Game won't start

[sfreg711]

I can't get SimCitySocieties to run.

I'm running Windows Vista Home Premium Edition, Direct X 10. I have an Intel Core 2 Quad Processor Q6600 and 3GB DDR Dual Channel Memory. I've got an NVIDIA GEFORCE 8500GT Video card with the latest drivers.

I can't get sim societies to work. When it boots I get a sound, then a black screen. If I do windows d (desktop command) then I get the following message.

I've installed the patch.

Problem Event Name: APPCRASH
Application Name: SimCitySocieties.exe
Application Version: 1.0.0.6
Application Timestamp: 4716aa5f
Fault Module Name: StackHash_8d13
Fault Module Version: 0.0.0.0
Fault Module Timestamp: 00000000
Exception Code: c0000005
Exception Offset: 02ca001a
OS Version: 6.0.6000.2.0.0.768.3
Locale ID: 1033
Additional Information 1: 8d13
Additional Information 2: cdca9b1d21d12b77d84f02df48e34311
Additional Information 3: 8d13
Additional Information 4: cdca9b1d21d12b77d84f02df48e34311

Read our privacy statement:
http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?linkid=50163&clcid=0x0409

Can you guys help with this or should I be asking for a refund? :(

[ganderson1]

Sorry, no help here, but a similar problem. I'm running XP with a 3.8 AMD processor, 3 Gb RAM, and a Geforce 7600 card, all drivers current. When I try to run the application, the launcher screen appears as it should; then when I click on "Play," the screen goes black and it locks up. Hitting Esc will dump me out to desktop.

My error report referred to "msvcr80.dll." Thinking it might be corrupted, I replaced this file, but no joy.

I went to EA tech support, who suggested I make sure no other apps were running, then empty my trash and try it again. ??? I did this, but as I expected it didn't help. Then they gave up. What IS their refund policy, btw?

[mouse]

Please both of you provide DX diag text by creating the file then attaching to your post. We will take a look to see if we can provide help in getting the game to run.

[Caddelin]

Same problem here, although in my case it doesn´t even show what the error is. It simply won´t start. It loads. It attempts to read the dvd and all of a sudden it gives up. Very frustrating.

[ganderson1]

Please both of you provide DX diag text by creating the file then attaching to your post. We will take a look to see if we can provide help in getting the game to run.

Here's mine. I'm out of ideas, so good luck and thanks in advance.

[mouse]

ganderson1 roll your video drivers back to early this year and there is something wrong with your DX diag text file it's missing some information. Make sure you have net framework installed the game won't run with it.

[ganderson1]

ganderson1 roll your video drivers back to early this year and there is something wrong with your DX diag text file it's missing some information. Make sure you have net framework installed the game won't run with it.

Nope, not there yet. I followed your recommendations one at a time. First reinstalled net framework, which did seem to be corrupted on my machine according to the "repair" install. Then tried running SCS: same deal -- launcher screen, click "Play," black screen, crash to desktop.

So I rolled my drivers back to 163.75 (dated early November, I think). Ran SCS: black screen, crash. Next I rolled back to the 93.71 drivers (from May 2007), and still SCS went black and crashed. I gotta go earlier than 93.71...??

Looking forward to playing this game, which I bought three days ago. :-)

Attaching a new DxDiag report.

[mouse]

Ok your DX report is still not reporting all the information. It should be reporting free space on your hard drive and brand name for your cd/dvd drive. Did you have any problems installing the game? Sorry to have to ask so many questions but not being able to see the computer and not getting a full DX report need more information.

[TitusTetricus]

I am in a similar situation. I got the game installed no problems, but even in the Tutotial, I get to about 10-15 buildings, crash. This is what I found from the Application log in my Event Viewer.
- System

- Provider

[ Name] Application Error

- EventID 1000

[ Qualifiers] 0

Level 2

Task 100

Keywords 0x80000000000000

- TimeCreated

[ SystemTime] 2007-11-17T16:58:14.000Z

EventRecordID 8470

Channel Application

Computer Corey-PC

Security


- EventData

SimCitySocieties.exe
1.0.0.6
4716aa5f
SimCitySocieties.exe
1.0.0.6
4716aa5f
c0000005
001c9169
a94
01c82938a993aa10

And attached is my DxDiag, I even checked to make sure it had the drive info you were looking for. Hope this helps, really would like to play the game.

[ganderson1]

Ok your DX report is still not reporting all the information. It should be reporting free space on your hard drive and brand name for your cd/dvd drive. Did you have any problems installing the game? Sorry to have to ask so many questions but not being able to see the computer and not getting a full DX report need more information.

The game installed normally, I presume. Nothing out of the ordinary occurred during installation. And the game does actually start up -- as I said before, the launcher screen appears with the big "Play" button on it. But when I click that, the screen goes black, I hear a Windows error "donk," and it takes repeated ESC hits to get out of that and back to desktop. (The error message keeps pointing a finger at "msvcr80.dll." As I said, I put a fresh version of this into my System32 folder, but perhaps it appears elsewhere...?)

I can't explain the incomplete Dx report. I just now reinstalled DirectX (from the Simcity Societies DVD). Install went normally. I ran all the tests within the DirectX Diagnostic Tool, and passed 'em all with flying colors. (New DxDiag attached.) Tried the game again after this: no good.

The only slightly out-of-the-norm thing involved here (which occurred to me only because you mentioned my cd/dvd drive) is that my cd/dvd drive/burner is external, connected via USB. (My internal one had been making a little noise recently, so I've stopped using it until I can get it looked at.) But the external drive is out-of-the-box standard (device manager lists it this way: ATAPI DVD A LH-1H18AX USB Device). Also, hard drive capacity is 200 Gb, with 47 free (that's with Simcity Societies already installed).

[mouse]

TitusTetricus your problem is a bit different and might just be a settings issue within the game. Not sure if the game has the same sort of settings as Caesar 4 since I don't have SC:S but try going into game settings turn off shadows then go into game interface and enable everything under pause for messages. Those two settings changes if those settings are there should fix you right up.

[mouse]

ganderson thanks so much and I think you have solved your own problem the external drive might be the problem. External drives have two issues 1. might have issues with secu-rom 2. doesn't spin fast enough for the copy protection of secu-rom to verify the disk. As to your DX I'm even more baffled than you are since it's still incomplete. What can you do I hear you ask you might try buy a disk drive cleaning disk sometimes when a drive is making noise it's because it's dirty. The drive cleaning disk is available at any office supply store or computer store.

[genepooldesign]

I get a black screen for about 2 seconds, then a runtime error. I've attached my DxDiag.txt.

[ganderson1]

ganderson thanks so much and I think you have solved your own problem the external drive might be the problem. External drives have two issues 1. might have issues with secu-rom 2. doesn't spin fast enough for the copy protection of secu-rom to verify the disk. As to your DX I'm even more baffled than you are since it's still incomplete. What can you do I hear you ask you might try buy a disk drive cleaning disk sometimes when a drive is making noise it's because it's dirty. The drive cleaning disk is available at any office supply store or computer store.

Well, a lot of different people are reporting this black screen syndrome; I guess maybe it's possible we all have external drives....

Anyway, with yours of the above in mind, I tried a couple of tests: 1) I used a nocd crack (purely for experimental purposes, mind!) to completely circumvent the external drive. But got the same black-screen result. 2) Uninstalled the game and reinstalled from the (noisy) internal DVD drive. And again got the same result.

So I thank you for all your attention to this, but I'm giving up. I'm going to pursue a refund through EA (though I can't imagine I will be successful). If I'm not, do enjoy my fifty bucks.

[mouse]

Black screens can have a number of causes sorry you've decided to give up.