What the heck is wrong with you people?

[padlock]

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Civ IV is a fricking disaster. Even people who manage to get it to play find numerous bugs along with memory leaks and crashes and stuttering and choppy sound and on and on and on.

It's this kind of hyperbole that completely diminishes your argument, and makes others lose any sympathy for your position.

The game has worked absolutely perfectly on my machine, which is far from top of the line (amd 2400xp, ati 9800). It's also worked perfectly for the 4 other people I know who bought it. Granted, that's not a very large sample size, but 5 out of 5 isn't bad.

It seems that the vast majority of people still experiencing probelms are attempting to play with an integrated graphics chipset without t&l, something which simply isn't meant to work.

Sure there are a relatively small number of people who do have the required hardware to play the game, and for one reason or another are experiencing problems, and they certainly should get the support they need in order to get it running That however is not at all unusual for PC games (or any PC software to be frank). To call the game a 'disaster' is ludicrous.

 

[zonk]

Sure there are a relatively small number of people who do have the required hardware to play the game, and for one reason or another are experiencing problems, and they certainly should get the support they need in order to get it running That however is not at all unusual for PC games (or any PC software to be frank). To call the game a 'disaster' is ludicrous.

I just don't think that's true at all. Sure - "frickin disaster" may be a bit of hyperbole, but come on.... the "Technical Support" forum seems to be getting far and away the most traffic and views. There are plenty of folks posting problems that meet both the min and rec'ed requirements that are having zero luck -- I'm one of them, and I'm only a vid card away from meeting the rec'ed requirements (I do meet the minimum on the card side).

I know hyperbole doesn't help -- but neither does minimizing what do seem to be serious qa issues and a real misrepresentation of minimum and rec'ed system requirements.

 

[Oceanus]

I'm still chuckling someone mentioned WoW in defense of Blizzard making 'better' games.

 

[Mr. Blonde]

It's this kind of hyperbole that completely diminishes your argument, and makes others lose any sympathy for your position.

The game has worked absolutely perfectly on my machine, which is far from top of the line (amd 2400xp, ati 9800). It's also worked perfectly for the 4 other people I know who bought it. Granted, that's not a very large sample size, but 5 out of 5 isn't bad.

It seems that the vast majority of people still experiencing probelms are attempting to play with an integrated graphics chipset without t&l, something which simply isn't meant to work.

Sure there are a relatively small number of people who do have the required hardware to play the game, and for one reason or another are experiencing problems, and they certainly should get the support they need in order to get it running That however is not at all unusual for PC games (or any PC software to be frank). To call the game a 'disaster' is ludicrous.

Bolding by me

This part does not hold true. Dark terrain issues and the resource displayment bug occur on t&l graphic cards, the whole Radeon 7500 series has this issue, as well as the GeForce 4xx series. Mentioned problems are also found on later graphic chips, just skip through the bug forum. And yes, these people have the newest software/ drivers and followed the suggestions posted by the developers.

I would expect a system meeting the requirements being able to actually run the game. My other system with a 64 MB Radeon 7500 managed to run Jedi Knight 3, Knights of the old Republic 1 and 2, Neverwinter Nights, and Warhammer 40k: Dawn of War without problems and meets the requirements for civ4, yet I see either black or white terrain (depends if I turn the AGP on or off). I never experienced this quantity and seriousness of technical bugs for vanilla game versions (and I am a PC player since 1992).
Luckily it runs on my desktop with a GeForce 6600 (it crashes my system when I exit the game).

The publisher simply rushed the release and parts of technical development/ beta testing/ bug removing were simply skipped. To call it a disaster is a bit rough as the gameplay is in my first impressions very good but I can understand people whose systems meet the requirements but the game is crashing or not working properly being quite upset because they feel cheated.

 

[cplarsen]

This game was sunk by the 3-D eye candy.

One of these days I'll remember, if it says 3-D on the box, don't buy it. Does it really add that much? In a strategy game? This game would have been great in the old iso view with a couple of zoom levels. Didn't need to have the Google Earth add-on.

And then it would have run for everybody.

Btw, seen people with top of the line systems that can't get it to run. Seen people with obsolete systems that can run it. To say this release isn't a fubared mess is to deny reality.

 

[JiggleTheHandle]

And then it would have run for everybody.

At least for the 8 middle aged old fogies who would have bought it anyway.

 

[cplarsen]

At least for the 8 middle aged old fogies who would have bought it anyway.

Just remember, we got all the money.

 

[Craterus22]

Did we all suddenly turn into "village idiots" and not be able to adapt to putting in Disk 1 instead? Are you that dumb as to not try the "other disk" when it says "please insert x disc"?

Well they did want to "broaden" thier audience

 

[avitarx]

cplarsen:
The 3-D is not just eye candy.

It also allowed for things to be done that couldn't (or not without a lot more work).

Not to say the game was not rushed, I would have much prefered a good civilapedia to earlier release, I could of even waited till next Christmas for a good civilapedia.

Quote from Slashdot interview:
10. Do you think 3D graphics will enhance gameplay? - by Anubis333
As a long time Civ player, I would have to say that I really didn't understand why it moved to 3D graphics. Will having the engine be entirely 3D in Civ IV actually add to the gameplay in any way, other than have objects occlude one another? When I say 'add to the gameplay' I mean, add to the game experience in a way 2D sprites couldn't. For example: Physics, multipls views, wind, etc.. (I have only really seen the 3D globe, and like the idea).

Soren Johnson:
Graphics succeed in a Civilization game when they provide a good representation of the world's state. Simply put, what-you-see-is-what-you-get is a lot easier with 3D than with 2D. Wonders and buildings now appear on the map, so the player doesn't need to reference an advisor screen to see which city has the Pyramids. Improvements like farms and mines animate differently depending on whether a city is working them or not. Multiple units can now be used to signify hit-points, instead of the old red/green bars. Now, most of these ideas could have been executed in 2D, but certainly with more difficulty as everything displayed in 2D requires an algorithmic system which must be built from scratch. From a pure design perspective, 3D provides an incredible amount of flexibility for free.

from here.

 

[Garand]

I have a near top-of-the-line machine, and while the game looks great, it crashes constantly. In one three hour gaming session last weekend, the game crashed no less than 5 times. My computer far exceeds the required system specs, but the game just seems to crash at random intervals for no specific reason. Just boom, game is down and I'm back to desktop. Then I just restart and load from an auto-save, but still very frustrating.

I can live with the mislabeled cd's, the miserable civilopedia, and other minor things like that... but the game crashing the way it does is ridiculous. No other piece of software gives me this trouble.

 

[cplarsen]

cplarsen:
The 3-D is not just eye candy.

It also allowed for things to be done that couldn't (or not without a lot more work).

Not to say the game was not rushed, I would have much prefered a good civilapedia to earlier release, I could of even waited till next Christmas for a good civilapedia.

Quote from Slashdot interview:
10. Do you think 3D graphics will enhance gameplay? - by Anubis333
As a long time Civ player, I would have to say that I really didn't understand why it moved to 3D graphics. Will having the engine be entirely 3D in Civ IV actually add to the gameplay in any way, other than have objects occlude one another? When I say 'add to the gameplay' I mean, add to the game experience in a way 2D sprites couldn't. For example: Physics, multipls views, wind, etc.. (I have only really seen the 3D globe, and like the idea).

Soren Johnson:
Graphics succeed in a Civilization game when they provide a good representation of the world's state. Simply put, what-you-see-is-what-you-get is a lot easier with 3D than with 2D. Wonders and buildings now appear on the map, so the player doesn't need to reference an advisor screen to see which city has the Pyramids. Improvements like farms and mines animate differently depending on whether a city is working them or not. Multiple units can now be used to signify hit-points, instead of the old red/green bars. Now, most of these ideas could have been executed in 2D, but certainly with more difficulty as everything displayed in 2D requires an algorithmic system which must be built from scratch. From a pure design perspective, 3D provides an incredible amount of flexibility for free.

from here.

Yeah, but they knew how to do 2-D. It's rather obvious they didn't know how to do 3-D.

Look, this is an update of a game you could play on your kitchen table with dice if you had a mind too. It's not rocket science. I just think they took it a step too far going for the gee-wiz factor instead of a stable platform that would run. As many other companies have done. The examples are legion.

Ask ol Soren Johnson how much he's getting for free from 3-D today. Bet the poor bastard is pulling his hair out.

 

[khumak]

My only complaint so far is that they put the wrong documentation in my box. My manual is in English but my quick reference card/flowchart is in French

 

[rbstansbury]

If the people responsible for releasing this do not end up facing a class action law suit for the unnecessary time, expense, and anguish they've caused people, it will be more than they deserve.

You must not buy to many games, this is a very common problem with almost all new releases. Sue them?? it will put them out of business and there will be no more Civ period. I have read that they released it early to beef up their books so that they can stay in business. I say if you do not like it return it, after all no one forced you to buy it in the first place. I'm sure there will be a patch or two to fix some of the issues people are having.

 

[lucifer316]

Well are you a qualified Gaming Programmer? Can you do a better job

ah always my favorite argument

out of curiosity do you return food at a resturant that doesnt meet with your approval and or complain about it

are you a chef

just because you dont do something doesnt mean you cant complain

you pay money for something and if it doesnt meet expectations and or what was promised then you have every right to complain about it

 

[doronron]

Jeez. The problems people are finding are compatibility issues. Think about it. If someone else has the same system specs as you and can run the game fine, then the problem is not with the game, but with your machine.

So far, for every complaint I've read on these forums that listed their specs, I've seen a similar counter post from someone with the same hardware that said they can run the game without difficulties.

The game works. The problem is with your computers.

 

[cplarsen]

Jeez. The problems people are finding are compatibility issues. Think about it. If someone else has the same system specs as you and can run the game fine, then the problem is not with the game, but with your machine.

So far, for every complaint I've read on these forums that listed their specs, I've seen a similar counter post from someone with the same hardware that said they can run the game without difficulties.

The game works. The problem is with your computers.

Ah, I see. It's the computer that's at fault. Silly me, investing thousands in this beige box. What the heck was I thinking?

Guess I'll go get the boardgame version. Sheesh, at least that one will run right out of the box…

 

[Getter1]

Jeez. The problems people are finding are compatibility issues. Think about it. If someone else has the same system specs as you and can run the game fine, then the problem is not with the game, but with your machine.

So far, for every complaint I've read on these forums that listed their specs, I've seen a similar counter post from someone with the same hardware that said they can run the game without difficulties.

The game works. The problem is with your computers.

YEA... sure... My computer can run Quake 4 and FEAR in High quality without FPS drop then why I am experiencing memory leak?
I did everything to try to make the game work.
Update Nvidia driver - already has the latest because of Quake 4
Spyware - ran Spybot and Ad-ware, nothing serious
Virus protection - using Mcafee, has live update, it is closed during game play
Close all background program - also disable any unnecessary
startup program such as those Adobe crap...
Hard drive Defragment - do it every single week
Windows update - already has the latest

I will install the game at my work computer (good to be a network admin) and see if it works. (The only thing with the work computer is it is SP1.)

 

[Reuhka]

When saying the game should be in 2D you're truly putting graphics before gameplay. If gameplay is what you care then it shouldn't matter whether it's in 2D or 3D! 3D is a standard feature anyway - if you want 2D, you want something special from graphics.

I find it hard to understand why it shouldn't be in 3D. Basicly anything that can be done with 2D, is possible with 3D. But this isn't true vice versa. Like take the camera: I don't have to endure developers weird ideas of good camera angles anymore, such as CIV III's. I can actually choose to play with CIV II angle or whatever, yet some nutcases are still allowed to use the CIV III's angle and that's a good thing.

Guess I'll go get the boardgame version. Sheesh, at least that one will run right out of the box…

If you won't count how big pain it's to take out from the box and putting it back into the box every single time you play. AI isn't all that good either, they just... are.

 

[doronron]

Ah, I see. It's the computer that's at fault. Silly me, investing thousands in this beige box. What the heck was I thinking?

Guess I'll go get the boardgame version. Sheesh, at least that one will run right out of the box…

Let me guess. You have trouble finding that on switch thingie, right?

Follow the logic. If Person A has GFX Card 1, CPU 2, and RAM 3 and cannot play the game, but Person B, with the same GFX Card, CPU, and RAM can run the game, then there's something else in Person A's machine that's causing the problem. The game does run right out of the box, the problem has something to do with Person A's machine, or rather, what Person A has done to the machine.

You go have fun with that boardgame, though. Let yourself be defeated by a videogame's instruction manual.

EDIT: @getter: This applies to you, as well. There's something you missed in your sweep.

 

[Overlag]

DVD? The specs say that it's a CD. So now we have to get a DVD drive too?

EU version is DVD. yes, you need a DVD drive, but come on, its 2005, DVD's have been out like 7 years havnt they? a CHEAP DVD drive costs £15, a CHEAP DVD-RW-/+ is under £30 now. WTH is with these CD only guys?




for those saying we got latest drivers, and it still isnt working. Have you thought about DOWNGRADING your drivers?

for instance the latest Nvidias 81.85 drivers are absolutely rubbish, unless your playing HL2/CS-S/DOD-S. try 77.05 or 77.77