Running Windows versions of Civ4 on a Mac

[DanBalzer]

Thanks to AlanH for beginning to consolidate a lot of the discussion, but I'm intimidated by all the discussion that seems to involve fairly heavy-duty programming and I'm still searching for some pretty basic info:

There seem to be a lot of different versions of Windows XP out there, at varying price levels, and I'm not sure what would be a sufficient platform for running BTS on my Intel-based iMac. For example, Amazon.com is showing a version called "Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition SP2B for System Builders [OLD VERSION]" for $95, whereas XP Home Edition "Full Version" is $180.
Will the cheaper version work?

Also, I am gathering that I would need to upgrade my OS-X from Tiger to Leopard to be able to use Bootcamp to run Windows (and that Bootcamp seems to be the most stable way to run Windows BTS on a Mac)?

Some really *basic* instructions would be appreciated by us novices.

Thanks!

 

[AlanH]

Hi. Welcome

" ... beginning to ... "? I thought I'd finished!

The low cost version of XP "for system builders" is the OEM version. You are only licensed to run it on one hardware system, as it is only intended for shipment with a complete system. In practice, people like Amazon seem to get away with selling it with a minimal extra item of hardware, like a mouse, and sometimes they don't require any additional purchase.

The OEM version works just like the full version, but once you have registered it with Microsoft on one installation, I believe you can't then re-activate it on another system. This might be a consideration if you want to be able to move it to a new Mac some time in the future.

Bootcamp was only a beta before Leopard, and the beta expired when the full version was shipped when Leopard was released. I doubt if you can find a beta version to run with Tiger now. I refuse to reboot out of OS X just to run a game, I use Parallels, and I don't run Bootcamp. So if you need detailed instructions on installing Bootcamp you'll have to wait for someone else to come along. However, I suspect it's pretty straightforward, like most Apple installations.

 

[rabber]

I am not sure if this is basic enough, but hopefully it will help.

The first thing you need to decide is if you want to run your games in a virtual operating system using Parallels, Fusion or another solution. If you do, you purchase the program and follow their instructions on installing an operating system. Keep in mind that you have much more flexibility on the operating system installation. Running games like this, as AlanH says, eliminates the need to reboot your system. However, not all games will run or run well in a virtual environment.

If you decide to go the BootCamp route, you will need to upgrade to Leopard. Also, you can only install Windows XP SP2 and above or Vista. There are ways to deal with a SP1 installation, but as a beginner I would stay away from them. Installing BootCamp is quite easy - just follow Apple's simple instructions. Installing Windows is a pain, but no more so than any other Windows installation. You will find that your games run faster and easier this route than a virtual installation.

Hope this helps.

 

[SamuraiWarrior]

Hey, I've got this problem when I install civ 4 warlords. (I downloaded it from gamestop.com) Whenever I try to install it, it says: "a compatible version of civIV has not been found", BUT I HAVE CIV4 INSTALLED ON MY COMPUTER AND IT'S VERSION 1.74!!!!!!! Please help!!!!!!!

 

[AlanH]

Hi, Welcome

1. I assume you bought the Windows version of Warlords at Gamestop?

2. Are you running a Mac or a Windows PC?

3. If you have the Windows version of Civ4, either on a PC or a Mac, then you probably need to ask your question in the main tech support forum, as this is the Mac forum, and there are probably very few people running your combination of software around here.

4. If you have the Mac version of Civ4, then the Windows Warlords installer will not be able to recognise it, as it is not registered with Windows on your Mac.

 

[SamuraiWarrior]

Alright, thanks

 

[ChrisShaffer]

I've been unsuccessful getting BtS to run in Parallels on a MacBook Air. It's not clear from my trials if the problem is Parallels or if it is the hardware limitations of the Air.

Before I go to the trouble of installing XP on a Bootcamp partition, I'd like to know if anyone has successfully run BtS under that config? Or does anyone know one way or the other if the Air hardware is up to snuff for BtS?

 

[AlanH]

Hi ChrisShaffer. I didn't know you were a Mac user as well as a xOTM player.

I can't see why Civ4 should fail in Parallels on an Air, though I can't test it because I don't have that config. What failure symptoms do your get when you try?

Are you running the current release of Parallels, and have you enabled Direct3D support in Parallels? That's done in the Video section of the Virtual Machine Configuration - "Enable 3D acceleration". What version of Windows are you running?

 

[ChrisShaffer]

Hi Alan. I'm a promiscuous OS user. Work desktop and work laptop are Macs running Windows XP via Parallels. Home desktop is dual boot Ubuntu and Windows. I mostly use Windows at home to play Civ. I'd like to be able to play on the work laptop, especially when I'm on the road. I only own the Windows versions of Civ/Warlords/BtS.

I'll take a look at the config on the laptop and report back later today.

 

[BTSformac]

I love my mac, but i'd also love to have bts on it. Unfortunately I have already bought civ4 and warlords for mac. Is it possible (or legal) to buy and use a pc version with bootcamp without having to re-buy civ4?

 

[AlanH]

Not that I am aware of. The Mac version of Civ4 is completely different core code from the Windows version, and would not be recognised as a Windows application in Bootcamp or in any virtualisation option.

In the UK, I bought Civ4 Complete for Windows for UKP 18, about 18 months ago. That includes all three titles, and cost less than one version of Civ4 for Mac. I see that Play.com are now selling it for under UKP 10!

 

[ChrisShaffer]

I'm running Parallels 3.0 build 5626 and Windows XP Professional. BtS starts up and I get past the Init XML loader, the screen goes black, the globe spins for a while, and then I get the error "Sid Meier's Civilization 4... has encountered an error." If I click through to the error details, I get an exception report with modules and memory addresses.

 

[AlanH]

I'm running Parallels 4.0 build 3810. However, before the upgrade I was running the version you have, with Windows XP Pro SP3, and I was able to run Civ4, all variants.

After "Init XML" it should Init Engine. The failure point sounds like it occurs when the game attempts to start running the 3D display.

I assume you have installed the Parallels Tools in the VM? Have you verified that you have enabled DirectX3d? I think it was a checkbox with a different name in version 3, but it was in the Video settings for the VM.

 

[grumpylad]

Hi all, we are in the process of switching from multiple PC units to one Mac Pro and wondered if anyone has had any experience of using "Crossover" to run Civ4 Win (and FfH2 mod ideally).

In a perfect world we want to use some sort of of VM software rather than using Bootcamp.

Any thoughts or ideas?

 

[AlanH]

Crossover has trouble with the copy protection system in Civ4 that uses the DVD. There's a new release candidate that I haven't checked out yet. I don't know if that's fixed it. I'll give it a whirl and let you know.

If you can get Civ4 to run then FfH2 should work.

 

[ChrisShaffer]

I wanted to let you know I upgraded Parallels and now it works. Thanks for the suggestions - now I can play Civ in the hotel when I'm on work trips!

 

[Blondel58]

I've just got my new iMac and tried to play CIV Complete - BtS using Parallels 4.0 and Windows XP. The game starts and runs pretty well, but nevertheless I encountered some issues:

1. I can't save a game, since I get the message "The file doesn't exist". And I couldn't find any start save - maybe the path is broken?
2. The thing with Alt+"point on enemy unit" for calculating the combat chances doesn't work.

Does anyone have any ideas to that?

 

[AlanH]

Saving works OK here using that configuration. I use it to create starting saves for GOTMs and SGOTMs - I'll be building the BtS SGOTM 9 saves with it next week. When do you get that message?

I don't know the "alt + point to enemy unit" option. To display combat odds I select the attack unit, press 'G' for 'Go To' mode, then right click the unit I'm considering attacking. The combat odds appear in red in the bottom left area of the screen.

 

[Blondel58]

Thank you, that works. And I could now find the Saving Path too.

 

[z0wb13]

i'm thinking of building a mac mini clone, with parts from a site called newegg, bit i need some n00b advice on what kind of options there are on the software side to run BtS.

is there a way of running Wine in leopard 10.5.6, or does Wine only work for linux systems like ubuntu? also, what is a steam version of a game and does that require additional hardware emulation?

my goal would be to just have mac os, tiger or leopard, running a windows version on top of some emulation layer. i saw incoldblood has a post about running crossover here, but i've never used this and couldn't follow the descriptions. i don't want to install windows, because it's a piece of crap, and i don't play that many computer games, so i don't need or want a solution where i have to boot into windows. if somebody needs the beta version of bootcamp for tiger, it is here.

i could stand to boot into ubuntu, but don't really want to partition the hard drive because i am looking at a RAID 0 configuration. is there anyway to avoid a windows partition? processor-wise, i'm looking at an intel e5200 which is, apparently, rather easy to over-clock to 3.3Ghz, so i figure that and a decent gpu could run civ4 fast enough for me. i play civ on a hp pavilion laptop, but do almost everything else on my old mac sawtooth running tigerso, not quite enough computing power there to run newer, like, made in the past ten years, games. the only thing that i like about microsoft are their keyboards.

thanks.