Radeon 9200SE-DT 128MB DDR Anyone running with this?

[al_thor]

My system:
P4 2.4
1G RAM
WinXP Pro SP2
Radeon 9200 SE-DT 128MB DDR

Game ran fine for 2 days (it's beautiful), then started crashing (not to DT - all the way down).

I installed the latest ATI driver, 8.18.
I did the unpack Art0 "patch".
I looked for, but could not locate the hidden "cache" folder.

Now the game won't start. I get the error: "GFC error: Failed to initialize the primary control theme." during the "Init Engine" step.

Is anyone successfully running the Radeon 9200?

My son's computer has a Geforce FX 5600XT (256MB). Should I swap?
I would rather get it running with my 9200, but I'm not above pirating his machine since I paid for it in the first place and in the 2nd place, he doesn't play anything that even comes close to needing that kind of card. I've been trying to get him into CivIII, but he's too interested in girls. Someday he'll learn what is truly important.

 

[ArchitectofSlee]

I'm running the ATI Mobility Radeon 9200 on my laptop. Not sure about those extra stats you added there. I've always been able to get the game to start a world, but after that, it freezes my computer within a minute. I've also never seen the terrain - just blackness. I've been working with Firaxis tech support, but so far they've only offered the advice that I update my video and audio drivers. Unfortunately, even though the dates on them are old (2004 and 2003 respectively), they are the most updated drivers for my system (Sony Vaio VGN-S170 laptop running WinXP). I actually had no trouble with the sound - just the gameplay and apparently the ubiquitous "black terrain" bug. I've said it before and I'll say it again: this game is a lemon.

 

[FruMp]

i have a 9200 SE and i get very choppy gameplay on the lowest settings. Some people have the same problem with 9600s and 9800s.

Im sure my comp is more than capable of running this game (3ghz, 512mb DDRAM, 9200 SE, XP SP 2 etc) but it is just unplayably choppy.

 

[Perikles]

I have a 9200 SE as well and have the same problem as FruMp: very laggy gameplay Haven't played more than 5 minutes on this machine, so no crashing yet. I really hope they patch this game soon.

 

[NinjaCool]

Not to burst bubbles but radeon 9200 SE is a downgraded version of a standart 9200 which is already a budget card so I do not think a patch can make the game run fast, maybe eliminate the blackness problem and such but for fast gameplay a new gfx card is probably the only solution.

al_thor: Geforce FX 5600XT is alot faster then 9200, im sure game will run fine with it.

 

[FruMp]

Not to burst bubbles but radeon 9200 SE is a downgraded version of a standart 9200 which is already a budget card so I do not think a patch can make the game run fast, maybe eliminate the blackness problem and such but for fast gameplay a new gfx card is probably the only solution.

al_thor: Geforce FX 5600XT is alot faster then 9200, im sure game will run fine with it.

I was already well aware of that, thing is my card falls withing the system requirements and on the lowest settings it should run fine - it doesnt.

 

[NinjaCool]

There was a debate earlier about how people define minimum system requirements... some said it was the lowest possible to actually get the game to run. Others meant it was for lowest gfx options to get a stable game running. I guess its a definition problem really but a general rule and advise would be to always have more then minimum requirements of a particular game.

Civ4 is a great game so I hope you guys can enjoy it fully soon

 

[al_thor]

Thanks for the feedback, guys.

Yes, I am aware that the 9200 is just an "okay" card. It runs CivIII, Half-Life2 just fine so I have had no reason to upgrade.

I will swap with the 5600XT.

Thing is, WHEN IT RAN, it was running VERY smooth - gameplay was awesome. I had none of the chop or lag or any kind of funky graphics - just good gaming. Oh well.

 

[Zailash]

I use a Geforce 8800 GTS with 320 megs and I get that exact message when I run the FFH2 0.25 mod. And only there actually

I use the lates directx and gfx card drivers, so I can't find where the problem is

anyone?


Zailash