows XP, and that is EOL. At some point in the next couple years, I will get a new computer that will be running Windows 10.

The *only* way for me to keep playing Civ3 on that new computer will be to buy it again, using either Gamersgate or Steam. And since I've already consented to the Steam T's and C's to play Civ5 (and a bit of Fallout 3, thanks to a Christmas present), it will probably be Steam.

Sooner or later, the old CDs will not be usable in new HW, and we all will need to decide whether we keep old HW around, just for the old games, or whether we repurchase.

 

[Scratcher]

tjs282, yes, i meant v1.27, not v1.29, the latest version.

I have sent you a PM.

Scratcher

 

[Jivilov]

I've been lurking on these forums for a long time -- and have learnt much, if slowly (thanks to you all!) -- I'm still only just starting to get to grips with Monarch on Vanilla 1.29...

On topic -- got burned recently on an Amazon purchase of a (dodgy?) Conquests CD, so would be very tempted to go the CivIIIComplete route via Steam -- if only I could trust them not to mess it up later like they messed up my HaLi/BlSh/OpFor... Because CivIII is my favourite game (having taken that honour from the original Civ), at least if you measure by the number of hours I've sunk into it...

Me too tjs, I've spent so much time yet have relatively little to show for it. After literally thousands of hours playing and researching on the forums I can now win dominations at Emperor, yet never won at higher level. Once came within 3 turns of launching the spaceship on Demigod, at which point Genghis(!?) won a culture victory--after 60 exhausting hours of play on a large map . (At Civ4 meanwhile, got one lucky spacerace Emperor win some years ago on Warlords but have never repeated, even after employing relentless whipping as per AbsoluteZero and Seriael.)

Guess Civ is like chess: Some cats got it and some cats don't. If one doesn't have the appropriate mojo (or is it IQ?) no matter of devotion, play or study can make one a master. C'est la vie. But at least one can still have fun trying.

Getting OT, once internet connections are necessary to play a game I'd say the Golden Age of gaming is over. But that's just my opinion.

Happy gaming and watch out for the barbs!