Very jerky gameplay

[Vitro]

I'am glad this helped some of you. Since I encountered more problems on a more advanced game (Standard Map size, renaissance) and my movies stuttered again, I tried some other things and found another interesting tweak. By setting the PCI Latency for the AGP Card from the default 248 to 64 or 128 game performance improved further. But even this won't get rid of those mem leak or whatever starts hurting after some hours of gameplay/on bigger maps.

If you want to give this a try and dont have access to the latency timers in your BIOS, go for a tool called "PCI Latency Tool" (nomen est omen, eh?). You should be much more careful with this one, since playing around with this settings (especially in your Bios) should'nt be taken easy. Following the guidelines posted at Guru3D and some other forums regarding latency settings for Nvidia cards, 64 and 128 are clearly recommended. The tool seems safe to use.
This may only improve your gameplay and not fix the game (although we all wish it would , try at your own risk.
Just my 2 cents.

Hafe (more) fun.

 

[BlackMass]

Guys, just want to make one thing clear here.
If you have a low-end GFX card the game will be slow no matter what tweaking you do, this is cause ur GFX card doesnt have the power to handle all the graphics etc...
What i mean by low end is:

ATI
Radeon 9200 - ALL Variants

I have a Radeon 9250 - game works fine.

 

[Mr.Spock]

I have radeon 9000 and i have the same problem as discussed in this thread. I ve tried all the suggestions here, but my game is still pretty much unplayable.

 

[LordMarcus]

...or maybe any GeForce 5xxx, or any at all, and if you're experiencing jerky playback of movies, I've been doing some tweaking and have found a solution that works for me, at least.

Now, I only know of one way to get to this menu; it's the way nVidia installed it by default. Right-click on your desktop, and among the options should be one that says "nVidia Display," with a pull-down menu of its own listing the available displays. Pick the display in question, and it'll bring up the application profiles list where you can customize, well, I don't really know what all these things mean. But, there are three options that I've found can drastically affect movie playback in CivIV.

Now, I'm not picky, so I just applied my settings to the active profile "- Global Driver Settings," but you can make your own CivIV profile, if you like. "- Global Driver Setttings" has the default values for each of the options in the box below that, aptly titled "Global Driver Settings." You can leave the "View" on "Basic settings," because we only need the first two (Antialiasing/Anisotropic filtering) and the last one (Vertical Sync). By default, these three are set to "Application-controlled." Highlight any of them and you'll see a check-box for "Application-controlled," plus a greyed out slider bar. Disable the check-boxes, and make sure all three of those options are set to "Off." Hit "Apply," and you're good to go!

Or, at least, I am. CivIV runs slick-as-a-whistle on my Celeron 2Ghz running WinXP SP1, 1gb PC2100 DDRRAM, using a 256mb PCI GeForce FX 5500. If anybody needs any clarification, I can be reached at mkindy1@msn.com; or, if anybody out there can better explain what I've just explained, I'd be happy to hear it.

 

[LordMarcus]

Oh, and, of course, lower the graphics settings in Civ4's options menu to "Low."

And here's a graphic to help, just in case:

http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b382/LordMarcus/nvidia.gif

 

[OGGleep]

Anyone hear of any solutions yet? Any word on patch or even if they are working on this issue?

 

[Umm241]

...
What worked:
I gave it another try and selected Shader 1.4 under "DirectX->Shader Settings" (don't forget to apply your new settings!), crossed my fingers and started the game again. Even on the huge Earth map, it didnt lag anymore as before and was playable, without any glitches, even with all details set to high.
(If this doesnt help on the first run, try deleting the "CivilizationIV.ini", or make a copy of the folder "Sid Meier's Civilization 4" within "My Documents\...\My Games\", delete the original - savegames may be moved afterwards - and start the game again )
...

This worked near perfectly for me. I've been waiting to really play this game waiting for a fix, and now I can play! Yes! Only problem is the colors are kind of... off. But who gives a crap, I can play without lag!

 

[Gato Loco]

While looking for alternate drivres for my video card, a Nvidia Geforce2 GO, I stumbled accross a review (from 2001) that made it sound like it was the first notebook video card to have T+L capability. Can anyone confirm or deny this? If so, I may be in possession of one of the oldest notebooks (4.5 years) able to run civ4. And since no one's written drivers for the thing in the last few years, I apparently don't have to deal with all the usual Nvidia craziness brought on by modern drivers. The irony is, it doesn't run all that badly if I disable the sound, turn down the graphics, and edit the config file. The framerate's now over 1 per second even if I zoom out, and the game usually recovers from intraturn freezups. Stupid runtime errors won't go away, though actually when combined with regular autosaves, runtime errors are a great cure for 4am one-more-turn syndrome.

So, the lesson here is if your current Nvidia card doesn't get along with Civ4, dig up a vintage 2001 video card and see if that works. I think this also puts to rest once and for all the "inadequate hardware" theory of why the game doesn't work.

 

[angelickitty]

I just got everything installed and I have yet to get any error messages but there are definitely some problems. The Take Two intro is fine but the Firaxis intro at the beginning is jerky and the sound cuts in and out. I didn't think much of it then. I started up the game and things seemed to be a little slow loading considering my computer specs but I wasn't worried. Though once the game began everything moved very slow. Tooltips were laggy, movement was laggy, the little Hit Enter to Return in the city view was laggy, etc. Sound seemed to be ok when in the game. I updated directx, did a quick windows check on my sound card which said it was fine, and uninstalled Zone Alarm.

I have a P4 2.66 ghz processor with 1 gig ram and 128 mb GeForce FX 5200 video card. My soundcard is listed as SoundMAX Integrated Digital Audio. I've never had any problems running anything on this computer. I think it's probably tied to my sound card because when I run dxdiag I get the message "could not get basic sound info." I get no errors and can play but it runs so bad I might as well not be able to play it. Has anyone else had this issue yet or does anyone know what I could do to solve it?

thanks for saving me the trip to the store to upgrade the video card i went yesterday and upgraded from 256 to 1024... it sped up the ingame speeds to almost but not quite perfect... just still has that stuttered startup music and wonders.. and loading a save/new game takes 15 minutes, but once in everything is ok... havnt found that it slows down the longer im the game like it did with civ 3

 

[Munchkinguy]

Problem: Choppy opening and wonder videos. Also, a second before they load, there are crazy coloured dots where the video eventually plays.

------------------
System Information
------------------
Time of this report: 11/12/2005, 23:02:00
Machine name: CLKWS-MYNARSKI2
Operating System: Windows XP Professional (5.1, Build 2600) Service Pack 2 (2600.xpsp_sp2_gdr.050301-1519)
Language: English (Regional Setting: English)
System Manufacturer: Compaq
System Model: DSDT
BIOS: 686Y2 v3.04
Processor: Intel(R) Pentium(R) 4 CPU 1.70GHz
Memory: 256MB RAM
Page File: 271MB used, 346MB available
Windows Dir: C:\WINDOWS
DirectX Version: DirectX 9.0c (4.09.0000.0904)
DX Setup Parameters: Not found
DxDiag Version: 5.03.2600.2180 32bit Unicode

------------
DxDiag Notes
------------
DirectX Files Tab: The file d3d9d.dll is a debug version, which will run slower than the retail version.
Display Tab 1: No problems found.
Sound Tab 1: No problems found.
Music Tab: No problems found.
Input Tab: No problems found.
Network Tab: The registry information for the DirectPlay application 'Populous: The Beginning (Demo)' is missing or damaged. You should reinstall that application.

--------------------
DirectX Debug Levels
--------------------
Direct3D: 0/4 (retail)
DirectDraw: 0/4 (retail)
DirectInput: 0/5 (retail)
DirectMusic: 0/5 (retail)
DirectPlay: 0/9 (retail)
DirectSound: 0/5 (retail)
DirectShow: 0/6 (retail)

---------------
Display Devices
---------------
Card name: RADEON 9250
Manufacturer: ATI Technologies Inc.
Chip type: RADEON 9250 AGP (0x5960)
DAC type: Internal DAC(400MHz)
Device Key: Enum\PCI\VEN_1002&DEV_5960&SUBSYS_01401092&REV_01
Display Memory: 128.0 MB
Current Mode: 1024 x 768 (32 bit) (60Hz)
Monitor: Default Monitor
Monitor Max Res:
Driver Name: ati2dvag.dll
Driver Version: 6.14.0010.6583 (English)
DDI Version: 9 (or higher)
Driver Attributes: Final Retail
Driver Date/Size: 10/28/2005 21:12:48, 247296 bytes
WHQL Logo'd: Yes
WHQL Date Stamp: n/a
VDD: n/a
Mini VDD: ati2mtag.sys
Mini VDD Date: 10/28/2005 21:12:31, 1391104 bytes
Device Identifier: {D7B71EE2-1A20-11CF-956A-4A21A0C2CB35}
Vendor ID: 0x1002
Device ID: 0x5960
SubSys ID: 0x01401092
Revision ID: 0x0001
Revision ID: 0x0001
Video Accel: ModeMPEG2_C ModeMPEG2_D
Deinterlace Caps: {6E8329FF-B642-418B-BCF0-BCB6591E255F}: Format(In/Out)=(YUY2,YUY2) Frames(Prev/Fwd/Back)=(0,0,1) Caps=VideoProcess_YUV2RGB VideoProcess_StretchX VideoProcess_StretchY DeinterlaceTech_PixelAdaptive
{335AA36E-7884-43A4-9C91-7F87FAF3E37E}: Format(In/Out)=(YUY2,YUY2) Frames(Prev/Fwd/Back)=(0,0,0) Caps=VideoProcess_YUV2RGB VideoProcess_StretchX VideoProcess_StretchY DeinterlaceTech_BOBLineReplicate
{6E8329FF-B642-418B-BCF0-BCB6591E255F}: Format(In/Out)=(UYVY,UYVY) Frames(Prev/Fwd/Back)=(0,0,1) Caps=VideoProcess_YUV2RGB VideoProcess_StretchX VideoProcess_StretchY DeinterlaceTech_PixelAdaptive
{335AA36E-7884-43A4-9C91-7F87FAF3E37E}: Format(In/Out)=(UYVY,UYVY) Frames(Prev/Fwd/Back)=(0,0,0) Caps=VideoProcess_YUV2RGB VideoProcess_StretchX VideoProcess_StretchY DeinterlaceTech_BOBVerticalStretch
{6E8329FF-B642-418B-BCF0-BCB6591E255F}: Format(In/Out)=(YV12,0x32315659) Frames(Prev/Fwd/Back)=(0,0,1) Caps=VideoProcess_YUV2RGB VideoProcess_StretchX VideoProcess_StretchY DeinterlaceTech_PixelAdaptive
{335AA36E-7884-43A4-9C91-7F87FAF3E37E}: Format(In/Out)=(YV12,0x32315659) Frames(Prev/Fwd/Back)=(0,0,0) Caps=VideoProcess_YUV2RGB VideoProcess_StretchX VideoProcess_StretchY DeinterlaceTech_BOBVerticalStretch
Registry: OK
DDraw Status: Enabled
D3D Status: Enabled
AGP Status: Enabled
DDraw Test Result: Not run
D3D7 Test Result: Not run
D3D8 Test Result: Not run
D3D9 Test Result: Not run

-------------
Sound Devices
-------------
Description: SoundMAX Digital Audio
Default Sound Playback: Yes
Default Voice Playback: Yes
Hardware ID: PCI\VEN_8086&DEV_2445&SUBSYS_008A0E11&REV_12
Manufacturer ID: 1
Product ID: 100
Type: WDM
Driver Name: smwdm.sys
Driver Version: 5.12.0001.3620 (English)
Driver Attributes: Final Retail
WHQL Logo'd: Yes
Date and Size: 5/27/2003 17:05:42, 578304 bytes
Other Files:
Driver Provider: Analog Devices
HW Accel Level: Full
Cap Flags: 0xB5B
Min/Max Sample Rate: 8000, 48000
Static/Strm HW Mix Bufs: 1, 0
Static/Strm HW 3D Bufs: 0, 0
HW Memory: 0
Voice Management: No
EAX(tm) 2.0 Listen/Src: No, No
I3DL2(tm) Listen/Src: No, No
Sensaura(tm) ZoomFX(tm): No
Registry: OK
Sound Test Result: Not run

---------------------
Sound Capture Devices
---------------------
Description: SoundMAX Digital Audio
Default Sound Capture: Yes
Default Voice Capture: Yes
Driver Name: smwdm.sys
Driver Version: 5.12.0001.3620 (English)
Driver Attributes: Final Retail
Date and Size: 5/27/2003 17:05:42, 578304 bytes
Cap Flags: 0x41
Format Flags: 0xCCC

-----------
DirectMusic
-----------
DLS Path: C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32\drivers\GM.DLS
DLS Version: 1.00.0016.0002
Acceleration: n/a
Ports: Microsoft Synthesizer, Software (Not Kernel Mode), Output, DLS, Internal, Default Port
SoundMAX Digital Audio, Software (Kernel Mode), Output, DLS, Internal
Microsoft MIDI Mapper [Emulated], Hardware (Not Kernel Mode), Output, No DLS, Internal
Microsoft GS Wavetable SW Synth [Emulated], Hardware (Not Kernel Mode), Output, No DLS, Internal
Registry: OK
Test Result: Not run

-------------------
DirectInput Devices
-------------------
Device Name: Mouse
Attached: 1
Controller ID: n/a
Vendor/Product ID: n/a
FF Driver: n/a

Device Name: Keyboard
Attached: 1
Controller ID: n/a
Vendor/Product ID: n/a
FF Driver: n/a

Poll w/ Interrupt: No
Registry: OK

-----------
USB Devices
-----------
+ USB Root Hub
| Vendor/Product ID: 0x8086, 0x2442
| Matching Device ID: usb\root_hub
| Service: usbhub
| Driver: usbhub.sys, 8/4/2004 00:08:42, 57600 bytes
| Driver: usbd.sys, 8/17/2001 16:03:02, 4736 bytes

----------------
Gameport Devices
----------------

------------
PS/2 Devices
------------
+ Standard 101/102-Key or Microsoft Natural PS/2 Keyboard
| Matching Device ID: *pnp0303
| Service: i8042prt
| Driver: i8042prt.sys, 8/4/2004 00:14:36, 52736 bytes
| Driver: kbdclass.sys, 8/3/2004 23:58:32, 24576 bytes
|
+ Terminal Server Keyboard Driver
| Matching Device ID: root\rdp_kbd
| Upper Filters: kbdclass
| Service: TermDD
| Driver: termdd.sys, 8/4/2004 02:01:07, 40840 bytes
| Driver: kbdclass.sys, 8/3/2004 23:58:32, 24576 bytes
|
+ PS/2 Compatible Mouse
| Matching Device ID: *pnp0f13
| Service: i8042prt
| Driver: i8042prt.sys, 8/4/2004 00:14:36, 52736 bytes
| Driver: mouclass.sys, 8/3/2004 23:58:32, 23040 bytes
|
+ Terminal Server Mouse Driver
| Matching Device ID: root\rdp_mou
| Upper Filters: mouclass
| Service: TermDD
| Driver: termdd.sys, 8/4/2004 02:01:07, 40840 bytes
| Driver: mouclass.sys, 8/3/2004 23:58:32, 23040 bytes

----------------------------
DirectPlay Service Providers
----------------------------
DirectPlay8 Modem Service Provider - Registry: OK, File: dpnet.dll (5.03.2600.2180)
DirectPlay8 Serial Service Provider - Registry: OK, File: dpnet.dll (5.03.2600.2180)
DirectPlay8 IPX Service Provider - Registry: OK, File: dpnet.dll (5.03.2600.2180)
DirectPlay8 TCP/IP Service Provider - Registry: OK, File: dpnet.dll (5.03.2600.2180)
Internet TCP/IP Connection For DirectPlay - Registry: OK, File: dpwsockx.dll (5.03.2600.2180)
IPX Connection For DirectPlay - Registry: OK, File: dpwsockx.dll (5.03.2600.2180)
Modem Connection For DirectPlay - Registry: OK, File: dpmodemx.dll (5.03.2600.2180)
Serial Connection For DirectPlay - Registry: OK, File: dpmodemx.dll (5.03.2600.2180)

DirectPlay Voice Wizard Tests: Full Duplex: Not run, Half Duplex: Not run, Mic: Not run
DirectPlay Test Result: Not run
Registry: OK

-------------------
DirectPlay Adapters
-------------------
DirectPlay8 Serial Service Provider: COM1
DirectPlay8 Serial Service Provider: COM2
DirectPlay8 TCP/IP Service Provider: Local Area Connection - IPv6 - fe80::202:a5ff:fec9:ee98
DirectPlay8 TCP/IP Service Provider: Teredo Tunneling Pseudo-Interface - IPv6 - fe80::5445:5245:444f
DirectPlay8 TCP/IP Service Provider: 6to4 Tunneling Pseudo-Interface - IPv6 - 2002:8ea1:a517::8ea1:a517
DirectPlay8 TCP/IP Service Provider: Automatic Tunneling Pseudo-Interface - IPv6 - fe80::5efe:
DirectPlay8 TCP/IP Service Provider: Automatic Tunneling Pseudo-Interface - IPv6 - fe80::5efe:
DirectPlay8 TCP/IP Service Provider: Local Area Connection - IPv4 -
DirectPlay8 TCP/IP Service Provider: MTS DSL - IPv4 -

-----------------------
DirectPlay Voice Codecs
-----------------------
Voxware VR12 1.4kbit/s
Voxware SC06 6.4kbit/s
Voxware SC03 3.2kbit/s
MS-PCM 64 kbit/s
MS-ADPCM 32.8 kbit/s
Microsoft GSM 6.10 13 kbit/s
TrueSpeech(TM) 8.6 kbit/s

-------------------------
DirectPlay Lobbyable Apps
-------------------------
Hasbro's Backgammon (DX7) - Registry: OK, ExeFile: ClassicBoard.exe ()
Hasbro's Checkers (DX7) - Registry: OK, ExeFile: ClassicBoard.exe ()
Hasbro's Chess (DX7) - Registry: OK, ExeFile: ClassicBoard.exe ()
Hasbro's Connect 4 (DX7) - Registry: OK, ExeFile: ClassicBoard.exe ()
Hasbro's Cribbage (DX7) - Registry: OK, ExeFile: ClassicCard.exe (<File Missing>)
Hasbro's Dominos (DX7) - Registry: OK, ExeFile: ClassicBoard.exe ()
Hasbro's Free Parking (DX7) - Registry: OK, ExeFile: ClassicCard.exe (<File Missing>)
Hasbro's Gen Rummy (DX7) - Registry: OK, ExeFile: ClassicCard.exe (<File Missing>)
Hasbro's Hearts (DX7) - Registry: OK, ExeFile: ClassicCard.exe (<File Missing>)
Hasbro's Mille Borne (DX7) - Registry: OK, ExeFile: ClassicCard.exe (<File Missing>)
Hasbro's Parchesi (DX7) - Registry: OK, ExeFile: ClassicBoard.exe ()
Hasbro's Pente (DX7) - Registry: OK, ExeFile: ClassicBoard.exe ()
Hasbro's Racko (DX7) - Registry: OK, ExeFile: ClassicCard.exe (<File Missing>)
Hasbro's Rook (DX7) - Registry: OK, ExeFile: ClassicCard.exe (<File Missing>)
Hasbro's Spades (DX7) - Registry: OK, ExeFile: ClassicCard.exe (<File Missing>)
Populous: The Beginning (Demo) (DX7) - Registry: Error, ExeFile: ()
Sorry (DX7) - Registry: OK, ExeFile: Sorry.exe (1.03.0000.0000)

------------------------
Disk & DVD/CD-ROM Drives
------------------------
Drive: C:
Free Space: 18.1 GB
Total Space: 38.2 GB
File System: NTFS
Model: Maxtor 6E040L0

Drive: D:
Model: HL-DT-ST CD-RW GCE-8240B
Driver: c:\windows\system32\drivers\cdrom.sys, 5.01.2600.2180 (English), 8/3/2004 23:59:52, 49536 bytes

Drive: E:
Model: PIONEER DVD-RW DVR-105
Driver: c:\windows\system32\drivers\cdrom.sys, 5.01.2600.2180 (English), 8/3/2004 23:59:52, 49536 bytes

 

[Munchkinguy]

EDIT: Take 2 Support reccomends trying to install using "your other CD drive". It didn't work for me.

 

[statusperfect]

I have a Radeon 9250 - game works fine.

I have a Radeon 9250 - game lags like hell.

 

[karloslim]

I'm one of the lucky ones playing CIV 4 who can actually play the game unlike some others I've been reading on these forums. Having said that it's not all because my game suffers from bad slowdown and jerkiness particularly during combat animations. I know that it has something to do with the sound because if I turn off "sound effects" and "ambience" it's very smooth gameplay. All drivers are up to date, etc so I expect I'll just have to wait for it to be patched but if anyone has a fix then pls let me know. I read in the Readme that for sound problems they recommend using the default 2d Miles Driver but I can't select that through the menu. Any ideas?